Close book by month in QuickBooks Online

Hi,

It's possible. Go to the gear icon in the upper right corner, then select 'Account and Settings' in the left column.

Then click 'Advanced' in the right column.

At the top of the window you should see then this:

Thank you for your answer.
I think the method that you told is a method of year-end, is there a method to close monthly?
I input the numbers such as sales monthly and want to only prevent from changing the number.

Hi there, Rion1.

I appreciate you for coming back to share additional information. I’d be glad to provide some details with you on how closing the books works in QuickBooks Online.

QuickBooks Online (QBO) offers the option to Close the Books by finalizing financial statements for a specified period and then password protecting any changes to that information. That said, you'll have the option to change the closing date each month. Then, the process is the same as the method of the year-end closing date. Please make sure that you'll enter the correct or monthly date in the Closing date box.

Closing your books monthly allows you to review the transactions recorded into the system to ensure they are accurate. This is also to make sure all the adjustments made properly reflect in the business’ activity for the month. It also prevents any accidental changes that could affect your financial reports.

Please refer to this article to see steps on how you can track any changes made after you close your books: Edit your closed books.

Keep me posted on how it goes. I'm just a reply away if you need further assistance with closing your books or any concerns with QuickBooks. Have a nice day!

If I do this process, will it not close the year so it will zero out the expenses and income? Is it not a different process for closing a month and closing a year?

Hi Kris102!

Thanks for joining this thread. Allow me to share some details about closing your books.

In QuickBooks Online, closing your books on a monthly basis won't close the entire year's data. The system uses the closing date you entered to prevent you from making any accidental changes before the closing date.

Additionally, you still have the option to edit your closed books if there's a need to make updates.

Also, you'll want to seek some advice from your accountant about closing your books to make sure your data is accurate. If you don't have one, consider subscribing to QuickBooks Live Bookkeeping.

Do you need financial reports? Check this link: QBO Reports.

Post again here if you have other questions. Take care!

One more question, how does the system know the difference between monthly closing and yearly closing when P&L balances zero out and update retained earnings etc? Just by the year changing? Thank you!

Thanks for joining this thread, @Kris102.

Closing your books will lock everything entered before the closing date. If you need QuickBooks to close the year out, you have to change the dates above where it says close the books to the date of your fiscal year. To know more about this, please see this article: Close your books in QuickBooks Online.

Also, to guide you in completing your year-end tasks in QuickBooks, here's the article you can open: QuickBooks Online year-end guide and checklist.

Feel free to post here anytime you have concerns about closing your books in QBO. I will be happy to assist you. Have a good one.

Hello,

Can you also do this in Quickbooks Desktop?

Thank You,

Michelle

Hello @MichelleAcct,

In QuickBooks Desktop, closing your books is just a few movements and clicks. Let me walk you through the steps on how to accomplish this.

1. Go to Edit.
2. Select Preferences.
3. Click Accounting.
4. Under Company Preferences, move your mouse pointer to the CLOSING DATE section.
5. Select Set Date/Password.
6. Choose the needed information and enter them accordingly.
7. Click OK twice.

In the same manner, here's an article you can read to learn more about closing your books: Close your books in QuickBooks Desktop.

On top of that, I've also included this reference helpful with the resources needed in understanding your business's financial status: Create and manage reports in QuickBooks Desktop.

Keep in touch if you need any more assistance with this, or there's something else I can do for you. I've got your back. Take care and stay safe!

I'm trying to close the books in my online quickbooks (non profit version). I found the setting for closing the books, and it is turned off.  I can't figure out how to turn it on.  Is it an additional fee to close the books?

Hi there, @kjudkins1963. 

Let's make sure that you're signed in as the primary or company admin of the account. That way, you can gain access to the Accounting section in the Account and Settings page. 

This might be the reason why you're unable to toggle the Close the books section.

If you're not the master admin of the account, you can reach out to them. This way, they can change your role and update your permission. 

To get more details, check out the following articles:

• User roles and access rights in QBO
• Change the primary admin user in QuickBooks

Moreover, there's no additional fee when closing your books in QuickBooks. This feature is already a part of your subscription. 

I'm also adding this reference in closing your books and preventing changes to past transactions.

Please add your reply if you have further questions or concerns about the program. I'll be here to answer them for you. Have a blessed day. 

I can close the books, but when I do the accounting person cannot change an item receipt from a closed period to a bill.  Can I allow certain transactions in a closed period, or is there a way to have a soft close?  Can I assign her a password to enter and only allow certain transactions in a closed period? 

Hi there, @SLDH9500. I appreciate the details that you've shared.

A closed book requires an access right to be changed. As a result of this, your accounting professional is unable to make the requested modification. 

When you close your book in QuickBooks Online (QBO), you'll need to select Allow changes after viewing a warning and entering a password option. This enables you to make changes to your books at a later time.  As for your accounting person, they'll need to log in as an admin for them to make the changes. 

Here's how to do it:

1. Go to Gear and then tap Accounts and Settings.
2. Choose the Advanced tab.
3. Tick the pencil icon in the Accounting section.
4. Select the Close the books checkbox.
5. Enter a closing date. Then, select the Allow changes after viewing a warning and entering a password option from the drop-down menu if you want to require a password before editing your closed books.
6. Click Save and then Done.

If there's anything else you need assistance with about users' roles in QBO, you can check out this guide for details: User roles and access rights in QuickBooks Online.

Additionally, here's a link that covers all the tasks you can do when managing your account.

Know that you're always welcome to reply anytime if you have other questions or concerns with user permissions. I'll be around for you. Have a fantastic day ahead.

What if there is not a box to select in front of close the books and therefore will not let me change the date to close the books

Hi there, @Christy24K.

Thanks for taking the time to follow along with the thread and sharing your concerns. I'm happy to further explain how to close the books and provide some screenshots. 

To edit the settings, you'll need to click on the pencil icon on the right-hand side of the screen. You can reference my screenshot below. 

After you select the pencil icon, you'll need to click on the slide bar next to Close the Books. 

Once you've clicked on the slide bar to turn on the Close the Books feature, you can enter a date. 

However, if you still do not see the option, I recommend Clearing the Cache from your browser. Web browsers collect cache to save time when loading repetitive data and images. Over time these files can become outdated and corrupted, causing issues like the one with your missing box.

Please let me know if you have any additional questions or concerns. I'm always around to lend a hand. Take care!