QuickBooks Cleanup, explained.
A QuickBooks file usually gets messy slowly. Bank feeds get accepted without review, the same income is recorded twice, owner draws land in expenses, and after a while nothing matches the bank.
A cleanup goes back through the file account by account. Duplicates and miscoded entries are fixed, every bank and card account is reconciled to its statements, and the opening balances are set right so future months start clean.
This is the work I know best. My firm, House of Bookkeepers, has completed more than 2,500 cleanup and catch-up projects for US small businesses.
What happens, step by step.
Find the problems
Review the file, the bank feed rules and the reconciliation history to see what is broken.
Fix the entries
Remove duplicates, recode wrong categories and match deposits to the right income.
Reconcile every account
Bank, credit card and loan accounts matched to statements until the difference is zero.
Hand back a clean file
A summary of what was fixed and books you can trust for tax season.
Common questions
How long does a QuickBooks cleanup take?
It depends on how many months and accounts are involved. Most files are reviewed first, and the timeline is agreed before work starts.
Do you work in QuickBooks Online or Desktop?
Both. Most cleanups are in QuickBooks Online.
Will my tax preparer be able to use the result?
Yes. The goal is reconciled books with clear categories that a CPA or tax preparer can work from.