Intuit QuickBooks: Lists, Transactions, and Controls
Know the lists and the platform
QuickBooks organizes records through the chart of accounts plus lists for customers, vendors, and items (service, non-inventory, inventory). Classes and locations let you report by department or segment. QuickBooks Online and QuickBooks Desktop share the same accounting logic but differ in menus and terminology; most exam questions test the concept, not a click path.
Recording money in and out
Use an invoice when the customer will pay later and a sales receipt when payment happens at the sale. Receive Payment posts into Undeposited Funds until a Bank Deposit groups one or more customer payments into the single amount that actually hit the bank. On the spending side, Enter Bill followed by Pay Bills handles a vendor invoice paid later; Expense or Check handles immediate payment. Reserve Make General Journal Entries for adjustments, depreciation, and opening balances.
Controls and audit trail
Reconcile every bank and credit card account monthly. Set a closing date with a password so prior periods cannot be silently changed, and review the Audit Log to see who changed what. Void rather than delete a transaction that has been reconciled.
Traps
- Posting customer payments straight to the bank so the deposit never matches the statement.
- Deleting a reconciled transaction and breaking the reconciliation.
- Reading a cash-basis report as though it were accrual.
- Treating sales tax collected as income rather than a liability.
Worked example
A customer pays a $1,060 invoice ($1,000 plus 6% sales tax) by check, deposited with a second check for $500. Record Receive Payment into Undeposited Funds for $1,060, then a Bank Deposit of $1,560. Undeposited Funds returns to zero and the register matches the bank.