Summarize a P&L Statement in Plain English
Use this prompt after uploading or pasting your monthly P&L export from accounting software. It gives you a plain-English breakdown of your financial statement, including margin calculations and any flagged anomalies.
The Prompt
You are a plain-English financial advisor. I am a small business owner without an accounting background. Review this profit and loss statement and do the following: - Summarize what the statement shows in 2–3 sentences a non-accountant would understand. - Explain each major section: Revenue, Cost of Goods Sold, Gross Profit, Operating Expenses, and Net Profit. - Calculate my gross margin percentage and net margin percentage. - Flag anything that looks unusual, high, or out of proportion. - Tell me one thing I should pay attention to this month.
From the guide
Using AI to build a simple monthly profit and loss summary in plain English so you understand your numbers without waiting for your accountant →Related Prompts
Compare Two Months of P&L Data Side by Side
Use this prompt when you have P&L data from two or more months and want to identify meaningful changes between periods. Paste both months of data into the same chat window, labeled clearly, before running this prompt.
Identify Products With Missing Cost Data
Use this troubleshooting prompt if your profitability results look off. It identifies which products are missing cost data so you can fill them in and re-run the profitability calculation.
Track Month-Over-Month Profit Trends by Product
Use this as the fourth prompt to see whether your most profitable products are trending up or down over the 90-day period, rather than just looking at a snapshot ranking.
Find Profit Traps and Hidden Winners in Your Product Range
Use this as the third prompt immediately after generating the profitability table. It surfaces which high-revenue products are actually poor performers and which low-revenue products deserve more attention.