QuickBooks 2009: The Missing Manual

Chapter 22. Online Banking Services

In the 20th century, you had to wait until your bank statement arrived (by snail mail) to find out what your account balances were and which transactions had cleared. But in the brave new world of online banking, you can view those balances and transactions any time, and even download them into your company file.

By synchronizing your real bank accounts with the bank accounts in QuickBooks, you’ll always know how much cash you have on hand. Before repaying your aunt the start-up money she loaned you, you can hop online and check your balance—and avoid an embarrassing family blowout by giving her a check that bounces.

Besides managing your cash flow, online banking services are much more convenient than the old methods. Although you have a lot of transaction information in your account register already (from receiving payments against invoices or making payments to your vendors), matching these transactions to the ones you download from the bank tells you how much money you have in the bank—and whether someone is helping themselves to the money in your account without your permission. Or you can transfer money between your money market account and the checking account when you find yourself awake at two in the morning.

If you use online billing, you can pay bills without having to write checks, lick stamps, or walk to the mailbox. After you submit payment transactions online, the billing service either transfers funds from your bank account to the ...