If you have begun to create a report in ViewPoint Cloud and you are wondering the difference between filters and columns, you have came to the right place. The main difference is that when you add a column, the column becomes displayed on the report. If you add a filter, the report only displays information pertaining to that specific filter. 

The links below can provide more detailed insight on the difference between filters and columns:

• What is the Columns tab in the Reports field used for?
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• What is the Filters tab in the Reports field used for?
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Use case:

Let's say that you are creating a report for all new construction permits in the last month. If you add a column for the specific occupancy type of the location, the report will show whether each record in the report is commercial, residential, etc. All occupancy types will show for this report if a column is added.

Now, let's say that instead of adding a column, you added a filter so that the report will only show the commercial occupancy type. Once the filter has been added, the report will only show records for commercial properties. If you still have your occupancy type column on the report, once you add the filter, that column will only show "commercial" as the occupancy type. 

In most cases, if you want to find very specific, granular information, adding a filter would be appropriate. However, if you want a broad stroke of data to fully understand your community, adding multiple columns and not using filters would give you a high level overview of the data in your permitting system.