Which fields can I use for section-level filtering versus section-level sorting and grouping?

Section-level filtering supports account type, account name, account number, class, department, location, and subsidiary. Section-level sorting and grouping support account type, class, department, location, and subsidiary; account name and account number are available for filtering but are not supported for sorting or grouping.

How should OneWorld users ensure they customize the correct subsidiary's financial statement layout?

For OneWorld statements, open the financial statement and click Customize from its results page to ensure the correct subsidiary context and layout are selected. OneWorld supports creating separate custom financial statements per subsidiary and provides specialized country-specific layouts.

How does setting an audience affect who can run, edit, or save a custom financial report?

Setting an audience makes the report discoverable under Reports > All Saved Reports for users in that audience. Users in the audience who also have Edit or Full Report Customization permission can edit the report and save it with a new name; the report owner or an Administrator can edit and save it with the same name. Users with underlying-record permissions but not in the audience can access the report but must search for it or know its URL.

NetSuite Financial Report Builder:...

Q: What permissions are required to access and customize reports in the Financial Report Builder?

Both the Financial Statements permission and the Report Customization permission are required to access and customize reports in the Financial Report Builder. Users who lack these permissions should contact their account administrator.

The Financial Report Builder customizes NetSuite financial statements through columns, filters, sorting, audience settings, and the Edit Layout page. On that page, teams can define the data and order within sections, calculate summary and formula rows, and save reusable layouts. Access requires Financial Statements and Report Customization permissions.

What does the Financial Report Builder customize?

The Financial Report Builder is used to customize financial statements. Its Edit Layout page provides control at several levels: report-level and column-level customizations, plus edits to individual sections and rows.

A section is a subset of financial data. Sections are typically filtered and grouped by account type. On the Edit Layout page, section-level filtering determines the data included in the statement, while section-level sorting and grouping determine its order.

Section-level control	Supported fields
Filtering	Account type, account name, account number, class, department, location, subsidiary
Sorting and grouping	Account type, class, department, location, subsidiary

This distinction matters when designing a layout. A filter controls which data is included in a section. Sorting and grouping control how the selected data is organized in the financial statement. Account name and account number are available for section filtering, but they are not listed as section-level sorting or grouping fields.

The Edit Layout page also supports presentation and calculation changes. You can define report summary-row results by totaling or by using a more complex formula that you define. Formula rows can display calculated figures based on stored data. For rows and sections, editing tools include changes to labeling and text style.

For further detail on the individual builder areas, NetSuite provides Financial Report Builder Interface, Financial Statement Layouts, Financial Statement Sections, and Financial Statement Rows.

How do you access the Financial Report Builder?

Both the Financial Statements permission and the Report Customization permission are required to access and customize reports in the Financial Report Builder. Users without the necessary permissions should contact their account administrator. NetSuite documents this requirement in Giving Access to Financial Statements.

You can open the builder in the following ways:

Run a financial statement and click Customize on its results page.
Go to Reports > New Financial Report and choose a financial statement type from the selection page.
Go to Reports > Report Overview. In the Saved Reports, Financial, or Banking/Budgeting lists, click Customize for a report that uses the Financial Report Builder.
Go to Reports > Financial > Row Layout Assignment. Click Customize beside a standard financial statement, or Edit beside a custom financial statement.

The builder opens on the Edit Layout page. If editing functions are not enabled there, the layout may need to be made editable. The documented access methods are also available in Accessing the Financial Report Builder.

For OneWorld financial statements, NetSuite specifically recommends running the statement and clicking Customize from its results page. This approach assures selection of the correct subsidiary context and layout.

How do layouts, sections, and rows work together?

A layout is a set of definitions for a financial statement's rows and sections. Changes made on an Edit Layout page are saved as a custom layout. The same custom layout can be shared by multiple custom financial statements.

That reuse point is the practical reason to separate layout decisions from a single report run. Define the section filters, grouping, row calculations, labels, and text style needed for a given statement design, then use the saved layout where the same row-and-section definitions are required.

After a custom financial statement is saved, it is available on the Saved Reports page. Report sharing is addressed in Sharing Custom Reports with Other Users.

How are custom financial reports shared and edited?

A user with permissions for a report's underlying records can access a custom report. However, the user must search for the report or know its URL. Setting an audience makes the report more accessible: users in that audience can run it from Reports > All Saved Reports. For related reporting workflow context, see Running Standard Reports in NetSuite.

Editing rights depend on both audience inclusion and Report Customization permission level:

User situation	Supported behavior
User is in the report audience and has Edit or Full Report Customization permission	Can edit the custom report and save it with a new name
Report owner or Administrator	Can edit the report and save it with the same name
User has underlying-record permissions but is not in the audience	Can access the report, but must search for it or know its URL

NetSuite's sharing documentation also notes Administrator-role visibility conditions for reports owned by another user when the Administrator is not included in the audience, while stating that users with the Administrator role have access to all custom reports. When report discoverability is important, set the intended audience rather than relying on users finding a report by search or URL.

What does OneWorld support in the builder?

NetSuite OneWorld users can use the Financial Report Builder to create separate custom financial statements for each subsidiary. NetSuite provides specialized country-specific layouts for each subsidiary's financial statements.

The key workflow point is context: when customizing a OneWorld financial statement, open the statement first and select Customize from its results page so the correct subsidiary context and layout are selected. For related localization reading, see Brazil Localization SuiteApp Features in NetSuite 2026.1 and Localization SuiteApps Enhancements in NetSuite 2024.2.

What should teams confirm before saving a custom statement?

Before saving, confirm the design choices the builder exposes:

Verify that each section's filter uses the intended account or classification field.
Confirm that sorting and grouping use only the fields supported for those controls.
Review whether summary rows should total data or use a defined formula.
Review formula rows and their calculated figures based on stored data.
Confirm row and section labels and text style.
Decide whether the layout should be reused by multiple custom financial statements.
For shared reports, specify an audience when users should run the report from Reports > All Saved Reports.

Complex supporting-data requirements may involve adjacent customization work; see SuiteBuilder Customization Enhancements in NetSuite 2026.2 for related reading.

Who This Affects

Finance users who customize financial statements through sections, rows, formulas, and layouts.
Account administrators who manage the Financial Statements and Report Customization permissions required for builder access.
Report owners and report audiences who need to understand Saved Reports discoverability and editing rights.
OneWorld users creating separate custom financial statements by subsidiary.

Key Takeaways

The Edit Layout page supports report-level, column-level, section-level, and row-level financial statement customization.
Section filters support account type, name, number, class, department, location, and subsidiary; section sorting and grouping support account type, class, department, location, and subsidiary.
Summary rows can total results or use a defined formula, and formula rows can display calculations based on stored data.
Custom layouts save row-and-section definitions and can be shared by multiple custom financial statements.
Builder access requires both Financial Statements and Report Customization permissions; OneWorld users should customize from a statement results page to select the correct subsidiary context and layout.

NetSuite Financial Report Builder: Layout Controls