QuickBooks Online Integration

Available on Smokeball Bill, Boost and the Grow and Prosper+ Web App

Smokeball Billing integrates with QuickBooks Online for your accounting system for back-office and general ledger. The integration is a one-way sync from Smokeball Billing to QuickBooks Online. Smokeball Billing only sends over monetary transactions

How the QuickBooks Online integration works

When signing up for QuickBooks Online, any subscription OTHER than the Self-Employed plan will work for the integration. The Self-Employed plan in QuickBooks does not allow you access to a chart of accounts, which is required for the integration. Make your QuickBooks Online purchase based on the other accounting features you need.

What WILL sync to QuickBooks Online

What WILL NOT sync to QuickBooks Online

  • Payments to invoices
  • Trust deposits
  • Operating Retainer deposits
  • Trust checks/payments
  • Operating checks (advanced costs)
  • Reversals or deletions of any of the above transactions
  • Time/fee entries
  • Expense entries
  • Invoices
  • Trust or Operating Retainer Transactions related to moving money from one matter to another in Smokeball Billing. (Transfer)

Transactions that are entered into Smokeball Billing will be sent to QuickBooks Online only AFTER the integration is turned on. Transactions prior to turning on the sync will not be sent to QuickBooks.

When to enable the QuickBooks Online integration

If you are brand new to Smokeball Billing, use the following as a guideline for the best time to turn on the QuickBooks Online integration.

  • If you are new to QuickBooks online, you may want to turn the integration on right away. This way, all deposits into Trust or Operating Retainer will also be sent to QuickBooks Online and may help with the initial setup of your new QuickBooks account. Please check with your accountant first.
  • If you are an existing QuickBooks Online user, please wait to turn on the sync until you have entered all previously existing funds in Trust and Operating Retainers into Smokeball Billing. If you turn on the sync too early, your accountant may have extra journal entries to contend with.

Set Up the QuickBooks Online Integration

  1.  Navigate to Firm Settings in the Smokeball Web App, Smokeball Boost or Smokeball Bill.
  2. Under QuickBooks, select Connect to QuickBooks. mceclip0.png
  3. Sign in to QuickBooks Online and follow the prompts to authorize the integration.
  4. Once you have authorized the integration, choose the appropriate accounts to integrate and save. Please submit a support ticket if you have any questions about the Trust integration.
    • Below is a description of each account to integrate. Note: "Non-profit Income" means reimbursed expenses, not the income generated by a non-profit organization. 

Account Name

Category

Detail (Tax Income Form in QuickBooks Online)

Operating Bank Account

Bank

Checking

Legal Fees Account

Income

Service Fee Income

Client Expenses Account

Income

Sales of Product Income (this is a non-taxable income account).

Operating Liability Account

Liability

Current Liability

Operating Check Expense Account Expense Supplies & Materials

Trust Bank Account

Bank

Trust Account

Trust Liability Account

Liability

Current Liability

Surcharge

Income or Liability

Sales Tax

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The following transactions in will appear as Journal entries in QuickBooks Online Reports and Bank Registries:

  • Trust Account Deposits
  • Operating Deposits
  • Deposit Reversals
  • Invoice Payments to Invoices
    • Individual Payments
    • Split Payments
  • Invoice Payment Reversals
  • Invoice Overpayment to Relevant Retainer
  • Operating Checks for Expenses
  • Trust Checks for Settlement Disbursal, Expenses, Client Refunds

How to use with QuickBooks Online

Due to the nature of the one-way sync between Smokeball and QuickBooks Online, you should divide your billing and financial tasks the following way: 

Smokeball QuickBooks

- Time Recording

- Billing

- Expenses

- Invoicing

- Receipts

- Trust or Operating Check Printing

- Debtor Management

- Trust Deposits and Payments

- Trust Account Reconciliation

- Trust Reports

- Firm Reports

- General Ledger

- Profit & Loss

- Payroll

- Back-office transactions including rent, expenses, etc.

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