chart of accounts

Welcome and thank you for posting here in the Community, @Donna Bownds.

Allow me to help share information about deleting accounts in QuickBooks Online (QBO).

There are specific default and special account in the Chart of Accounts that cannot be deleted. When you create a company, QBO creates specific accounts for that company by default, and creates other special accounts when certain features are turned on in the settings. These accounts cannot be deleted and you cannot use them for any other purpose.

Here are the lists of accounts that cannot be deleted:

• Undeposited Funds
• Opening Balance Equity
• Retained Earnings
• Inventory/Stock Assets and Cost of Good Sold/Cost of Sales
• Reconcile/Reconciliation Discrepancies
• Unapplied Cash Payment Income
• (Sales tax agency name, such as GST/VAT) Payable

Also, here are the accounts that can be edited, but not deleted or merged:

• Services
• Uncategorized Expense and Uncategorized Income
• Uncategorized Asset
• Owner's Equity

It's possible that the accounts you wish to delete belongs to the accounts mentioned above. For additional reference, you may check this article: How to manage default and special accounts in the Chart of Accounts .

Let us know if you have any other questions by adding a comment below, we're always here to help. Have a great day ahead!

How do you delete accounts that ARE allowed to be deleted?

Greetings, brentg22.

I'd be happy to help you the delete the accounts you don't need. The steps below will guide you through the process:

Make accounts inactive in QuickBooks Online

1. Select Accounting in the left navigation menu.
2. Find the account you want to delete, then click the drop-down arrow in the Action column.
3. Choose Make inactive.
4. Click Yes, then do the same steps for the other accounts.

That should do it. I'm confident that you'll be able to clean up your Chart of Accounts before your CPA gets it.

Keep in touch if you need more help with your accounts, or if there's anything else I can do for you. I've always got your back. Have a great day!

It seems to me that making an account "inactive" is not the same as deleting it. There is a useful purpose for making an account inactive that, at one point, was an active account. I would rather not have accounts that I have NEVER used in the same inactive folder where I have accounts I HAVE used. Delete means delete. Is there no way to do that?

Hello brentgray22,

  I believe making account 'Inactive' turns the same as deleting it in terms of the QuickBooks. If you click Settings (Gear button) at the Chart of Accounts and set 'Include inactive' option on - then there inactive accounts will be seen as deleted. However, one can always make active any of such accounts back.

  There is also a way to bulk delete all zero balanced accounts by using some third-party apps. For example Bulk Deleter or either Business Importer. First one created specifically for deleting things from your QuickBooks and the second one has a broader functionality. A good tip here is that bulk deleting functionality within the second one is free of charge.

Thank you for getting back to us here in the Community, @brentgray22.

As of now, there isn't an option to delete an account in QuickBooks Online. As a workaround, you can inactivate accounts you don't need.

We appreciate you expressing your thoughts about the usefulness of the delete option. I'd pass this along here on my end so our product development team can take a look at it. Also, from your end, I encourage sending feedback by clicking on the Gear icon and choosing Feedback.

Feel free to post again if you have other concerns. Enjoy the rest of the day!

So, there is really no way to Reduce the number of Accounts in our Chart of Accounts. If we are over our subscribed limit and need to add one more account, we have to upgrade. Is this correct?

---

@maxyness wrote:

So, there is really no way to Reduce the number of Accounts in our Chart of Accounts. If we are over our subscribed limit and need to add one more account, we have to upgrade. Is this correct?

---

250 is the limit, which I think is huge. Most users that I have seen have less than 100.  I'm curious why you have so many accounts? Do they all have balances?

Thanks for joining the discussion, @maxyness. I can provide clarification on the Chart of Accounts (COA).

Inactive entities do not count against usage limits in QuickBooks Online. For example, the limit for the Chart of Accounts is 250, so if you have 251 accounts in the COA and you needed to add a new one, it would be necessary to make two inactive before being able to add it. For additional insight into this process, as well as usage limits, I recommend the following articles: 

• How to Delete an Account or Restore a Deleted Account
• What are Usage Limits in QuickBooks Online?

I've also included a brief video to serve as a demonstration of this:

Please feel free to let me know if you should have any question on this. Take care. 

I have only 229 accounts from my business chart of accounts. 

Unfortunately, QB online has accounts that have been added and put my limit at 250. 

I do not understand why I am being forced to this limit, when it is because of QB online adding accounts. 

There are services accounts (like markup) that our company will NEVER use! And yet, I have to keep them and they hinder my ability to add any more accounts to my own BUSINESS General Ledger. 

This seems to be counter beneficial to a small business. 

Is there ANY way to get around this?

Hi Karen SCR,

Let me start by saying how much I appreciate your thoughts on this. Allow me to help share some clarification on the usage limits in QuickBooks Online.

Classes, Locations, Chart of Accounts, and Users that are inactive will not count on the usage limit. Since there are accounts that you don't use, I recommend making the accounts inactive in the system.

Here are the steps:
 

1. Click the Gear icon in the upper-right corner.
2. Below Your Company, click Chart of Accounts.
3. In the Chart of Accounts tab, search for the account you want to make inactive.
4. Click the drop-down arrow next to the account.
5. Click Make inactive.

Here's a screenshot for your visual reference:

For additional insight into QuickBooks Usage Limits, such as reducing down limits, I'm adding an article that I recommend (scroll down to How do I reduce things down to their limits?):

What are usage limits in QuickBooks Online?.

Please let me know if there's anything else I can do for you regarding the accounts limit. The Community is always around for you.

---

@AlcaeusF wrote:
Hi Karen SCR,

Allow me to help share some clarification on the usage limits in QuickBooks Online.

 

.

---

Yes, I'm eagerly waiting for the clarification to the question that @Karen SCR asked.  Where is it?

In QuickBooks Desktop (even on Pro version that will cost you a one-time payment of $150, and the license is yours. And you can use it at least for 3 years or more) comes with both features — Delete account and Make account inactive. See screenshot below.

In QuickBooks Online (for Plus plan, you pay $70 p/month soon or $2,520 in 36 months) comes with only "Make account inactive" but no "Delete account" feature.

Both products are by Intuit. One you pay $150 still comes with far more features than the other so-called innovations product that you pay $2,520.

---

@vpcontroller wrote:

 

Both products are by Intuit. One you pay $150 still comes with far more features than the other so-called innovations product that you pay $2,520.

 

 

---

Not a fair comparison.

With QBO you are primarily paying for remote access for multiple users. For example Swizznet costs $55 per user per month, not including the QB license, $70 including the QB license.  If you have just 2 users, you're already saving, never mind the 7 your can have with QBO Plus.  

---

@Malcolm Ziman wrote:

---

@vpcontroller wrote:

 

Both products are by Intuit. One you pay $150 still comes with far more features than the other so-called innovations product that you pay $2,520.

 

 

---

Not a fair comparison.

With QBO you are primarily paying for remote access for multiple users. For example Swizznet costs $55 per user per month, not including the QB license, $70 including the QB license.  If you have just 2 users, you're already saving, never mind the 7 your can have with QBO Plus.  

---

What about FEATURES? (If you know the features in desktop)

What about if someone in certain specific business type and needs to create unlimited separate companies? Can you also do the math for that in QBO?

Also, they're starting a business and need one user only. But need more features (like simply delete the account when needed) and create multiple companies at any time and no need to pay extra money.

.

I have tried making unusable accounts inactive...unfortunately I CANNOT make inactive the accounts that QB online has added (that I will never use). 

My question is how to deactivate that accounts that are forced into by chart of accounts by QB online!!!! 

Your answer does not help me get around those accounts. 

My own accounts (that I can make inactive) are not my problem. I have a markup account that I am not able to make inactive - QB notifies me it cannot be deleted because "it is the markup account for billable expenses". I will never use this!! 

If I am required to have certain accounts in order for QB online program to run, then I do not think I should be penalized by having those accounts added to my max. 

Hi there, Karen SCR.

Allow me to step in and shed some light about your concern with making default accounts inactive and how usage limits works in QuickBooks Online (QBO).

There are accounts that cannot be deleted from your Chart of Accounts. These accounts have corresponding reason and use.

To better understand why some accounts cannot be deleted from the Chart of Accounts, here's an article that explains why: How to manage default and special accounts in the Chart of Accounts.

I understand that these default accounts are counted in the usage limit. And while this is the case, we'll be sure to keep this in mind and may consider your point for future product enhancements.

Please let me know if you have other questions or clarifications about deactivating accounts in QBO. I'd be happy to clear things up.

Thank you Charies_M for taking the time to answer me. I do appreciate that you will be considering this as you further improve our QB experience. 

Glad to see again here in the Community, Karen SCR.

Allow me to share additional information regarding the default accounts in QuickBooks Online.

I've already taken note of your suggestion and will inform you whenever we have this option available for our users. Additionally, I'd encourage you to visit our QuickBooks Blog to be updated with our latest news and updates including product improvements.

Check out this link: https://quickbooks.intuit.com/blog/.

We also have resources available to help you grow and manage your business, all you need to do is visit the QuickBooks Resource Center for more information. Or, you can go directly through this link: https://quickbooks.intuit.com/r/.

For future help, you can always reach out to our QuickBooks Online Support.

The Community is around the corner if you have any other questions. Have a nice day!

Not sure if this was suggested, but if you are 100% confident that the account was NEVER used, you can just rename and reclassify it to what you need instead of making it inactive and creating a new one for the next account you need.

Please just be POSITIVE it was NEVER used before. When first starting out I've found many accounts that were set up and never used. The client thought it would be needed but wasn't. 

Pertaining to the Chart of accounts, I am in need of a Contra -liability account for a notes payable. However, QBO doesn't give supply one for liabilities.  Is there a work around?  Note, the  Contra -liability " Discount on Notes payable" has debit balance. Notes payable has a credit balance which is offset by the debit.    thanks much if someone can help.