Monthly Bookkeeping Checklist for Small Businesses

This checklist is designed for small business owners who are managing their own books, or who want to understand what their bookkeeper should be doing each month. Bookmark it, print it, or share it with your team.

Week 1 of the new month: Review the previous month

1. Download bank and credit card statements for the previous month. You'll need these for reconciliation.
2. Enter all transactions that haven't been recorded yet. If you use QuickBooks with bank feeds connected, most will already be imported — just review and confirm them.
3. Categorize every transaction. Each income or expense should be assigned to the correct account category. When in doubt, note it and ask a bookkeeper.
4. Reconcile your bank accounts. Compare your accounting software's records to your actual bank statement. They should match to the penny.
5. Reconcile credit card accounts. Same process as bank accounts — compare the statement balance to QuickBooks.

Week 2: Review your reports

1. Run your Profit & Loss report for the previous month. Review revenue, total expenses, and net profit. Does anything look off or unexpected?
2. Review your Balance Sheet. Make sure assets, liabilities, and equity look accurate.
3. Check accounts receivable. Are there invoices that haven't been paid? Follow up on anything overdue.
4. Check accounts payable. Are there bills you owe that need to be paid soon?

Ongoing throughout the month

• Save digital copies of receipts as you spend (a folder in Google Drive or a receipt app works great)
• Send invoices promptly — the sooner you invoice, the sooner you get paid
• Keep business and personal expenses completely separate
• Note any unusual transactions so you can categorize them correctly later

Quarterly extras

Every three months, add a few additional steps:

• Review quarterly Profit & Loss and compare to the prior quarter
• Estimate your quarterly taxes if you're self-employed (speak to your tax professional about amounts)
• Review any subscriptions or recurring expenses — are they all still necessary?
• Back up your accounting data

Year-end checklist

• Confirm all 12 months are fully reconciled
• Prepare a year-end Profit & Loss for your accountant
• Gather any 1099 information if you paid contractors over $600
• Review asset purchases for potential depreciation deductions
• Archive the year's records in an organized folder

Don't want to do this yourself?

That's what I'm here for. Every client I work with gets all of this done for them every month — the reconciliation, the categorization, the reports. You get the results without spending hours on the process.