How to Reconcile Your Accounts in QuickBooks Online

Reconciling an account in QuickBooks Online means matching every transaction in your books to your bank or credit card statement, so you can confirm that both sides agree to the penny. You should reconcile every account once a month, after your statement closes. It's the only way to know your books actually reflect your real financial position.

A connected bank feed pulls transactions into QBO automatically, but that doesn't mean your books are correct. Manually entered transactions, duplicate records, deleted entries, or timing differences can all create gaps between QBO and your actual bank balance. Reconciliation is the monthly proof that everything lines up. Here's how to do it.

What Do You Need Before You Start Reconciling?

Have your bank or credit card statement ready before you open the reconciliation screen. You'll need two things from it: the statement ending date and the ending balance (sometimes called the closing balance or new balance). These are the two numbers you enter into QBO to start the process.

If you're reconciling a credit card, look for the statement closing date and the closing balance on your statement. The process is the same as a bank account.

How Do You Reconcile an Account in QuickBooks Online?

The reconciliation process works by checking off transactions in QBO that appear on your bank statement. As you match them, the difference between QBO's balance and your statement balance should move toward zero.

Step-by-step: Reconciling a bank or credit card account

1. Go to All apps > Accounting > Reconcile.
2. If this is your first time, click Get started. Otherwise, click Reconcile.
3. In the Account dropdown, select the account you want to reconcile (e.g., Business Checking).
4. Check the Last statement ending date shown, your current statement should start the day after this date.
5. Enter the Ending balance and Ending date from your bank statement.
6. Click Start reconciling.
7. Work through the transaction list. For each transaction that appears on your bank statement, check the box next to it in QBO. The Cleared balance updates as you go.
8. Continue until the Difference shown at the top of the screen reaches $0.00.
9. Click Finish now.

QBO saves a reconciliation report automatically when you finish. You can access past reports any time by going to Accounting > Reconcile > History by account.

What If Your Reconciliation Won't Balance?

A difference that won't reach zero comes down to one of two different problems, depending on where the mismatch shows up. It's worth treating these separately, since QBO handles each with a different tool.

Problem 1: The difference at the end of your session won't hit zero

This usually means one of three things: the ending balance was entered incorrectly, a transaction was entered in QBO that hasn't cleared your bank yet, or there's a missing or duplicate transaction in QBO.

1. First, double-check that you entered the correct ending balance from your statement. A typo here throws everything off. Select Edit info in the reconciliation window to review and correct it.
2. Run the Reconciliation report (or a Past reconciliation report for closed periods) to see what's currently checked off.
3. Compare it to your bank statement. Find the transaction causing the difference. An uncleared item, a missing entry, or a duplicate, and correct it in QBO.
4. Return to the reconciliation screen. The difference should now adjust toward zero.

Problem 2: Your beginning balance doesn't match your statement

This means a transaction from an already-completed reconciliation was edited, deleted, voided, moved, or unreconciled after the fact, or the account's opening balance was wrong to begin with. QBO won't let you continue reconciling until this is resolved.

1. When you go to reconcile and the beginning balance is off, QBO shows an alert. Select the option to fix it, which opens the Reconcile Discrepancy Report.
2. This report lists every transaction that changed since your last completed reconciliation, along with when it changed.
3. Compare it to your bank statement, find the transaction causing the issue, and correct it.
4. Once resolved, your beginning balance should match, and you can proceed with the current period.

If you can't find the source of the discrepancy, don't force an adjustment just to close the reconciliation. An unexplained adjustment hides a real error that will compound in future months.

For more on fixing reconciliation issues, see Fix issues at the end of a reconciliation in QuickBooks Online and Fix issues for accounts you've reconciled in the past in QuickBooks Online.

What Is the Opening Balance and Why Does It Matter?

The opening balance is the starting balance for your account in QBO, the balance on the day you first began tracking transactions. For reconciliation to work correctly, the opening balance in QBO must match your actual bank balance on that same date.

If your opening balance is wrong, every reconciliation after it will be off by the same amount. Check it by going to Accounting > Chart of accounts, finding the account, and clicking View register. The first entry should be an Opening Balance Equity transaction with the correct amount.

If it's wrong, correct the amount directly in the register and save. Your next reconciliation should then start from a correct base.

How Often Should You Reconcile Your Accounts?

Reconcile every account once a month, after the statement period closes. Monthly reconciliation is the minimum. Waiting longer means more transactions to work through, more opportunities for errors to compound, and a harder time tracing the source of any discrepancies.

The more accounts you have connected, the more important it is to keep reconciliation on a regular schedule. Letting it lapse for multiple months turns a 20-minute task into a multi-hour fix.

FAQ

Do I still need to reconcile if my bank feed is syncing automatically? Yes, always. The bank feed downloads transactions, but it doesn't verify them. Manually entered transactions, adjustments, journal entries, or timing differences can all create gaps between your QBO balance and your actual bank balance. Reconciliation is the check that confirms both sides match, a synced feed doesn't replace it.

What does it mean when QBO shows a "Beginning balance" that doesn't match my statement?  It means a transaction from the previous reconciliation period was changed after that reconciliation was completed, usually a deleted, edited, or voided transaction. Select the option QBO offers to fix it, which opens the Reconcile Discrepancy Report, to find what changed and when.

Can I undo a completed reconciliation in QuickBooks Online? Yes, you no longer need an outside accountant for this. You can undo an entire reconciliation period yourself from History by account if you're the Primary admin or have the In-house accountant role on the account. (An accountant connected through QuickBooks Online Accountant can also do it, if you'd rather hand it off.) Whether the one-step undo shows up for you can still depend on your QuickBooks Online plan as well as your role, so if you don't see it, fall back to the manual method below or invite an accountant. Keep in mind undoing a period also undoes every reconciliation completed after it, not just one isolated month, and it permanently deletes that reconciliation's report and attachments, download anything you need first. If you only need to fix one or two transactions rather than a whole period, you can instead unreconcile them individually from the account register (Chart of accounts > View register, then click each transaction's reconciled status until it's blank).

What if a transaction is in QBO but not on my bank statement? Leave it unchecked. A transaction that's in QBO but not yet on your statement is probably still in transit, it will appear on next month's statement. Do not delete it unless you're certain it was entered in error.

How do I reconcile if I've missed several months? Reconcile one month at a time, starting from the oldest statement. Use each month's statement ending date and ending balance to reconcile that period, then move to the next. It takes longer than a single month, but skipping ahead creates a permanent gap in your records.

Key Takeaways

• Reconcile every account once a month after your statement closes. Use the ending balance and ending date from your paper or online statement.
• The goal is a difference of $0.00. If your end-of-session difference doesn't reach zero, check your ending balance entry first, then look for missing or duplicate transactions. If it's your beginning balance that's off, that's a separate issue, run the Reconcile Discrepancy Report to find what changed since your last reconciliation.
• A synced bank feed doesn't replace reconciliation. It speeds up data entry; reconciliation proves the data is correct.
• The opening balance in QBO must match your real bank balance on the date you started tracking. If it's wrong, all future reconciliations will be off by the same amount.
• Don't force an adjustment to close a reconciliation you can't balance. Find the source of the discrepancy and fix it properly.
• The Primary admin or a user with the In-house accountant role can undo a full reconciliation solo, no outside accountant required. It rolls back everything since the selected period and permanently deletes that reconciliation's report, so download anything you need first.

Still running into a balance that won't zero out?

Leave a comment below with the details, the amount of the discrepancy and the account type are a good starting point. You can also reach QuickBooks Support directly from Help (?) in QBO.

Helpful Resources

• Reconcile an account in QuickBooks Online: Official step-by-step guide for matching your books to your bank statement.
• Fix issues at the end of a reconciliation in QuickBooks Online: : What to do when the difference won't reach zero at the end of a session.
• Fix issues the first time you reconcile in QuickBooks Online: How to correct an incorrect opening balance before it causes problems downstream.
• Undo an entire reconciliation in QuickBooks Online: Official article on who can undo a full reconciliation and what's permanently lost when you do. 
• How to Avoid Reconciliation Mistakes in QuickBooks Online: The most common reconciliation errors and how to prevent them before they throw off your books.
• How to Connect Your Bank and Categorize Transactions in QuickBooks Online: Clean categorization going in means a smoother reconciliation every month.