I need a step by step process. I receive a check in payment of an invoice. I bank deposit the check. Transactions get downloaded. Receive payment first? Match deposit?

I'm here to help you with how to handle bank transactions in QuickBooks Online (QBO),

We'll need to match your deposit in the For Review tab so that the bank and QuickBooks balance will match. This will also avoid duplicates in the bank register. Here's how:

1. Go to the Banking menu then choose the For Review tab.
2. Select the Record Transfer option, then the transfer account.
3. Click Record transfer once done.

You can also check out this article about categorizing and matching bank transactions in QuickBooks Online. 

If you can't find a match between the payment and the deposit, you'll have to receive the payment and deposit it to the correct bank. This way, you can match the transactions. QuickBooks will also look for transactions that are in the bank register when looking for a match, This means that the system will not match transactions that are not yet deposited into the bank. Here's how:

1. Go to the +New icon, then choose Received payments.
2. Choose the customer, then the invoice.
3. Complete the Payment date and method.
4. Enter the exact amount.
5. Click the Deposit to a drop-down arrow, then choose the right bank.
6. Tap Save and close.

Please, click this link for further information: Record and make bank deposits in QuickBooks Online. Once done, you can now go back to the Banking tab and match the transaction again. Just follow the steps below:

1. Go to the Banking menu.
2. In the For Review tab, locate and click the transaction to match.
3. Click the Match radio button or hit Find other records.
4. Select Match.

Here's an article you can refer to for more details about categorizing and matching online bank transactions in QuickBooks Online. 

Let me also add this great resource that you can use for future reference. This provides complete information on reconciling your account accurately: Reconcile an account in QuickBooks Online.

If you still have questions about matching bank transactions, please reply in the comment section below. I'll be around for you. Take care.

No, this did not solve the problem. This "answer" is typical of QB. The answer references links that don't exist and skips important steps. It's like the person answering is using entirely different software. The videos referenced do not address my problem.

Here are some of the incorrect instructions in the answer:

"Go to the Banking menu then choose the For Review tab"

There is NO For Review tab under the Banking link. The tab is under the BOOKKEEPING link, then click Bank Transactions (which is also not under Banking), then click For Review.

"Select the Record Transfer option, then the transfer account. Click Record transfer once done."

An instruction is skipped here: Select the transaction.

Why am I clicking Record as Transfer? This is not a transfer. This is a deposit in payment of an invoice!

Which account am I transferring from? They money is not in QB yet.

Then I'm told click Record once done. Shouldn't that be Confirm?

Next instruction:

"If you can't find a match between the payment and the deposit, you'll have to receive the payment and deposit it to the correct bank."

WTF

Now the answer is referencing MATCHING and the "correct bank". Something is missing here. How did we get to Matching? Also, what is meant by Correct Bank? I am not matching or transferring between Banks.

I can't trust anything in this answer.

All I want is the CORRECT procedure to record a deposit made by check to my bank in payment of an invoice. The deposit has been downloaded from my bank account and QB wants me to confirm it. I want the correct invoice to be closed as Paid. And, I don't want the deposit to show up twice in my Balance Sheet.

How do I do that? 

If the invoice payment comes through QB payments, everything runs smoothly. Why is it so difficult to pay an invoice with a check?

Hi office-fireprote,

I'll provide the proper or the usual flow for receiving a check payment for an invoice without bloating your Balance Sheet.

The first thing that you want to do is to open the invoice and click Receive payment.

QuickBooks routes you to the Receive payment page, where you enter the payment details. Watch out for the Deposit to field. You'll want to choose your checking account to directly post the payment there or use Undeposited Funds so you can deposit the transaction later on.

If you've selected Undeposited Funds in the Deposit to field, deposit the payment using the steps below. Do this after endorsing the actual check to your bank.

1. Click +New.
2. Choose Bank deposit under OTHER.
3. On the Bank Deposit page, select the checking account in the Account field.
4. Select the payment transaction to be deposited, and then Save and close.

Since the transaction is also downloaded on the Banking page, it should autodetect the bank deposit (last transaction in the process) you created. You just have to confirm it.

It's important that all transactions are connected to avoid doubling your deposits. The invoice is linked to the payment, the payment is linked to the bank deposit, and the bank deposit is linked or matched to the downloaded transaction.

Remember that you can always delete and recreate a manually entered payment and bank deposit transaction if you notice that the numbers are not adding up.

I'm just around if you need more assistance with your transactions.

This response is another confusing response.

If I do what you say to do, use Receive Payments, and then download transactions from the bank, I am asked to Confirm the deposit. If I confirm the deposit, then I have 2 deposits recorded and a screwed up balance sheet.

Seems to me that you can record this 2 ways:

1 - record through Receive Payments and then EXCLUDE the downloaded bank deposit.

2 - Match the downloaded bank deposit to the correct invoice.

Now the problem becomes, how do you attach a SINGLE payment (single check), to MULTIPLE invoices. That I haven't figured out yet.

If QB programmers see a difficult and confusing way to do something, then that's the way they are going to program the software.

Welcome back, @office-fireprote.

You are on the right track to receiving the payments and excluding the downloaded bank deposit to avoid duplicate transactions in QuickBooks. I'll share some information about attaching a single payment to multiple invoices.

QuickBooks Online (QBO) doesn't allow you to link a single payment to multiple invoices. You'll need to receive the payments on each invoice and make sure you select undeposited funds from the Deposit to drop-down. This way, you can deposit the payments in one transaction. Once done, you can now match the deposit to your bank feed transactions.

However, if the single payment is coming from your bank feeds, you can match it to multiple invoices by opening the bank feed transaction, then clicking Find match.

You may want to learn more about categorizing and matching transactions in QuickBooks. This article will guide you through the process: Categorize and match online bank transactions in QuickBooks Online.

Come to this post if you have other concerns or follow-up questions about this. I'll be around to provide further assistance.