QuickBooks Cleanup Checklist
A QuickBooks cleanup checklist starts with reconciliation, then removes duplicates, tidies the chart of accounts, clears uncategorized transactions and checks the reports. Work through the lists below in order and keep notes of every change, so each fix can be explained later.
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PDF. No email form. Every step on this page with a box to tick and columns for who did it, the date and notes.
How do you clean up books in QuickBooks?
The steps below are general, and account names and menus such as Uncategorized Income and Ask My Accountant are QuickBooks Online terms that may differ in QuickBooks Desktop. Screens differ between versions, so use the idea, not the exact button names. If months are missing entirely, start with the catch-up bookkeeping checklist first. The method behind both is in how to catch up on bookkeeping.
What should you do before changing anything?
- [ ] Make a backup or export your key reports, so you can compare before and after
- [ ] Note the date through which you trust the data
- [ ] Gather bank and card statements for the period you are cleaning
- [ ] Check whether a closing date or password is set on the file, and ask your tax professional before changing it
- [ ] Write down who else uses the file
What is the core cleanup pass in QuickBooks?
Bank and card accounts
- [ ] Check the bank feed is connected once, to the right account
- [ ] Reconcile each account to its statement, oldest unreconciled month first
- [ ] Investigate any reconciliation with a difference rather than adding a plug entry
- [ ] Review old uncleared checks and deposits
- [ ] Delete or void unreconciled items that were entered twice (for reconciled items, see the old-transactions section)
Transactions
- [ ] Clear the Uncategorized income, Uncategorized expense and any Ask My Accountant balances
- [ ] Look for the same transaction imported from the feed and entered by hand
- [ ] Mark transfers between your own accounts as transfers
- [ ] Move personal spending out of business expenses
- [ ] Check for payments applied to the wrong invoice or bill
Chart of accounts
- [ ] List accounts with no activity and make them inactive
- [ ] Merge duplicates that mean the same thing
- [ ] Rename vague accounts so a stranger could understand them
- [ ] Check loans sit in liability accounts, not expenses
Customers, vendors and lists
- [ ] Merge duplicate customers and vendors
- [ ] Review old open invoices and bills; decide with the owner and your tax professional whether to collect or write off
- [ ] Check items and products used on invoices are still valid
How do you clean up old transactions?
Old transactions are tempting to ignore, but unreconciled and uncategorized items from earlier periods distort every report that follows.
- [ ] Reconcile the oldest period first
- [ ] Review stale uncleared items
- [ ] Reclassify transactions in the wrong year only after asking your tax professional about prior-year implications
- [ ] Do not delete transactions that have been reconciled; fix them by reversing the reconciliation properly
What reports should you check at the end?
- [ ] Profit and loss by month: do the totals look plausible?
- [ ] Balance sheet: do the cash, loan and card balances match your statements?
- [ ] Accounts receivable aging: are the open invoices real?
- [ ] Accounts payable aging: are the open bills real?
- [ ] Any negative balance: explained or corrected
- [ ] Trial balance: no surprises in accounts you do not recognize
How do you keep QuickBooks clean afterwards?
- [ ] Review the bank feed weekly
- [ ] Reconcile every account monthly
- [ ] Clear uncategorized items when they arrive, not at year end
- [ ] Keep the chart of accounts short and named clearly
- [ ] Limit who can edit the file
When is a checklist not enough?
A checklist works for a file that is mostly sound. It struggles when the problem is that nobody knows what many transactions were, or when the file has been touched by several people. Then a person needs to trace items back to source records. That is the kind of work our catch-up and cleanup bookkeeping covers for QuickBooks or Xero files, quoted separately by condition and complexity. See what catch-up bookkeeping is and how the cost works.
We do not prepare tax returns, audit or give investment advice, and this checklist is general information, not tax advice. Ongoing upkeep is covered by monthly bookkeeping and described on our pricing page.
Need this done for you? See our Catch-up bookkeeping service, or pricing. English Oak Financial does not prepare tax returns, perform audits or give investment advice. This guide is general information, not tax, legal or investment advice.
Related pages
Common questions
How do I clean up my books in QuickBooks?
Back up first, reconcile every account, remove duplicates, clear uncategorized items, tidy the chart of accounts, then check your reports against statements.
How do I clean up books in QuickBooks Online?
The same steps apply. Pay particular attention to the bank feed, which can create duplicates or gaps if it was paused or reconnected.
How do I clean up old transactions in QuickBooks?
Reconcile the oldest period first, then fix categories. Check with your tax professional before changing prior-year periods.
How much does a QuickBooks cleanup cost?
It depends on the condition of the file and the number of accounts. Our cost guide explains the drivers.
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