What is the correct way to set up products in QBO or Square item to correctly transfer through Square Connector? Connector is not recognizing product variations.

Hello, @psorvik.

The key to reliable transfers from Square to QuickBooks Online (QBO) is understanding how the Connector actually matches line items. Let me share some additional information about this.

QuickBooks (via the Connector) matches items using the item name that appears on each incoming Square line. In other words, it’s really based on the item name. Even if the SKU and cost are identical in QBO and Square, the Connector will often use name-first matching unless you’ve configured it to use SKU matching. QBO does not match product categories. Categories in QBO can’t be used as the sales transaction item, so seeing “Fruit” as a suggestion doesn’t mean Frostbite is being recognized as an item.

If you need "Frostbite" tracked separately, create a distinct QuickBooks item named for that variation. QuickBooks can’t differentiate variations when matching, so if Square sends only the parent name (e.g., “Apple”) on the sales line and not the variation, the Connector won’t recognize it. To fix this, update your Square item names to include the variation (for example, “Apple – Frostbite”) so the Connector can match by name.

Please let us know if you have any further questions. We'll be right here to help you anytime.

Thank you Ariell for your comments on this issue. I appreciate the further explanation on the workings of the Connector app. It appears that you are correct on the matching of names only. I had assumed that the Connector made a correct match for the item variation because it worked for the same item on another sale. But after more trial, the Connector also chooses Frostbite for other items sold that are also variations of Apple.

So having found this out, it appears that item variations can be created and used in Square and also product variants in QBO, but the Square Connector will not recognize these. This is disappointing. Creating individual items for all variations in both systems is cumbersome and renders the use of product variants and item variations useless. The variations of products (items) makes product management much easier, which is why I assume both QBO and Square utilize that organizational feature.

Your comment about using SKU matching caught my attention. Am I missing a setting where I can tell Connector to match SKU's? Where would I find that setting?

I am not a software engineer, but it seems so close to make the connector work. Just add the mapping tool that is already in QBO for csv importing to the Connector app. This mapping would allow users to choose (map) the items directly rather than having Connector guess where to put it. Maybe in the future...? 

Hi there, Psorvik.

Your thoughtful insights and feedback are greatly appreciated. Let me share some information below.

To address your question about SKU matching, you have not missed a setting where the Square Connector app can be configured to match SKUs in QuickBooks Online.

Please note that QuickBooks relies on the information and data that is synced from the Square Connector app. The issue you’re encountering appears to stem from the way the Square Connector app processes and transfers the data to QuickBooks.

We recommend reaching out to the Square Connector support team to check if there are any settings or updates to address the SKU matching issue. They might also share if a mapping tool, like in QuickBooks for CSV imports, is planned in the future. Your suggestion about adding mapping functionality is valuable and could help improve their application.

If you have additional questions or concerns, please add a comment below. 

Thank you ClaireSamanthaS for your comments. I fully agree with your statement "The issue you’re encountering appears to stem from the way the Square Connector app processes and transfers the data to QuickBooks. . That is the center of the problem. 

I would question your comments made regarding the Connector app and reaching out to Square. My understanding is that the Connector was created and supported by Intuit. This is a link to a video from Intuit is one reason why I would assume this. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0BHCOPZ6_WQ. The mapping tool I referenced is an internal tool of QBO when importing a csv file. Its use is required when importing any csv file for such things as chart of accounts, customer lists, invoices and others. The information I am seeking to get into QBO is already included on a csv sale transaction output file from Square, item variations. This would show that the information is there, but the Connector app is just not programmed to retrieve the information and organize it correctly. 

This discussion was not able to solve my problem regarding importing transactions from Square that have item variations. I am hopeful that this information could be transferred or reported to the department responsible for 'support' of the Square Connector by Quickbooks. Possibly I am still missing a way to make it work or changes can be made to the app to include this function.