cancel
Showing results for 
Search instead for 
Did you mean: 

All TKB Articles in US QuickBooks Community

Credit Memo   Blue Rounded Border Cred.DES Blue small rounded borders with no fill. Download   Blue Rounded Fill Cred.DES Blue small rounded borders ... See more...
Credit Memo   Blue Rounded Border Cred.DES Blue small rounded borders with no fill. Download   Blue Rounded Fill Cred.DES Blue small rounded borders filled with a lighter shade of blue. Download   Blue Square Border Cred.DES Blue square borders with no fill. Download   Blue Square Fill Cred.DES Blue square borders filled with a lighter shade of blue. Download   Credit Card Cust Copy Cred.DES For use with QuickBooks Merchant Account Service only. Credit Memo - Customer Copy This is a generic Credit Memo with additional fields to support the credit card features provided by QuickBooks Merchant Account Service. Show more... Download   Credit Card Merch Copy Cred.DES For use with QuickBooks Merchant Account Service only. Credit Memo - Merchant Copy This is a generic Credit Memo with additional fields to support the credit card features provided by QuickBooks Merchant Account Service. Show more... Download   Credit Card Tan Cust Copy Cred.DES Various shades of tan in a contemporary credit memo. The text, "YOUR ONE-STOP SHOP FOR THE BEST PRICES AND SELECTIONS" can be changed by editing the template. Contains credit card fields for use with QuickBooks Merchant Account Service. Show more... Download   Credit Card Tan Merch Copy Cred.DES Various shades of tan in a contemporary credit memo. The text, "YOUR ONE-STOP SHOP FOR THE BEST PRICES AND SELECTIONS" can be changed by editing the template. Contains credit card fields for use with QuickBooks Merchant Account Service. Show more... Download   Green Rounded Border Cred.DES Green small rounded borders with no fill. Download   Green Rounded Fill Cred.DES Green small rounded borders filled with a lighter shade of green. Download   Green Square Border Cred.DES Green square borders with no fill. Download   Green Square Fill Cred.DES Green square borders filled with a lighter shade of green. Download   Maroon Rounded Border Cred.DES Maroon small rounded borders with no fill. Download   Maroon Rounded Fill Cred.DES Maroon small rounded borders filled with a lighter shade of maroon. Download   Maroon Square Border Cred.DES Maroon square borders with no fill. Download   Maroon Square Fill Cred.DES Maroon square borders filled with a lighter shade of maroon. Download   Simple Blue Lines Cred.DES Credit memo with a sample company logo and blue lines below the headers. Download   QB Custom Credit Memo.DES Gray square borders with gray fill. QuickBooks Pro Edition 2003 or higher. Download Donation   QB Standard Pledge.DES Standard pledge form with gray square borders and gray fill. QuickBooks Pro Edition 2003 or higher. Download   QB Standard Donation.DES Standard donation form with gray square borders and gray fill. QuickBooks Pro Edition 2003 or higher. Download Sales Order   Blue Rounded Border SO.DES Blue small rounded borders with no fill. Download   Blue Rounded Fill SO.DES Blue small rounded borders filled with a lighter shade of blue. Download   Blue Square Border SO.DES Blue square borders with no fill. Download   Blue Square Fill SO.DES Blue square borders filled with a lighter shade of blue. Download   Green Rounded Border SO.DES Green small rounded borders with no fill. Download   Green Rounded Fill SO.DES Green small rounded borders filled with a lighter shade of green. Download   QB Custom Sales Order.DES Gray square borders with gray fill. QuickBooks Pro Edition 2003 or higher. Download   Green Square Border SO.DES Green square borders with no fill. Download   Green Square Fill SO.DES Green square borders filled with a lighter shade of green. Download   Maroon Rounded Border SO.DES Maroon small rounded borders with no fill. Download   Maroon Rounded Fill SO.DES Maroon small rounded borders filled with a lighter shade of maroon. Download   Maroon Square Border SO.DES Maroon square borders with no fill. Download   Maroon Square Fill SO.DES Maroon square borders filled with a lighter shade of maroon. Download   QB Sales Order with Rep.DES Sales order with gray square borders and gray fill.. QuickBooks Pro Edition 2003 or higher. Download Purchase Order   Blue Rounded Border PO.DES Blue small rounded borders with no fill. Download   Blue Rounded Fill PO.DES Blue small rounded borders filled with a lighter shade of blue. Download   Blue Square Border PO.DES Blue square borders with no fill. Download   Blue Square Fill PO.DES Blue square borders filled with a lighter shade of blue. Download   Green Rounded Border PO.DES Green small rounded borders with no fill. Download   Green Rounded Fill PO.DES Green small rounded borders filled with a lighter shade of green. Download   QB Custom Purchase Order.DES Gray square borders with gray fill. QuickBooks Pro Edition 2003 or higher. Download   Green Square Border PO.DES Green square borders with no fill. Download   Green Square Fill PO.DES Green square borders filled with a lighter shade of green. Download   Maroon Rounded Border PO.DES Maroon small rounded borders with no fill. Download   Maroon Rounded Fill PO.DES Maroon small rounded borders filled with a lighter shade of maroon. Download   Maroon Square Border PO.DES Maroon square borders with no fill. Download   Maroon Square Fill PO.DES Maroon square borders filled with a lighter shade of maroon. Download Estimate   E-Mail Blue Rounded Border Est.DES Blue rounded small borders with no fill. Download   E-Mail Blue Rounded Fill Est.DES Blue small rounded borders filled with a lighter shade of blue. Download   E-Mail Blue Square Border Est.DES Blue square borders with no fill. Download   E-Mail Blue Square Fill Est.DES Blue square borders filled with a lighter shade of blue. Download   E-Mail Blueprint Est.DES Contractor/construction/architect image of a set of blueprints in the background. Blue borders. Download   E-Mail Green Rounded Border Est.DES Green small rounded borders with no fill. Download   E-Mail Green Rounded Fill Est.DES Green small rounded borders filled with a lighter shade of green. Download   E-Mail Green Square Border Est.DES Green square borders with no fill. Download   E-Mail Green Square Fill Est.DES Green square borders filled with a lighter shade of green. Download   E-Mail Maroon Round Border Est.DES Maroon small rounded borders with no fill. Download   E-Mail Maroon Rounded Fill Est.DES Maroon small rounded borders filled with a lighter shade of maroon. Download   E-Mail Maroon Square Border Est.DES Maroon square borders with no fill. Download   E-Mail Maroon Square Fill Est.DES Maroon square borders filled with a lighter shade of maroon. Download   Tools Est.DES Grayish purple-blue background with ruler, screw drivers and pliers. Great for Contractors! Download Invoice   E-Mail Blue Franchise Inv.DES An invoice designed for franchise businesses. Corporate Office information optional. Download   E-Mail Blue Rounded Border Inv.DES Blue rounded small borders with no fill. Download   E-Mail Blue Rounded Fill Inv.DES Blue small rounded borders filled with a lighter shade of blue. Download   E-Mail Blue Rounded Remit Inv.DES Invoice containing a remittance slip, address change checkbox, email reference and return checks policy. Blue fill and black borders and text. Show more... Download   E-Mail Blue Rounded Solid Inv.DES Blue small rounded borders filled with the same shade of blue. Download   E-Mail Blue Square Border Inv.DES Blue square borders with no fill. Download   E-Mail Blue Square Fill Inv.DES Blue square borders filled with a lighter shade of blue. Download   E-Mail Blue Square Solid Inv.DES Blue square borders filled with the same shade of blue. Download   E-Mail Car on the Road Inv.DES Invoice with a remittance slip and green pastel image of a car driving "On the road to business success!" Remittance slip asks the customer for their Email address and change of address. Text can be changed by editing the template. Show more... Download   E-Mail Dentist with map Inv.DES Dentist office invoice with an image of a gray tooth, a sample map, directions and a picture of the dentist. Blue fills with black borders and rounded corners. Be sure to update this form with your picture. Show more... Download   E-Mail Drill Shipping Inv.DES Shipping Invoice. Image of a drill in the background. Dark pastel green border with a few yellow fills. The company's 'Long Text' field is included on the form. Show more... Download   E-mail Green Rounded Border Inv.DES Green small rounded borders with no fill. Download   E-Mail Green Rounded Fill Inv.DES Green small rounded borders filled with a lighter shade of green. Download   E-Mail Green Rounded Solid Inv.DES Green small rounded borders filled with the same shade of green. Download   E-mail Green Square Border Inv.DES Green square borders with no fill. Download   E-Mail Green Square Fill Inv.DES Green square borders filled with a lighter shade of green. Download   E-Mail Green Square Solid Inv.DES Green square borders filled with the same shade of green. Download   E-Mail Grey Remit Slip Inv.DES Invoice, Portrait, remittance slip, address change checkbox, enter new email, return checks policy. Gray fill and black borders and text. Show more... Download   E-Mail Maroon Round Border Inv.DES Maroon small rounded borders with no fill. Download   E-Mail Maroon Rounded Fill Inv.DES Maroon small rounded borders filled with a lighter shade of maroon. Download   QB Attorney's Invoice.DES Gray Square Unfilled Border. QuickBooks Pro Edition 2003 or higher. Download   QB Fixed Fee Invoice.DES Fixed fee invoice with gray square borders and gray fill. QuickBooks Pro Edition 2003 or higher. Download   QB Invoice from Proposal.DES Invoice from proposal form with square borders and gray fill. QuickBooks Pro Edition 2003 or higher. Download   QB Product Invoice.DES Standard product invoice with square borders and gray fill. QuickBooks Pro Edition 2003 or higher. Download   QB Professional Invoice.DES Professional invoice with gray square borders and gray fill. QuickBooks Pro Edition 2003 or higher. Download   E-Mail Maroon Rounded Solid Inv.DES Maroon small rounded borders filled with the same shade of maroon. Download   E-Mail Maroon Square Border Inv.DES Maroon square borders with no fill. Download   E-Mail Maroon Square Fill Inv.DES Maroon square borders filled with a lighter shade of maroon. Download   E-Mail Maroon Square Solid Inv.DES Maroon square borders filled with the same shade of maroon. Download   E-Mail Orange dots Inv.DES Invoices with orange dots in the background. Download   E-Mail Orange dots Pledge Inv.DES Invoices with orange dots in the background, designed for pledges. For use by non-profit companies. Download   E-Mail Orange target remit Inv.DES Invoice with remittance slip and sample company logo. Orange color scheme with an orange gradient target. Download   E-Mail Orange target ship Inv.DES Invoice for shipping. Orange color scheme with an orange gradient target. Download   E-Mail Plain Pledge Inv.DES Simple pledge invoice for use by non-profit companies. Download   E-Mail Plain Remit Slip Inv.DES Service invoice for Labor, with a remittance slip. Change address box and new email included. Download   E-Mail Tan Paw Pledge Inv.DES Various shades of tan in a contemporary invoice designed for pledges, overlaid with paw prints. Optional text box, "Thank you for your support." For use by non-profit companies. Show more... Download   E-Mail Tan Paw Scheme Inv.DES Various shades of tan in a contemporary invoice, overlaid with paw prints. The text, "YOUR ONE-STOP SHOP FOR THE BEST PRICES AND SELECTIONS" can be changed by editing the template. Great for pet stores and animal hospitals/clinics. Show more... Download   E-Mail Tan Scheme Inv.DES Various shades of tan in a contemporary invoice. The text, "YOUR ONE-STOP SHOP FOR THE BEST PRICES AND SELECTIONS" can be changed by editing the template. Show more... Download   E-Mail Tape Measure Inv.DES Grey and blue highlights with background of a tape measure. Good for contractors and construction professionals. Download   E-Mail Yellow Scheme Inv.DES Invoice with yellow color scheme. Different shades of yellow. No images. Contemporary and simple style. "YOUR ONE-STOP SHOP FOR THE BEST PRICES AND SELECTION ON APPAREL". Text can be changed by editing the template. Show more... Download   Fall Leaves Inv.DES Invoice with a sample company logo, logo image consists of leaves, ferns, acorns, Fall background consists of leaves. Download   Growth Chart Inv.DES Background contains accounting graphs and charts showing increasing company profits. The text "Helping your business to grow its profits." can be updated by editing the template. Show more... Download   Rainbow Pledge Inv.DES Non-profit invoice for pledges. Background image consists of a rainbow and clouds. The title boxes have white round backgrounds - similar to clouds. For use by non-profit companies. Show more... Download   Sports Inv.DES Invoice with image containing basketball, tennis ball, golf ball, and soccer. Black lines with green fill for tables. Background image consist of abstract running tracks. Show more... Download   Yellow Lemon Scheme Inv.DES Yellow invoice with a lemon scheme. Background image shows a slice of lemon. "YOUR ONE-STOP SHOP FOR THE BEST PRICES AND SELECTIONS". Text can be changed by editing the template. Show more... Download   QB Progress Invoice.DES Progress invoice with gray square borders and gray fill. QuickBooks Pro Edition 2003 or higher. Download   QB Service Invoice.DES Standard service invoice with gray square borders and gray fill. QuickBooks Pro Edition 2003 or higher. Download   QB Time & Expense Invoice.DES Standard time and expense invoice with gray square borders and gray fill. QuickBooks Pro Edition 2003 or higher. Download   Intuit Plain Remit Slip Direct Inv.DES Invoice with remittance slip. Download Statement   Blue Tan Gradient Stmt.DES Statement with a background image consisting of different gradient color images (Blue/Tan). Download   E-Mail Blue Square Border Stmt.DES Blue square borders with no fill. Download   E-Mail Blue Square Fill Stmt.DES Blue square borders filled with a lighter shade of blue. Download   E-Mail Green Square Border Stmt.DES Green square borders with no fill. Download   E-Mail Green Square Fill Stmt.DES Green square borders filled with a lighter shade of green. Download   E-Mail Maroon Sq Border Stmt.DES Maroon square borders with no fill. Download   E-Mail Maroon Square Fill Stmt.DES Maroon square borders filled with a lighter shade of maroon. Download   E-Mail Purple Design Stmt.DES Statement with a light purple background. This form can be used for letterhead paper by removing the sample company logo. Download   Eatery and Coupon Stmt.DES Statement with background image consisting of a ceramic purplish plate, green beans and tomatoes and a slight tint of red. Green headers. A coupon area is included. User should enter coupon text into the Long Text field. Show more... Download   Nature Gradient Stmt.DES Statement with a background image consisting of different gradient color images (yellow/green). Download   Technology Stmt.DES Statement with a background image consisting of a wafer, two computer chips, rays, semiconductors and black borders. Download   QB Standard Statement.DES Standard statement with gray square borders and gray fill. QuickBooks Pro Edition 2003 or higher. Download Sales Receipt   Blue Rounded Border SR.DES Blue small rounded borders with no fill. Download   Blue Rounded Fill SR.DES Blue small rounded borders filled with a lighter shade of blue. Download   Blue Scheme Apparel SR.DES Sales Receipt with a blue color scheme. Background image has outlines of shirts. Different shades of blue lines and an arrow image. "YOUR ONE-STOP SHOP FOR THE BEST PRICES AND SELECTION ON APPAREL". Text can be changed by editing the template. Show more... Download   Blue Scheme SR.DES Sales Receipt with a blue color scheme. Different shades of blue. No images. Contemporary and simple style. "YOUR ONE-STOP SHOP FOR THE BEST PRICES AND SELECTION ON APPAREL". Text can be changed by editing the template. Show more... Download   Blue Square Border SR.DES Blue square borders with no fill. Download   Blue Square Fill SR.DES Blue square borders filled with a lighter shade of blue. Download   Credit Card Cust Copy SR.DES For use with QuickBooks Merchant Account Service only. Sales Receipt - Customer Copy This is a generic Sales Receipt with additional fields to support the credit card features provided by QuickBooks Merchant Account Service. Show more... Download   Credit Card Merch Copy SR.DES For use with QuickBooks Merchant Account Service only. Sales Receipt - Merchant Copy This is a generic Sales Receipt with additional fields to support the credit card features provided by QuickBooks Merchant Account Service. Show more... Download   Credit Card Tan Cust Copy SR.DES Various shades of tan in a contemporary sales receipt. The text, "YOUR ONE-STOP SHOP FOR THE BEST PRICES AND SELECTIONS" can be changed by editing the template. Contains credit card fields for use with QuickBooks Merchant Account Service. Show more... Download   Credit Card Tan Merch Copy SR.DES Various shades of tan in a contemporary sales receipt. The text, "YOUR ONE-STOP SHOP FOR THE BEST PRICES AND SELECTIONS" can be changed by editing the template. Contains credit card fields for use with QuickBooks Merchant Account Service. Show more... Download   Green Rounded Border SR.DES Green small rounded borders with no fill. Download   Green Rounded Fill SR.DES Green small rounded borders filled with a lighter shade of green. Download   Green Square Border SR.DES Green square borders with no fill. Download   QB Custom Sales Receipt.DES Gray square borders with gray fill. QuickBooks Pro Edition 2003 or higher. Download   Green Square Fill SR.DES Green square borders filled with a lighter shade of green. Download   Maroon Rounded Border SR.DES Maroon small rounded borders with no fill. Download   Maroon Rounded Fill SR.DES Maroon small rounded borders filled with a lighter shade of maroon. Download   Maroon Square Border SR.DES Maroon square borders with no fill. Download   Maroon Square Fill SR.DES Maroon square borders filled with a lighter shade of maroon. Download   Orange dots Donation SR.DES Sales receipt with orange dots in the background, designed for donations. For use by non-profit companies. Download   Orange Dots SR.DES Sales receipt with orange dots in the background. Download   Pink Floral Scheme SR.DES Sales Receipt with a pink color scheme. Sectional background image with floral elements. Different shades of pink color. "YOUR ONE-STOP SHOP FOR THE BEST PRICES AND SELECTIONS". Text can be changed by editing the template. Show more... Download   Pink Scheme SR.DES Sales Receipt with pink color scheme. Different shades of pink. No images. Contemporary and simple style. "YOUR ONE-STOP SHOP FOR THE BEST PRICES AND SELECTION ON APPAREL". Text can be changed by editing the template. Show more... Download   Plain Donation SR.DES Simple donation sales receipt for use by non-profit companies. Download   Rainbow Donation SR.DES Non-profit sales receipt for donations. Background image consists of a rainbow and clouds. The title boxes have white round backgrounds - similar to clouds. For use by non-profit companies. Show more... Download   Striped Background SR.DES Sales Receipt on blue, green, yellow striped background. Download   Tan Paw Donation SR.DES Various shades of tan in a contemporary sales receipt designed for donations, overlaid with paw prints. Optional text box, "Thank you for your support." For use by non-profit companies. Show more... Download   QB Return Receipt.DES Return receipt with gray square borders and gray fill. QuickBooks Pro Edition 2003 or higher. Download
  Find out what you need to start with QuickBooks Desktop. Accounting is a process. There’s an order to everything from sales transactions to financial reports and reconciliations. ... See more...
  Find out what you need to start with QuickBooks Desktop. Accounting is a process. There’s an order to everything from sales transactions to financial reports and reconciliations.   We're here to help you through the download, install, and activation of QuickBooks. We'll get your books ready to run your business. You too, can be a QuickBooks Ninja!   System Requirements   Before you install QuickBooks Desktop, it's important to know the system requirements. This makes sure QuickBooks will work with your setup.   QuickBooks Desktop System Requirements 2022 QuickBooks Desktop System Requirements 2021 QuickBooks Desktop System Requirements 2020 System requirements for QuickBooks Desktop for Mac Downloads and updates Download QuickBooks Desktop - Download your QuickBooks software Download QuickBooks Updates - Download updates to your QuickBooks software Install Fix Error: Verify your subscription before installing QuickBooks Desktop Install QuickBooks Desktop for Windows Install QuickBooks Desktop on a Terminal Server  Install QuickBooks Desktop for mac Install QuickBooks Daabase Server Manager Set up and install a multi-user network for QuickBooks Desktop After you install Activate QuickBooks Desktop for Windows Register QuickBooks Desktop for Mac Switch from a different accounting software to QuickBooks Desktop   If you run into issues   We try and make the download, install, and activation process easy but we know sometimes it doesn't go as planned. Check out these articles for extra help.   Can't activate QuickBooks Desktop Fix company file and network issues with Quickbooks FIle Doctor Fix your damaged company file or network Reinstall QuickBooks and try again Resolve common install errors Troubleshoot PDF and print problems with QuickBooks Desktop
Learn common accounting terms used in QuickBooks.  You don't need a degree in accounting to keep up with your bookkeeping. However, it's good to know basic terms so you understand what goes ... See more...
Learn common accounting terms used in QuickBooks.  You don't need a degree in accounting to keep up with your bookkeeping. However, it's good to know basic terms so you understand what goes on behind the scenes in QuickBooks.    Here are the basic accounting terms you'll see in QuickBooks.    A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z    A   Accrual Method Accounting   The simple definition: An accounting method that reports money from completed as well as pending transactions.   Tip: When you start your business, you should pick one accounting method and stick to it. Changing methods will require help from your accountant.    Textbook definition: With the accrual method, you record and report your income and expenses when they’re billed. You record money when it's billed, whether or not you receive it. This includes accounts payable and accounts receivable transactions (as opposed to the cash method).   The upside to using the accrual method is it gives small business owners a more realistic idea of their income and expenses during a given period of time. This can provide a better overall picture of how your business is doing and where it’s headed in the future.   One drawback to the accrual method is that it can factor income you don’t actually have, on hand or in the bank – your books may report large amounts of revenue based on several in-progress invoices, even if your bank account is empty.     Term in use: My business is set up for Accrual Method accounting. I just received $100 from an invoice payment, but I haven’t deposited it into the bank. I also have $100 in unpaid invoices. If I run a Profit and Loss Report, I am will see all $200 - the money I’ve received and anticipate receiving.   (Also see Cash Method Accounting)    Back to Top ^        Accounts Receivable (A/R)   The Simple Definition: Income owed to your business, but has not yet been received. Accounts Receivable is referred to as A/R.      Textbook Definition: Accounts Receivable is the record of money owed to your business for goods or services. Generally, this refers to open invoices you haven't received payment for, yet. Even though the word "accounts" is plural, QuickBooks uses a single Accounts Receivable account in the Chart of Accounts to track all outstanding payments.     Term in use: I sent 10 invoices last week. Folks owe me money! These transactions are still pending. If I were to enter these transactions into QuickBooks, they'd be part of my Accounts Receivable.   (Also see Accounts Payable (A/P))    Back to Top ^        Accounts Payable (A/P)   The Simple Definition: Expenses that you owe, but have not yet paid. Accounts Payable is often referred to as A/P.     Textbook Definition: Accounts Payable is the record of your business' pending/outstanding bills, essentially, the money you owe your vendors for goods or services. The Accounts Payable account tracks how much money you still owe your vendors. It's used whenever you generate a bill or vendor/supplier credit transaction.      Term in use: Last month, I purchased three tons of unroasted coffee beans for my shop and now have several unpaid bills sitting in my office. These transactions are still pending. If I were to enter these expenses into QuickBooks, they’d be part of my Accounts Payable. (Also see Accounts Receivable (A/R))    Back to Top ^        Assets   The Simple Definition: Assets are tangible and intangible items you own and use for business that can be converted into cash. Assets are generally divided up into fixed (long-term use) and current (short-term use) assets.     Textbook Definition: An asset is a tangible resource that belongs to your business that retains value after a year or more. In terms of categorizing assets into accounts... Fixed assets (e.g. tangible assets, property, equipment) – these are assets held with the intention of being used for the purpose of producing or providing goods or services. Fixed assets are not held for sale in the normal course of business. A fixed asset account is used to track purchases of tangible, depreciable property that will have a useful life longer than one year, such as equipment or furniture. Current asset (a.k.a other current assets) - these are assets that are likely to be converted to cash or used up within one year. This includes assets like petty cash, notes receivable due within a year, prepaid expenses (prepayments), and security deposits. The QuickBooks Inventory Asset and the Undeposited Funds account are examples of Current Asset accounts.  Other assets (non-current asset) - these are intangible assets that have a life of more than one year. Assets that are not fixed or current, such as long-term notes receivable, belong in this category.      Term in use: My business just bought a new pizza delivery truck for work. The truck is a fixed asset. What about the dough tossing machine used to make the pizza dough? This is also a fixed asset. The cash stuffed in the desk drawer to help pay for one-off expenses (i.e. petty cash)? That’s a current asset.   (Also see Liabilities)    Back to Top ^            C   Cash Flow   The Simple Definition: The movement of cash in and out of your business.     Textbook Definition: Cash inflows are your sources of income while cash outflows are your expenses. For small businesses, positive cash flow is the goal. You want to generate more money than you’re spending. Many businesses will go through periods of negative cash flow due to seasonality or early investment in assets for the business.     Term in use: You own a pie shop (yum). Income from the sale of pies is cash inflow. When you buy ingredients to make the pies, these expenses create a cash outflow.   Back to Top ^        Cash on Hand/Petty Cash   The Simple Definition: Cash you use for small, “one-off” purchases for your business.     Textbook Definition: Petty cash is the convenient supply of cash you use to make immediate payments for goods and services. For example, instead of writing a check for a small $1.50 purchase for postage, you can pay the postman directly with your petty cash box.   You should designate one person at your business to control and track your petty cash. In QuickBooks, you have to “deposit” funds into your Petty Cash/Cash on Hand account before you can make a withdrawal so the account balances to $0.      Term in use: The cash reserve I keep in the safe to pay for printer paper purchased outside our normal ordering cycle is considered Petty Cash/ Cash on Hand.   Back to Top ^        Cash Method Accounting   The Simple Definition: An accounting method that only reports money you’ve actually received or expenses you’ve already paid. This method does not report transactions in-progress (income or expenses).   *When you first start your business, you pick an accounting method and stick with it – changing methods generally requires help from an accounting professional.     Textbook Definition: With the cash basis of accounting, you record income as it’s received and expenses as they’re paid. This method does not take into account any accounts receivable or accounts payable.   Many small business owners choose cash method accounting because it’s a simpler bookkeeping process. It’s easier to track money as it moves in and out of your bank accounts and there’s no need to record receivables or payables.    One downside to the cash method is its limited view of your overall finances. Since it doesn’t account for incoming revenue or outgoing expenses, it can lead you to believe you’re having a very high or low cash-flow month.  In reality, high cash flow may be the result of last month’s work     Term in use: My business is set up for Cash Method accounting. I just received $100 from an invoice that I deposited into the bank. I have $100 worth of unpaid invoices. If I run a Profit and Loss Report, I will only see the $100 payment I received and deposited, not the pending payment.    (Also see Accrual Method Accounting)    Back to Top ^        Cost of Goods Sold (aka COGS, Cost of Sales, or COS)   The Simple Definition: The costs associated with producing a good or service.     Textbook Definition: Costs directly related to producing a good or service for sale. There’s a direct relationship between these costs and your revenue. If your company sells a product, your cost of goods sold includes the materials, labor, and other expenses incurred to make and sell the product.   By contrast, while they may facilitate the production of a good or service, expenses such as rent, marketing, or advertising are considered indirect and should not be posted to the Cost of Goods Sold account.     Term in use: If you sell a ceramic cup for $5 and it costs you $2 to produce (materials and labor), the cost of goods sold is $2 (i.e. [Revenue from the sale of the cup] – [Cost to produce the cup/COGS] = actual revenue)    Back to Top ^          D   Depreciation   The Simple Definition: The declining loss of value to an asset resulting from various factors such as normal wear and tear and the length of ownership.     Textbook Definition: Most businesses rely on physical assets to stay operational. Computers, cars, office equipment, and machinery all eventually lose value over time. Quantifying that loss is known as depreciation, the portion of an asset’s cost that is “consumed.” This attributes a portion of the profits from the physical asset to the lost value due to use if the asset were to be sold.   When calculating depreciation, there are many factors that must be taken into consideration, such as the current trade-in value, any down payment or outstanding fees, and so on. You'll need to consult with your accountant on how to account for these variables.     Term in use: My guitar has seen better days. I bought it 5 years ago for my side-gig playing music at a local lounge. Its value has declined significantly and I could never sell it back for the purchase price – that loss is its depreciation.   (Also see Assets)    Back to Top ^            E   Equity   The Simple Definition: The total value of your business after you’ve subtracted what you owe [“liabilities”] from what you own [“assets”].     Textbook Definition: Equity is the net worth of a business. It represents the difference between your liabilities and assets. If you sold all your assets today and paid off all outstanding liabilities with the money received from the sale of your assets, the remaining money is your equity. Of course, you don't need to actually sell your assets to have equity. Your equity represents the value of your business, and thus its health.   Equity comes from two primary sources: (1) money invested in your company and (2) profits and losses from the business.   An Owner's Equity account includes capital investments and drawings. An owner can also take money out of the business. Such withdrawals, called Owner's Draws, reduce the company's overall equity.     Term in use: I have $5000 worth of assets (my equipment and everything else I use for my business) and a $2000 loan from the bank. This month I have no A/R or A/P and I’ve made $1000 in income. Right now, my total current equity is $4000 ($5000 – 2000 + 1000 = $4000).    Back to Top ^        Expense   The Simple Definition: Costs associated with business operations, like bills and utilities.     Textbook Definition: Expense accounts are used to track and categorize what your company is spending. An "Other Expense" account is used for money spent on things outside normal business operations, such as corporate income taxes.     Term in use: The money you paid for your new Google Pixel (for work, of course) is an asset, but the phone bill and energy utility used to charge the phone are expenses to your business.   Back to Top ^          I   Income (Revenue)   The Simple Definition: Money you earn from sales.      Textbook Definition: Money earned from the sale of your products or services is recorded as income.  You track this money using income accounts. Your company may have one or several income accounts depending on the financial data you need to track and analyze.    Another category of income is "Other Income," or income generated from the sale of a product or service outside your normal operations. Interest Income is an example of an Other Income account type.     Term in use: The money you collect from selling food and catering services (via invoices or sales receipts) is considered income. Back to Top ^        L   Liabilities   The Simple Definition: The money you currently owe to others – i.e. debts.     Textbook Definition: Liabilities are your company's debts. In a sense, they represent the credit extended to your business. Liabilities include bills you've received, the money you owe on credit cards, sales tax you owe the government, employee withholdings, and both short-term and long-term loans. QuickBooks Online distinguishes between two types of liabilities:   Current liabilities (Creditors in France) - Debts your company expects to pay within a year, such as bills, sales tax, payroll taxes, accrued or deferred salaries, and short-term loans. Long-term liabilities (Non-current liability, Long-term creditors) - Debts that your company expects to pay off in more than one year, such as long-term loans and mortgages     Term in use: I took out a $5,000 loan to pay for new camera equipment which I use exclusively for my wedding photography gig. The loan represents a liability for my business (while camera equipment itself is an asset).   (Also see Assets)    Back to Top ^          O   Owner’s Equity   The Simple Definition: The cash and other assets an owner(s) has invested in their business.     Textbook Definition: Depending on the type of ownership (sole proprietor, partnership, LLC, S-corp or C-Corp), you must account for this type of equity in very specific ways. Learn more about the different types of owners equity on the QuickBooks Resource Center.     Back to Top ^      A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z         Tell us which accounting and product terms you'd like to see in the QuickBooks Encyclopedia in the comments below
Discover a whole new way of doing business with our new QuickBooks Desktop Enterprise with Hosting. It offers protected anytime, anywhere, and on any device access to your data. Your team a... See more...
Discover a whole new way of doing business with our new QuickBooks Desktop Enterprise with Hosting. It offers protected anytime, anywhere, and on any device access to your data. Your team all works with the same information, at the same time - no matter where they are and no matter if they're using a Mac, PC, or tablet. Now, everyone can get more done.     Intuit Hosting Powered by Right Networks Who is Right Networks? QuickBooks Desktop Enterprise Subscription With Hosting Pricing What does Intuit Hosting do?     New to hosting FAQs Can I have third party apps? To view a full list of third party apps, visit the Right Networks Application Directory   How long does onboarding take?   How many users can I have? Your Right Networks users need to match your QuickBooks user count.  Example; If you have a 5 User Enterprise Solution subscription, you can have up to 5 hosting users.   How do I add users to Right Networks? If you already purchased the right number of QuickBooks users and just need to create Right Networks users, you can add them through the Right Networks My Account Portal or by contacting Right Networks support. If you need to add more QuickBooks and Right Networks users, you can contact us to add more seats to your QuickBooks license.  Once you've added additional QuickBooks users,  you can then add the same number of Right Networks users.   What does hosting mean? Hosting is another term for in the cloud. It means your QuickBooks software and data are stored (hosted) on an enterprise-level web server at a protected facility, instead of locally on your office computer. You access them over a protected Internet connection rather than via your local network. You're not tied down to your office to run QuickBooks Desktop Enterprise. You can access it anywhere, anytime, and on any device, including Mac.   How safe is my hosted data? We offer our hosting service through Right Networks, one of the leading providers of enterprise-level hosting. Enterprise-class anti-virus technology, firewalls, encryption and multi-layer access controls help protect your files and transmissions. Right Networks IT professionals continuously monitors the system and handles all updates and upgrades. What are the benefits of choosing QuickBooks Desktop Enterprise with Hosting over QuickBooks Desktop Enterprise (local access only)? Anywhere, anytime access to applications and data With your applications and data hosted, you can connect anytime from anywhere with an Internet connection using a simple client program. Simply launch the remote access application and log in with your user ID and password. Your QuickBooks Desktop Enterprise is ready to use. There's virtually nothing new to learn because the software looks and works just like it does on your PC. Data security QuickBooks Desktop Enterprise is hosted in top-of-the-line data centers that provide true enterprise-class scalability and reliability, including full-time security personnel, closed-circuit video surveillance, continuous and redundant power systems with backup generators, fully redundant network systems with multiple-backbone access, advanced network firewalls, and hazard avoidance and alert systems. If a disaster strikes your office, you'll be able to access your business-critical information from computers at another site. Whether the disaster is as small as a PC crash or as catastrophic as a hurricane, QuickBooks Desktop Enterprise with Hosting can help keep your business running. Data protection and backup We protect your hosted data with encrypted transmission, firewalls, multi-layer access controls, and encrypted backups. In addition, your data is automatically scanned with enterprise-class antivirus technology. We back up your hosted data nightly, and retain backups for 90 days. So, if you accidentally delete a file, it may be recoverable. No server or network maintenance required If you currently store your company data on file servers on your network, you know how much time and money it takes to keep the systems patched, scanned for viruses, access-controlled, etc., in addition to the hassles and risks of making the servers available from remote locations. You can eliminate the need to have servers and virtual private networks (VPNs) in your office. Instead, keep your data in a protected data center, and stay focused on your business. And with your applications running in Right Networks data centers, you no longer need to install and maintain them on your own computer. All you need on your PC is a simple client program that is built into Windows Vista and Windows 7.8   Do I need my own network? No. The Internet is the only network you'll need, and if you're reading this, you've already got it! How long does it take to learn? If you're familiar with QuickBooks Desktop Enterprise, no time at all. QuickBooks Desktop Enterprise with Hosting has the same look and feel. If you're new to QuickBooks, we offer multiple ways to get up-to-speed fast, including the comprehensive support site, Everything Enterprise, which includes exclusive training videos for Full Service Plan members (login and valid Full Service Membership required). Right Networks provides 24/7 support. If you have any questions, its experts are there to help you.   How does the speed compare to running it on my PC? As with any Internet-based service, you'll need a good-quality, fast Internet connection. While experiences may vary, some customers have noticed improved speed and functionality after switching. In addition, you can increase the number of users without losing performance. What is the difference between QuickBooks Online and QuickBooks Desktop Enterprise with Hosting? Both are Internet-accessible solutions, but QuickBooks Online is designed for early-stage businesses that don't require advanced features and functionality. QuickBooks Desktop Enterprise with the Hosting Service offers advanced functionality for growing, small-to-mid-sized businesses that are managing more complexity and may operate from multiple locations or facilities. Additionally, you access QuickBooks Online directly through a Web browser. Most Hosting Service users access their QuickBooks Desktop Enterprise through a remote access application, although it can also be accessed directly through Internet Explorer.   How does Microsoft Word and Excel work with QuickBooks Desktop Enterprise with Hosting? And how does my email work? Microsoft Word and Excel work with QuickBooks Desktop Enterprise and the Hosting Service the same way as they do with the desktop version. If you have Microsoft Word and Excel installed, you can export QuickBooks Desktop Enterprise reports to Excel and estimates, invoices and statements to Word. Additionally, if you'd like to access hosted versions of Word and Excel over the Internet, you can lease Microsoft Office directly from Right Networks for an additional fee. Your Enterprise Hosting Service will cover the hosting for those applications at no additional charge, and you can access them over the same connection. For your email, you have several options. You can use QuickBooks email services, configure QuickBooks to use Web mail, or add Outlook to your Right Networks account.   What to expect after purchase Who do I call for support? For questions related to QuickBooks usage, Error messages, Payroll, Intuit Payments, or adding users , Contact Intuit. For Questions related to adding shortcuts, apps, getting the latest software year installed, or inability to log in to the Right Networks environment, Contact Right Networks.            
    This article takes a closer look at what to do to set up, record, and track sales tax for products you sell in QuickBooks Online. Foremost, QuickBooks Online is accounting software... See more...
    This article takes a closer look at what to do to set up, record, and track sales tax for products you sell in QuickBooks Online. Foremost, QuickBooks Online is accounting software, not tax software. You cannot file your taxes directly with QuickBooks. However, you will use QuickBooks to track the collection of sales tax. These financial records are also essential for reporting your income to the IRS.  How to Set Up Sales Tax: Settings, Sales, & More   First, let’s make sure you’re set up to collect Sales Tax. All of your tax information is managed from the Tax Tab in QuickBooks Online. The first time you visit the Tax Tab, you will be prompted to complete an onboarding workflow.   Before completing this workflow, make sure you've selected your business’ accounting method in Account and Settings (Gear Icon > Account and Settings > Advanced > Accounting).  This step is very important – currently, the Automated Sales Tax Center feature in QuickBooks Online only calculates taxes using the accrual method, regardless of company accounting preferences.   The Automated Tax Center (using accrual method)         If you are new to QuickBooks Online and you... ... set your accounting method to Cash BEFORE setting up your Sales Tax Center, your QuickBooks will use the Manual Sales Tax option and not the Automated Tax Center. Read the full article to learn more.  You may prefer to do this manually, and that’s perfectly fine. If so, follow the steps in the linked article and learn more about sales tax in general.   The Automated Tax Center (using cash method)   ... set your accounting method to Cash AFTER setting up Sales Tax, QuickBooks will calculate your sales tax, but your Sales Tax Center will only display using the accrual method. As a workaround, you can use Sales Tax Liability reports to calculate your sales tax payments. Remember, both methods require you to state where you sell your products in order to set the appropriate tax rate.      The first time you begin the setup in the Tax Tab, you’ll be asked where you sell your products. By choosing your accounting method and specifying where you sell products, you're also deciding whether you want QuickBooks to automatically identify your state tax agency and calculate taxes for you.   Once you input your tax period start date and filing frequency, the Sales Tax feature is set permanently.     You should also check whether the products you sell are taxable. Generally, services are not taxable, but there are exceptions – if you’re unsure, reach out to a tax professional. When you’re in the Products and Services menu editing an item, you can choose to make it taxable. There are several Sales Tax Category options. Here’s the advice from our experts: From the "Sales tax" category drop-down, select the category that best fits your item. Example: Food and Drink From the "What you sell" drop-down, select the best description that provides specific details. Example: Soft Drinks Water   If you sell to tax-exempt customers (organizations, non-profits, or charities, to name a few), you can choose to not collect sales tax from them. By default, all customers are “taxable.” To change this setting, navigate to the Customers subtab and edit their account. Find the Tax info tab in the edit window and uncheck the box to exempt their account.       On taxes... Still feeling a bit unsure? Here's the long-form guide for setting up taxes in Quick Books Online   Taxes are complicated territory. There are rules that are downright confusing. What makes these rules even trickier is that many are contextual, some only apply to certain types of business in certain circumstances.  It’s best not to guess when it comes to tax laws. When in doubt, reach out to your accountant or a tax expert for advice. Prepare a list of questions and use your consultation to ask specific questions about your accounts. You can also reach out to the experts on the TurboTax community with your pressing questions about tax collection, exceptions, and categorizations.       How to Collect and Record Sales Tax   While setting up the Sales Tax Center takes a bit of planning, recording sales tax is very easy. The process is exactly the same for both Invoices and Sales Receipts. If a product is set as “taxable,” the sales tax option is automatically selected on the sales form.     Keep an eye on the tax column when you’re preparing sales forms so you aren’t accidentally collecting sales tax for non-qualifying products or services. A quick review of the total and subtotal is another simple way to prevent minor but nonetheless pesky errors. In general, most services are non-taxable, but it depends on your industry and where you live.   If you use the Automated Tax Center (and not the manual method), QuickBooks Online will calculate sales tax for you based on the customer’s address on file. If you need to change the tax rate, simply select the correct one from the drop-down.      How to Track and Pay Sales Tax: Tracking, Recording, & Reports   You'll track sales tax throughout the quarter, but how do you use the collected data to actually make tax payments? Tools like the Sales Tax Liability Report and Tax Tab will help you record tax payments made throughout the year, pull the numbers needed to make tax payments, and maintain accurate accounts once you’ve made tax payments. As the video mentions, you cannot pay or file your taxes directly using QuickBooks Online. Instead, you will... You use your sales data from QuickBooks to estimate how much state sales tax to pay so you can complete sales tax payments for each state you do business in (visit your state tax website for more on the actual payment process).    Once you’ve filed and made tax payments with each state tax agency, take time to review your accounts. You will make adjustments to the totals in QuickBooks for the actual amounts paid as well as the payment sources after you file (your estimates may be spot on and you will not need to make an adjustment).  As long as you completed the workflow in the Sales Tax Center, your Sales Tax Liability Report will summarize taxable amounts from sales for each locality (state and local) you are responsible for filing sales taxes in.   Keep in mind...    Your accounting method matters! Depending on whether you are using cash or accrual method, your "sales" and thus collected sales tax are defined differently. Learn more about these accounting methods.  The totals on this report are recorded by state since you need to file taxes for each state you sell products to.      With the information from the Sales Tax Liability Report in hand, go to the Tax Tab where you will see of all the returns you’ll need to file. Go through these returns one-by-one, using the figures from your Sales Tax Liability Report and the data in the Tax Tab to prepare your filings outside of QuickBooks.    As needed, you can make adjustments so your accounts in QuickBooks so they match what you actually paid to each state. If everything looks good, click “Record Payment” and enter your tax payment information so the returns in QuickBooks are now marked as "paid."  Learn everything you need to be successful How to Use the Undeposited Funds Account in QuickBooks Online  How to Record Bank Deposits in QuickBooks Online   Set up for Success in QuickBooks Online Adding Items, Customers and Products to Lists Financial Reports and Reporting Features Creating and Managing Accounts   Check your progress Am I Ready to Send an Invoice in QuickBooks Online?  
  We’ve covered Invoice and Sales Form Basics, now let’s take a look a few of the essential connected features: Sales Tax, Billable Hours, and Estimates.   Setting up for Success wi... See more...
  We’ve covered Invoice and Sales Form Basics, now let’s take a look a few of the essential connected features: Sales Tax, Billable Hours, and Estimates.   Setting up for Success with QuickBooks Online - Invoicing and Sales Form Basics Setting up for Success with QuickBooks Online - Intermediate Invoicing How to Set Up Products & Services: Organize & List     We also introduced two basic list creation methods in the QuickBooks Encyclopedia: the “build-as-lists-you-work” method, where you create entries as you generate sales forms and the “build-lists-all-at-once” method, where build a complete list ahead of time. Each method has advantages. Whether you prefer to set aside time to enter everything ahead of time or do work on the fly, you’ll want to spend time creating product and service, customer, and vendor items before you start sending Invoices en masse.   How to Set Up Sales Tax: Settings, Sales, & More    If you sell products (certain services are also taxable), you must collect sales tax in most states.   The basic set up in QuickBooks Online is two parts – (1) selecting your sales tax preferences in the Taxes Tab and (2) making your products for sale “taxable” from the Products and Services list. There’s a bit more to set up than what’s described in the tutorial, so we strongly encourage you to also check out “Setting up for success in QuickBooks Online – Sales Tax.”     How to Enter Billable Time: Employees & Contractors   For both the “Single Time Activity” and “Time Sheets," make sure you check the “Billable” option if you intend to add these costs to customer Invoices. Also note that when the instructor uses the word “Vendor,” this generally refers to Independent Contractors.     Note that timed activities are meant to be added to your customer's Invoices as billable line items – this is a separate process from your Payroll.     How to Send Estimates, Quotes, & Proposals   Estimates are "non-posting transactions," a term you will hear often in QuickBooks. This essentially means Estimates have no impact on your income accounts and the customer will not owe you anything until the Estimate is turned into an official Invoice. Estimates look and feel nearly identical Invoices. You enter your products and services as line items exactly the same way you would for an Invoice. Once an Estimate is approved by your customer, it can be easily converted into an Invoice. You may want to utilize the message, memo, and attachment fields since your customers need as much information as possible to make a decision.    You can check the status of all open Estimates in the Sales Tab.      When your customer accepts the Invoice, you can update the status to "accepted" and click “Save and Send” to give the customer the final accepted copy. Don't forget to include the name of the recipient and date.     Once you update the Estimate, rather than creating a new Invoice from scratch, return to the Estimates menu to click Create Invoice so you continue to work from the same sales form through the entire sales cycle. Learn everything you need to be successful How to Use the Undeposited Funds Account in QuickBooks Online  How to Record Bank Deposits in QuickBooks Online   Set up for Success in QuickBooks Online Adding Items, Customers and Products to Lists Financial Reports and Reporting Features Creating and Managing Accounts   Check your progress Am I Ready to Send an Invoice in QuickBooks Online?  
  These tutorials guide you through the basics of Invoices and Sales Receipts in QuickBooks Online. Along with our “First time with QuickBooks Online” series, this article is an excellent... See more...
  These tutorials guide you through the basics of Invoices and Sales Receipts in QuickBooks Online. Along with our “First time with QuickBooks Online” series, this article is an excellent starting point for brand new QuickBooks users.   Recording sales is the most important accounting activity for most users. In QuickBooks Online, you send Invoices to customers if you expect to be paid in the future and Sales Receipts if you were paid at the time of the sale.    Here, we will focus on the creation and steps for processing these sales forms, as well as how and when to use associated features in QuickBooks. Watch these videos in their entirety so you feel confident with the fundamentals of QuickBooks Online.   Setting up for Success with QuickBooks Online – Intermediate Invoicing and Sales Forms   How to Record Your Sales: Reports, Invoices, & More   Below is the basic sales workflow in QuickBooks Online. Whenever you make a sale... Create an Invoice when you sell a product or service and expect to get paid in the future. Once the Invoice is paid, you receive the payment against the Invoice in QuickBooks.   Create a Sales Receipts when you sell a product or service and are paid at the time of sale. Since you’ve already been paid, you skip the "receive payment" step. Pay close attention to the receive payment step. This is unique to the QuickBooks accounting workflow. You must receive payments against an Invoice in order to accurately process and deposit that money into an account.    While many users may be new to QuickBooks, they are not new to business. In most cases, new QuickBooks users will have hundreds of historical transactions they'd like to enter into their accounts on day one. Sound like you?   For those historical transactions that have already been paid by customers, enter them as Sales Receipts. For upcoming customer sales that have yet to be paid, create Invoices. When you first create a new account in the Chart of Accounts, you also have the option to set the opening balance. While having an opening balance won't provide transaction details, for reporting and tracking purposes, your totals will be accurate.  How to Set Up Products & Services: Organize & List     Before you start sending Invoices or recording sales, you need to create your Products and Services list. We go over this in greater detail in “Your First Hour with QuickBooks Online,” but the basic process is outlined in the video. When you create a product or service, you need to designate an income account. Keep in mind, the income account is used to record the income from the sale of the product or service. This account is not where the payment for the sale ends up - that comes later.    Each time you sell an item, the income is distributed into the specified income account so everything stays organized on your Financial Reports.     As we mentioned, income accounts are separate from accounts you receive customer payments into. You decide which account the actual payment is deposited into during the “Receive Payment” step (see below). This may seem unclear, but for now,  just keep in mind that these accounts are different.     How to Record a Customer Invoice     Now that you know the basic workflow, you can confidently create a new Invoice or Sales Receipt.   The instructor in the tutorial already has product and service items entered into QuickBooks so he doesn’t have to create them on the fly on the Invoice form. If you have the time, do a complete setup of your most popular products and services so you don’t miss any crucial details.   You will notice right away that there are several ways to create a new invoice in QuickBooks Online. Here are a few common paths: The simplest and most frequently used path is to click the Create Button ( ) and select Invoice.   In the Sales Tab, you can click "create Invoice" from the customer list so their information is automatically added to the form.   You can (and should always) convert Estimates into Invoices in the Sales Tab so you're working from the same transaction throughout the sales cycle.   You may also notice that your first invoice looks a bit different from the one in the video. By default, electronic invoice payments are not enabled since this requires signing up for our payment processing services.   While you generate Invoices in QuickBooks Online, many users process payments via credit card or external third-party applications like PayPal. This works perfectly fine, so long as you remember to finish processing the Invoice in QuickBooks. Whether you choose an external service or sign up for QuickBooks Payments (which drastically reduces data entry, and ACH transfers are free), the basic workflow is nearly identical – send an invoice, receive the payment, and then deposit it into an account in QuickBooks.   The narrator spends quite a bit of time on the date, due date, payment terms, and other details. Invoices and Sales Receipts are customer facing, meaning that when you hit “Save and Send,” your end customer will receive a copy, so be sure that everything is correct before you hit send. remember that you can always select “Save and Close” to finish your work later on.   The toolbar at the bottom is also chock-full of useful features. You can use the Customization Module to spruce up the visual design of Invoices or add or remove data fields on sales forms (in the case of the video, they mention adding a Qty field).      You probably won’t use these on a daily basis, so once you’ve gotten settled into the program, spend an hour exploring how these features that can significantly enhance your workflow.     How to Record a Sales Receipt     For cases where your customer has already paid you and you’re recording the transaction at the time of or shortly after the sale, you can create a Sales Receipt.   You will notice right away that Sales Receipts are nearly identical to Invoices. The key point in the tutorial is the “deposit to” step. This is not an option on Invoices, but it does appear on Sales Receipts and is very similar to the "receive payment" step of Invoicing.     In many cases, such as with credit card payments, you can select your "checking account" since the actual payment is already (or will soon be) directly deposited into your checking account. However, if you plan to deposit cash, checks, and several payments at once into your bank’s checking account, you need to use the Undeposited Funds account. This is essentially a holding account you can use to group multiple transactions together to mirror your bank actual deposit. Individual payments sit in the Undeposited Funds account until you're ready to add them to your income accounts with the Bank Deposit feature. For example, if you have two separate transactions in QuickBooks for $50 each but you made a single $100 deposit to your bank, you’d want to deposit the two transactions to your Undeposited Funds Account and then process them together. This way, when you reconcile your accounts at the end of the month, you’ll always have an exact match. While it initially seems like extra work, the Undeposited Funds account is a very useful organizational tool (and safety net to help you manage payments) when you’re dealing with hundreds of transactions every day.     How to Record Invoice Payments   The Receive Payments step is where most new QuickBooks users run into challenges. Even if you are processing payments outside of QuickBooks, you need to follow the Receive Payment workflow so all of your transactions are processed the same way.   You may hear some people talk about “accepting payments against an Invoice” or “closing out an invoice.” This essentially means matching payments to an existing Invoice. Remember, you don’t need to receive payments if you are creating a Sales Receipt because you were already paid at the time of sale. If you skip the Receive Payment step and hold onto Invoice (A) for $100, but make an unmatched $100 deposit to your checking account, Invoice (A) would remain open on your books. This would impact your Accounts Receivable (A/R) total and double count your income - you would have $100 waiting to be processed in you’re A/R and $100 already recorded to your checking account!   Match the Payment Method and follow the Deposit to step as close as possible. As we mentioned in the previous section, the Undeposited Funds Account is a crucial tool for both Sales Receipts and received payments Invoices since it allows you to hold payments until they’re physically deposited into bank accounts and you can match the records as accurately as possible.   Of course, if the Invoice payment is already in your bank account and does not need to be combined with other payments, you can deposit it directly into another account in QuickBooks.   If you need to double check your work, use the information in the Customer Tab to check your customers’ outstanding balances.      How to Record Bank Deposits: Invoices & Sales Receipts   The Bank Deposit feature lets you deposit multiple Invoices and Sales Receipts from various sources into a single entry so they “match” however they were recorded in your bank or credit card accounts. This feature is used when you deposit invoice or sales receipt payments into Undeposited Funds.     If transactions were recorded by the bank individually, you can record them the same way in QuickBooks. If you deposited multiple payments into the bank at once and they end up on a single bank deposit slip, you want to mirror this process and match all the relevant Invoice and Sales Receipts payments in QuickBooks. This will make monthly bank reconciliations much easier. The area to pay close attention to is the “Select Payments Included in this Deposit” section. This is where you will see all payments currently sitting in your Undeposited Funds account. If a payment is not in the Undeposited Funds account, you will not see it here since you’ve already deposited it somewhere else.    At the bottom of the page, you will notice a section titled “Add Funds to this Deposit.” This is where you can add additional transactions, such as bank fees or interest that are not part of the original deposit but are a related expense created as a result.   Learn everything you need to be successful How to Use the Undeposited Funds Account in QuickBooks Online  How to Record Bank Deposits in QuickBooks Online   Set up for Success in QuickBooks Online Adding Items, Customers and Products to Lists Financial Reports and Reporting Features Creating and Managing Accounts   Check your progress Am I Ready to Send an Invoice in QuickBooks Online?  
  As a small business owner, cash flow is critical to your success, so understanding how to quickly deal with payment holds and how to avoid them is important. In this article, we will gu... See more...
  As a small business owner, cash flow is critical to your success, so understanding how to quickly deal with payment holds and how to avoid them is important. In this article, we will guide you through specific scenarios and provide best practices to avoid payment holds.   In order to have the best possible experience, we encourage you to read through this entire article.  If you are short on time and need some quick guidance, you can also click on the individual links below to jump to the areas that interest you the most.   Contents How to Challenge a Chargeback Good to Know - The Chargeback Process Best Practices - How to Avoid/Reduce Chargebacks When Should You Call Merchant Services? How to Challenge a Chargeback  Recall from our last article, that a chargeback is a transaction that has been disputed by the cardholder or card issuer. If you wish to challenge a chargeback, you must do so in a timely fashion because there is a brief window of opportunity. To assist us in disputing chargebacks on your behalf, please respond promptly and file the requested paperwork by the submission deadline. Note: Even if you work with Intuit to successfully reverse a chargeback, you still need to pay a chargeback fee. The chargeback fee is not a penalty fee but a processing fee for handling the issue on your behalf.   Good to Know - The Chargeback Process   Best Practices - How to Avoid/Reduce Chargebacks   Being EMV (Europay MasterCard Visa) compliant is the best protection against chargebacks. EMV chip cards contain microprocessors which provide stronger transaction security features and other application capabilities. Unlike magnetic stripe cards, the card chip creates a unique transaction code every time it is used for payment. This transaction code can only be used once. Here are some additional ways to reduce chargebacks: Be clear about refund and return policies.  Make sure that the conditions of the sale are written on the receipt near the customer’s signature and that (s)he receives a copy of that receipt. Also display your refund and return policy near the register, in a place all your customers can see it.  It doesn't hurt to have cashiers explain your policy to customers at the time of the sale. Respond to retrieval request and chargeback letters as soon as possible. If you wish to dispute a customer's claim, all documents we request to resolve the issue should be sent by the date specified in the letter. Even if the customer is wrong, your failure to reply usually makes you liable for the funds. Collect CVC2 and CVV2 verification numbers. According to Visa this can reduce chargebacks and reduce any pass-through fees that may be charged when a credit card order is conducted. On the back of MasterCard, or most Visa and Discover credit cards, is a 3-digit security code located right after the credit card number. American Express cards have a 4-digit security code located on the front of the card just above the card holder's account number. Most online payment processors support entering security codes when processing credit card orders. This extra security measure helps protect you against fraud. Use the Address Verification System (AVS).  AVS checks to make sure that the address entered on an order form is the same as the address to which the card holder's billing statements are mailed. People using stolen card numbers usually don't enter the real card holder's billing address on an order form. Be cautious of orders with non-matching billing and shipping addresses. AVS only works with US addresses. Let customers know what name will appear on statements. Letting customers know the name that will appear on their credit card statement will avoid a lot of confusion. Watch out for orders using free e-mail addresses. Be wary of accepting orders from people who are using a free email address when ordering (i.e. Hotmail, Yahoo, etc.). People using free email are almost impossible to track so most fraudulent orders are made using free email addresses. Take an imprint of the credit card. In instances when a card's magnetic stripe is unreadable or for delivery orders, making an imprint of the card is proof that the card was present and should be kept with your records of the transaction. Collect signatures upon delivery. You can use carriers that require signatures for delivery and supply you with a copy. Always retain these in your records. Request a copy of identification and credit card. Always see identification for face-to-face transactions. Be cautious of orders from foreign countries. A large majority of fraudulent orders come from places like the Middle East, Asia, Africa and South America. Watch out for foreign customers who place orders for large amounts, or for several of the same expensive item, and/or insist on next-day shipping.   When Should You Call Merchant Services? If you’ve submitted all of the requested paperwork for the initial payment hold and 2 business days have passed, reach out to QuickBooks Payments or Merchant Services at 888-692-9559.  
Getting paid is important to everyone, especially small business owners. So when something goes wrong, it is important to understand why, how to manage the issue and how to minimize these i... See more...
Getting paid is important to everyone, especially small business owners. So when something goes wrong, it is important to understand why, how to manage the issue and how to minimize these in the future. In this article, we will guide you through the what the typical payments process cycle looks like and some specific scenarios where holds occur. If you are currently experiencing payment holds, additional guidance is provided in our next article, “Managing and Avoiding Payment Holds”.   In order to have the best possible experience, we encourage you to read through this entire article to gain a thorough understanding of payment holds.  If you are short on time and need some quick guidance, you can also click on the individual links below to jump to the areas that interest you the most.   Contents When to Expect Funds in Your Account Good to Know - Credit Card Processing Cycle What Triggers a Hold? What Happens When Funds Are Placed On Hold? What Happens When You (the Business Owner) Void a Credit Card Transaction What Happens When Your Customer Voids a Credit Card Transaction   When to Expect Funds in Your Account When you are using an electronic payments system, it is important to have the right expectations of when funds will hit your bank account. The time it takes to process payments can vary based on a number of factors, such as the time of day. For QuickBooks Online Payments users, credit card payments typically deposit in about 2-3 business days and free ACH Bank Transfer payments deposit in about 2-7 business days.      Good to Know - Credit Card Processing Cycle         What Triggers a Hold?   When something unexpected occurs in your transaction(s), a hold may be placed on the funds. Here are some common reasons for holds:   When your payment processing exceeds the established maximum dollar amount expected on your account When a transaction is processed after several authorization attempts and failures When certain transactions require verification of your business type to ensure it is compliant with the Intuit Acceptable Use Policy When our systems identify processing patterns that pose a risk to any of the parties involved: You, your customer or to Intuit.   What Happens When Funds Are Placed On Hold?   Intuit will attempt to contact you via the phone number you have provided on your merchant account. You will then receive an email with detailed instructions on what additional information is needed in order to complete our review. For example, we may ask for a detailed invoice with the cardholder's name and billing address as they are reflected on file with their bank. To resolve the issue as quickly as possible, please submit any requested documents as soon as possible.   When will Intuit release these funds? We are unable to deposit any money from funds on hold until we complete our review. Once all of the requested information has been provided, the review is typically completed within 2 business days. What Happens When You (the Business Owner) Void a Credit Card Transaction? If you void a transaction prior to batching, the authorization for that amount remains, placing a hold on the customer’s credit card for around 7-10 days (or up to 30 days, depending on the policies of the cardholder’s issuing bank). What Happens When Your Customer Voids a Credit Card Transaction? A chargeback is a transaction that has been disputed by the cardholder or card issuer.  Here are the most common reasons for chargebacks. Listed below each bullet is a list of documents to dispute the chargeback.   The cardholder claims they did not get the merchandise or service. Rebuttal addressing the Cardholder's claims. Proof of Delivery. Signed proof of pick-up.  The cardholder claims the merchandise or services were not as initially described or were received in defective condition. Rebuttal addressing the Cardholder's claims. Proof that merchandise/service matched the description. Proof that the Cardholder did not attempt to return the merchandise. Proof of ongoing negotiations between the Cardholder and the Merchant. Outside opinion from a third party expert in support of the Merchant's rebuttal. The cardholder claims the transaction was cancelled and/or the merchandise was returned. Rebuttal addressing the Cardholder's claims. Proof that the Merchant's return/cancellation policy was properly disclosed to the Cardholder at the time of sale. Proof that the Cardholder's cancellation/return was not in accordance with the Merchant's properly disclosed policy. The cardholder does not recognize the transaction. A copy of the Transaction Record with showing what was purchased. The cardholder claims fraud or unauthorized charge. A copy of the signed and swiped receipt (if applicable). Rebuttal letter, Invoice, proof of delivery. Compelling evidence (i.e. photographs, emails, etc.), to support that the Cardholder made the Transaction and has received the merchandise/service. Duplicate transactions. Failure to respond to an inquiry (American Express only).     Please note: Even if you work with Intuit to successfully reverse a chargeback, you still need to pay a chargeback fee. The chargeback fee is not a penalty fee but a processing fee for handling the issue on your behalf.   If you have received a chargeback, DO NOT issue a credit to the cardholder since they already received a credit from their bank upon the processing of the chargeback.     If you have need help with payment holds, please continue reading more in our next article “Managing and Avoiding Payment Holds.  
  You can convert any company file to a Mac version from a U.S. version of QuickBooks Pro, Premier, and Premier Accountant Edition for the same year as your version of QuickBooks for Mac or... See more...
  You can convert any company file to a Mac version from a U.S. version of QuickBooks Pro, Premier, and Premier Accountant Edition for the same year as your version of QuickBooks for Mac or the two previous years. In other words, if you have QuickBooks for Mac 2019, you can convert your file from QuickBooks for Windows 2017, 2018, and 2019.   Before you start, be sure that you are familiar with what data is converted from QuickBooks for Windows to QuickBooks for Mac.   Data that is and is not converted from QuickBooks for Windows to QuickBooks for Mac   Although Intuit has used reasonable efforts to include all features affected, Intuit disclaims that all features are included in these lists. Be sure to compare the newly-converted data with the original data to learn what data was not converted.     Data that is converted from Windows to Mac Account list (chart of accounts) Customer list Vendor list (notes will not be converted) Item list Payment terms list Shipping via list Customer type list Vendor type list Employee list (notes will not be converted) To do list (alerts will not be converted) Other names list (without notes) Job types list Payment method list Customer message list Classes Reminders (alerts will not be converted) Links between pay items and other items Custom field definitions Transactions and their links: Invoices Bills Deposits Payments Transfers Memorized transactions Multiple estimates per job All list reports History of QuickBooks versions used with the data file Transaction statistics 1099 categories Notes Audit trail Preferences Company name and address Which features are enabled Time and activity records Budgets Reconcile Address book data Income and expense tracking by class (available in QuickBooks for Mac using Profit & Loss by Class reports) Job costing data (available in QuickBooks for Mac using Job Profitability reports) Vehicle list       Data that is not converted from Windows to Mac   Important: QuickBooks for Mac does not support multiple currencies. Since accounts and balances are affected by the multiple and home currency settings, these settings cannot be changed in QuickBooks for Windows once they have been set. If you have used multiple currencies in your Windows company file, you will not be able to convert your data for use in QuickBooks for Mac.   Some features and data will NOT be converted from Windows to Mac, including (but not necessarily limited to) the following: Any data if you have used multiple currencies in QuickBooks for Windows. Intuit integrated payroll and payroll list items (QuickBooks for Mac uses Intuit Online Payroll) Online banking transactions that have not been accepted into a register (transactions that have been accepted will appear as payments, deposits, and transfers with associated links) Online banking aliases Customized settings for forms like invoices, estimates, statements, and purchase orders (forms can be customized in QuickBooks for Mac) Multiuser data, such as usernames User passwords (QuickBooks for Mac supports administrator password) Memorized reports Business planning, expert analysis, and business optimization tools Customized price levels Integration with third-party applications, including Microsoft Word, Outlook, and ACT!™ Merchant account services (you’ll need to set this up again in QuickBooks for Mac) Sales order and back order tracking (available in Premier versions of QuickBooks for Windows) Assembly items (available only in Premier versions of QuickBooks for Windows) will be converted into non-inventory part items Budgets created without an associated account Transaction type “EFP payroll” (will convert into a payroll liability check) Workers comp list Fixed asset item list Multiple “ship to” addresses, Preferred Send method, and payment information for Customer:Jobs User-added columns to lists     Unsupported reports   The following preset reports are currently not supported by QuickBooks for Mac 2019. You can, however, create many of these reports using the customization, filtering, and memorization features in QuickBooks for Mac. Profit & Loss Unclassified Open Purchase Orders by Job Sales Tax Revenue Summary Pending Builds Income Tax Preparation Profit & Loss Budget Performance Fixed Asset Listing Voided/Deleted Transactions (available in Premier versions of QuickBooks for Windows®) Voided/Deleted Transactions History (available in Premier versions of QuickBooks for Windows®) Closing Date Exception (available only in Premier versions of QuickBooks for Windows®) Open Sales Orders by Customers (available in Premier versions of QuickBooks for Windows®) Open Sales Orders by Item (available in Premier versions of QuickBooks for Windows®) Adjusted Trial Balance (available in Premier versions of QuickBooks for Windows®) Adjusting Journal Entries (available in Premier versions of QuickBooks for Windows®) Forecast Overview (available in Premier versions of QuickBooks for Windows®) Forecast vs. Actual (available in Premier versions of QuickBooks for Windows®) All payroll and workers comp reports Unsupported report filters   The following report filters are currently not supported by QuickBooks for Mac. The balances of memorized reports that were created using these filters will not match balances in the original data file. Name Email Paid Thru Sales Tax Code Template Online Status Printed Status Voided Workers Comp Code Is Adjustment
    After three years, QuickBooks for Mac gets an update. This month, QuickBooks for Mac 2019 finally arrives. With such a long gap in-between the releases, many of you moved to QuickBo... See more...
    After three years, QuickBooks for Mac gets an update. This month, QuickBooks for Mac 2019 finally arrives. With such a long gap in-between the releases, many of you moved to QuickBooks Online and may now wish to return. Yet, what about your company data file? Can it come back and how difficult will that be?   The biggest difficulty is getting past the fact that there is no direct route to get from QuickBooks Online to QuickBooks for Mac. You will need to export your data into QuickBooks for Windows and then convert that file into QuickBooks for Mac. Even though the process appears complicated, you can still get your data back into QuickBooks for Mac.     The following step will get you started on the standard conversion process. After reading this overview, you should have enough information to choose if conversion is right for you. Follow this sequence to help guide you.   *Note: Alternatively, you may wish to have QuickBooks Data Services perform the entire conversion for you, however, certain fees may apply. Contact support to have them initiate a Data Services case on your behalf.   Windows and IE   The first part of the conversion ONLY works with Internet Explorer. With that said, in Windows 10 it is easy to mistake the Microsoft Edge browser icon with Internet Explorer.          Should you use the wrong browser, prepare to receive this message:       Internet Explorer does not show on the application listing, but it is a built-in feature and does not need installation. To locate it search for “Internet Explorer,” and you should find it.   Where's the Export?   Select the Company Settings Gear Icon, in the upper right portion of the screen, to access the Export Data Feature.       Answer the QuickQuestion with QuickBooks Desktop in order to begin the wizard:     Important: If you're using a trial version of QuickBooks for Windows to facilitate the conversion, you may need to briefly open the Activate window. Please see this community post Heads up - most Important information that will not come over   Some information simply cannot export and will need to be re-created. The export wizard should determine which data items you currently use in QBO that do not carry over and notify you before continuing. Please take note prior cancelling your QBO Subscription to be sure to either print or view the following if you want to re-create the data in Desktop. View the complete list, but some of the more common items are: Budgets Recurring templates are called memorized transactions in Desktop and are used to easily enter repeating transactions Customer Credit Card information does not export for security reasons Locations is not a feature in QuickBooks Desktop editions and therefore cannot be recreated Statements cannot be exported, unfortunately, yet can be recreated in QuickBooks Desktop Estimates      A note about lists...   The character limits did not appear to an issue for this particular file. All accounts and names came over for Chart of Accounts, Customer, Vendors and Employees Items: Everything came over except for Bundles, which is a collection of items and services typically sold together. Those had to be recreated as Group Items in QuickBooks for Mac.     Discrepancies (The Big Reports)   Within the QBO test file, the Profit and Loss for the last fiscal year showed most Income Totals Matched. COGS was off by about $5,000 and so was Gross Profit, but that can be explained with how inventory is calculated. QuickBooks Desktop and QuickBooks for Mac both use the Average Cost method to calculate your inventory whereas QuickBooks Online uses the “First-in-first-out (FIFO)“ inventory management method.   Take note, expense totals closely match what shows in QuickBooks Online.   For the Balance Sheet, Accounts Receivable was off by about $5,000 which also skewed total current assets. However, individual asset accounts matched such as Undeposited Funds, Retainage Receivable, Checking, Savings, Petty Cash. In the end, the Total Assets were lower by about $2,000 from QuickBooks Online, but they did balance with Total Liabilities.   QBWin to QBMac The process and differences migrating from QuickBooks for Windows into QuickBooks for Mac is even easier and less intrusive. You can save your Windows file as a Mac backup, using a special utility built into QuickBooks. Then simply restore the backup into your new QuickBooks for Mac 2019. Follow this guide for more detailed steps.   End-to-End Process On average, the entire process may take hours*, including: Requesting the export file from QBO Installing a trial version of QuickBooks for Windows 2018 Importing the file into this version Exporting to a QuickBooks for Macintosh backup file Installing QuickBooks for Macintosh 2019 Importing the backup file from QuickBooks for Windows *Times may vary depending on file size. Conclusion The entire process is not instantaneous and may seem complicated, but it is easier if you remember the sequence and follow the process: QBO-->QBWin-->QBMac. It certainly appears easier than starting from an old backup or starting completely over for that matter. For an easy to follow guide, please see the Visual Guide for Export.   References For the complete and detailed explanation of the conversion from QuickBooks Online to QuickBooks for Mac, see Export data file from QuickBooks Online to QuickBooks for Mac. For a more comprehensive list of limitations of converting from QBO to QuickBooks Windows, please read Export Limitations – QuickBooks Online to QuickBooks Desktop. For a detailed explanation of converting from QuickBooks Windows to QuickBooks for Mac, please read Convert a QuickBooks Mac file to QuickBooks Windows and back again.                     See Also Data structure when converting your QuickBooks for Windows file to QuickBooks Desktop for Mac
      Account reconciliation is the process of matching transactions entered into QuickBooks Online against your bank or credit card statements. This review should be done on a regula... See more...
      Account reconciliation is the process of matching transactions entered into QuickBooks Online against your bank or credit card statements. This review should be done on a regular basis, once a month at the very least when you receive your statements.   The process itself can be done fairly quickly if you connect your online bank accounts to QuickBooks Online and perform regular upkeep throughout the month. It's also important to learn how to use the Undeposited Funds account so transactions in QuickBooks match what's recorded on your bank and credit card statements.  Why do I need to reconcile my bank accounts in QuickBooks Online?    The balances in QuickBooks Online need to match your bank and credit card records so you have accurate financial data. Naturally, financial reports are only valuable if the base information is precise.     Moreover, your records need to be accurate when its time to file your taxes. By compiling and maintaining your account data throughout the year, you'll be well ahead for your next filing.    There are other underlying benefits as well. If you regularly reconcile your accounts, you'll know exactly how much money your business has in the bank and that you're always working with accurate data. Equipped with this knowledge, you can make smart, informed business decisions.   If you don’t already, build account reconciliations into your routine. Future you will thank you.  Get started reconciling your accounts in QuickBooks Online   Select the Accounting Tab from the Nav Bar and then the Reconcile sub-tab. Start with your checking account and work your way through each connected bank and credit card account one at a time. Enter the Ending Balance and Ending Date as they appear on your bank statements. If the number you enter doesn't match the beginning balance recorded in QuickBooks, that's ok - we're about to figure out why.    Tip - print out paper versions of your bank statements and collect them in the same, accessible place (a folder, a drawer, anywhere but the floor). Having printed copies makes a side-by-side comparison much easier. When you're done, file these papers away and clear the space for next month's documents.    Go through your accounts in QuickBooks line-by-line, checking that individual item amounts and aggregate totals match what's on your bank statement. Do this until the difference between the QuickBooks account and your bank statement(s) is $0.        Check out the reconciliation basics video above. The pro-tips at (0:52) and (1:12) will help you breeze through reconciliations and tackle any unforeseeable roadblocks.   Remember, the difference between what’s recorded on your bank or credit card statements and the relevant QuickBooks account should be...    If you don't get to $0.00, don't worry. As the video notes, bank service charges, checks that are not cleared by your bank but are entered in QuickBooks, and transactions that posted to the bank but aren't recorded in QuickBooks are a few common causes for slight ending balance variations.    Generally, these problems can be avoided if you only record transactions as they occur in real-time (or very soon after) and reconcile accounts frequently - it's far easier to recall month-old details compared to 6 months old.      Track down these anomalies systematically. Take it slow and check these common problem areas first before calling your accountant. There's a solution for each of these scenarios.   Following a procedure (whatever works best for you) will surely lead to a resolution. To start, narrow down the scope of your search: if there's a big difference, there may be one or several skewed transactions; if the difference is marginal,  it's probably a fee or missing sales tax.  What happens if there's a different opening balance in QuickBooks this month, even though you reconciled your accounts correctly last month? That means there's a discrepancy somewhere in the books. Reconciliation discrepancies can be caused by one of the following reasons: Previously reconciled transactions have been modified, deleted, or added Reconciliation adjustments (Journal entries, etc.)   If you have a discrepancy, follow the steps outlined in this troubleshooting guide. For a deeper dive into common reconciliation questions, check out these issue-specific articles:  Zero or incorrect Beginning Balance in the Begin Reconciliation Window Fix reconciliation discrepancies Any other tips I should keep in mind to be successful? Make reconciliations habitual. Do them the same time every month, preferably soon after you receive your bank statements so you can make quick corrections.  As we mentioned earlier, when done regularly, bank reconciliations will make filing your taxes much easier. If you don't have all of your accounts connected to QuickBooks, note that your end of year numbers won't reflect the breadth of your business. Adding accounts retroactively may be quite difficult since you won't have nearly as much time to review the numbers. If you prefer a visual reconciliation guide, try this article from the QuickBooks Resource Center.     What’s Next? How to Adjust Invoice Payment Terms in QuickBooks Online How to Review Open Invoices and Send Payment Reminders and Balance forward Statements in QuickBooks ... How to Send Paper Invoices in QuickBooks Online   Check your Progress Am I Ready to Send an Invoice in QuickBooks Online?  
  While many businesses send digital invoices via email, some customers still prefer carbon copies. If records are stored digitally, they're easy to access and organize. Creating, sendi... See more...
  While many businesses send digital invoices via email, some customers still prefer carbon copies. If records are stored digitally, they're easy to access and organize. Creating, sending, and managing paper records in QuickBooks requires a bit more planning and forethought. Do what makes sense for your operation, but always consider your customers' preferences.    Why should I send a paper Invoice?     Let’s reframe the question: if customers request a carbon copy, can you encourage them to go digital?   The advantage of digital Invoices is you can never really lose them. A deleted Invoice can always be recovered from an email trashcan, and in extreme cases, you can instantly send them another copy. There’s also virtually no wait time and thus no additional delays in payments. This a huge plus for busy buyers and sellers. If customers absolutely need a carbon copy for their records or simply prefers sticking to their routine, they can always print out the emailed version.   Then again, going the extra mile and sending them a printed copy may pay dividends in customer satisfaction. Get started sending paper invoices   To create a paper version, follow the normal Invoice creation process (if you need a refresher, check out “Your First Hour with QuickBooks Online”): add your customer’s contact information, the items being purchased, and check the tax and totals.   When you’re ready to print the Invoice, scroll to the bottom and click Print or Preview.     You’ll see a PDF preview of what the Invoice will look. Decide if you need to make any adjustments and if everything looks good, click Print.     Once you have the paper copy in hand, close the preview and go back to the Invoice. To record the Invoice, go down to the bottom of the form but instead of clicking Save and Send, click the arrow and select Save and Close.   By clicking Save and Close, the transaction gets recorded into QuickBooks but the digital form isn’t sent to your customer’s email, thus avoiding the confusion of receiving multiple copies. When you receive the payment against the paper invoice, you would follow the same process as a digital invoice and continue to digitally record the accounting.    Any other tips I should keep in mind to be successful?   While you may be tempted to send customers digital and paper versions of the Invoice, to avoid confusion, it’s best to stick with only one method. If you really want to send both, write “void” or “this is a copy” somewhere on the printed form so customers don’t accidentally pay you twice. Unless your customers are exceedingly organized, sending multiple copies complicates the process unnecessarily.   What’s Next? How to Adjust Invoice Payment Terms in QuickBooks Online How to Review Open Invoices and Send Payment Reminders and Balance forward Statements in QuickBooks ... How to Customize Invoices in QuickBooks Online   Check your Progress Am I Ready to Send an Invoice in QuickBooks Online?  
    Being proactive means keeping a close eye on open invoices. Knowing what customers owe you, developing clear policies, and planning accordingly are incredibly for sustaining your bu... See more...
    Being proactive means keeping a close eye on open invoices. Knowing what customers owe you, developing clear policies, and planning accordingly are incredibly for sustaining your business.   In QuickBooks Online, there are a few tools and simple review techniques you can incorporate into your workflow that will help you professionally manage open and overdue payments. Why do I need to review open invoices?   The primary benefit is obvious – you want to get paid. But managing pending payments isn't only about keeping the lights on. If overdue payments pile up, they can become an avalanche that spills over into the rest of your business, stopping your operation dead in its track.   Be proactive with your accounts receivable and get ahead of issues before they impact your cash flow. Designate an individual on your team to handle this process. Establish a regular review process and set policies for how to handle late payment using the available tools in QuickBooks. Get started reviewing open and overdue invoices   You can view all open invoice activity in the “All Sales” section of the Sales tab. The total number of open invoices and total amount owed to you are displayed in the orange and grey header boxes.     You can also chronologically sort invoices by “Status” from the “Invoices” tab.     There’s also a report for reviewing open invoices. Go to the Reports tab and search for “Open Invoice Report.” Set the report to criteria to “All Dates” and “Current” so you see all current outstanding invoice.   This report is effective because you get the data you need (invoice number, due date, and net terms by customer ) in a very clean format. You can save the report as a PDF (click the small gear icon in the corner) and send it to the member(s) on your team who need this information to follow up.   You can even schedule this report to go out on a regular basis. Start by emailing yourself a copy once a week and adjust as needed so you’re always on top of your accounts receivable. To schedule the report, click the “save customization” button in the corner.     Give the report a name (in this case, I went with something simple: “Open Invoices Weekly Report”) and decide who gets access to the data.     Go back to the Reports Tab and open your Custom Reports sub-tab. Your new report will be at the top of the list. Click the edit button next to the report to pull up this screen:     Enable the “Set email schedule” option and set the recurrence for how often you’d like this report emailed to you and your team.     By the way, you can use this workflow to schedule any report in QuickBooks Online.        Send Payment Reminders and Balance Forward statements as Batch Actions   Now you know how to stay on top of open invoices. What can you do to gently remind customers with outstanding balances?   There’s no single way to manage this process, but a rule of thumb is to practice restraint. Be firm but empathetic. Maintaining a positive relationship with your customers is arguably more valuable to your long-term success than the dollar amount you’d get from playing debt collector.   Start with an email. While you’re on the Customers sub-tab, sort the list by clicking the orange “Overdue” or grey “Open Invoice” boxes in the header. This filters for customers with open or overdue invoices. Check the boxes next to each customer you want to contact, click the Batch Action drop-down at the top, and select “Email.”     Craft your email with care. If you’re sending anticipatory emails for soon-to-be-overdue invoices, be polite and remember that they have until the deadline (Net Payment terms) to pay. If you’re writing about recently overdue invoices, be professional but firm. Add the word “Overdue” somewhere in the subject line. If you want to go straight to Reminder Messages, that’s another good option. Though less personal, they are a more efficient (and direct) way to tap your clients. You can edit your default email reminder message by clicking the Gear Icon ( ), selecting Accounts and Settings, the “Sales” Tab and then scrolling down to “Reminders.” To send this default reminder message, go back to the Customers Tab and again filter the list for “Overdue/Open Invoice.” On each customer line, you will see a “Send Reminder” action. Do this for every customer with an overdue invoice.     If these go unanswered, you can send a stronger message – Balance Forward We definitely recommend trying the first two before moving onto this option. Go to the Customers sub-tab. You can either click the drop-down arrow on each customer line to create a single Balance Forward statement or check the box next to each customer and select “Create Statements” from the Batch Action menu. Choose “Balance Forward” from the drop-down menu. Customers with open or overdue balances will appear in the recipients list at the bottom. To learn more about creating balance forward statements, check out How do I create a single open item or balance forward statement. Any other tips I should keep in mind to be successful?   Integrating regular reviews into your operations will prevent work from piling up. The payment process doesn’t always go smoothly, but you have the tools and techniques to make it less of a hassle. If you’re at a point where you're dedicating large chunks of time managing your accounts payable, step back and evaluate your current procedures. What’s your relationship like with your clients? Is there an obvious reason why some customers aren’t paying on time? Do you make paying for invoices easy? How have you managed overdue invoices in the past? Is this the best practice going forward? Check your Progress Am I Ready to Send an Invoice in QuickBooks Online?   What’s Next? How to Use the Undeposited Funds Account to Receive Payments in QuickBooks Online Setting up for Success in QuickBooks Online - Adding Products and Services, Customers, and Vendors t... How to Adjust your Invoice Payment Terms in QuickBooks Online    
    Many small businesses hire short-term or bring on independent contractors to complete projects. Properly accounting for expenses associated with their work is mission critical.   ... See more...
    Many small businesses hire short-term or bring on independent contractors to complete projects. Properly accounting for expenses associated with their work is mission critical.   You can track these expenses and file 1099-MISCs for your independent contractors directly from QuickBooks. It’s essential that you follow the process outlined in this article, not only for good accounting but legal reasons as well. There are also hired-wired 1099 features that only work up if you utilize these workflows.     Why do I need to track 1099 independent contractor payments separately?   The very simple answer: separating regular employee payments from independent contractor payments is crucial due to the nature of their work and their relationship to your business.   Independent contractors, on-demand or self-employed workers, and freelancers are individuals who do work for you but are not your official employees. As such, you need to report independent contractors’ “non-employee” compensation on the 1099-MISC. Thus, from financial and legal standpoints, the difference needs to be made abundantly clear.   There are additional stipulations for what constitutes as non-employee compensation. Moreover, knowing whether someone who works for you should (or should not) be classified as an independent contractor can be tricky. If you are unsure, reach out to a tax professional or refer to the legal source of truth on the matter, the IRS website.   Intuit regularly updates this handy 1099 or W-2 Calculator (a W-2 is the tax form you file for your regular employees). This tool does not constitute true legal advice, but it will give you a rough idea of what differentiates these two types of workers.   Get started adding 1099 contract workers and tracking their expenses     The Workers Tab is where you create and manage records for your regular employees and independent contractors.  In QuickBooks Online, independent contractors are categorized as Vendors. While this might seem odd at first, just like a product vendor, they are individuals you owe money to. There are two ways to add independent contractors:     Add an independent contractor as a Vendor   This is the “old method.” It works well if prefer manually adding tax information on behalf of your independent contractors (instead of sending a request asking them to fill out their tax information). This is also the method you’d use if you need to start tracking a vendor with an existing account as an independent contractor.   Let’s assume we’re creating a brand new record for the contractor. To start, go to the Expenses tab, click the Vendors sub-tab and click New Vendor.     You’re probably quite familiar with this screen, so proceed with filling out their financial information per the usual method. At the bottom of the screen, if you know the contractor’s Employer Identification Number (EIN), enter it on the Business ID No. line. Without this number, they won’t show up on the 1099 module. You can add this number later, just remember to do so before it’s time to file. Check the box that says “Track payments for 1099” and QuickBooks will add the independent contractor to the tax filing module.   When you go back to the Workers Tab and click the Contractors sub-tab, you will see your new independent contractor on the list.     Before going any further, click on your new contractor’s name and make sure all the information is correct, most importantly their EIN and email address if you plan to send their 1099-MISC electronically.      If you need to make any edits, click the Pencil Icon.         Important - You can use this exact same process to track an existing vendor for a 1099-MISC. Instead of creating a new account, edit their profile, but keep in mind that you will have separate the expenses associated with products and services you buy from the vendor from the expenses related to their contract labor.   This will mean being very deliberate about which account you map expenses to on Expense forms.       Add an independent contractor from the Workers Tab   This new workflow was introduced alongside the Workers Tab and offers a key benefit – you don’t have to collect tax information from your independent contractors beforehand. Instead, they can provide their EIN, SSN, and other pertinent information to you via secure message.   Head over to the Workers Tab and the Contractors sub-tab. Click Add a Contractor and you will see the prompt below:     Fill out the form and send the request. When your contractor has completed the form, their profile will update automatically.   Important - If you plan to add contractors with this method, double-check the information they provide. Since you’re filing their 1099-MISC, you’re responsible for managing this information. Make requests sooner rather than later so you have enough time to go over what’s on file with your contractors.     Set up a new Expense Account to track Independent Contractor Expenses   Now we create an expense account for payments made to independent contractors. This step is especially important for vendors you also buy products and services from. Expenses for products and services need to be clearly differentiated from the work they do as an independent contractor.   Open from the Accounting tab and go to your Chart of Accounts. Create a new account like the one pictured below:   Name the account “Independent Contractor Labor” or something that makes sense to you and is easy to remember Select “Expenses” as the Account Type and “Cost of Labor” as the Detail Type     From now on, every time you enter an expense or pay a check to your independent contractors, map those transactions to this new Expense account.     This is how you separate transactions related to independent contractors from other sources/types of expenses.   Show me why I should track Independent Contractors this way   I want to add two independent contractors, one who already has a Vendor profile and one who does not. I start with the independent contractor who isn’t in my system. I go Workers Tab > Contractors > Add a Contractor and see the message below:     If I use this method to add contractors, I need to set a reminder to double-check what they entered later on.   In this scenario, I prefer to add their information myself. I go to Expenses > Vendors > New Vendor, fill out their information and check the “Track payments for 1099” box.   From the same tab, I find the second contractor who already has a Vendor profile. I click on their name and “edit” their profile page. All I have to do is check the “Track payments for 1099” box. When I go back to the Contractor Tab, I see both entries.     To finish up, I make sure all of their labor costs are mapped to my “Independent Contractor Labor” Expense account so I am ready to input this data when I prepare their 1099-MISCs.     Preparing 1099-MISCs for Independent Contractors   At the end of the year, these independent contractors will automatically show up on the Prepare 1099s module (accessible from the Vendors and Contractors sub-tabs). Moreover, since I’ve been tracking their payments exclusively with the “Independent Contractor Labor” Expense account, filing the 1099-MISCs will be a breeze. On Step 2 of the Prepare 1099s module, select Box 7: Nonemployee Compensation. Choose the account you used to pay your contractors (in the example case, the account is called “Contractor Payments”). This tells the IRS what money was used for non-employee compensation.     On Step 3, the Vendors you started tracking will automatically appear on the list. If you don’t see one of your contractors, simply edit their profile using the steps above. Complete the module and you’re ready to send out 1099-MISCs to your independent contractors. Any other tips I should keep in mind to be successful?   Always be cognizant of which Expense account you’re using when you enter expenses related to independent contractors.   Use the memo and description fields to further document what these types of expenses are for so you won’t have to guess during the rush of tax season.   What’s most important is knowing which expenses apply to the 1099-MISC. This is no easy task, but the IRS website provides a comprehensive list you can use as a reference.   If you already entered labor expenses for a Vendor into a different expense account before going through this process, go back and recategorize those transactions into the new “Independent Contractor Labor” account. Check your Progress Am I Ready to Send an Invoice in QuickBooks Online?   What’s Next? How to Use the Undeposited Funds Account to Receive Payments in QuickBooks Online Setting up for Success in QuickBooks Online - Adding Products and Services, Customers, and Vendors t... How to Adjust your Invoice Payment Terms in QuickBooks Online    
    Use custom reports to get the data that matters most to you.    While general reports in QuickBooks provide tons of actionable financial data, custom reports let you pull the ex... See more...
    Use custom reports to get the data that matters most to you.    While general reports in QuickBooks provide tons of actionable financial data, custom reports let you pull the exact data you need to dive into the nitty-gritty details of your business. This depth of understanding leads to better insights. Better insights lead to better decision-making and actionable outcomes.    Why do I need to customize financial reports?   Foremost, customize your reports so the data makes sense to you. At the end of the day, a report is only useful if you understand what the data is telling you. The filters in the customization module can be used to eliminate extraneous details or pull additional data points so you can easily zero-in on account specifics.   Moreover, narrowing the scope of reports helps you learn more about how each part of your business impacts its overall health. These insights empower you to make more informed financial decisions.      Get started customizing financial reports   Most reports can be customized using a consistent set of filters and display settings. These are particularly useful for narrowing the scope of the data in order to simplify your analysis.   Start from the Reports Tab. Select the “All” sub-tab to browse through the complete list of reports in QuickBooks Online, or use the search bar to find a specific report.   There are two ways to customize reports and both paths lead to the same customization modal: Method one: click the ( ) next to a report on the list and select “customize.”     Method two: if you’re already viewing a report, click the   button to apply customizations.     Before going deep into the customization modal, all reports have a basic set of filters at the top of the page. These let you adjust the report period and toggle between cash and accrual calculation of the report.   Once you click customize, a variation of following modal will appear (the filters available vary from report to report):   Use the expand arrows ( ) to bring up the nearly limitless customization options. It’s up to you to figure out which filters and display options work best for your needs.  Rows/Columns- lets you modify which columns and rows display on reports.  Filter- lets you select the specific accounts, sub-accounts, customers, vendors, and items that appear on reports.  Header/Footer- lets you toggle data tables and other information that appears reports, such as date and time prepared.  Remember - your ultimate goal is generating data that informs your financial and operational decisions. The data is only useful if you know how to interpret it.     Show me why I should run a custom report   Let’s customize a Profit and Loss Report so it’s easier to understand. QuickBooks has a number of semi-customized reports available. Personally, I prefer using the “Profit and Loss Report by % of Total Income Report” over the standard Profit and Loss Report because I can easily distil my business’ performance at a glance - it breathes life into what are otherwise flat numbers.   I also prefer percentages over raw numbers because I don’t have to do any calculations to understand the relative significance of particular income and expense categories.   For this Profit and Loss Report by % of Total Income Report, I applied the following customizations:    Items as% of income - so I can quickly see which areas of my business are having the biggest impact on my bottom line ( Customize > Rows/Columns )  Columns by month- so I can compare performance trends month-over-month ( Customize > Rows/Columns )  Negative numbers in red- so I can see where I’m taking the biggest hit   ( Customize > General )  Removed the company name- so there are fewer words on the page ( Customize > Header/Footer )    I made one additional customization that’s visible when I expand the report - Items as a % of Row ( Customize > Rows/Columns ). This lets me see which items brought in the majority of my income for the month and which month had the most sales for each item.       In a few seconds, I know that Fountain and Garden Lights sold well in January, Plants and Soil has brought in the most income to-date, and my combined Landscaping Sales account for roughly 44% of my total sales income in December. February wasn’t such a good month. Maybe it was the season?   Thanks to customization, I know Spring is an opportunity to rally.     Any other tips I should keep in mind to be successful?   If you want to email, print or export your report, click the icons at the top of the report page. This is the easiest way to share data with your team. Don’t forget to provide a brief summary of your findings.   Once you’ve found your perfect set of filters, you can save your customizations by clicking the “Save Customization” button at the top of the report. Give your custom report an accurate yet catchy name so it's easy to remember. If you create a report group, you can choose who can access these custom reports. You can even schedule reports to run and be sent out automatically via email (with the option to attach it as an excel file).       Check your Progress Am I Ready to Send an Invoice in QuickBooks Online?   What’s Next? How to Use the Undeposited Funds Account to Receive Payments in QuickBooks Online Setting up for Success in QuickBooks Online - Adding Products and Services, Customers, and Vendors t... How to Adjust your Invoice Payment Terms in QuickBooks Online        
    This entry focuses primarily on the Chart of Accounts and associated reporting tools that pull information from those accounts. Most of the time, you create accounts as you work... See more...
    This entry focuses primarily on the Chart of Accounts and associated reporting tools that pull information from those accounts. Most of the time, you create accounts as you work, such as when you first create a new product or service, log an expense or connect a bank account. If you need to modify an existing account or create new ones from scratch, you’d do so from the Chart of Accounts. This is essentially a list of your accounts that determines how transactions are categorized and interpreted (i.e. whether a transaction adds or deducts from an account).     We generally recommend not making too many changes to the Chart of Accounts (referred to as CoA from here on) – it's complicated territory that should be explored once you’re completely confident using QuickBooks. However, we also believe every user should have a basic understanding of what the CoA is, how it organizes your finances and when to go in and make adjustments.   Here are some quick tips: If you haven’t done so already, review accounting and bookkeeping basics and the Accounting Terms You Need to Know Keep your CoA simple - - that means keeping the number of accounts to a minimum and giving accounts relevant yet understandable names Pay extra attention to Account Types as these are what determine transaction categorization If you don’t know what type of account to create, ask the community or follow the tutorial creators’ advice and create an “Ask my Accountant” account to house all transactions you’re unsure about   Understanding the Chart of Accounts | QuickBooks Online Tutorial 2018   The narrator uses the term “posting transaction” to describe transactions that impact your accounts - - which is most of them. There are non-posting transactions in QuickBooks Online that don’t affect your accounts in any way, such as Estimates, Delayed Charges or Delayed Credit, because those may or may not be processed.   Notice how a single transaction impacts a number of accounts. When the narrator makes a bank deposit for a single loan, both the checking and liability account increase for the $15,000 amount. By creating and categorizing accounts, QuickBooks automatically manages and runs the calculations.     Why don't you try creating a few transactions in Test Drive (above) and poke around the COA to see the results - - you may be surprised just how many calculations occur during a single transaction.      How to Set Up Your Chart of Accounts: Understanding the Basics | QuickBooks Online Tutorial 2018   This video is very important, so you may want to watch it a few times. We recommend creating new accounts sparingly. QuickBooks Online already provides you with most standard accounts and creates new ones when you do activities like connecting a bank account. Less is more - - meaning more time and less to manage.   If there’s one key take away from this video, think broadly about your account organization and structure them in ways that make sense to you and your accountant. A second and equally important point is the available types in the CoA:   Category type – determines if the accounts on the Balance Sheet or Profit and Loss Sheet. This is the more important of the two because the category type determines how transactions hit your books. Type detail – doesn’t determine how an account is used, it’s there for detail and tracking purposes. Think of it like a secondary description that will help you quickly distil lines on a report. If you need a refresher on reports and how these types impact them, click here.   Our trainer makes key distinctions between accounts that show up on your Balance Sheet vs. the Profit & Loss Report. You’re probably familiar with the Profit and Loss Report, which looks at all of your Income and Expense accounts, but you may not recognize some of the heavier accounting terms tied to the Balance Sheet. Essentially, the Balance Sheet shows your asset (what you own), liability (what you owe) and equity accounts (income and expenses).   Sub-accounts are a critical organizational feature for the CoA. Instead of having separate expense accounts for various utilities, you can create a “Utilities” parent account and separate “gas and electric” and “telephone” sub-accounts. You can go four levels deep with sub-accounts so you can break this down even further by different cell carriers if you wanted to.       Important - Going forward, remember to add transactions to the appropriate sub-accounts and not the parent account (in the case above, in either “gas and electric” or “telephone,” not “utilities”) which becomes the aggregate for the child accounts.   Opening balances, as the video explains, are typically added when you have an existing account outside of QuickBooks that you’re recording for going forward with funds already in it, such as a bank checking account or an asset account.     How to Use Journal Entries | QuickBooks Online 2018   Journal Entries are tricky business. While par-for-the-course for accounting professionals, they should be a “last resort” for entering transactions. They follow strict accounting rules that may seem simple on the surface but can have a drastic impact on your accounts.   When transactions involve customers or vendors, use the standard transaction process. Journal Entries are generally used for making adjustments or obscure entries that aren’t part of your normal workflow. You would typically use Journal Entries for entering things like Depreciation.        Immediately, you’ll notice the terms “debits” and “credits” used, which we went over briefly in the QuickBooks Encyclopedia. The Journal Entry process (often referred to as JE) draws from one account and adds to another in order to keep everything balanced, a process that may not be familiar to non-accountants.   These types of entries are complicated. If you’re at this level of complexity in your accounting, make sure you connect with your accountant for best practices.   Check your Progress Am I Ready to Send an Invoice in QuickBooks Online?   What’s Next? How to Use the Undeposited Funds Account to Receive Payments in QuickBooks Online Setting up for Success in QuickBooks Online - Adding Products and Services, Customers, and Vendors t... How to Adjust your Invoice Payment Terms in QuickBooks Online  
    This set of videos focuses on QuickBooks Online Inventory, which is available for QuickBooks Online Plus. The inventory tool offers basic quantity-on-hand tracking and reporting f... See more...
    This set of videos focuses on QuickBooks Online Inventory, which is available for QuickBooks Online Plus. The inventory tool offers basic quantity-on-hand tracking and reporting features. While adding and managing basic products and services is a fairly straightforward process, the full inventory experience is quite a bit more involved and requires regular upkeep. It’s best to start with inventory as you set up your product list, but you don’t need a clean slate to get set up (just know it will require some extra work). If you are converting from QuickBooks Desktop with existing inventory, there is a different workflow (found here). Note that inventory should be set up immediately after conversion, not later.   How to Create an Inventory Product | QuickBooks Online Tutorial 2018     After enabling inventory tracking (Gear Icon [  ] > Account and Settings > Sales > Products and Services > Track Inventory Quantity on Hand), you will use the same basic workflow to create inventory items as non-inventory and service Items.   For the most part, creating an inventory item will feel very familiar. You're already well aware of how to enter information for sales price/rate, sales tax, and income accounts (if you need a refresher, review "Setting up for Success - Adding Products and Services, Customers, and Vendors"). There are, however, a few key differences and new data fields that now appear in this module.     Initial Quantity on Hand – this should be the number you have in stock right now, at this very moment. Now might be a great time to do a physical inventory of your storeroom, just to make sure. This is important to get this right because going forward, any time you sell or purchase more of an inventory item, this number will change.   Reorder point – set this to whatever feels comfortable to you. There are a number of factors to consider: the size of your storeroom, the frequency of sales (this is where reports come in handy), and how quickly your vendors can send new shipments. You will know best.     Inventory Asset Account – this is an “Other Current Assets” account created by QuickBooks to record the current value of your inventory assets.   Purchasing information – add whatever information your vendor typically provides when you place an order (i.e. model number, part/item name or SKU shows up on the invoice you receive). Also, enter the price you pay. Expense Account - the chosen Expense account will be the Cost of Goods Sold account which will now appear on your Profit and Loss Statements. QuickBooks will calculate the cost of purchasing these inventory items after you sell it against the revenue from said item.     Inventory products will now display with this additional information on your Products and Services screen.     How to Record Sales of Inventory Products | QuickBooks Online Tutorial 2018     Recording the sale of inventory products is identical to how you'd record sales of any non-inventory product … … save the addition of the quantity field. You can mouse-over the quantity field to see the remaining quantity on hand. Also, be very cognizant of what you put in the quantity field as this will automatically deduct from your standing inventory.    ∨       How to Track What You've Sold: Inventory, Summary Reports, & More | QuickBooks Online Tutorial 2018     The Sales by Product/Service Summary Report is the same report you’d typically run to track your overall sales, but the Cost of Goods Sold and Gross Margin columns only apply to your inventory items. You will see the average sales price alongside the COGS figure. The Gross Margin is the revenue made from the sale of the product minus the COGS expense.   QuickBooks Online uses the First-in-First-Out (FIFO) method to average the purchasing costs for COGS when the price of an inventory item is variable. Sound complicated? Don’t worry, QuickBooks calculates those price variations for you. If you're curious about the details on how this works, check out this article.   Keep an eye on your Costs of Goods Sold numbers and the profit margin from those inventory items – make sure what you’re selling makes financial sense to your business.     How to Enter Purchase Orders: Recording, Tracking & More | QuickBooks Online Tutorial 2018   The easiest way to track which items need reordering (based on the quantity you set) is to keep tabs on the stock bar at the top of the Products and Services list. Make it a habit to check every time you navigate to this menu.   When you use purchase orders to reorder goods from vendors through QuickBooks Online,  the program will automatically update and accurately track quantities.     It’s also wise to use stock numbers as a reminder to do physical inventory – any time you see a low stock notification, set aside time to look over your stock room to make sure nothing else potentially needs reordering or quantity adjusting in QuickBooks.   Remember, purchase orders are your intent to purchase inventory products. No inventory will be received or processed at that point.   When you're are ready to place an order for more inventory, create a purchase order (Create button [ ] > Purchase Order). You can pull in existing vendor information, designate a shipping address, and even send purchased items directly to customers when they become available.   You can save customized Open Purchase Order Detail Reports and help your team stay on top of open orders by scheduling them to be emailed on a weekly basis (set for “All Dates” and called something like “Our weekly open purchase orders”). Learn more about customizing and scheduling reports.        How to Handle Inventory From a Vendor: Expenses & Backorders | QuickBooks Online Tutorial 2018   Once you (or your customer) receives the inventory from the purchase order, process the open Purchase Order (PO). Select either an expense, check, or bill (review the expense workflow if you’re unsure) depending on when and how you pay your vendor. For all three options, all open purchase orders for the specified vendor will appear on the right after you select the vendor. You can add the transaction to the form or open it to make sure it’s the correct one.     If any numbers were different between the PO and the bill/expense, such as the quantity or amount due, adjust them now. Using this workflow closes the open PO (unless you only received a partial order). Whatever adjustment numbers you entered will be used going forward.     How to Make Adjustments to Your Inventory Levels | QuickBooks Online Tutorial 2018     Use the inventory adjustment tool very, very sparingly.    Life happens. Items get lost. Accidents occur. Food spoils. There are a host of use-cases adjusting inventory, but try not to make it a habit. The more changes you make, the more complicated your accounting and explanation of your business’ assets will become.     If you’re constantly finding misalignments between your physical inventory and what’s recorded in QuickBooks, identify the source of the problem and shore it up early. If items are consistently damaged or going missing, work with your team towards operational solutions.   As the narrator notes, QuickBooks will already have Inventory Shrinkage (Cost of Goods or Expense Account) and Charitable Contributions (Expense) Accounts created for you. You can use these accounts for inventory adjustments, but you can also create your own account in the Chart of Accounts  (learn more). Quantity adjustments show up on your Inventory Valuation Detail Report (below) alongside other changes that impact inventory quantities.   We’d also recommend utilizing the memo section to write notes detailing the reasons for the adjustment, written so anyone on your team can comprehend the notation.   How to Use Inventory Reports: Tracking, Maintaining, & More | QuickBooks Online Tutorial 2018     Inventory Valuation Summary Report – a “status check” of your current inventory with the calculated average cost per inventory product (based on FIFO).   Physical Inventory Worksheet – hand this to your team when they do a physical count of your stockroom.   Inventory Valuation Detail Report – think of this as a line-by-line history of your inventory products and any changes (i.e. start, bills, purchase orders, and transactions that diminish quantity on hand) that affect them.   Set up for Success in QuickBooks Online "The Big Picture" Creating and Managing Accounts Understanding (and Separating) Owner Funds and Company Funds Financial Reports and Reporting Features   Check your progress Am I Ready to Send an Invoice in QuickBooks Online?   Learn everything you need to be successful in QuickBooks How to Customize an Invoice in QuickBooks Online How to Record Bank Deposits in QuickBooks Online How to Use the Undeposited Funds Account in QuickBooks Online          
    What impression do you want your invoices to leave on your customers?   A customized invoice, even semi-stylized ones, is an opportunity to enhance the perception of your busi... See more...
    What impression do you want your invoices to leave on your customers?   A customized invoice, even semi-stylized ones, is an opportunity to enhance the perception of your business. The Custom Form Styles module in QuickBooks Online lets you edit the layout, design, and data fields that appear on your invoices.   There’s nothing wrong with plain invoices. Customers aren’t going to abandon your brand because you use generic sales forms. Invoices do, however, make them think something.     Unlike other branding solutions, this one requires very little effort and has no added cost. You don’t need an MFA to create an eye-catching invoice template. Anyone with QuickBooks Online Essentials and QuickBooks Online Plus can use the Custom Form Styles module to create an attractive, professional-looking invoice.     Why do I need to customize my invoices (and other sales forms)?   Customizing invoices give your communications a bit of texture. Simple changes, such as layout and logo location, can make the difference between staying top-of-mind or getting lost in the noise of email inboxes.    As ProAdvisor and ParkWay Inc. CTO Matthew Fulton reminds us, “It can be easy to forget that to someone else, your invoice is no different than the other 9 forms in front of them.”   You also need to provide customers with the right information. Consider those on the receiving end of an invoice - at a minimum, customers deserve an invoice with relevant information presented in a clear format.    Get started creating customized invoices         To begin, click the Gear Icon ( ) and then select Custom Form Styles. From the Custom Form Styles dashboard, you can manage and edit templates for Invoices, Estimates, and Sales Receipts.   While you can create multiple iterations of a form from a master, you can only apply one template at a time.     Let's create a new template from scratch. Click the New Style button and select “Invoice” from the drop-down.  There are four sections of the customization module: Design, Content, Emails, and Payments. You’ll spend the majority of your time in the Design and Content sections.   The Design Tab  This is where you choose fonts, color-schemes, and your logo. This is also where you can adjust the overall template layout.      The Content tab Your company information automatically appears in this tab, but you can decide what you want (or don’t want) displayed on the final form.  This is also where you modify data fields (more on that below) and adjust the width of columns.    The Emails tab You can create a unique invoice email message if you don’t want to use the default.     The Payments tab This tab is simple but very important if you want customers to pay you electronically directly from the form. If you’re using QuickBooks Payments, QuickBooks Online will automatically update sales information once the payment is processed.     When you’re done editing the template, you can click Preview PDF or Save and Exit to return to the Custom Form Styles dashboard.   The first invoice template you create will become your master default template. To change the default form, click the Arrow Icon ( ) next to the form you want to designate and select “Make Default."   Designing Custom Invoice Templates   When designing your invoice, ask yourself the following:   Appearance – Do you want your brand to appear everywhere on your invoices, or do you prefer a more subtle approach? Try to match your existing marketing efforts to create a sense of uniformity. Data-fields – What information matters most to your customers? How much information is too much? Do you provide clients with specific units of measurement? How about tracking information, like drivers’ names, to add peace of mind? These can always be updated later on. Format – Are your invoices easy to read? Where does the most important information appear on your forms? Which data fields are absolutely necessary? Do your customers prefer larger fonts for improved readability? Start with the basics, then add icing to the cake. Personality and Tone – Is being approachable important to your business? Do you want to sound casual or official? Design accordingly.   Creating a custom logo   When you first create your QuickBooks Online company file, you can add your business logo. This same logo will appear on all of your invoices and sales forms, so take pride in its design and presentation.   Logo edits should be made outside the program before uploading the image. Note that square and circular logos with white backgrounds tend to look the best on invoices. Logos files have a few technical requirements: Must be one of the following formats: .gif, .bmp, .jpg, .jpe, or .jpeg Be smaller than 1MB (this helps with loading speed) Have a bit-depth (aka color-depth) of 24-bits or less and use standard sRGB Customizing data fields   You can add, remove, or rename certain data fields from the Content Tab. To edit a section, click on the pencil icon  ( ) on the preview form. Each section has its own set of customization features.     There are numerous available customization options. We won’t go over everything, but we will highlight a few important areas:   In the “Header” section (top section), you can add up to three custom fields by clicking “+ Custom Field”  In the data table section (middle section), you can edit, remove, or rearrange the item description, quantity, and rate data fields. Click the blue “Edit Labels and Widths” title at the top to enable the column and data field editor. There’s underlying flexibility in this particular module – for instance, if you prefer to display unit quantities in “lbs,” “grams,” or “boxes,” simply enter the unit of measure into the text box.     To change the order of the columns, grab the square icon and drag it until the solid line becomes dotted. Use the slider bar to adjust the width of each column. Column width is relative and finite – you may need to narrow columns that are taking up space before you can adjust others.   The “Products/service” line in the data table section includes item categories by default. You can turn these off, but product categories provide customers with more information and you get better data (learn more about item categories – Introduction to Categories in Products and Services).   Any other tips I should keep in mind to be successful?   Let your invoices portray you and your brand in the best light. Treat them you would any other type of communication, be it email, phone call, or face-to-face meeting. Keep them simple but impactful.    What’s Next? How to Adjust Invoice Payment Terms in QuickBooks Online How to Review Open Invoices and Send Payment Reminders and Balance forward Statements in QuickBooks ... How to Send Paper Invoices in QuickBooks Online   Check your Progress Am I Ready to Send an Invoice in QuickBooks Online?    

Need to get in touch?

Contact us