Enter supplier credits and refunds in QuickBooks Online

Learn how to record a refund or credit from a supplier in QuickBooks Online.

Just got a refund for a business expense? We'll show you how to create a supplier credit.

• If you got credit on a future purchase, you should enter a credit instead.
• If your customer used a credit card on a purchase, you can refund a credit card payment on the sales receipt or invoice.

How you enter the refund depends on how you record your purchases. Choose the section below that applies to you. If you’re not sure, ask your accountant. Or, we can help you find a ProAdvisor.

In this article, you'll learn how to:

• Record if you enter expenses or write cheques
• Record if you enter bills you plan to pay later
• Deposit a supplier credit when no expense has occurred
• Record supplier refunds on a credit card

If you enter expenses or write cheques

Use these steps if you don't enter bills to track your expenses.

1. First, make sure you have already created the initial expense or cheque in QuickBooks and assigned a Category/Account to it.
2. Select + New and then Bank deposit.
3. Go to the Add funds to this deposit section:
   • Enter the amount refunded by the supplier and choose the Category/Account that you selected on the initial expense or cheque.
   • If this refund was for an expense that you linked to a customer or project, select the Track returns for customer checkbox, then select the customer or project. That way, your costs will not be overstated.
4. If you deposited customer payments for invoices into the bank account along with the supplier refund, add them in the Select the payments included in this deposit section.
5. Select Save and close.

If you enter bills you plan to pay later

Use these steps if you enter bills to track your expenses. This makes sure the credit hits the expense account you use for this supplier.

Step 1: Create a supplier credit

1. Select + New.
2. Select Supplier credit.
3. In the Supplier ▼ dropdown, select your supplier.
4. Depending on how you record purchases with this supplier, enter the Category details or Item details. Usually, this is the category, product, or service you’re getting credit for.
   Note: If you choose an inventory item, QuickBooks will put it back into inventory. If the item is defective or if you don’t want it added back to inventory, you can make an inventory adjustment.
5. Select Save and close.

Step 2: Apply supplier credits to a bill

You can apply a supplier credit toward any open or future bill. When you’re ready to use the credit, here’s how to do it.

1. Select + New.
2. Select Pay bills.
3. Select a bill for your supplier from the list. You'll see the available credit with this supplier in the Credit Applied field.
4. Complete the rest of the fields like you normally do.
5. Select Save and close.

Deposit a supplier credit when no expense has occurred

Sometimes a supplier may give you credit with them as a promotion or a thank you. Here's how to record the credit and apply it toward any open or future bill with them.

Step 1: Enter a supplier credit

This makes sure the credit hits the expense account you use for this supplier.

1. Select + New.
2. Select Supplier credit.
3. In the Supplier dropdown, select your supplier.
4. Depending on how you record purchases with this supplier, enter the Category details or Item details. Usually, this is the category, product, or service you’re getting a credit for.
5. Select Save and close.

Step 2: Deposit the money you got from the supplier

1. Select + New.
2. Select Bank deposit.
3. In the Account dropdown menu, select the account where you got the refund.
4. In the Add funds to this deposit section, fill out the following fields:
   • Received from: Select the supplier who gave you a refund.
   • Account: Select Accounts Payable. Important: You need to pick Accounts Payable so you can tie the refund to the supplier credit. This may seem a little strange, but it’s the best way to do this.
   • Payment method: Enter the method your supplier used to refund you.
   • Amount: Enter the amount of your refund.
5. Select Save and close.

Step 3: Use Pay Bills to connect the bank deposit to the supplier credit

Even though you aren’t paying a bill, this is the right thing to do. This last step is to keep your supplier expenses accurate.

1. Select + New.
2. Select Pay bills.
3. Select the bank deposit you just created. You’ll see the amount of the supplier credit in the Credit Applied field. The Total payment should be CA $0.00.
4. Select Save and close.

Record supplier refunds on a credit card

1. Select + New.
2. Select Credit card credit.
3. In the Payee field, select the appropriate supplier.
4. From the Bank/Credit account ▼ dropdown, select the credit card where you received the refund to.
5. Enter the Payment date, refund amount in Amount, Sales Tax, and Category.
   Note: The category used here is the original expense account on the original bill.
6. Select Save and close.