What Is an Aging Report?
An aging report is a document that groups a company's unpaid invoices by how long they have been outstanding, typically in buckets such as current, 1–30, 31–60, 61–90, and 90+ days. It's the primary tool for managing collections and spotting receivables at risk of becoming bad debt.
What an aging report is and why it matters
An aging report — most often an accounts receivable aging, though the same logic applies to accounts payable — turns a flat list of open invoices into a risk picture. The further right an invoice sits in the buckets, the less likely it is to be collected and the more it drags on cash flow. Firms use it to prioritize follow-up, decide when to escalate, and estimate the allowance for doubtful accounts. Reviewing the aging is a standard monthly step in AR management and a key input to the client's cash-flow conversation.
A worked example
At June 30, a business has $50,000 in open receivables. The aging report breaks it out: $30,000 current, $12,000 in 1–30 days, $5,000 in 31–60 days, and $3,000 over 90 days. The $3,000 in the 90+ bucket is the immediate concern — old enough that the firm flags it for escalation and considers whether part should be reserved as bad debt. The report makes that judgment obvious at a glance.
How firms handle it today
Most teams pull the aging report from their accounting software each month and manually decide who to chase, often copying figures into a spreadsheet to track follow-up. The report is easy to generate but acting on it consistently is where firms fall behind.
How OCTA Flow relates to aging reports
OCTA Flow can generate the aging view on a schedule and drive the follow-up procedure off it — drafting reminders by bucket and tracking responses — while your team approves outbound communication and any write-off decisions.
Related terms
- Accounts receivable
- DSO
- Bad debt
- Accounts payable
- Net 30
FAQ
What does an aging report show?
It shows unpaid invoices grouped by how overdue they are, so you can see which receivables are current and which are at risk.
What are typical aging buckets?
Common buckets are current, 1–30, 31–60, 61–90, and 90+ days past due.
Why is the aging report important?
It drives collections priority and informs the allowance for doubtful accounts, protecting cash flow and the accuracy of receivables.
See how firms automate AR aging and follow-up → start an OCTA Flow trial.