Built-in reports come ready to use — open one, set a few parameters, and read the results. Here's the routine.
Open a report
Go to Reports and pick the report you want (they're organized by area: giving, clients, volunteers, and so on). See Reports by Area for what each one shows.
Set the parameters
At the top of a report you'll see its parameters — most importantly a Date Range chip, plus any relevant filters like fund, center, source, or status. Set these first; the report recalculates to match. Always confirm the date range before you trust a total.
The Date Range chip accepts an explicit start and end date, or a preset like "1st Quarter This Year" or "Q3 Last Year" that resolves to the matching calendar quarter automatically.
Some reports, such as Unsigned Encounters, require a complete date range before they will run. Clicking Run with an incomplete or invalid range shows a validation message instead of a result, so pick both a start and end date first.
Choose a view
Most reports offer up to three views; switch between them at the top:
Dashboard — the summary: cards with counts and totals, plus charts. Best for a quick read or a leadership snapshot.
Data — the detailed grid of records behind the numbers. Group and sort it to dig in.
Trends — the numbers over time.
Export
Most built-in reports (including giving reports such as Gifts by Source) use the Export button at the top of the report. That downloads an Excel file — on Dashboard, Data, and Trends. There is not a separate PDF export for those reports.
Use Export when you need the numbers for bookkeeping, QuickBooks backup, or further filtering in a spreadsheet.
If you need a PDF for a meeting, open the Excel file and save or print it as PDF from Excel (or print the on-screen report from your browser).
A few specialized reports (for example some Love INC annual or quarterly reports) may show Print Report, which creates a PDF-style summary. That is separate from the usual Export button.
Set date range and other parameters first, then use Export or Print Report to create a report PDF. To print a record list or segment instead, like a donor or client list, use the segment's own Print button; see Printing, Labels & Envelopes.
If you see "Unable to export to Excel", wait until the report finishes loading, then try Export again. Switching to the Data view first can also help.
The Location Overview report does not have a Data view, and its Export button can open a page-not-found error instead of downloading a file. Until that's fixed, print the on-screen report from your browser instead of using Export.
Handle exports per your organization's privacy policy — they can contain sensitive information.
If a total looks off
Nine times out of ten it's the date range or a parameter — check those first. Remember reports reflect your permissions, so you only see records you're allowed to.