Raleigh Bookkeeping

Aug 1, 2025

How to Read Your P&L in 5 Minutes: Owner’s Guide

Turn your P&L into decisions: where money comes from, where it goes, and what to fix first.

Open your Profit & Loss and scan top to bottom: revenue, COGS, gross margin, operating expenses, and net profit.

  1. Revenue: compare to last month and same month last year.
  2. COGS: track as % of revenue; rising COGS means pricing or vendor action.
  3. Gross margin: benchmark vs your target.
  4. Operating expenses: highlight payroll and advertising.
  5. Net profit: confirm you’re funding taxes and reserves.

Want help building a 1-page owner’s view? Let’s talk.

Ready to tidy up your books and make decisions faster?