How can I make an adjusting entry in the general ledger?

Welcome to the Community, DrEH. If you are using QuickBooks Online Accountant (QBOA), there is a specific feature designed to adjust entries. However, if you are using QuickBooks Online (QBO), you can make these adjustments through the normal journal entry function. Let me elaborate more below.

If you are using QBOA, you have access to a feature specifically designed for adjusting entries. Follow these steps:

1. Sign in to QuickBooks Online Accountant.
2. Select the Go to QuickBooks dropdown and select your client's company.
3. Select + New.
4. Select Journal entry.
5. Select the Is Adjusting Journal Entry? checkbox.
6. Follow the steps to record the journal entry.
7. Select Save and Close.

On the other hand, if you are using QuickBooks Online (QBO), the platform doesn’t have a specific Is Adjusting Journal Entry? checkbox, but you can access the standard journal entry functionality:

1. Select + New.
2. Select Journal entry.
3. On the first line, select an account from the Account field. Depending on if you need to debit or credit the account, enter the amount in the correct column.
4. On the next line, select the other account you're moving money to or from. Depending on if you entered a debit or credit on the first line, enter the same amount in the opposite column.
5. Check the amounts - you should have the same amount in the Credit column on one line and the Debit column on the other. This means the accounts are in balance.
6. Enter information in the memo section so you know why you made the journal entry.
7. Select Save and new or Save and close.

Whichever version you are using, making sure your adjustments are accurately recorded is crucial for maintaining accurate financial statements.

Furthermore, you can refer to this article if you need to reverse a journal entry to swap the debits and credits, or delete it entirely: Reverse or delete a journal entry in QuickBooks Online.

I'm also pleased to inform you that you can elevate your financial management with the help of our QuickBooks Live Expert Assisted team. They specialize in helping you transform your financial management and provide personalized advice for your business's specific demands.

Should you need further clarification or assistance, feel free to reach out through the thread. We're here to help ensure your records are accurate and up-to-date.

NOT QB Accountant.  Need to actually have entries adjust the accounts.  I did the general ledger and it did not work.  Then it disappeared.  That particular entry is GONE.  No longer in the history.

1. How can I make an adjusting entry that actually corrects the particular accounts- WITHOUT balancing the entry?  I need to correct certain accounts.

2. How can I find that journal entry that is now "disappeared?"

@DrEH  Are you asking how to do single-entry accounting? Because QB simply does not do that; every single function is double-entry accounting.

Thanks for verifying your QuickBooks version and laying out your concerns in detail, DrEH. Creating a Journal Entry without balancing debits and credits will flag an error. Let me direct you to experts in financial matters while we work together to recover or trace the missing entries. 

In QuickBooks Online, all Journal Entries need to balance, with Debits matching Credits. It means you'll need to make a double-entry accounting, as per FishingForAnswers. Otherwise, the software will prevent you from saving an unequal entry.

I'll share a screenshot below for reference.

In this case, I recommend consulting with an accountant to verify that the adjustments adhere to accounting standards and principles. They can offer alternative strategies for correcting accounts and maintaining accurate financial records. If you don't have one, find an Accountant or Bookkeeper near you.

Moreover, you can check the Audit Log to track changes and deletions for the Journal Entry that disappeared. I'll show you how.

1. Go to the Gear icon, then select Audit log under the Tools column.
2. Set the User, Date Changed, and Events fields for easy tracking.
3. Locate the entry and click View under the History column to review all modifications made within the system. 

Furthermore, you can print a journal entry report in QuickBooks Online for detailed documentation of all transactions made over a specified period. It will also assist you in understanding the movement in various accounts and spotting inconsistencies or unusual entries.

Lastly, keep this guide handy for situations where you need to update or correct a journal entry: Reverse or delete a journal entry in QuickBooks Online.

If you have additional questions, please get back in touch with us. Your accurate accounting is our top priority. I'll ensure we do everything to maintain your records correctly.

Yes, I need to make an adjusting entry that corrects an account.  This means that the account was not correct in QB because QB periodically incorrectly records data input from my bank.  It tries to be efficient, but does so at the cost of inaccuracy.  I need to be able to save the journal entry as unbalanced.  It seems the software does not allow that.  Would a better tact be to back-date the specific account with an entry?

@DrEH  Well, you actually have more issues than you might be aware of.

As mentioned, all entries in QB are based on double-entry accounting.

This means that, if you know you have one account that you need to correct, you actually have at least two accounts you need to correct; whatever error QB originally made, it did so using at least two different accounts.

The first thing you should focus on is figuring out what else is wrong, and make an entry to correct all of the affected accounts, not just the one you're aware of.

Probably the easiest way would be to go to the actual entries QB screwed up and fix those instead. Assuming QBO actually allows you to do that; I don't use bank feeds or QBO, so I'unno if QBO hardlocks their own entries, or how you'd look that up easily.

@Rainflurry  Thoughts?

@FishingForAnswers 

You're spot on.  QBO is the same as Desktop regarding journal entries.  Better in some cases believe it or not.    

@DrEH 

"I need to be able to save the journal entry as unbalanced."

As FFA mentioned, that's not possible.  Double-entry accounting requires a debit and credit entry.  Any account in your GL that has an error also has another account with the same error so both need to be fixed with a balanced journal entry.  Non-Accountant versions of QBO don't differentiate between a journal entry and an adjusting journal entry.