An Introduction to Class Tracking in Quickbooks
Class tracking is a feature in Quickbooks Desktop that allows you to segment account balances for tracking purposes. While not required, many businesses — as well as accountants — use it. With class tracking, you can create “classes” for your accounts that are independently tracked. You can then view the transactions and balances associated with those classes rather than the whole accounts with which they are associated. For a better understanding of class tracking and how it works, keep reading.
The Basics of Class Tracking
In Quickbooks, class tracking is used to segment account balances for tracking purposes. In other words, you set up classes to track specific segments of one or more accounts. A common example is a retail store with multiple locations. Instead of using a single account, you can segment the account into multiple classes. Class tracking allows you to create a class for each location. Quickbooks will then compile the data for each account, allowing you to see the revenues generated by each location. This is just one of many ways to use class tracking in Quickbooks. You can use it to track any account segment.
How to Set Up Class Tracking
To get started with class tracking, open your Quickbooks company file and choose “Preferences” under the “Edit” menu. Next, select “Accounting,” followed by “Company Preferences.” You should then see a box labeled “Use class tracking for transactions.” Click this box to place a checkmark in it. When finished, click the “OK” button.
With class tracking enabled, you can now set up classes for your accounts. This is done by clicking the “Lists” menu and selecting “Class List.” Next, click the “Class” drop-down menu and choose “New.” Quickbooks will then prompt you to enter a name for the class. Since it’s used for tracking purposes, you should give it a relevant name that’s easy to remember. After entering a name, click the “OK” button.
Assigning Classes: What You Should Know
Assuming you’ve followed these steps, you should now be able to assign the newly created class. Quickbooks supports the use of classes for many different types of transactions. You can assign them to invoices, estimates, bills, purchase orders, sales orders, sales receipts, paychecks, credit card charges and more. Once assigned, you can run reports for the various classes to view and compare their respective balances.
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