--- title: "Food Variance Report" slug: "food-variance-report" description: "Compare actual vs. theoretical food usage in quantity and dollars between two inventory counts with a configurable variance cap." updated: 2026-07-27T15:28:02Z published: 2026-07-27T15:28:02Z canonical: "docs.restaurant365.com/food-variance-report" stale: true --- > ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.restaurant365.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # Food Variance Report The **Food Variance** report shows actual vs theoretical numbers in terms of both quantities and dollars. In addition to the actual vs. theoretical variance, the Food Variance Report also features additional columns that display the following information: - Variance Cap - Variance After Cap - Variance Cap % - Actual After Cap - Final Variance % This data help organizations determine whether their restaurants may be under-portioning or growing food. This report provides a deeper dive into the quantity, cost, and use of each menu item to find solutions to limit the biggest food cost variances. In Beta This feature is in beta for select customers. Contact your CSM for more information. --- ## Report Prerequisites The Food Variance Report will **only** list items that are part of an **item category** that have a variance cap type applied. To do this, open the item category, then complete the following: **1) Set the **Variance Cap Type** field to **Item Category** or **Item.**** > The **Item Category** option is only available on the **Item Category 3** form. ![](https://cdn.us.document360.io/5c9d1111-0c69-4e96-8910-d7f2750fdc9d/Images/Documentation/image-IXPXMB7Q.png) Setting a Variance Cap Type will open the Variance Cap Adjustment field. **2) Set the **Variance Cap Adjustment.** This value reflects the percent of acceptable variance for how must the items in this category are allowed to grow.** ![A screenshot of a computer Description automatically generated](https://cdn.us.document360.io/5c9d1111-0c69-4e96-8910-d7f2750fdc9d/Images/Documentation/food-variance-report-image-30xmbn09.png) The report will apply the Variance Cap Adjustment to the item usage in order to calculate food variance. The method of adjustment is dependent on the **Variance Cap Type** selection. | **Item Category** | Applies the adjustment as the sum of all variances. The percent adjustment is the net of all items in the item category. This is only available for Item Category 3. | | --- | --- | | **Item** | Applies the adjustment percent at individual item usage. The percent adjustment is applied to each individual item in the category. | > Items featured in the report will respect the Variance Cap Adjustment of their **lowest** item category. --- ## Navigation The My Reports search bar can be used to search R365's entire catalog of reports. 1. Open the **Reports** app. 2. Navigate to **My Reports**. 3. Enter all or part of the report name in the **search bar**. 4. The **Results** tab will open with the list of search results. 5. From beneath the report name, click **Run** to run the report with the selected report view. -OR- Click **Customize** to adjust the report parameters and run the report. ![Overview of report options in Restaurant365 with highlighted run and customize buttons.](https://cdn.us.document360.io/5c9d1111-0c69-4e96-8910-d7f2750fdc9d/Images/Documentation/report.png) --- ## Report Parameters ![](https://cdn.us.document360.io/5c9d1111-0c69-4e96-8910-d7f2750fdc9d/Images/Documentation/image-B4DNRNRB.png) | **Field** | **Description** | | --- | --- | | Location | Location that the report is going to be run for. Only one location can be selected. The location selected will determine the inventory counts available in the **Start Count** and **End Count** fields. | | Filter to Top/Bottom 15 | Selects whether or not to sort the items by Top/Bottom 15. When **No** is selected, all the items will be listed together. When **Yes** is selected, the items are separated into Top 15 and Bottom 15 items. ![](https://cdn.us.document360.io/5c9d1111-0c69-4e96-8910-d7f2750fdc9d/Images/Documentation/food-variance-report-image-w0fa1v54.png) | | Start Count | Select an inventory count that will serve as the starting parameter for the report. > [!WARNING] > If an inventory item does not appear on the selected Start Count (for example, because it was added to inventory after that count was taken), the report will treat its beginning inventory as 0. This ensures that usage is calculated only from the selected count boundaries, rather than substituting a value from a different count. | | End Count | Select an inventory count that will serve as a closing parameter for the report. > [!WARNING] > If an inventory item does not appear on the selected End Count (for example, because it was removed from inventory before that count was taken), the report will treat its ending inventory as 0. This ensures that usage is calculated only from the selected count boundaries, rather than substituting a value from a different count. | | Item Category 1 | Select to filter to an item category 1. | | Item Category 2 | Select to filter to an item category 2. | | Item Category 3 | Select to filter to an item category 3. | | Include Additional Details | This toggle allows users to select whether to include additional details on the report. When **Yes** is selected, the report will include the following extra columns: - Var Cap % - Actl Aft Cap ![](https://cdn.us.document360.io/5c9d1111-0c69-4e96-8910-d7f2750fdc9d/Images/Documentation/food-variance-report-image-93bgi9ir.png) | | Items to Display | Allows users to include all items from various transaction types in the variance calculations for a specified date range. This ensures that the variances shown in the report accurately reflect the store's activity and performance during that time. Options include: - All Items - Counted Only - All With Transactions | | Columns | Select/deselect the columns that will be visible on the report. | --- ## **Report Columns** ![A screenshot of a document Description automatically generated](https://cdn.us.document360.io/5c9d1111-0c69-4e96-8910-d7f2750fdc9d/Images/Documentation/food-variance-report-image-hajaw03d.png) | **Column** | **Description** | | --- | --- | | Items | The list of items broken down by item category. When the **Filter to Top/Bottom 15** toggle is set to **Yes**, items will also be sorted into the Top and Bottom 15. ![](https://cdn.us.document360.io/5c9d1111-0c69-4e96-8910-d7f2750fdc9d/Images/Documentation/food-variance-report-image-iebvfs81.png) | | Cost per UofM | The cost of the item per Unit of Measure. | | **Quantity Usage** | | Theo | The theoretical quantity of the item used. | | Actl | The actual quantity of the item used. | | Var | The difference between the theoretical amount and the actual amount of the item used. | | **Dollar Usage** (QTY x Item Cost) | | Theo | The theoretical cost of the item used. | | Actl | The actual cost of the item used. | | Var | The difference between the theoretical cost and the actual cost of the item used. | | Cap | The indicated Variance Cap allowed for the item. | | Var Aft Cap | The food variance after the **Variance Cap Adjustment** has been applied. Values in **red** indicate the loss of product. | | Var Cap % | The percentage of food growth. > This column only appears when **Include Additional Details** in set to **YES** is the report parameters. | | **% of Sales** | | Theo | The percentage of theoretical sales. | | Actl | The percentage of actual sales. | | Actl Aft Cap (% of Sales) | The percentage of actual sales after the **Variance Cap Adjustment** has been applied. > This column only appears when **Include Additional Details** in set to **YES** is the report parameters. | | Final Var % | The difference between the theoretical and actual percent of sales. | --- ## **Email, Export, or Print the Report** This report can be emailed, exported, or printed in custom formatting directly from the reporting window. Learn more about how to [send, export, or print this report](/doc/docs/my-reports-send-export-or-print-reports). ![](https://cdn.us.document360.io/5c9d1111-0c69-4e96-8910-d7f2750fdc9d/Images/Documentation/image-U3S8UCR9.png) --- ### FAQ #### Why doesn't an item appear on the Food Variance Report? The report only lists items that belong to an [item category](/doc/docs/item-categories) with a Variance Cap Type applied. Open the item category, set the Variance Cap Type to Item Category or Item, then set the Variance Cap Adjustment. Items without this setup are excluded entirely. #### Why don't my spot counts show up in the Food Variance Report? This report only uses end-of-day counts from scheduled templates. Spot counts are excluded entirely, along with several other above-store and variance reports — see [Inventory Counts](/doc/docs/new-inventory-counts-overview) for the full list. #### What happens if an item doesn't appear on my selected Start Count or End Count? The report treats that item's inventory as 0 for the missing boundary rather than pulling a value from a different count. This keeps usage calculated strictly within the selected count range, but it can skew variance numbers if the item simply wasn't part of that specific count. #### What's the difference between the "Item Category" and "Item" Variance Cap Type? Item Category nets the variance across all items in the category and is only available for Item Category 3. Item applies the adjustment separately to each item's usage. See [Item Categories](/doc/docs/item-categories) for setup details on both options. #### Which Variance Cap Adjustment applies if an item belongs to multiple item categories? The report uses the Variance Cap Adjustment from the item's lowest item category (Item Category 3, then 2, then 1). Set the adjustment at the most specific category level to control exactly how that item is capped. The value recorded for an account, metric, or activity that reflects what actually occurred, not what was scheduled, estimated, ordered, planned, or forecasted. Final product sold to a customer, as defined in the POS and mapped in R365. Inventory method in which counts are performed at regular intervals to calculate usage and valuation.