How To Transfer Quickbooks To a New Computer
Thinking about upgrading to a new computer? If you have Quickbooks installed on your existing computer, you’ll need to transfer it to your new computer. The good news is that Intuit makes it relatively easy to transfer your files to a new device. The bad news is tha tmost people are unfamiliar with the process. If this sounds like a familiar scenario, keep reading for instructions on how to transfer your Quickbooks data to a new computer.
Steps To Transfer Quickbooks To a New Computer
- Create a backup of your current Quickbooks data.
- Copy the backup file and transfer it to your new computer.
- Install Quickbooks on your new computer.
- Restore the backup file on your new computer.
- Uninstall Quickbooks from your old computer.
Sorry if you were expecting more, but that’s all it takes to transfer Quickbooks data to a new computer! Just create a backup of your current Quickbooks data, transfer it to your new computer, install Quickbooks on the new computer, and restore the backup file. Depending on the size of your Quickbooks file and speed of your computer, it should take less than a hour from start to finish.
Tip: Rename Your Quickbooks File
You should never attempt to restore a Quickbooks file without renaming it first. Why is this a problem? Well, you may accidentally overwrite your existing file, resulting in a total loss of data. So, try to get into the habit of renaming your Quickbooks files before you restore them. It only takes a second to rename your file, but doing so could save you countless hours of work in the event you accidentally overwrite your existing file.
What About Quickbooks Online or Hosted Quickbooks?
Of course, another solution is to choose either Quickbooks Online or Hosted Quickbooks instead of the desktop versions. Quickbooks Online is somewhat limited in terms of its function. However, Hosted Quickbooks is essentially one of the desktop versions “hosted” by an authorized third-party vendor. This means you’ll have access to all of the features found in desktop Quickbooks, but you can access your account over the Internet instead of using traditional desktop-based software.
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How To Change Account Numbers In Quickbooks
Still struggling to change your account numbers in Quickbooks? While account numbers aren’t required, using them may streamline your normal business/accounting operations. Before you can change your account number, though, you’ll first need to perform some simple steps. For more information on how to change your account numbers, keep reading.
Quickbooks automatically adds default account numbers to new accounts. These numbers are based upon account type and within generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP). While most users prefer to leave these default numbers in place, others may wish to create their own custom account numbers. Intuit acknowledges the need for customization, which is why it offers a quick and easy solution to changing your account numbers.
To change your account numbers, open your accounting preferences and select the tab labeled “Company Preferences.” Next, select the “use account numbers” tab. This enables account numbers to display within your account, which is the first step in customizing your numbers.
Next, access the Lists menu followed by Chart of Accounts. Once the Chart of Accounts pulls up, you’ll see a list of all accounts and account numbers tied to your Quickbooks. Scroll through the list and choose the account that you wish to change the number. Next, click the Account edit button at the bottom of the page and then Edit Account. You should see a number field displayed in a new window. Click the number field, insert your desired account number, and click OK. Sorry if you were expecting more, but that’s all it takes to change your account numbers in Quickbooks!
Note: you can only change account numbers if you have multiple accounts.
To recap, Quickbooks will automatically assign account numbers to new entities placed on your chart of accounts. However, you can change your account numbers by logging into your account and performing the aforementioned steps. This involves enabling account numbers in the Company Preferences tab, followed by accessing your chart of accounts, choosing the account you wish to change the number of, and saving your changes by clicking OK.
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How To Adjust Inventory In Quickbooks
Still struggling to adjust your inventory in Quickbooks? The software automatically makes adjustments based on sales, so when a product is sold, it reduces the inventory of the respective product by one. However, there are times when you may need to adjust the inventory manually. For a step-by-step walkthrough on how to adjust inventory, keep reading.
Before we begin, it’s important to note that decreasing the inventory of an assembly item may cause the final assembly built to switch to “pending” status. Intuit recommends running a pending built report both before and after making inventory adjustments to ensure your account remains functional.
To adjust inventory, click Vendors > Inventory Activity > Adjust Quantity/Value on Hand. Next, select Adjustment Account from the drop-down box and select Total Value or Quantity and Total Value (depending on what you need to adjust). Click the Adjustment Account drop-down box again and select the account you wish to adjust. Proceed with the changes and click “Save” to finalize the adjustments and finish the process. Sorry if you were expecting more, but that’s all it takes to adjust inventory in Quickbooks!
If you find yourself making frequent manual changes to your inventory, you may want to create a separate account specifically for tracking adjustments. You can create a dedicated account for all adjustments, or you can create a new account for all gains and another account for expenses and losses. It’s entirely up to you, but many accountants prefer the latter (create two accounts — one for losses and another for gains). In doing so, you’ll have an easier time keeping tabs of adjustments made to your inventory.
It’s also important to note that multiple accounts are needed when making adjustments to two or more inventory items which are assigned in different accounts. Failing to create multiple accounts will prevent you from accomplishing this task. Intuit has a helpful guide published here that offers more information on how to create multiple inventory accounts.
Hopefully, this will give you a better understanding on how to make inventory adjustments in Quicbooks. It’s a relatively simple process that should only take a couple of minutes. And once you’ve learned the basics, you should have little-to-no problem making future adjustments.
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How To Set Up and Use an Owner’s Draw
An owner’s draw is a financial account in Quickbooks that’s used to track payments made to the business owner (hence the name). Every business owner must pay him or herself sooner or later. By recording these transactions in an owner’s draw, you’ll have an easier time keeping track of your business’s finances. If you’re interested in learning more about owner’s draw and how to set them within Quickbooks, keep reading.
Setting Up an Owner’s Draw Account
To create an owner’s draw, log into your Quickbooks account and access Lists > Chart of Accounts. At the bottom left-hand side of the screen, you’ll see a menu with “Accounts.” Click this link followed by “New.” Next, choose Equity > Continue.
You’ll be asked several questions regarding the new account, including what you’d like to name it (optional) and a description. Assuming you have just a single owner’s draw account, an easy name to remember is “Owner’s Draw.” If you have multiple owner’s draw accounts, however, you may want to include the name of the respective owner/payee in the name field for each account. When you are finished choosing a name and description, click Save & Close to complete the setup. Sorry if you were expecting more, but that’s all it takes to set up an owner’s draw account!
Writing Checks From an Owner’s Draw Account
Making payments from an owner’s draw account is a relatively simple and straightforward process. To write a check from the owner’s draw account, choose Banking > Write Checks, at which point a new window should appear asking you for more information. Under the “Pay to the order of” section, enter the business owner’s name to whom you wish to send the check, and the dollar amount of the payment. Last but not least, assign the amount of the check to the owner’s draw account. Click Save & Close to write the check and complete the process.
Remember, the owner’s draw account should only be used when making payments to the respective business owner. Using this account for your standard payroll isn’t recommended.
Were you able to set up an owner’s draw by following the steps outlined here? Let us know in the comments section below!
Quickbooks Tips and Tricks
Quickbooks is designed so that practically anyone can perform their own business accounting. It features a clean, easy-to-navigate interface that walks you through the process. Regardless of your previous accounting experience, you should have no problem finding your way through Quickbooks. However, there are certain tips and tricks that may speed up your accounting. If you are looking to spend less time on accounting and more time running your business, you should check out some of the following tips.
Use Shortcut Keys
If you aren’t using shortcut keys during your Quickbooks accounting, you are typing more than what’s necessary. Quickbooks is designed with dozens of shortcut keys, allowing you to quickly access certain areas of your account. For instance, Ctrl + N opens up a new transaction window. Instead of manually clicking through the dropdown box at the top of the page to find the new transaction window, you can simply click Ctrl + N. Of course, this is just one of the many shortcut keys implemented in Quickbooks. Here are a few others…
Ctrl + R – Access transaction registrar.
Ctrl + Y – Display journal.
Ctrl + H – Display transaction history.
Ctrl + Z – Undo.
Ctrl + D – Delete transaction.
Ctrl + F – Find.
Ctrl + D – Edit.
Ctrl + I – Create Invoice.
Ctrl + P – Print.
Right Click
Another neat little tool Quickbooks features is the use of right-click menus. As the name suggests, this feature allows you to pull up menus simply by right clicking. Although it’s not available in every area, Quickbooks does allow for right-click menus in a number of different sections. Before you go clicking on the dropdown menu at the top of the page, first check to see if right-click menus are enabled. You can do this simply by right clicking on the appropriate field of text. If the feature is enabled, you’ll see a new menu appear of the text, at which point you can select the desired action.
Reconciliation
Reconciliations are done to check for potential errors or typos in a Quickbooks account. Let’s face it, no matter how hard you try to prevent it, typos are bound to happen. When you are punching numbers away into your Quickbooks account for hours on end, you may accidentally leave a digit out of a certain transaction. As you may already know, just one wrong number can throw your entire account out of whack. The good news is that Quickbooks has a reconciliation feature that allows users to go back and look for errors such as this.
Above all else, carefully read and familiarize yourself with the Quickbooks user manual. Since there are over half a dozen different types of Quickbooks software, some of them unique features. Going through the user’s manual will identify these features, revealing how to effectively use them in your accounting projects.
How To Set Up Payroll In Quickbooks
Quickbooks offers a number of helpful features to make business accounting quick and easy. One of the most commonly used features on Quickbooks is payroll setup. If your business operates with multiple employees, you’ll want to take advantage of this highly beneficial feature. Instead of manually writing out each and every paycheck to your employees, you can setup your Quickbooks account to perform this task for you. To learn more about setting up payroll in Quickbooks, keep reading.
There are several different “types” of Quickbooks software, including Quickbooks Online, Pro, Premier and Enterprise. Each of these types comes with their own unique features, so it’s important to choose the right one based on your accounting needs. Thankfully, all of them offer the payroll setup feature at no additional cost. Whether you choose the $39.95/month Quickbooks Online or Quickbooks Enterprise at $999.95, you’ll still be able to use the payroll feature.
Getting Started
The first step in setting up payroll is to launch your Quickbooks account and click on the “Employees” tab at the top of the screen. This should open up a drop-down box with several new items. Scroll through the items in the drop-down list and choose “Payroll Setup.” This should now direct you towards the built-in Wizard for Quickbooks payroll solutions.
The Wizard makes setting up payroll is a simple and straightforward task. You’ll be asked to enter and verify different information regarding your business and payroll, some of which includes Employer Identification Number (EIN), employees and their social security numbers, year-to-date payrolls, dates, etc. Double check all of this information before submitting to ensure it’s accurate. While payroll mistakes can be fixed, it’s better to get things right the first time around.
Adding New Payroll Items
After setting up your payroll account through Quickbook’s built-in Wizard, you can then add new items in just a few easy steps. Start by selecting “Lists” followed by “Payroll Lists.” This will allow you to view your current payroll items and add new ones. You should see a button titles “Custom Setup” while viewing your payroll lists. Click on this button to add a new payroll item to your account.
You will need to enter the cemployee’s name, tax information and date before the process is complete. Once this is done, you can name the payroll item to make so it’s easier to find in the future. Depending on the size and structure of your business, you might want to simply name it after the respective employee. Doing this will allow you to find a worker’s payroll item by searching for their name in your Quickbooks account.
Setting up payroll for a business has never been easier than to Quickbooks. Whether you have the Online or Desktop version, you can set up payroll in minutes. Refer back to this guide for guidance on setting up payroll in Quickbooks. If for whatever reason you are stumped, give their customer support number a call. Quickbooks is know their exceptional level of customer support, helping customers tackle any hurdles or problems that may arise.
How To Create a Budget In Quickbooks
Quickbooks makes budgeting your business a fast and painless process. Whether you run a one-man operation, or if there are 100+ employees, budgeting a business has never been easier thanks to the user-friendly interface of Qucikbooks. Before you start punching numbers into your Quickbooks account, however, there are a few things you should know about starting a budget.
Budgeting in Quickbooks is done on a yearly basis. One you’ve set up a budget for your company or business, it will run until the end of the year, at which point a new budget will take over. This is done to make tax accounting easier for business owners.
Setting Up a Budget
When you are ready to begin, log in to your Quickbooks account and open up the company menu. From here, select “Planning and Budgeting” followed by “Set Up Budgets.” If you are modifying an existing budget, click on the appropriate account here. This screen will reveal all of your company’s current budgets, but it will also give you the option of creating new ones. Assuming this is your first budget, click on “Create New Budget.”
After selecting “Create New Budget,” you will then be asked to enter information regarding your new budget. Quickbooks requires you to enter the fiscal year for the new budget along with the type of budget you with to create. Unless you are creating a deleted or lost budget from a previous year, you should enter the current year during this step. Quickbooks also gives you the option of creating a “Profit and Loss” or “Balance Sheet” budget. As the name suggests, “Profit and Loss” refers to basic expense and revenue accounting where you enter in money gained and money spent for your business. For most common types of business budgeting, “Profit and Loss” will be used.
Profit and Loss
If you intend on setting up a “Profit and Loss” budget, select the appropriate option and click “Next.” A new window will then appear asking you to choose “Customer Job,” “Class” or “No Additional Criteria.” Click on the appropriate button to continue setting up your budget. “Customer Job” is used to enter new payments from clients and customers, while “Class” is used to adjust the setting within the budget.
Once you’ve selected one of the three options previously mentioned, you will then be asked whether you wish to create a budget from scratch or use previous data from a backup file. Accountants oftentimes create budgets from previous years around tax time, which is why Quickbooks has this feature built in. Unless you need a previous year’s budget, however, you should select the option to create a new one.
Lastly, click the “Finish” button after entering all of the respective information into your Quickbooks account. As long as you followed the process mentioned here, Quickbooks should reveal a new budget window, allowing you to add and subtract expenses as you see fit. Take a few minutes to familiarize yourself with this new window.
Quickbooks Bill Pay 101
Quickbooks is loaded with helpful features that makes business accounting a breeze. One of these features that really makes Quickbooks stand out from other types of accounting software is Bill Pay. As the name suggests, it’s used specifically for paying personal and/or business-related bills. To learn more about this incredibly helpful and convenient feature, keep reading.
Quickbooks Bill Pay gives you the ability to schedule all of your bills to be paid on a certain date and time. Instead of trying to remember when each and every bill is due, you can use this feature to pay them on time. Let’s face it, I think we’ve all been guilty of forgetting to pay a bill at one time or another. When you are busy managing a company, it’s easy to overlook small details as bill due dates. Quickbooks Bill Pay is designed to make your life easier with its auto bill-paying system. You simply enter in the financial details and it will do the rest.
It’s important to note that Quickbooks Bill Pay is currently only capable of sending payments to businesses and individuals in the U.S. If your business performs financial transactions outside of the U.S., you will need to look elsewhere for auto bill-paying solutions. This shouldn’t be a problem for most people, but it’s still something you need to be aware of before going forward with Quickbooks Bill Pay.
Setting Up Bill Pay
When you are ready to set up Quickbooks Bill Pay, open up your account and write a check to the appropriate vendor or client as you normally would. Instead of clicking “To Be Printed,” though, you will need to click on “Online Bank Payment.” From here, you will then need to enter the date which you want the payment to go through. Double-check the date before sending it through, as you obviously don’t want to get this field wrong.
Sorry if you were expecting more, but that’s all it takes to use Quickbooks Bill Pay solution! It’s a simple yet highly convenient feature that takes the burden of remembering to pay your bills off your shoulder. Quickbooks Bill Pay is helpful for business of all sizes. Whether you operate a small, medium or large-sized business, chances are you can benefit from this convenient feature.
How Much Does It Cost?
Quickbooks Bill Pay is considered an add-on that users must pay extra for. The good news is that it’s fairly inexpensive so it isn’t going to break your bank account. Currently, Quickbooks is offering a free one-month trial so users can test out Bill Pay. If you find out that it’s something you enjoy using, you can keep it for $15.95/month for up to 20 months. After the 20-month period is up, the price drops down to just $6.95/month for each additional set of 10 payments.
Hopefully, this will help you better understand Quickbooks Bill Pay and how to use it. This is a highly convenient feature that’s perfect for auto-paying both personal and business bills. With the company offering a free one-month trial, what do you have to lose?
How To Reconcile a Bank Account Attached To Quickbooks
Quickbooks is the world’s most popular accounting software for businesses. Whether your run a small, medium or large business, this software will make accounting a quick and painless task. Of course, human errors are bound to happen when you are performing accounting tasks in Quickbooks, and may notice your Quickbooks balance is different than the balance on your bank statement. Quickbooks has a system in place, known as reconciliation, that’s designed to identify and fix errors such as this. To learn more about how to reconcile a bank account attached to Quickbooks, keep reading.
The term “reconciliation” can undoubtedly be confusing to some, especially if you’ve never done it before. However, the process is strikingly similar to balancing a checkbook. You’ll go through your account to verify the transactions to make sure everything is correct. Once you’ve identified the discrepancy, you can then make the necessary changes so it no longer affects your account.
Getting Started…
When you are ready to begin the reconciliation process, log into your Quickbooks account as the administrator or a user with the necessary privileges. At the top of your screen, you should see a list of menu items, one of which is “Banking.” Click on the “Banking” tab in the menu and select “Reconcile” from the drop-down list
After selecting “Reconcile” from the menu, a new box will appear asking you for more information. Choose the appropriate bank account you wish to reconcile along with the statement date and ending balance. Bank accounts are listed by name and not account number, so keep this in mind. It’s important to note that the “ending balance” is the amount shown on your actual bank statement and not your Quickbooks account. You must enter the correct amount that’s shown on your bank statement in order to locate and fix any discrepancies. After entering choosing the appropriate settings, click “Continue” to begin the reconciliation process.
Reconciliation
A new window will appear with two key elements: check and payments and credits and deposits. Find a physical copy of your bank statements and compare it to the deposits and payments shown on this window. If there are any errors or items which shouldn’t be listed here, go ahead and fix them. Your ultimate goal is to make the “Difference” listed at the bottom-right corner of the page zero. Once you’ve done this, click on the “Reconcile Now” button.
Reconciling a bank account with Quickbooks is relatively quick and painless. As long as you followed the steps listed above, it should only take you 15-30 minutes. However, accounts with a large amount of discrepancies must be addressed to accurately balance the account. As you find the discrepancies, make a note regarding the true balance and then go back and fix them. After making the necessary changes, you can then repeat the steps to reconcile your bank account once again. Continue doing this until you’ve reached a $0.00 balance in the difference listed on the account.
How To Unapply a Credit From an Invoice
Did you accidentally apply a credit to the wrong client’s invoice? No matter how hard you try to prevent it, mistakes such as this are bound to happen. Thankfully, Intuit has included a simple solution to fix this type of error. In just a few easy steps, you can “unapply” a credit from an invoice. This week, we’re going to walk you through these steps, revealing exactly how to unapply a credit from an invoice within Quickbooks.
Steps To Unapply a Credit From an Invoice:
- Find and open the credit memo in your Quickbooks account.
- Display the history associated with the credit memo by pressing Ctrl + H (shortcut command for history).
- Double-click the invoice on which the credit was applied.
- Click the Apply Credits button.
- Clear the current credit selection in the Previously Applied Credits window.
- Click Done on the Apply Credits window.
- Click Save & Close on the invoice to remove the credit and save your changes.
Assuming you followed the steps mentioned above, the credit should now be removed from the invoice. Sorry if you were expecting more, but that’s all it takes to unapply a credit from an invoice!
Intuit allows allows you to transfer credits from one bill to another, which may prove useful in situations where you add the credit to the wrong bill. This method is somewhat similar to the one published above, but there are a few notable differences. In order to move a credit from one bill to another, you must first open the bill in which the credit was originally applied. Once open, enter the asterisk key in front of the vendor’s name and press the Tab key. Next, click Quick Add to the vendor not found window (his will allow you to delete the vendor name once the credit is removed). Click Save & Close.
In the recording translation window, click yes when it asks you if you want to change the transaction. Now, go back to the original bill and choose the vendor from the drop-down menu. Click Save & Close. Click yes once again when it asks you if you want to change the transaction. Access Vendors > Pay Bills, and you should see the original bill is now unpaid.
If this sounds like too much work, you can always delete the bill and create a new one. However, the tutorial outlined above should walk you through the steps of unapplying/removing a credit.
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