I recently had to made a purchase wth my personal cash for the business. Please help me put in the correct transaction to pay myself back and balance my books. Thank you!

Thanks for joining us here in the Community, automotiveshopsu.

I'm here to help guide you on how to record the transaction and pay yourself back.

You can use the Journal Entry feature to record the expenses paid by personal funds in QuickBooks Online.

Here's how:

1. Click the Plus (+) sign.
2. Select Journal Entry.
3. On the first line, choose the appropriate expense account for the purchase.
4. In the Debit column, enter the amount.
5. (Optional) Enter a customer name.
6. On the second line, in the Account column, enter the Owner's equity or Partner equity.
7. In the Credit column, enter the amount.
8. (Optional) In the Memo field, add Reimbursable.
9. Select Save and close.

To reimburse via Check, you can follow these steps:

1. Select the Plus icon (+).
2. Under Vendors, select Check.
3. (Optional) In the Choose a payee field, enter the name (owner).
4. Select the bank account you are reimbursing from (you can also use petty cash).
5. In the Account column, select Partner's Equity or Owner's Equity.
6. Enter the amount of reimbursement.
7. Select Save and close or Save and new.

See the steps below to record the reimbursement as an expense:

1. Select the Plus icon (+).
2. Under Vendors, select Expense.
3. (Optional) In the Choose a payee field, enter the name (owner).
4. Select the Bank/Credit account you are reimbursing from (you can also use petty cash).
5. In the Account column, select Partner's Equity or Owner's Equity.
6. Enter the amount of reimbursement.
7. Select Save and close.

For more information about the process, you can visit this article:

How to pay for business expenses with personal funds

The information above will balance your books when recording the transactions. Please remember I'm one reply away if you need anything else. Wishing you all the best.