QuickBooks Online (QBO) Integration: 

Setup & Pushing Transactions

Overview

Cornerstone's QuickBooks Online (QBO) integration allows you to map your GL Codes and Account Types from Cornerstone's GL Table directly to your QBO Chart of Accounts — saving time and reducing manual data entry. Once mapping is complete, you can push the following directly to QBO:

• Bank deposits for payments your team posts in Cornerstone
• Bank deposits for payments Cornerstone has processed and posted in Cornerstone
• The final "month end Net Due deposit" for Cornerstone-posted payments
• After month end, a permanent cash basis journal entry to allocate deposits/payments made during the month to the correct revenue categories in QBO based on your previously configured mapping

Step 1 — Cornerstone to QBO Mapping

The first step is mapping the QBO Chart of Accounts to the GL Table in Cornerstone. All GL Table items must be mapped before you can push deposits to QBO.

Navigate to the GL Codes Table

1. Go to Utilities > Manage Lists.
2. Navigate to the Invoice tab.
3. Select the GL Codes table.

The Chart of Accounts Table will display your GL Codes, Account Types, Descriptions, and the QB Account Type, QB Acct Name, and QB Account Class columns that you will fill in during mapping.

First-Time Setup: Online Setup Button

If this is the first time you are linking the Cornerstone Chart of Accounts to QBO, click the Online Setup button (bottom left) to connect to CFN and pull in the relevant CFN fields that must be mapped to QBO. See Video 1 for full details.

Activate QB Assistance

The button with the green QB icon will Activate QB Assistance, which lets you log into your QBO account. Enter your username and password as needed. You will briefly see the connection happen, then be returned to the Cornerstone Chart of Accounts to begin mapping.

Refresh Accounts

Clicking the Refresh Accounts button (bottom left) will pull in the available Chart of Accounts data from QBO. You may need to add items to the QBO Chart of Accounts to map everything showing in Cornerstone. After refreshing, click the Online Setup button to begin mapping (see Video 1).

Assigning the Mapping

Use the dropdowns in the QuickBooks Options section to select the appropriate QBO Account Type and Account Name, then assign the Account Classification. Continue editing until all Cornerstone items have been assigned to QBO items.

Mapping Detail Level

Your mappings can be as detailed as you wish so that you can track revenue and expenses at a granular level. For example, a generic approach aggregates all recurring charge GL codes into a single "Recurring Services" bucket in QBO. Consult with your accountant if you have questions about which Chart of Accounts to use in QuickBooks.

The screenshot below shows how a new QBO account (such as "Recurring Services") can be added directly within the QBO Chart of Accounts:

Step 2 — Pushing Transactions to QBO

Accessing the QBO Dashboard

1. Go to the Report Menu.
2. Click the Financial tab.
3. Click the Connect to QuickBooks button (right side, second from bottom).

Clicking Connect to QuickBooks will open the QuickBooks Dashboard, where you will see the Journal and General tabs, filters for month/year and source, and the action buttons on the left panel.

The Two Push Buttons

On the left panel, you will see two buttons with the blue report icon:

1. Bank Deposit — pushes deposits to QBO during the month.
2. Billing Detail — pushes the journal entry after month end to allocate payments received to the correct revenue bucket.

Using the Filters

Filters at the top of the screen help manage the reports generated. Use these to filter for:

• Pending Only — those not yet pushed to QBO
• Month / Year
• Source — Local Postings or CFI

Error Checking

Error checking during Post to QuickBooks will identify errors you can troubleshoot using the General Tab. The data collected in the tab will help Cornerstone identify missing account linkages between Cornerstone and QBO.

QBO Journal Entry & Check Register Examples

Below are examples of the QBO entries created — a Journal Entry and a Check Register entry — resulting from pushing a deposit from Cornerstone.

The journal entry debits the Checking account and credits the Subscriber Pmts *Local account for the same amount, with a description referencing the deposit date range:

The corresponding Check Register entry reflects the deposit date, reference number, memo, and deposit amount:

Month End Journal Entry

As shown in Video 2, the month end Journal Entry will allocate receipts processed to the mapped income (or other) accounts. Please note that any CFN Adjustments — such as prior period payments to the dealer that have been reversed in the current period — will have their own GL code/mapping to QBO.

Other Accounting Systems

If you use QuickBooks Desktop or another accounting package, you can still set up the GL Table in Cornerstone and run these same reports to generate Journal Entries in CSV format. You can use these CSV files to import or copy/paste the data into your accounting system.

Exhibit — Sample Mappings Using Sandbox Account

The table below shows a sample set of mappings where the Cornerstone GL codes are mapped to sample QuickBooks Accounts. It is easy to add to the QuickBooks Chart of Accounts as needed. The CFI Posting account should be left blank in QBO (alarm-only).

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