Pipeline Forecast Types

Each forecast type can be set up to use different data, including the object to base the forecast on, the field to roll up (measures), and how to group the forecast (date type). To refine the data that’s included in the forecast, add filters.

Tip A default forecast type is defined for you based on the Opportunity object. The default type measures on the Amount field, by close date, and is based on the user role hierarchy. You can modify the opportunity list, select the columns to show in the forecast summary, apply filters, and modify the custom columns for that type. Or, create your own types to meet your business needs.

Enabling multiple forecast types allows a different combination of the data shown for each forecast. Users can switch between active forecast types on the forecasts page. You can have up to four active forecast types at one time. If you require more active forecast types, contact Salesforce Customer Support.

Note You can't activate legacy forecast types created before Summer '21. If a legacy forecast type is still needed, deactivate or delete the old type and recreate it.

Review the options for creating forecast types. Depending on how Salesforce is set up, not every option is available.

*When forecasting by Opportunity Product (total price or quantity) for territory hierarchy, the Opportunity Product Date isn’t supported. Opportunity Close Date is supported.

**Supported by product family only.

***Forecasts based on opportunity line item (OLI) splits, where each line item's revenue rolls up into the forecast period specified by its service date.

Custom Dates

If you have custom fields based on the Date type on the Opportunity object, you can forecast using those dates for forecasts based on the Opportunity, Opportunity Product, and Opportunity Splits objects. Custom dates on the Opportunity Product and Opportunity Splits objects aren’t supported.

Custom Measures

If you have custom currency or number fields on the Opportunity, Opportunity Product, Opportunity Split, or Line Item Schedule object, you can forecast on the values in those fields.

• To forecast on revenue, use a custom currency field.
• To forecast on quantity, use a custom number field.

Expected Revenue

If the value of the Amount field and the actual revenue brought in by the opportunity often differ, the Expected Revenue field on opportunities is useful. If your sales team anticipates this difference, consider using the Expected Revenue field and forecasting on it.

• You can forecast on revenue but not quantity.
• You can forecast on the Expected Revenue field regardless of whether you use opportunity splits with it.
• Regardless of whether you use splits with the Expected Revenue field, you must enable team selling, opportunity splits, and a custom split type for it.

Forecast Filters

To include or exclude opportunity data from a forecast type, add a custom filter based on fields in the Opportunity object. For example, you can set up a custom filter for a forecast type that includes only renewal opportunities.

When creating or modifying custom filters, keep these considerations in mind.

• Filter definitions aren’t editable after activating or reactivating the forecast type.
• Filter definitions support up to three conditions and use the AND operator only.
• Filters don’t support using formula fields or custom multiselect picklist fields.
• When you’re filtering on currency fields and you have a single currency enabled, the absolute value is used in the filter condition. If you have multiple currencies enabled, the corporate currency is used in the filter condition.
• Legacy forecast types that come ready-to-use with Forecasting don’t support custom filters.

Forecast Groups with Custom Picklists

You can group forecasts into segments other than product families that make sense for your business. For example, define forecasts to group by industry or business unit. Keep these considerations in mind.

• Forecast groups are available for forecast types based on the Opportunity and Opportunity Product objects.
• Custom, single-selection picklist fields on the Opportunity, Opportunity Product, or Product objects are available as forecast groups. Make your group and group value selections as you define the forecast type.
• We recommend completing the picklist field on each opportunity record. To include items that don’t have a value selected for the picklist, select Not Categorized when you select the group values for the forecast type.
• If a picklist selected as a forecast group in a forecast type is deactivated, forecasts continue to include opportunities that have a value selected for the picklist.
• Forecast groups using custom picklists aren’t available in Salesforce Classic or in the Salesforce mobile app.

Opportunity Product Splits

If your sales team uses team selling and opportunity product splits, use an opportunity product splits revenue forecast. Keep these considerations in mind.

• You must have team selling and opportunity product splits enabled.
• Forecasts for opportunity product splits are available with product families only. To forecast on opportunity product splits without product families, use the opportunity split object instead.

Opportunity Revenue Splits

If your sales team uses team selling and opportunity splits, use an opportunity splits revenue forecast. Keep these considerations in mind.

• You must have team selling, opportunity splits, and the revenue split type enabled.
• In Salesforce Classic, an opportunity that contains only a single 100% revenue split shows “--” for the split percentage in the opportunity list.

Overlay Splits

Use overlay splits to track revenue from sales team members who help close opportunities but aren’t directly responsible for them.

• You must have team selling, opportunity splits, and the overlay split type enabled.
• The overlay splits on a specific opportunity aren’t required to total 100%.

Product Families

If your company groups its products and services into families and wants to forecast based on those families, keep these considerations in mind.

• If you’re using Lightning Experience, you choose the product families to forecast on. The more product families you choose, the more rows appear in the forecasts grid. The forecasts grid shows up to 2,000 rows.
• The Forecasted Amount column in the opportunity list on the forecasts page shows the product family totals, not the overall opportunity totals that roll up into the forecast amounts. We recommend that you add this column to the opportunity list.
• Forecast users can view individual product family forecasts for users they have access to view.
• We recommend completing the Product Family field on each product record. Forecasts for products without a Product Family value appear in a forecast row called Products Not Categorized. If an opportunity lacks products, the opportunity amount or quantity also appears in this row.
• Product family forecast totals aren’t available in Salesforce Classic. If users adjust their product family forecasts in Lightning Experience, not every total in the Salesforce Classic forecasts grid reflects the adjustments.
• In Salesforce Classic, a manager’s own product family forecasts aren’t available, so they can’t be adjusted.
• You can set separate product family quotas for each sales rep but not a single quota for each sales rep.

Territories

If you use Sales Territories, you can forecast based on the territory hierarchy. Territory forecasts are available in Lightning Experience and the Salesforce mobile app for your active territory model only. When territory forecasts are enabled, the forecasts page shows this information.

• Forecast rollups based on the territories assigned to each opportunity
• Forecasts for the territories that the user is assigned to
• Territory forecasts shared to the user
• The opportunities included in territory forecasts, regardless of whether the opportunity owner is assigned to the territory

Territory forecasts are based on your territory hierarchy, not your user role hierarchy, as other forecast types are. Users switch from role-based forecasts to territory-based forecasts by selecting a territory forecast type as a tab on the forecasts page.

In territory forecasts, an opportunity is rolled up into one territory forecast only. If you use opportunity splits in a team selling scenario, each split on the opportunity only rolls up to one territory.