Report Builder creates structured, dynamic reports using a drag-and-drop interface. The reports it produces are built from Datarails formulas, so your numbers refresh with live data. It is also a good way to explore how your database is put together and what each field contains.

With Report Builder you can:

• Structure data using parent/child or sibling connections
• Apply filters, aggregations and custom calculations
• Format reports with design and styling options
• Bring the report into Excel with live Datarails formulas

Before you start make sure

• Your data is connected to Datarails.
• You have at least one Datarails function defined, for example Value = Sum(Amount). If you do not, create one first, see Formulas.

Access the Report Builder

In the task pane, go to Get data > Report builder.

What you can do from the add-in

The list of reports

Select Manage reports to open the list. Alongside anything your team has built, Datarails ships a set of prebuilt reports you can customize for your organization.

The three-dot menu next to each report gives you:

the list of reports with the three-dot menu open, showing all four actions

• Edit: change the structure or data fields.
• Delete: remove a report you no longer need.
• Clone: duplicate a report, to use as the starting point for a new one.
• Manage: review the connected Fileboxes.

Create a report

1. Go to Get data > Report builder > Manage reports.
2. Click the plus icon to start a new report. Report Builder opens in its own window.
3. Enter a name for your report.
4. Select a function from the dropdown. Hovering over a function shows the table it is connected to.
5. Choosing a function displays all the available fields from that table.

Structure rows and columns

Drag fields from the available list into the Rows and Columns sections. You can also:

• Drag fields into Filters to narrow the data behind the whole report
• Reorder fields within Rows or Columns
• Set aggregations for date fields
• Add the same field more than once, which is how you build several views of it side by side

the Report Builder window with fields in Rows, Columns and Filters, and the preview populated

Hierarchy, a parent/child connection

A hierarchy shows data that exists in both the parent field and the child field.

1. Drag the parent field into Rows or Columns.
2. Drag the child field on top of the parent field. The parent highlights in blue.
   • In Rows, the child appears indented under the parent.
   • In Columns, it appears directly below. Each field carries its own filter icon, and a nested child also gets a parent-filter icon.
3. Use the Parent Filter to show child data for specific parent values only. For example, to show Account Level 2 detail for R&D alone rather than every department, select R&D in the Parent Filter. Income then shows its account detail while the other departments stay at their summary level.

Siblings connection

A siblings connection shows data that exists in either field, A or B. To create a sibling connection:

1. Drag field A into Rows or Columns.
2. Drag field B directly above or below field A.
3. Sibling fields appear one after another in the preview, with no indentation. The same two fields side by side rather than nested give you a flat list and a different grand total, because the values are counted once each rather than broken out inside their parent.

Example use cases:

• Actuals for a full year next to budget for the last month only, by bringing Scenario in twice and filtering each one differently.
• Account Level 2 detail for income and department detail for expenses.

Totals, subtotals and zero suppression

Click the three-dot icon on a row or column to:

• Show total, the total of the row or column values
• Show subtotal, subtotals within grouped data
• Position the subtotal, at the top or bottom of a group
• Enable zero suppression, hiding rows or columns where every value is blank

Filters and aggregations on a field

Each field in Rows or Columns carries its own controls, separate from the report-wide Filters section:

• Filter: include or exclude individual values of that field. This is how you drop Null from a date field, or show only certain years.
• Aggregation: for date fields, roll the values up, for example into quarters, year-to-date or full year.

To show more than one aggregation at once, add the date field several times. Bringing Reporting Month in three times lets you show quarter, year-to-date and full year in the same report.

Custom rows and columns

You could add a variance column with an ordinary Excel formula after the fact, but building it in Report Builder is usually better:

• Rows are added and removed automatically when the report is refreshed or restructured.
• There is no risk of a typo in a hand-written formula.
• Datarails wraps the result in IFERROR() and applies conditional formatting for you.
• The calculation is saved with the report, so you can reuse and edit it later.

To add one:

1. Click the Add custom row or Add custom column icon.
2. Enter a name, then define the formula. Clicking the formula area shows the values available to use, and typing part of a column name narrows the list, so typing 20 in a report with 2022 and 2021 columns offers [2022] and [2021].
3. Complete the formula, for example [2022]-[2021].
4. Set the format and choose where the custom row or column sits, then save.
   

Design and formatting

Once the structure is set:

• Design: choose a Compact, Tabular or Repetitive layout, and a report color
• Formatting: apply currency symbols, percentages, decimals and number separators

Note: To open up a dense report, enter ;;; as a custom value format on a row. It renders the row blank, which gives you spacing without breaking the structure.

Reference date

The reference date lets the report shift its dates based on a time frame you choose.

1. Add a date field to the report.
2. Select a time frame, for example Year-to-Date. Example: Setting a YTD time frame will show data up until the chosen month under the Reference Date.

Save the report

• Save keeps the report in Report Builder.
• Save & Publish to Excel brings it into Excel.

The report is added as a new tab in your existing workbook. Depending on how much data it covers, this can take a minute or two.

What you get in Excel

The report arrives as real Datarails formulas, not pasted values:

• The formulas use dynamic cell references. Select a cell and press F2 to see what it points at.
• They behave like any other Excel formula, so you can drag one across neighbouring cells and the references follow.
• You can add your own ratios and subtotals in the sheet with ordinary Excel formulas pointing at the Datarails cells. On the next Refresh, the Datarails numbers update and your calculations follow.
• If the report includes filters or a reference date, you can change them directly in Excel.
• Save the file to a Filebox to keep working with it as a connected file.

Edit a report already in your sheet

1. Click any cell inside the report.
2. Go to Get data > Report builder > Edit selected.
3. Report Builder opens with that report loaded, so you can change its structure without going back through the list.

Dynamic settings

A report brought in from Report Builder stays dynamic: it is connected to Datarails and its structure and values update when you refresh, in the same way a dynamic range does.

Dynamic settings is where you turn that off. Go to Get data > Report builder > Dynamic settings. The Report dynamic settings window lists every report in the workbook, with its worksheet, and a Dynamic toggle for each one. Switch the toggle off for the report you want to fix in place, then click Save.

You need to do this if you want to adjust the report by hand in Excel, or add references to the reference date. While the report is dynamic, a refresh redraws it and your manual changes are lost.

the Report dynamic settings window, showing a report row and its Dynamic toggle

Working across platforms

Report builder behaves identically on Windows desktop, Mac desktop and Excel on the web.

Updated August 31, 2026 10:58