Set up and use Multicurrency

Learn how to set up and use multicurrency in QuickBooks Desktop.

With Multicurrency, you can track sales and purchases in different currencies. 

Once you turn on multicurrency:

• You can’t turn it off.
• You can’t use Insights, Income Tracker, Bill Tracker, or Advanced Track Mileage.
• You can’t batch enter invoices or batch delete/void transactions (Enterprise and Accountant only).
• You can’t select multiple customers in Invoices for Time and Expenses.
• You can’t exchange information with QuickBooks Desktop for Mac or copy your company file to work with it.
• You can’t receive online payments for invoices in foreign currencies.
• All existing customers, suppliers, and accounts are assigned your home currency. 
• You can assign foreign currencies to customers, suppliers, price levels, and accounts (bank, credit card, accounts receivable, and accounts payable).

Step 1: Turn on Multicurrency

1. Make sure you back up your QuickBooks company file before you continue.
2. Go to the Edit menu and select Preferences.
3. Select Multiple Currencies.
4. Go to Company Preferences and then select Yes, I use more than one currency.
5. Select your home currency, then select OK.

Step 2: Add foreign-currency customers and suppliers

You can only assign one currency per customer or supplier profile. You need to create new profiles to assign a new currency.

Add foreign-currency suppliers or customers:

1. Go to Customers (or Suppliers) and select Customer Centre (or Supplier Centre).
2. In the Customer Centre (or Supplier Centre), select New Customer & Job (or New Supplier), then select New Customer (or New Supplier).
3. Enter a Customer (or Supplier) Name and select a Currency.
4. Select OK.

Step 3: Add foreign-currency accounts

You’ll need to create new accounts for your foreign-currency transactions. Each account can only have one currency. 

Note: You can assign currencies to the following account types: Bank and Credit Card. QuickBooks will create other account types, including Accounts Payable and Accounts Receivable (income, expense, liability, and cost of goods sold) for each currency as you create transactions.

Add foreign-currency accounts:

1. Go to Lists and select Chart of Accounts.
2. In the chart of accounts, right-click anywhere and select New.
3. Select the account type and then select Continue.
4. Assign a name and select a Currency.
5. Select Save & Close.

Step 4: Update your exchange rates

You can only download rates for active currencies if your home currency is the US dollar.

Download exchange rates:

1. Go to Lists and select Currency List.
2. Select Activities, then select Download Latest Exchange Rates.

Manually enter exchange rates:

1. Go to Lists and select Currency List.
2. Double-click a currency.
3. In the Edit Currency window, update the currency exchange rate for specific date/s.
4. Select OK.

Step 5: Create foreign-currency transactions

You're ready to make transactions with different currencies. Any transaction that has a name (like invoices, estimates, sales orders, bills, and cheques) uses the currency assigned to the selected name. On transactions that don’t need a name, like general journal entries, you can select the currency.

Here are some things to remember when you create transactions:

• Exchange rates are part of each transaction and determine the home currency value of the transaction.
• Sales and purchase transactions are in the customer's or supplier's currency. The home currency equivalent is listed for the transaction total.
• Reports will always show the home currency regardless of the currency used in transactions.
• The currency on payments you receive or send must match the currency on the invoice or bill being paid.