To complete this exercise, you must be in the Sample company. From your QBOA account, click on the Gear icon on the top right corner of the screen, then select Sample company.

Note that you will be logged out of your current account. If you are sure, click "Continue" to confirm. 

Now let's get started with the exercise. Rules are applied to transactions that come across in the bank feeds. So let's first take a look at what's currently in the bank feeds awaiting review.

From the left navigation bar, hover over Transactions, then select "Bank transactions".

Click "PAYEE" to sort the list alphabetically.

Scroll down and notice that there are two Hicks Hardware transactions. One that is Uncategorized, and one that has matched to an existing Check in QBO.

Let's set up a rule for these. Click the "Rules" tab.

Click "Go to rules".

*Note that you are only seeing this screen because it is the Sample company.*

First we'll need to tell QBO what transactions to look for.

*It's already set to look for Money out transactions in All bank accounts. We just need to tell it what text to look for in the Description.*

In the Enter text (required) field, type "Hicks" to indicate that QBO should look for Money out transactions with Hicks in the description.

Click "Test rule."

*Note that there are 2 transactions in the current list of bank feed transactions that will match the conditions you just entered in Step 8 (money out with a description containing "Hicks"). These are the two transactions we saw in Step 4.*

This rule will apply to 2 currently unreviewed transactions.

Next, you will determine what QBO should assign to the transactions that meet that criteria.

In the Category field, click on "Job Materials" from the dropdown. *Note that this is a sub-category of "Job Expenses," so it will display as "Job Expenses:Job Materials" after you have selected it.*

In the Payee field, click "Hicks Hardware" from the dropdown.

Turn off Auto-add by clicking the "toggle". (We'll discuss this in a future step.)

Click "Save".

Let's see how this shows up on the bank feed.

Notice that one of the transactions has a rule applied and is now categorized correctly. The other transaction is still matched to the Check because QBO will always attempt to Match transactions before applying a rule.

You could click "Add" to create a transaction in QBO from this bank feed information. Alternatively, you could have QBO take over this step for you as well. Let's see how that's done.

QuickBooks

QuickBooks is a widely-used accounting software developed by Intuit, designed to simplify financial management for businesses of all sizes. It provides a user-friendly platform for tasks like invoicing, expense tracking, payroll processing, and generating financial reports. QuickBooks automates many financial processes, making it easier for businesses to monitor their financial health, prepare taxes, and manage cash flow. With its various versions and integrations, QuickBooks caters to the needs of freelancers, small businesses, and larger enterprises, offering a flexible and comprehensive solution for efficient accounting and financial management.

app.qbo.intuit.com

fastandeasyqbo.com

Scenario: Craig frequently visits Hicks Hardware and purchases materials for his various jobs. Rather than having to create an expense every time, you would like to automate the process and have QBO automatically categorize all the purchases from Hicks that come through the bank feeds as "Job Materials."

How would you set this up?

4.2 Create a Bank Rule