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mrondeau
Level 1

How to manually track Cost of Labor Sold (I do not use the Payroll function)

I don't use the Payroll feature of QBO. I use QBO Essentials.

My question is how do I track Cost of Labor manually?

I know I need to debit the COLS account, but my brain can't figure out the other half of the entry.

Can anyone help me out?

1 Comment 1
MaryLandT
Moderator

How to manually track Cost of Labor Sold (I do not use the Payroll function)

Good day, mrondeau.

 

Let me help you track the Cost of Labor in QuickBooks Online (QBO).

 

You can turn on and use the Time Tracking feature to track the labor cost. Let me outline the steps for you.

 

  1. Go to Settings ⚙, then select Account and settings.
  2. Select the Time tab.
  3. In the General or Timesheet section, select Edit ✏.
  4. Set your time tracking preferences:
    • First day of work week▼ drop-down - This affects how employees and contractors view weekly time sheets.
    • Show service field - When this switch is on, employees and contractors who fill out timesheets can specify services performed.
    • Allow time to be billable - When this switch is on, employees and contractors who fill out timesheets can specify if activities should be billed to a customer.
    • Show billing rate to users entering time (optional)
  5. Click Save, then Done.

 

After turning on the Time Tracking, you can start marking timesheets as billable. Here's how:

 

  1. Click + New.
  2. Select Single time activity or Weekly timesheet.
  3. Enter all necessary details.
  4. Mark the Billable checkbox.
  5. Click Save and close.

 

I'm adding this article in case you need to access reports and add a user to time track only: Learn how to turn on and set up time tracking in QuickBooks Online Essentials and Plus.

 

In addition to this, QBO uses Projects to track your labor costs and profitability. However, this function is available in the Plus version. If you wish to upgrade, check out this article for instructions: Upgrade or downgrade your QuickBooks Online subscription.

 

Then, browse these articles to learn how to set up a project.

 

 

Stay in touch with me by commenting below if you have follow-up questions about tracking the Cost of Labor. I'm always around to provide the information that you need.