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Bank Reconciliation Checklist.

Reconciling means proving your books match the bank. Work through the steps below — check items off as you go, and use the troubleshooting section when things don't balance on the first try (they often don't, and that's normal).

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🎉 Fully reconciled. Nice work — future-you says thanks.

Before you start

Five minutes of setup prevents an hour of frustration.

Get the bank statement for the period you're reconcilingPDF or paper — you need the official ending balance and ending date.

Confirm the previous reconciliation ended cleanThe beginning balance in QuickBooks® should match the beginning balance on this statement. If it doesn't, fix that first — a prior reconciliation was changed or undone.

Finish entering the period's transactionsAccept or match everything in the bank feed for the statement period before you reconcile.

Check for undeposited fundsPayments sitting in Undeposited Funds/Payments to deposit that actually hit the bank need to be recorded as deposits first.

Working the reconciliation

In QuickBooks Online: gear icon → Reconcile (or Accounting → Reconcile).

Select the account and enter the statement's ending balance and ending dateType them exactly as printed — a transposed digit here guarantees a mystery later.

Enter any service charge or interest from the statementIf they're not already in your books, add them so the sides can match.

Tick off deposits that appear on the statementWork top to bottom on the statement, matching each deposit to QuickBooks.

Tick off checks and payments that appear on the statementSame drill: every withdrawal on the statement gets matched.

Leave genuinely outstanding items untickedChecks that haven't cleared and deposits in transit are supposed to remain unchecked — that's not an error.

Get the difference to $0.00When the difference reads zero, you're reconciled. If it doesn't, go to the next section before forcing anything.

Finish and save the reconciliation reportSave or print the report — it's your proof, and your reference if anything gets changed later.

If it won't balance

Work these in order — each one catches a specific kind of miss.

Check the difference amount for a clueIf the difference equals one transaction exactly, find that transaction. If it's divisible by 9, suspect a transposition (e.g., 54 entered as 45).

Count transactionsCompare the number of deposits and withdrawals on the statement to the number you ticked. A different count means something's missing or duplicated.

Look for duplicatesA transaction entered manually and also accepted from the bank feed is the most common culprit.

Look for amounts entered incorrectlyCompare statement amounts to book amounts line by line for anything close-but-not-equal.

Check for transactions recorded in the wrong accountA payment logged to the wrong bank or card account will unbalance both.

Confirm the ending balance and date you typedIt happens to everyone. Re-check them against the statement.

Never force it with an adjustment you can't explainA reconciliation discrepancy entry hides the problem instead of fixing it — it will come back with interest.

After you finish

Close the loop so next month is easier.

Review old outstanding itemsA check outstanding for months may need to be voided and reissued. Investigate anything stale.

File the statement and the reconciliation report togetherDigital folder per account per year works great.

Note anything unusual for next timeRecurring fees, odd vendor names, timing quirks — future-you will appreciate it.

Put next month's reconciliation on the calendarReconciling monthly takes minutes. Reconciling a year at once takes days.

Want practice that goes deeper?

This tool is free forever — no account needed. When you're ready to actually master the books, create a free account (no card required) and get Module 1, the free Learning Path, and sample practice questions. Upgrade only if and when you want the full system.

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