Preserve raw evidence
Keep original marketplace exports or API snapshots for the period before transformation.
D2 Tools · Commerce Evidence
Marketplace P&L File Checker
Check whether your Orders, finance, Ads, product-cost and operating evidence are sufficient for the P&L scope you want to publish — without uploading the files or turning missing evidence into zero.
Answers stay in browser state No file upload · no AI API
Direct answer
A P&L is ready to model only when the evidence required by its declared scope is controlled.
Core readiness starts with Orders, settlement/finance, historical SKU cost, stable identifiers, period rules and an exception register. Ads, Affiliate/creator and fulfillment become required only when those economics are included in the management view.
Reporting scope
Which variable-cost layers must this P&L explain?
Evidence model
Preserve → Normalize → Map → Reconcile → Model → Surface exceptions.
Normalize business fields
Standardize IDs, time zones, currencies and state labels without erasing source semantics.
Map identities & cost
Connect order, SKU, finance and historical cost records through stable keys.
Reconcile time bases
Bridge sales-period activity to settlement-period deductions and cash realization.
Calculate declared contribution
Use only cost layers supported by the selected management scope and evidence.
Surface exceptions
Keep unknown or unresolved rows visible with ownership before publishing decision views.
Claim boundaries
A complete folder is not the same as a controlled P&L.
File present ≠ usable evidence
An export can exist but still miss the identifiers, period, amount semantics or scope required for the P&L question.
Orders ≠ settlement
Orders explain commercial activity; finance/settlement explains realized deductions and payout timing. They should reconcile, not collapse into one date basis.
Missing COGS ≠ zero COGS
A sold SKU without a valid historical cost is incomplete economics and should block affected profitability claims.
Same-month mismatch ≠ reporting error
Created, settled and paid timestamps can legitimately fall in different periods. Timing rules must be checked before calling a difference wrong.
Ads attribution ≠ accounting truth
Platform attribution can support media analysis but does not replace the spend and revenue basis used for contribution reporting.
Complete core files ≠ complete every-cost P&L
Affiliate, fulfillment, promotion or other variable-cost sources become required when the declared contribution scope includes them.
Checker status ≠ accounting certification
The tool assesses evidence readiness for an operating model; it does not certify statutory accounting, tax treatment or audited financial statements.
Ready evidence ≠ guaranteed profit
A controlled evidence set improves measurement quality but does not imply that the marketplace business is profitable or will improve.
FAQ
Marketplace P&L evidence, answered directly.
What files do I need for a marketplace P&L?
For a basic management P&L, start with Orders, settlement/finance evidence and a controlled SKU cost master, plus stable identifiers, explicit period rules and an exception register. Add Ads, Affiliate/creator and fulfillment evidence when those costs are inside the reporting scope.
Does this checker upload or inspect my files?
No. This public version is a browser-side evidence-readiness checklist. It asks whether the required evidence and controls exist; it does not upload, parse or store the user's files.
Why is Settlement or finance required if I already have Orders?
Orders explain what sold and when. Settlement or finance evidence explains recorded deductions, refunds or adjustments, payable state and payout timing. A P&L and cash reconciliation need those questions kept distinct.
Is Ads data always required?
Only when post-Ads contribution or paid-media economics are in scope. The checker makes Ads a required source when the user enables that scope.
Is Affiliate or creator data always required?
No. It becomes required when creator/Affiliate economics are included in the contribution scope. Material paid booking, sample, usage-rights or amplification costs may need separate evidence beyond platform commission.
Can I use current product cost for historical orders?
Not safely when cost changes over time. Historical reporting should resolve each sold SKU or bundle to the valid cost record for the transaction period using effective dates or another documented historical rule.
What if some SKUs do not have cost records?
Keep those rows in an exception state and treat the affected contribution view as incomplete. Do not use zero or a shop average merely to make the report complete.
Why can Orders and Settlement disagree in the same month?
They may use different business timestamps. Orders can be created in one period and settled, adjusted or paid in another. Compare them through reconciliation bridges, not by assuming same-calendar-month totals must match.
What does CONDITIONAL mean?
All required evidence has been addressed, but at least one required source or control is only partial. The P&L may support a narrower decision if the limitation is explicitly declared, but it should not be presented as fully reconciled.
What does BLOCKED mean?
At least one required source or control is explicitly missing. The missing item should be restored before making the profitability claim that depends on it.
Does READY mean the P&L numbers are correct?
No. READY means the declared evidence/control checklist is complete enough to proceed with modeling. The actual data still needs validation, mapping, reconciliation and formula review.
When should this process be automated?
Automate after the manual evidence model is stable: source contracts are understood, identifiers are reproducible, period rules are declared and exceptions can be surfaced rather than hidden.
Deterministic modelMethodology version: 2026.09Last reviewed: 2026-09-03
Citation-ready methodology
How this tool produces its result — explicit enough to reproduce and audit.
This contract is the source of truth for the tool semantics: formulas/rules, inputs, outputs, limitations and a worked example. When calculation logic changes, the methodology version must move with the code.
Formulas / rules
- 01Readiness is rule-based: required evidence categories and control conditions are evaluated explicitly.
- 02Missing critical evidence can block readiness even when other categories are complete.
- 03Conditional evidence is evaluated only when the corresponding cost or operating scope is in the P&L model.
Limitations / claim boundary
- The checker does not inspect uploaded files; it evaluates declared evidence readiness in the browser.
- READY means the declared evidence/control contract is stronger, not that the final P&L is mathematically correct.
- Actual joins, mappings and financial values still require reconciliation against source data.
Input contract
- Orders evidence and stable order/SKU identifiers
- Settlement or finance evidence
- Historical/effective SKU COGS source
- Reporting-period and order-state rules
- Conditional Ads, creator/Affiliate and fulfillment evidence
- Exception-register and reconciliation ownership
Output contract
- READY / CONDITIONAL / BLOCKED state
- Missing evidence categories
- Identifier and period-rule gaps
- Conditional evidence requirements
- Exception/reconciliation gaps requiring human ownership
Worked example
Input
Declare Orders, settlement and historical COGS as controlled, but leave stable SKU mapping unresolved.
Output
The checker keeps the model blocked or conditional rather than treating the unresolved mapping as zero-cost evidence.
Interpretation
Resolve the mapping before treating a SKU contribution result as decision-ready.
How to cite this tool
D2 Group. “Marketplace P&L File Checker — methodology and calculation contract.” Version 2026.09, reviewed 2026-09-03. https://d2group.co/tools/marketplace-pnl-file-checker#methodology