What bank reconciliation does
Bank reconciliation means checking that the entries in your books agree with your bank statement. Smart Books helps by reading your statement, matching each bank line with an entry you already recorded, and showing you what is left to sort out. When your bank balance and book balance agree, the screen shows Balanced and the session is marked Ready to Close.
Before you start
- Record your bank payments and receipts in Smart Books first, so there is something to match against.
- Download your statement from your bank as a CSV file. Smart Books reads the rows of a CSV file. A PDF or photo (JPG or PNG) can be saved with the session, but its rows are not read yet.
Step 1: Open Bank Reconciliation
In the left menu, open Reconciliation and select Bank Reconciliation. Under Bank Ledger, pick the bank account you want to check. Under Period, choose the dates your statement covers.
Step 2: Upload the statement
Under Statement Upload, select Upload Statement and choose your CSV file. The button works only after you have chosen a bank ledger. When the file is read, its name appears next to the button, and the statement lines show in the workspace.
Step 3: Match the lines
Select Run Auto Match (you will also see Auto Match in the toolbar). Smart Books pairs statement lines with your entries. If you want to control how pairs are found, select Match Rules. If your bank account already had uncleared items from an earlier period, add them with Opening Items.
The tabs above the list show how many lines are Matched, Pending, Ignored and Unmatched. Work through the ones that are left:
- Select Create Voucher for a bank line that was never recorded, such as bank charges.
- Select Ignore for a line you do not want to match, and Un-ignore to bring it back.
- Select Undo Match if a pair was matched by mistake.
Step 4: Check the balance and submit
The bar at the top shows your Bank balance, your Book balance and either Balanced or the difference still to explain. When it is balanced, submit the session. A window called Submit Reconciliation Session shows a checklist. Every item must pass before Submit for Approval becomes available.
Save a copy
Use the export menu to choose Export CSV, Export Excel, Export PDF or Print.
If something does not work
- If Upload Statement is greyed out, then choose a bank ledger first.
- If a PDF or photo adds no lines, then upload a CSV instead.
- If Submit for Approval is greyed out, then fix the checklist items shown in red.