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Comprehensive income and AOCI

Net income plus the gains and losses parked in equity: currency translation, some hedges and securities, and accumulated other comprehensive income, with Apple's and Coca-Cola's 10-Ks.

The short answer

Comprehensive income is net income plus certain gains and losses that accounting rules keep out of the income statement until later, such as foreign-currency translation adjustments and some changes in the value of derivatives and debt securities. The running total of those items sits in equity as accumulated other comprehensive income, or AOCI, which can be a sizable negative number.

Two statements, one period

The income statement ends at net income. A second statement, the statement of comprehensive income, starts with that net income and then lists the other comprehensive income items for the year, arriving at total comprehensive income. Some companies print the two statements on the same page; others give comprehensive income its own page and a supporting note.

Apple's 10-K for fiscal 2026 lists, under "Other comprehensive income/(loss)," a change in foreign currency translation, a change in unrealized gains and losses on derivative instruments, and a change in unrealized gains and losses on marketable debt securities, each net of tax. Coca-Cola's 10-K for 2025 uses the same idea: it starts with consolidated net income and then shows net foreign currency translation adjustments, net gains or losses on derivatives, changes in available-for-sale debt securities, and pension and other postretirement items.

Source: Apple 10-K for fiscal 2026, filed Nov 3, 2026 · Coca-Cola 10-K for fiscal 2025, filed Feb 20, 2026

Accumulated other comprehensive income

Each year's other comprehensive income is added to a balance-sheet account in equity called accumulated other comprehensive income (or loss). Apple reported an accumulated other comprehensive loss at the end of fiscal 2026. Coca-Cola reports accumulated other comprehensive income (loss) as a separate line in equity and uses the abbreviation AOCI in the notes. These amounts can swing with exchange rates even when net income is steady.

Why these items are parked here

The rules treat some changes in value as not yet earned in the same way a sale is earned. Currency translation of a foreign subsidiary, the effective portion of certain cash-flow hedges, and unrealized moves in some debt securities are the usual examples. When the hedge settles, the security is sold, or the foreign operation is sold, part or all of the amount may move into net income. Until then it lives in AOCI.

Constant currency is a different idea: a non-GAAP way of retelling revenue growth as if exchange rates had not moved. Comprehensive income is the GAAP statement that records the currency translation itself.

Common questions

What is comprehensive income?

Net income plus other comprehensive income: certain gains and losses, such as currency translation and some derivative and securities adjustments, that bypass the income statement and go to equity.

What is AOCI?

Accumulated other comprehensive income (or loss), the running total of those items on the balance sheet, in the equity section.

Is comprehensive income a better profit figure than net income?

It is a wider total, not a replacement. Net income is still the starting point for earnings per share. Comprehensive income adds items the rules keep out of net income until later.

Why does currency translation show up here?

When a foreign subsidiary's books are translated into US dollars, the translation adjustment is recorded in other comprehensive income, not as a gain or loss on the income statement, as long as the subsidiary remains a going operation.

Where do I find it in the 10-K?

In the statement of comprehensive income, in the equity section of the balance sheet as AOCI, and often in a note that rolls the AOCI balance forward.

Disclosures

Editor holdings: The editor holds no position in any company named on this page. As of Nov 11, 2026.
Compensation: Nobody paid for this page. No affiliate links on this page.
Sources: Each company's own SEC filings, linked next to each number.
Last updated: Nov 10, 2026

General education, the same for every reader. Not a recommendation to buy, sell or hold any security, and it doesn't consider your situation.

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