QuickBooks Setup

We set up QuickBooks the right way so you don't spend the next three years fixing mistakes from day one.

The DIY Mess

Most people sign up for QuickBooks, click through the setup wizard, and figure they’re done. A year later the reports don’t make sense, there are duplicate accounts everywhere, and nobody knows what half the categories mean. The software works fine. The setup was the problem.

We’ve inherited hundreds of these files. Same mistakes every time. Wrong account types, bank feeds connected to the wrong accounts, income and expenses mixed together in ways that make tax time a nightmare. Fixing it takes longer than doing it right the first time.

Chart of Accounts

Built for your actual business. A contractor needs different categories than a restaurant. We set up accounts that match how you work, not whatever QuickBooks guessed.

Bank Connections

Feeds connected properly so transactions flow into the right places. Rules set up to categorize recurring charges automatically. Less cleanup every month.

Starting Fresh vs. Fixing What's There

If you’re new to QuickBooks, we build it right from the start. You skip the learning curve mistakes and begin with a system that actually produces useful reports.

If you’ve been using QuickBooks for a while and the file is a mess, we can clean it up or start over, depending on which makes more sense. Sometimes three years of tangled data isn’t worth untangling. Sometimes it is. We’ll look at what you have and tell you honestly which path gets you to clean books faster.

New Setup

Starting from scratch. We build the chart of accounts, connect your banks, set up your vendors and customers, and hand you a file that’s ready to use.

Cleanup

Your existing file, fixed. Duplicate accounts merged, miscategorized transactions corrected, structure reorganized so the reports actually mean something.

What You Get

A QuickBooks file that works. P&L that reflects your real income and expenses. Balance sheet that balances. Categories that make sense when you look at them and when your CPA looks at them. Bank feeds that don’t require hours of cleanup every month.

We also walk you through it. If you’re going to do your own bookkeeping, you should understand how the file is organized and where to put things. If you’re handing it off to us for monthly service, the setup is already done right.

One-Time Project

This is setup, not ongoing service. We build the file, hand it over, and you’re done. If you want monthly bookkeeping after, we offer that separately.

ProAdvisor Certified

We know the software. Where the settings are buried, what the defaults get wrong, how to make it work the way you need it to. You get a proper setup, not a best guess.

Greater Richmond's Small Business Bookkeeper