Accounting for multiple company credit cards.
Whether you’re a rapidly expanding startup, consulting firm, or construction company, having multiple company credit cards is necessary to keep business operations flowing seamlessly. The key to setting up and reconciling multiple company credit cards in QuickBooks Online (QBO) is using parent and sub-accounts. This method keeps your books organized, allows for individual tracking, and simplifies the monthly reconciliation process.
Step 1: Set Up Parent and Sub-Accounts
Create a Parent Account: Go to your Chart of Accounts in QBO and create a new account.
Select the Credit Card account type.
Name it something like "Corporate Credit Cards" or the name of your credit card company. This account will serve as a master account to hold the total liability for all your cards.
Add Sub-Accounts for Each Card: For each individual cardholder, create a new sub-account.
Again, select the Credit Card account type.
Give it a specific name like "Corporate Card - John Doe" or "Amex - Card #XXXX."
Crucially, check the box "Is sub-account" and select the parent account you just created from the dropdown menu.
Repeat this for every corporate card you have.
This structure allows you to see the overall credit card balance on your balance sheet while still being able to drill down into the spending of each individual cardholder.
Step 2: Connect the Bank Feeds
Once your parent and sub-accounts are set up, you'll connect them to your bank feed.
Go to the Banking tab (or Transactions).
Click "Add account" and search for your credit card company.
Log in using your corporate credit card account credentials.
When prompted to select an account to connect, choose the specific sub-account you created for each card. This ensures that transactions for each cardholder are imported into their designated account.
You can't connect both a parent and a sub-account to a bank feed, so it's essential to connect only the sub-accounts where the individual transactions actually appear.
Step 3: Reconcile Each Statement
The beauty of this setup is that it makes reconciliation a breeze.
When your monthly statements arrive, you'll reconcile each individual sub-account separately.
On the Reconcile screen in QBO, select the sub-account for the card you're working on.
Enter the statement's ending date and ending balance, and then match the transactions to what's on the statement.
After you finish reconciling each sub-account, their individual balances will automatically roll up and update the main parent account, ensuring your total credit card liability is accurate.
This process ensures you can easily track spending by cardholder and keep your books tidy and accurate.