Balance Sheet

View your company’s assets, liabilities, and equity.

A bank asks for your financial statements before approving a loan. An investor wants to see your books before writing a check. Your accountant needs a year-end snapshot for taxes. They’re all asking for the same thing: your Balance Sheet.

The Balance Sheet shows your company’s financial position at a specific point in time. What do you own? What do you owe? What’s left for the owners?

The fundamental equation

Assets = Liabilities + Equity

This equation always balances—hence “balance sheet.”

Accessing the Balance Sheet

1. Go to Reports in the sidebar
2. Click Balance Sheet
3. Select the “as of” date

Report structure

Assets

What your company owns:

Current Assets
  - Cash and Cash Equivalents
  - Accounts Receivable
  - Inventory
  - Prepaid Expenses

Long-Term Assets
  - Property and Equipment
  - Less: Accumulated Depreciation
  - Intangible Assets

= Total Assets

Liabilities

What your company owes:

Current Liabilities
  - Accounts Payable
  - Credit Cards
  - Accrued Expenses
  - Payroll Liabilities
  - Current Portion of Long-Term Debt

Long-Term Liabilities
  - Loans Payable
  - Notes Payable

= Total Liabilities

Equity

What’s left for owners:

Owner's Equity
  - Owner Contributions
  - Retained Earnings
  - Current Year Earnings
  - Owner Draws

= Total Equity

Key accounts explained

Account	Description
Cash	Money in bank accounts
Accounts Receivable	Unpaid customer invoices
Inventory	Goods held for sale
Accounts Payable	Unpaid vendor bills
Payroll Liabilities	Taxes and wages owed
Retained Earnings	Accumulated profits from prior years
Current Year Earnings	This year’s profit (links to P&L)

Date selection

The Balance Sheet shows position as of a specific date:

Option	Shows
Today	Current position
End of Last Month	Last month-end position
End of Last Quarter	Last quarter-end position
End of Last Year	Year-end position
Custom Date	Any specific date

Comparison views

Period-over-period

Compare balance sheets across time:

1. Select an “as of” date
2. Click Compare
3. Choose a previous date
4. See changes in each account

Common comparisons

Comparison	Shows
This month vs. last month	Recent changes
This quarter vs. last quarter	Quarterly trends
Year-end vs. prior year-end	Annual growth

Drill-down

Click any account to see:

• Current balance
• All transactions affecting the account
• Sub-accounts (if applicable)

Transaction detail

From account detail:

• See every debit and credit
• Jump to source documents (invoices, bills, journal entries)
• Filter by date range

Understanding equity

Owner contributions

Money invested by owners:

• Initial capital
• Additional investments
• Does NOT include profits

Retained earnings

Accumulated profits from prior years:

• Auto-calculated by Pluvel
• Rolls forward each year-end

Current year earnings

This year’s profit or loss:

• Equals your year-to-date P&L net income
• At year-end, moves to Retained Earnings

Owner draws/distributions

Money taken out by owners:

• Reduces equity
• Not an expense (doesn’t reduce profit)
• Important for personal tax planning

Export options

Format	Use Case
PDF	Share with banks, investors
Excel	Detailed analysis
CSV	Import to other systems

Scheduled reports

Send automatic Balance Sheets:

1. Click Schedule
2. Choose frequency (monthly, quarterly)
3. Select format
4. Add recipients
5. Receive on schedule

Common questions

Why doesn't my cash match my bank statement?

Possible reasons:

• Outstanding checks (issued but not cashed)
• Deposits in transit
• Unrecorded transactions
• Timing differences

Reconcile your accounts regularly to match.

What are Retained Earnings?

Retained Earnings accumulate your company’s profits (minus distributions) from all prior years. Each year-end, current year earnings roll into Retained Earnings.

Why doesn't my Balance Sheet balance?

It should always balance. If it doesn’t:

• Check for journal entry errors
• Look for one-sided transactions
• Contact support if persistent

Pluvel enforces double-entry accounting, so imbalances are rare.

How do I record depreciation?

Depreciation is recorded via journal entry:

• Debit: Depreciation Expense (P&L)
• Credit: Accumulated Depreciation (Balance Sheet)

Go to Accounting → Journal Entries to record.

Using the Balance Sheet

For loan applications

Banks want to see:

• Total assets (collateral)
• Debt-to-equity ratio
• Working capital (current assets - current liabilities)

For investors

Investors evaluate:

• Book value (total equity)
• Asset efficiency
• Leverage (debt vs. equity)

For tax planning

Track:

• Owner draws for distribution planning
• Equity for S-Corp reasonable compensation
• Asset values for depreciation

Cash Flow Statement

Track where your cash comes from and goes.