xtraCHEF: Get Started With Cost Management Reports

Cost Management Reports Summary
Contracted Price Variance
Cost of Goods Sold (COGS)
Operating Summary
Price Fluctuation Comparison
Price Tracker
Purchased Items
Vendor Price Comparison
Additional Resources

Cost Management Reports Summary

Cost management reports give insight into different expenses and costs and help you control spending. To access your cost management reports, navigate to Reporting on your xtraCHEF navigation bar. The first section of the page is dedicated to cost management reports. Select the star icon to highlight a report and store it in the Favorites menu to your left.

As of December 2024, there are a few new reports in this section. In addition to the Contracted price variance report and the Price fluctuation comparison, you'll also see the Cost of goods sold (COGS) report, the Operating summary, the Price tracker, the Purchased items report, and the Vendor price comparison. The Food cost ratio report and the Top 100 product purchase report were both removed.

Contracted Price Variance

The first report is contracted price variance. To ensure you're getting the most from this report, you'll need to have previously for one or more of your items. If you're ready to view your contracted price variance report, choose your date range and select Submit.

This will launch a record of all times prices have fluctuated above or below your original contracted number within your specified date range. You'll find which locations were impacted, the vendor name(s), the invoice date, and the invoice item code/description. This gives you the most comprehensive view of how widespread price variances are within your organization.

It's important to note that variances aren't necessarily bad by definition - you may find that prices decreased from what you contracted. Your contracted price variance report provides straightforward insight by listing your contract price next to your final purchase price and includes the price change reflected in both dollars and as a percentage of total costs. Use this data to anticipate shifts in demand, cut out unnecessary spending, and hold vendors accountable.

Cost of Goods Sold (COGS)

The cost of goods sold (COGS) report is a common tool used to determine profit margins on products you use. To get the most out of this report, there are a few steps you must take to configure accounting periods, map sales and categories to COGS groups, and add inventory values. Once completed, you can see how your products move through your restaurant and what that means for your bottom line. Visit to learn all about these steps and the information you can gather from this report.

Operating Summary

The operating summary compares your gains and losses against your budget to give you net profits. This report is included here, but also has its own tab in the left-hand navigation menu. Review to begin the setup process and learn how you can use this report.

Price Fluctuation Comparison

Use your price fluctuation comparison report to understand how prices for the same items may vary between your locations. To view your price fluctuation comparison data, select this report from your reporting options. Specify a date range and select Submit.

Any invoice item purchased across all of your xtraCHEF locations will automatically be pulled into the report.

Upon running this report, you will notice that the price fluctuation comparison chart lists the vendor, invoice item, and locations where it was delivered - along with the date. Your locations will be listed in alphabetical order. For easy reference, the difference in price between the locations is expressed in dollars under the Possible Savings tab.

Follow up on any discrepancies between your locations to better understand how these fluctuations can impact your costs and uncover any potentially dishonest behaviors before they become disruptive.

Price Tracker

The price tracker identifies changes or variance from your vendors. To get started with it, select any or none of the available filters at the top (period 1, comparison period 2, location, vendor, and/or category. The price tracker will update immediately with any filters you apply.

You might recognize this report from the tile on your xtraCHEF dashboard. This is another tool that you have access to outside of the Reporting section.

Purchased Items

Learn more about your spending by running a purchased items report. As the name suggests, this report will list all invoice items purchased within your specified criteria. To get started, choose your location, date range (within 90 days), and grouping criteria to ensure you're pulling the most relevant data. Finally, select Submit to view your report.

In the example above, we can see every purchase made over the course of two months. That data is grouped by location, allowing you to see what vendors the location gets the most supplies from. This can help inform future decisions regarding vendor contracts or pricing negotiations.

Vendor Price Comparison

As the name suggests, the Vendor Price Compare report contrasts how much you spend on a certain invoice item per vendor. To get started, choose your location, product, and duration before selecting Generate Report.

Once populated, you may notice there are two types of Vendor Price Compare reports available: View by Unit Cost and View by Price Fluctuation. Your View by Unit Cost report displays how much each of your suppliers charges for the same item. This can help you make quick decisions when it comes to saving on similar items from vendors.

To help make sure you're getting the most consistently competitive pricing from your suppliers by checking your View by Price Fluctuation report. This gives you a clear understanding of which of your vendors keep their prices stable and which are more impacted by things like supply chain issues, shortages, and more. This can help you make long-term decisions such as working with vendors who may operate at a higher base price point but whose prices aren't subject to change.