Generating and customizing a report based on memo/note column
Michelle Kokus
Member
I need to generate a report based on the memo/note line based on information from the end of 2016 and 2017. I have tried to customize the report based on site instructions, but unfortunately sorting by the memo/tag line is not an option. I was able to customize the time frame of transactions I need, but unfortunately cannot further specify based on the memo line. Any assistance would be greatly appreciated!
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Comments
Here's an answer for QM2017... your solution might be to filter and search an account register or group register. Group registers are those in the sidebar that combine multiple accounts, such as "Cash" or "Banking".
... Select an account or group register
... Set the filters for the dates you want and optionally transactions type and status
... Click in the search box (upper right) then click the magnifying glass and and select Memo/Notes
... Enter your search term for the Memo/Notes field
... Click a column header to sort by that column (perhaps Memo/Notes)
You can then print this as a report sorted by date or grouped by category. Or you can export the transactions to a CSV file (menu File > Export) which you can then import into Excel or Numbers to further format and refine.
1) Select the lowest level group register in the sidebar that contains both of the accounts (e.g. Banking, Credit Cards, etc). I will assume that this group contains more accounts than just the two you are interested in.
2) Right click on each of the two accounts, select Rename "account name" and append something unique (eg. XYZ) to the end of each account name.
3) Back in the group register, click the in the search box then click the magnifying glass and select Account. (If Account is not there, then enable the Account column by clicking menu View > Columns...) Then enter XYZ in the search field. You will now only be displaying those two account's transactions.
4) Enter your date range in the custom date filter.
5) Sort by Memo and print or export.
6) When you're all done, you can re-rename the accounts to remove the XYZ at the end of the names.
Another, perhaps easier method, would be to export all the transactions from the group register for the date range you want sorted by the account column. Then open the file in Excel or Numbers, and simply delete the lines corresponding to the accounts other than the two you want. Then re-sort by Memo, format and print.
As RickO's instructions above illustrate, there are some things you can do by Searching in Quicken that you currently can't do in Reports (and visa versa). Until the Reports become more robust, we're left to try to figure out whether there are ways to get at the data we want, either within Quicken or by exporting data to a spreadsheet program.
1) This is really a perfect application for tags, so perhaps update your transactions for this year and use tags for this year forward?
2) You can filter a register using the search field for only transactions that contain certain text in the memo. You can further filter by date and status. And you can do this for a single or a group register. Then you can print or export the result, essentially making a quick report.
This capability exists in Quicken 2018, but is limited in the prior versions. However, you can likely get what you need in one of two possible ways.
In Quicken 2015-2017, you can use the "old" Category Summary report, and click the "Show Memo/Notes" box on the report screen to add this column. If you *print* the report, it shows up just as it exists on-screen; the only problem is that if you *export* the report, it inexplicably doesn't include the Memo/Notes column.
So for your example, you could use the Category Summary report, customize the date range as desired, de-select all categories and then select the category(ies) you use for dining expense, and you'd get the report you want. You can print it; the only problem is that if you export it, the Memo/Notes data is omitted.
Another possible solution for you us using the Search field in the registers to build a customer query. Let's assume some of your dining expenses come from different accounts -- some cash, some checking, some credit cards -- so first select All Banking (Quicken 2017) or Cash & Credit (Quicken 2015 & 2016) to display a register of all your transactions across multiple spending accounts. Then, if it is not already showing, add the Memo/Notes column by clicking the Columns icon on the bottom toolbar and selecting Memo/Notes. Now that this column is visible, clicking the Search box on the upper right and type "Dining" or whatever category name you use for your dining out expenses. This will find ALL your dining expenses. you'll probably want to use the dates filter to select the specific time period you want. You can now print this register as a report -- it will include the memo field -- or you can do File > Export to export all visible transactions -- which will also include the memo field.
For your issue, suggest you put the "Tag" in the Tag field instead of the Memo/Notes field. QMac does provide for filtering reports based on the Tag field contents.
Your example is a good demonstration of the usefulness of Tags.
One has to generate a report to get around the issue with split transactions.
(If you find this reply helpful, please be sure to click "Like", so others will know, thanks.)
If you find this reply helpful, please be sure to click "Like", so others will know, thanks.
(STILL using QM2007, Canadian user since '92)
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