Which report type is best for displaying the number of Contacts related to an Account?

The best approach for displaying the number of Contacts related to an Account is through a summary report with a report formula. Summary reports are designed to group related data and provide aggregate values, making them ideal for analyzing relationships between objects, such as Accounts and Contacts.

In this case, the summary report would allow for grouping Accounts and counting the total number of Contacts associated with each Account. This is particularly useful when you want to see the total count next to each Account entry, enabling a clear understanding of how many Contacts exist for each.

Using a report formula in this context further enhances the functionality of the summary report by providing a flexible way to calculate additional metrics or perform specific calculations based on the grouped data. It can cater to varying requirements or highlight specific insights related to the Contacts without losing the aggregate context offered by the summary format.

In contrast, while a tabular report can display a list of Contacts per Account, it lacks the capability to perform any grouping or aggregation inherently and would not effectively showcase the count of Contacts in a single line item per Account. Options utilizing roll-up summary fields are typically more static and limited to specific configurations, which might not provide the interactive or customizable analysis that a summary report with a report formula can achieve.