Automatic Journal Entries: A Complete Guide

Tom Zehentner
Growth & Product

Tired of tedious manual journal entries in QuickBooks? It's time to reclaim your time and sanity with automation. This guide shows you how to automate journal entries in QuickBooks Online, from simple recurring entries and bank rules to powerful third-party apps. Learn how QuickBooks automation can transform your workflow, saving you time and stress while improving accuracy. Let's get started with creating automatic journal entries!

Key Takeaways

  • Use QuickBooks recurring entries to automate regular journal entries easily and efficiently.
  • Implement Spreadsheet Sync in QuickBooks Online Advanced for seamless and accurate data updates.
  • Leverage tools like Booker by FinOptimal, and other third-party import apps.
  • Utilize Wrangler by FinOptimal and other data exporting apps to pull support for automated entries.
  • Perform regular audits and reviews to maintain compliance and ensure error-free automated entries.

What are Automatic Journal Entries?

Automatic journal entries are accounting entries recorded without any manual data entry. They streamline repetitive tasks, freeing up your team for more strategic work. Think of them as your accounting assistants, working tirelessly behind the scenes to handle routine entries like recurring monthly subscriptions or depreciation. This automation not only saves time but also reduces the risk of human error, ensuring greater accuracy in your financial records. Automating journal entries allows you to focus on higher-value activities like financial analysis and reporting.

The Importance of Journal Entries in Accounting

Journal entries are the foundation of accurate financial reporting. They document every financial transaction within your business, forming a chain of information that feeds into your financial statements. Without accurate and timely journal entries, your financial picture would be incomplete and unreliable. These entries are essential for tracking the financial health of your business and making informed decisions. They provide the raw data needed to understand profitability, cash flow, and overall business performance. Accurate journal entries are crucial for maintaining compliance and providing stakeholders with a clear view of your financial standing.

Types of Journal Entries and Their Suitability for Automation

Several types of journal entries exist, and some are better suited for automation than others. Recurring entries, like rent or insurance payments, are perfect candidates. Depreciation, intercompany transactions, and payroll allocations are also prime examples of entries that can be easily automated. While not all journal entries are ideal for automation, identifying those that are can significantly improve your accounting efficiency. For more complex or infrequent transactions, manual entry might still be the best approach. However, by strategically automating the routine entries, you can free up valuable time and resources.

Manual Journal Entry Challenges and How Automation Helps

Manual journal entries are time-consuming and prone to errors. They can lead to inaccuracies in financial statements and create headaches during audits. Automation addresses these challenges by improving consistency, efficiency, and accuracy. By automating the process, you reduce the risk of human error and ensure that entries are made consistently according to predefined rules. This not only saves time but also improves the reliability of your financial data. If you're tired of spending hours on manual data entry and want to improve the accuracy of your financial reporting, consider exploring automation solutions.

The Downside of Manual Journal Entries

Manual journal entries can significantly slow down your monthly close process. Time spent manually entering data is time taken away from more strategic tasks. This can lead to delays in reporting and make it difficult to get a timely view of your financial performance. Plus, manual entries are susceptible to errors, which can require significant time and effort to correct. These errors can also impact the accuracy of your financial statements, making it harder to make informed business decisions. Automating this process can help you close your books faster and with more confidence.

How Automation Streamlines the Process

Automation software takes the heavy lifting out of journal entries. It imports data from various sources, applies predefined rules, and performs calculations automatically. This eliminates the need for manual data entry, freeing up your accounting team for more important tasks. Imagine having more time for analysis, reporting, and strategic planning instead of being bogged down by manual data entry. That's the power of automation. It streamlines your workflow, improves accuracy, and empowers your team to focus on what matters most.

Benefits of Automating Journal Entries

Automating your journal entries offers a range of benefits, from faster closing cycles to improved accuracy and reduced risk. By automating routine tasks, you free up your team to focus on higher-value activities like financial analysis and strategic planning. This not only improves efficiency but also allows you to gain deeper insights into your financial data. Automation also reduces the risk of errors, ensuring that your financial statements are more reliable. For a deeper dive into optimizing your financial processes, explore our resources section. Overall, automating journal entries can lead to a more efficient, accurate, and streamlined accounting process.

Beyond Time Savings: Accuracy, Efficiency, and Reduced Risk

While saving time is a major benefit of automation, it's not the only one. Automated journal entries are significantly more accurate than manual entries, reducing the risk of errors and ensuring more reliable financial statements. This increased accuracy leads to better decision-making and improved financial reporting. Automation also streamlines the entire accounting process, providing quicker access to financial information. This allows you to react more quickly to changes in the market and make more informed decisions. By reducing manual intervention, you also minimize the risk of fraud and improve overall compliance. Learn more about streamlining your accounting workflow through our partnership program.

How Journal Entry Automation Works

Journal entry automation software typically works by importing data from various sources, such as bank statements and other accounting systems. This data is then processed according to predefined rules and templates, automatically creating accurate journal entries. The software can handle a wide range of transactions, from simple recurring entries to more complex allocations. This automated process eliminates the need for manual data entry, saving time and reducing the risk of errors. It also ensures consistency in how entries are recorded, improving the overall accuracy and reliability of your financial data. For those interested in a career focused on financial automation, check out our careers page.

Data Import and Rule Application

Automation software imports data from various sources and uses predefined rules and calculations to create journal entries. These rules can be customized to fit your specific business needs and accounting practices. The software can even handle approvals automatically, further streamlining the process. This automated approach ensures that entries are made consistently and accurately, reducing the risk of errors and improving the efficiency of your accounting workflow.

AI-Powered Approvals

Some advanced automation systems use AI to automatically approve journal entries within certain parameters. This adds another layer of efficiency to the process, further reducing manual intervention. AI can analyze data and identify entries that fall within pre-approved thresholds, automatically approving them without the need for human review. This not only saves time but also ensures that approvals are handled consistently and objectively. While AI-powered approvals are not yet standard in all automation software, they represent a significant advancement in the field and offer the potential for even greater efficiency and accuracy in the future.

Ready to Automate Your Journal Entries?

  • Increased efficiency and time savings by freeing up valuable time for accountants to focus on more strategic tasks
  • Reduced risk of errors by minimizing human error, ensuring accurate and consistent entries
  • Improved compliance by ensuring all entries adhere to accounting standards and regulations
  • Cost savings by reducing the need for manual data entry and lowering labor costs
  • Real-time data access for better decision-making with up-to-date financial information
  • Error detection and correction by quickly identifying and fixing discrepancies
  • Scalability to handle increased transaction volumes as the business grows without additional manual effort

Automating Journal Entries in QuickBooks Online: A How-To Guide

Alright, so you've finally decided to stop manually entering those journal entries in QuickBooks Online—congratulations on joining the 21st century! QuickBooks' built-in automation features are a great start, but why stop there when you can supercharge your team with tools like Booker by FinOptimal, or other third-party QuickBooks import apps?

Using QuickBooks' Built-In Automation Features

Recurring journal entries: You can set up recurring journal entries for transactions that happen regularly at fixed intervals. To do this, create the initial journal entry and QuickBooks will then set the recurrence pattern (e.g. weekly, monthly, annually)..

Memorized transactions: Similar to recurring entries, you can memorize journal entries you use frequently, but not on a predictable schedule. This allows you to quickly recall and reuse the entry without having to recreate it each time.

Rules: QuickBooks allows you to set up rules to automatically categorize and record certain transactions. While not specifically for journal entries, this can reduce the need for manual entries.

Streamlining Journal Entries with Third-Party Tools

Why wrestle with the intricacies of QuickBooks Online when you can streamline your bookkeeping process with a simple integration? 

Booker automates QuickBooks journal entries in several efficient ways:

  1. Google Sheets Integration: Booker allows users to create journal entries in Google Sheets and automatically sync them to QuickBooks Online in seconds. This eliminates the need for manual downloading and uploading of templates – no version control issues!
  2. Automated mapping and data validation: Other import tools require a meticulous review process by the user to ensure data being imported matches data in QuickBooks Online exactly. An extra space or period could break the entire thing! Booker automatically data validates your entries, so you can only sync data that will map to QuickBooks perfectly!
  3. Automatic Updates: When changes are made to entries in the Google Sheet, Booker automatically updates the corresponding entries in QuickBooks, preventing the need for duplicate work. Booker will only update entries that need updating — no duplication of previously posted JEs!
  4. Scheduled Entries: Users can set up schedules in Google Sheets, and Booker will automatically book the entries at specified intervals. You can post an entire year’s worth of entries for a particular transaction with one click!
  5. Support Linking: Booker seamlessly links tabs and retains support documentation within the Google Sheet, making it easier to review entries during month-end close or audits. You won’t go digging for support files, since every entry posted by Booker cites the JE support with a link to the file.
  6. Versatility: While FinOptimal's Accruer app handles accrual accounting, Booker is designed for various other types of entries, including leases, loans, payroll, allocations, and bonus accruals.
  7. Python-based Automation: FinOptimal's apps, including Booker, are written in Python, ensuring robust and customizable automation rather than relying on low-code tools or RPA.

FinOptimal's Expertise in Accounting Automation

FinOptimal understands the power of automation in streamlining financial processes. We've seen firsthand how manual journal entries can bog down even the most skilled accounting teams. That's why we've dedicated ourselves to developing robust, reliable automation solutions that integrate seamlessly with QuickBooks Online. Our goal is to empower finance professionals to work smarter, not harder, by eliminating tedious tasks and freeing up time for strategic decision-making.

Our approach to automation goes beyond simply replicating manual processes. We leverage the flexibility and power of Python to create truly intelligent solutions. Unlike low-code tools or robotic process automation (RPA), our Python-based apps offer greater customization and control, allowing us to tailor solutions to your specific needs. This commitment to robust, adaptable technology ensures that our automation tools can scale with your business, handling increasing transaction volumes without a hitch. For example, Booker’s automated mapping and data validation features ensure accuracy and reduce the risk of errors, while its real-time updates keep your QuickBooks Online data current without manual intervention. This focus on accuracy and efficiency is crucial for maintaining compliance and making informed financial decisions.

We believe that automation shouldn’t be a “set it and forget it” affair. We’re committed to providing ongoing support and resources to help you maximize the benefits of our tools. Whether you need help setting up recurring entries, configuring data imports, or troubleshooting any issues, our team is here to assist you. We also offer a wealth of educational resources, including articles, podcasts, and videos, covering various aspects of financial management and automation. We want to ensure you have the knowledge and support you need to confidently embrace automation and transform your accounting processes. If you’re ready to explore how FinOptimal can help you achieve greater efficiency and control in your financial operations, contact us today.

Exploring Other Import Options

Other apps, such as SaaSAnt, Business Importer, and Zapier allow users to import data to QuickBooks. Import apps differ from Booker in a few ways:

  1. File Import: These apps often support importing journal entries from various file formats, including Excel (XLS, XLSX), CSV, TXT, IIF, and PDF1. This flexibility allows users to work with data from different sources.
  2. Additional transaction types: These apps may support additional transaction types, such as Bills, Invoices, Expenses, etc. Booker will support these transaction types in the near future, and the functionality is available to FinOptimal’s Early Access customers now!
  3. Data validation: These apps often do not offer data validation in the import file, so users must attempt to import before identifying errors. 

Sidestepping Common Journal Entry Automation Mistakes

Alright, so you've decided to automate your journal entries in QuickBooks—great!

But, just like procrastinating on that tax filing, ignoring common pitfalls like user errors, skipped audits, and inconsistent account names can lead to a mess.

Let's explore how to sidestep these issues before they snowball into a financial nightmare.

Spotting and Fixing Common User Errors

  1. Data entry errors: Manual data entry always poses a risk for human error. Even when automating entries, it is important to validate the source and support for journal entries to ensure accuracy.
  2. Duplicate entries: Importing tools may accidentally duplicate entries already posted. It’s important to ensure third party apps are syncing data, rather than importing, and are built to intelligently exclude duplicates when resyncing or reposting.
  3. Incorrect mapping: When importing or syncing data to QuickBooks, it must match the data that exists in QuickBooks. Data validation is key, and systems that do not automate this directly in the spreadsheet that you are preparing may cause issues including failed imports or partial imports, forcing you to do more clean up afterwards.
  4. Modifying closed periods: Users sometimes record, modify, delete, or void transactions in accounting periods that were previously closed. This may cause issues for tax, audit, or financial reporting to stakeholders. Failing to set up proper controls can allow unauthorized changes to prior period data, compromising the integrity of financial records.
  5. Incorrect account assignment: Users may assign journal entry amounts to the wrong accounts, affecting the accuracy of financial reports.
  6. Forgetting to reverse entries: Some journal entries may need to be reversed in the following period, which users might overlook.

Booker shines here with its auto-data validated sync template, avoiding the fiasco of mismatched data. 

What Else Can You Automate in QuickBooks?

So, you've managed to escape the drudgery of manual journal entries—congratulations!

But why stop there when you can also automate those pesky accruals with Accruer and make month-end reporting a breeze with Wrangler?

It's like having a personal assistant who loves numbers as much as you love putting off accounting tasks.

Examples of Journal Entries Ideal for Automation

Which journal entries are ripe for automation? Think repetition. If you find yourself entering the same journal entry month after month, it’s a prime candidate. Automating these recurring tasks frees you up to focus on more strategic work.

Recurring Transactions (Rent, Utilities, Subscriptions)

Rent, utilities, and subscription payments typically occur at regular intervals and for consistent amounts. These are perfect for automation. Set them up once, and your software will handle the rest, reducing the risk of manual errors and saving you valuable time. As BlackLine explains, automating recurring entries like rent and insurance is a key benefit of automated journal entries.

Accruals and Deferrals

Accruals and deferrals, essential for matching revenues and expenses to the correct accounting period, can be complex and time-consuming. Automation simplifies these entries, ensuring accuracy and consistency. NetSuite highlights the advantages of automating bill payments from digital invoices, a form of automated accrual.

Depreciation and Amortization

Calculating and recording depreciation and amortization can be tedious. Automation eliminates manual calculations and ensures these entries are handled correctly each period, contributing to better consistency and efficiency, as noted by BlackLine.

Intercompany Transactions

For businesses with multiple entities, intercompany transactions can be numerous and complex. Automating these entries streamlines the process and reduces the risk of errors. In a 2021 EY report cited by NetSuite, over 60% of the record-to-report process, including journal entries, can be automated.

Payroll

Payroll often involves numerous journal entries to allocate wages, taxes, and benefits. Automating these entries saves significant time and reduces the chance of errors, allowing accountants to focus on more strategic tasks, as highlighted by BlackLine.

Choosing the Right Software for Automated Journal Entries

Selecting the right software is crucial for successful journal entry automation. Consider these factors when making your decision.

Integration with Existing Systems

Your chosen software should integrate seamlessly with your existing accounting systems, such as QuickBooks. Look for features like rules-based transaction matching and auto-posting of routine calculations, as suggested by NetSuite. This ensures a smooth flow of information and minimizes manual intervention.

Advanced Features for Streamlined Automation

Redwood, for example, offers cloud-based software that automates the entire journal entry process, from creation to ERP posting, including features like automatic calculations, validations, and approvals.

Impact of Accounting Methods on Automated Journal Entries

Your accounting method influences how you automate journal entries. Understanding these nuances is key to a smooth automation process.

Cash Basis Accounting

Under cash basis accounting, journal entries are recorded when cash changes hands. Automation can streamline this process, especially for recurring cash transactions. ESI Law emphasizes the importance of understanding your accounting method for effective automation.

Accrual Basis Accounting

Accrual accounting recognizes revenue and expenses when they are earned or incurred, regardless of cash flow. Automation can handle the complexities of accruals and deferrals, ensuring accurate matching of revenues and expenses. BlackLine notes that automated journal entries streamline routine accounting tasks like accruals.

Other Accounting Methods

Regardless of your chosen accounting method—whether it's Modified Cash, Billings as Revenue, or WIP as Revenue—understanding its principles is crucial for effective automation. ESI Law reinforces the need to know your accounting method to fully grasp the automation process.

Understanding Reversing Entries

Reversing entries are a useful tool in conjunction with automation. Let's explore their purpose and benefits.

Definition and Purpose of Reversing Entries

Reversing entries are made at the beginning of a new accounting period to cancel out the effects of adjusting entries made in the previous period. This simplifies the accounting process for certain transactions.

Benefits of Using Reversing Entries

Reversing entries simplify the accounting process by eliminating the need to remember to make adjustments in the new period, as explained by Planergy. This saves time and reduces the risk of errors.

How Reversing Entries Simplify Accounting Processes

By automatically reversing prior period adjustments, reversing entries help maintain accurate financial records and ensure that financial statements reflect the true financial position of the company, according to Planergy.

Effortless Accruals

Tired of your inner procrastinator sabotaging your accruals? Let Accruer in QuickBooks save the day by automating the entire process. Accruer eliminates the need for any spreadsheet sync or import and handles prepaid expense amortization, deferred revenue recognition, fixed asset depreciation, and payroll accruals without leaving QuickBooks! Just write “for the period,” specify the recognition period, and you’re done!

Streamlining Month-End Reporting

You spend all month getting data into QuickBooks, but now you need to get it back out to share with your stakeholders! Wrangler is the easiest way to pull QuickBooks data into a spreadsheet. Wrangler provides all standard QuickBooks reporting, plus a special Magic Report that turns you into a data scientist by giving you the power of SQL in the form of a few buttons and filters. Create the QuickBooks reports of your dreams!


You can also use Wrangler to pull data from QuickBooks and feed it into Booker for adjusting entries and accruals. Need to book a bonus accrual based on income? Wrangler and Booker together can solve that! Frequently Asked Questions

FAQ

Is Journal Entry Automation Right for You?

Yes, you can automate journal entries using Booker by FinOptimal, a QuickBooks add-on designed to eliminate manual data entry and streamline accounting processes. Booker allows you to sync journal entries directly from your backup schedules to QuickBooks, ensuring a single source of truth and reducing version control issues. Accruer will allow you to automate entries for accrual accounting as well.

How Automation Impacts Your Accounting Processes

Automated journal entries streamline your existing accounting processes by reducing manual data entry and minimizing errors. This makes your accounting more efficient and accurate. Instead of preparing each entry manually, you will focus on review of data inputs and outputs, and let the system do the rest!

Setting Up Recurring Journal Entries in QuickBooks

Yes, you can set up recurring journal entries in QuickBooks. This helps automate repetitive accounting tasks.

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Tom Zehentner
Growth & Product

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