Our customer list is growing and I'm running into the problem of having multiple customers with the same name. Advice on how to deal with this?

I also am having the same issue for instance endangers popped up for one of my customers Gary Smith. I have done work for Gary Smith and now I have another customer named Gary Smith. The thing is there's a lot of Gary Smith's in our area. What do you do in the case of this just adding a middle initial that could even possibly be the same won't work.

I understand how much you want to display the customer's last name first, @pbb2.

I know you'll get a prompt message "Another customer is already using this name..." when you have the same customers having the last name displayed before the first name. Let me share some insights to manage your customer list.

In your case, I suggest adding a character, trait, symbol, initial, or number beside the customer's first name. This way, their last name will show first in the customer list. Please see my attachment below for visual reference:

You can follow these steps to edit the customer's name:

1. From the left panel, hover to Customers & leads.
2. Select Customers.
   
   
    
3. Find the customer you want to update, then click its name.
4. Go to Edit.
   
   
    
5. Add a character/trait/initial/symbol/number beside the first name.
6. Choose the last name to show first from the Customer display name* drop-down.
   
   
    
7. Hit Save.

In addition, you can check this article for insightful details: Fix the name supplied already exists error message.

Furthermore, if you'll want to merge duplicate customers in the future or make it as a sub-customer, feel free to read this article: Manage customers in QuickBooks Online.

I'd be happy to answer them if you have follow-up questions about handling customer list. I'm always here to assist you. Have a nice day, and more power to your business!