--- title: "Forecast Analysis" slug: "forecast-analysis" description: "Compare forecasted vs. actual gross sales, net sales, and guest counts with variance columns side by side." updated: 2026-03-10T22:18:04Z published: 2026-03-10T22:18:04Z canonical: "docs.restaurant365.com/forecast-analysis" --- > ## 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. # Forecast Analysis The **Forecast Analysis** report provides a side‑by‑side view of forecasted and actual performance by location and date, highlighting variances in gross sales, net sales, and entree or guest counts. This report is driven by published forecasts from Weekly Forecasting (including Smart Forecasts, manual edits, and imported values) and the actual transaction data posted for each business day, By calculating both gross and net variances and clearly indicating where forecasts are missing or zeroed out, the report helps surface over‑ and under‑performance patterns that impact labor, food cost, and overall profitability. This report is designed for store and general managers, area and district leaders, and operations, finance, and analytics teams that monitor forecast accuracy and use those insights to refine forecasting processes and business decisions. --- ## Navigation ****Navigation Steps**** 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-ZY3VHVA2.png) | | Description | | --- | --- | | Filter By | A list of all filter categories. Filter categories will vary based by report. | | Filter | A list of filter options determined by the 'Filter By' category selected. | | Start | First date for which to pull data for the report. The 'Start' and 'End' parameters create the date range for the data generated. The report then displays data for all dates within the date range, including the start and end dates. | | End | Last date for which to pull data for the report. The 'Start' and 'End' parameters create the date range for the data generated. The report then displays data for all dates within the date range, including the start and end dates. | | Exclude Dates Without Saved Forecast | Determines whether the report will include or leave out any dates that do not have a published forecast. - When set to **Yes**, the report will **only** show with saved forecast data. Any dates with no forecast data or unsaved forecast data will not appear. - When set to **No,** both saved and unsaved forecasts will appear on the report. | | Group By | Determines how the report data is grouped. Data can either be grouped by locations or date. - When set to **Location**, the data will be grouped by Location with dates as a secondary sort. - When set to **Date**, the data will be grouped by Date and use alphabetical order by location as a secondary sort. | --- ## Report Layout ![](https://cdn.us.document360.io/5c9d1111-0c69-4e96-8910-d7f2750fdc9d/Images/Documentation/image-LDYLOZD4.png) | **Column** | **Description** | | --- | --- | | **Date** | Business date of the forecast and actual results. | | **Location** | Location display name; also used as a secondary sort key when grouping. | | **Metric** | What is being forecasted: **Gross**, **Net**, or **Entree**. > When the concept uses an alias for Entrees (for example, Guest), the Metric field displays the alias instead of the word Entree. | | **Forecasted Gross** | System-generated forecasted **gross sales**. This is hidden when the metric is Entree. | | **Published Gross** | Forecasted gross sales after saving/publishing the forecast. This is hidden when the metric is Entree. | | **Actual Gross** | Actual gross sales for the date and location. Actual gross sales come from the system daily sales, or DSS. This is hidden when the metric is Entree. | | **Gross Variance** | The variance of gross sales. This is calculated as **Actual Gross** minus **Published Gross**. This is hidden when the metric is Entree. | | **Forecasted Net** | System-generated **net sales** or **entree count**, depending on the metric. | | **Published Net** | Published **net sales** (pulled from the system daily sales, DSS) or **entree count** after saving/publishing the forecast. | | **Net Sales (Actual Net)** | Actual **net sales** or **entree count**. | | **Net Variance** | The variance based on the net sales. This is calculated as **Actual Net** minus **Published** **Net** for Net Sales or entree count. | --- ## 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)