Overview

Financial data is scattered across different files, and manual consolidation and calculation is time-consuming and labor-intensive. Claude can help you integrate data, automatically calculate metrics like revenue, costs, and profits, and generate professional financial reports.

Use Cases

Monthly/quarterly financial reports
Project cost accounting
Personal bookkeeping summary
Investment return analysis

Steps

Step 1: Collect Financial Data

Integrate financial data from different sources.

I have the following financial data:
- ~/finance/income.csv - Income details
- ~/finance/expenses.csv - Expense details
- ~/finance/invoices/ - Invoice folder
Please consolidate this data into a unified format including:
Date, Category, Amount, Notes, Voucher Number

Step 2: Category Statistics

Summarize income and expenses by category.

Please calculate statistics by category:
Income categories:
- Product sales
- Service revenue
- Other income

Expense categories:
- Labor costs
- Marketing expenses
- Operating costs
- Other expenses

Generate category summary table showing amount and percentage for each category

Step 3: Calculate Key Metrics

Calculate important financial metrics.

Please calculate the following metrics:
- Total revenue
- Total expenses
- Gross profit = Total revenue - Direct costs
- Net profit = Total revenue - Total expenses
- Gross margin = Gross profit / Total revenue x 100%
- Net margin = Net profit / Total revenue x 100%
- Break-even point
And compare with the same period last month, calculate growth rate

Step 4: Generate Financial Reports

Create standard format financial reports.

Please generate Excel financial report: ~/finance/report_2025_01.xlsx

Include worksheets:
1. Income Statement: Revenue-Cost-Profit hierarchical structure
2. Cash Flow Statement: Cash flows from operating/investing/financing activities
3. Category Details: Detailed list of income and expenses
4. Trend Charts: Revenue and expense comparison chart for recent 3 months
5. Key Metrics: Core financial metrics dashboard

Use professional financial report format

Step 5: Generate Analysis Report

Provide financial analysis and recommendations.

Please generate financial analysis report (Markdown format):

# January 2025 Financial Report

## Business Overview
- This month's revenue, expenses, and profit totals
- Comparison with last month
- Key metrics

## Revenue Analysis
- Main revenue sources
- Revenue growth drivers
- Risk warnings

## Cost Analysis
- Major expense items
- Cost control status
- Optimization suggestions

## Cash Flow Analysis
- Cash inflows and outflows
- Cash balance changes

## Recommendations
- Specific improvement measures

Save as ~/finance/analysis_2025_01.md

Tips

Financial data is sensitive and critical. Please ensure data accuracy. Claude's calculations are based on the provided data; if the source data is incorrect, results will also be wrong. Have financial professionals review before making important decisions.

Establish standardized data entry templates. Using the same categories and formats each time greatly simplifies subsequent consolidation and comparative analysis.

Common Questions

Q: How to handle data in different currencies? A: Exchange rate data is needed. Claude can convert all amounts to a base currency before calculating, and note the exchange rate in the report.

Q: Can reports required for tax filing be generated? A: Yes. Tell Claude the specific tax report format requirements (such as VAT return form), and it will organize data as required. But always have a professional accountant review before final filing.

Q: How to handle cross-period expenses? A: For prepaid expenses, accounts receivable, and other cross-period items, accrual accounting is needed. Tell Claude the accounting treatment rules for these items, and it will adjust calculations accordingly.