Reconciliation
Reconciling answers one question: does what LawnLedger thinks you have match what the bank says you have? If it does, your numbers are trustworthy. If it doesn’t, something is missing or double-counted, and it’s much cheaper to find now than at tax time.
Growth and up. Requires banking.manage.
Before you start
Have the bank statement for the period you’re reconciling — the paper one or the PDF. You need its closing balance and its closing date.
Reconcile a month
Open reconciliation
Books → Banking, choose the account, then Reconcile.
Enter the statement’s ending balance and date
Type them exactly as the statement shows. This is the target you’re reconciling to.
Tick off what cleared
Check each transaction that appears on the statement. As you go, the difference at the bottom moves toward zero.
Finish when the difference is zero
If it’s zero, click Finish. The period is locked as reconciled and those transactions won’t move.
When it doesn’t come to zero
Work through it in this order — it’s roughly most-likely to least:
- A transaction in the bank that isn’t in LawnLedger. Usually a fee, an interest charge, or a transfer. Add it.
- A transaction in LawnLedger that isn’t in the bank. A check that hasn’t cleared is fine and normal — leave it unticked. One that will never clear should be voided.
- A wrong amount. Compare the few transactions closest to the difference. A transposed figure ($540 vs $450) shows up as a difference of 90, which is divisible by 9 — a classic tell.
- Something entered twice. Check for a duplicate near the difference amount.
Don’t force it. Creating an adjusting entry to make the difference disappear hides the real problem and moves it into next month, where it’s harder to find.
Tips
- Reconcile in date order. Reconciling March before February will make both harder.
- A reconciled period is a checkpoint. Once it balances, you never have to re-examine those transactions.