Jim Merritt - October 12, 2026

You know something in QuickBooks® does not look right.

Maybe your Balance Sheet has a strange balance. Perhaps Accounts Receivable is too high. Undeposited Funds contains old transactions. A bank account will not reconcile, or your accountant has told you that something in the file needs attention.

But here is the question:

Does your file actually need cleanup—or do you first need someone to review the data and figure out what is wrong?

That is where a Data Review can be extremely helpful.

A Data Review is designed to examine your QuickBooks® data, identify potential problems, and help determine what should happen next.

It is often the best place to start when you know something is wrong but do not yet know the cause.

What Is a QuickBooks® Data Review?

A Data Review is a focused examination of your accounting records.

The goal is not to immediately begin changing transactions.

Instead, the goal is to determine:

• What appears incorrect

• Which accounts need attention

• Whether balances make sense

• Whether transactions are duplicated or misclassified

• Whether reconciliations have been affected

• Whether the issue is isolated or widespread

• Whether cleanup is actually necessary

Think of it as a diagnostic review of the accounting file.

Before making repairs, it helps to understand the problem.

→ QuickTrainer provides Data Review Services for QuickBooks® Users for businesses that need help determining the condition of their accounting records.

When Should You Consider a Data Review?

There are several situations where a Data Review makes sense.

Your Financial Reports Do Not Look Right

Perhaps your Profit and Loss shows income that seems too high.

Maybe expenses appear lower than expected.

Your Balance Sheet might contain balances you do not recognize.

Those reports may be telling you that something needs investigation.

A Data Review can help determine whether those balances are reasonable or whether there is an accounting problem behind them.

Your Bank Account Will Not Reconcile

Reconciliation problems are one of the most common reasons businesses ask for help.

Possible causes may include:

• Changed reconciled transactions

• Deleted reconciled transactions

• Duplicate transactions

• Missing transactions

• Incorrect beginning balances

• Transactions posted to the wrong account

Instead of forcing the reconciliation to work, it is usually better to determine why the discrepancy exists.

A Data Review can help identify the source before corrections are made.

Accounts Receivable Seems Too High

Accounts Receivable should represent money customers still owe your business.

If you know customers have paid but QuickBooks® still shows old invoices as outstanding, the issue may involve:

• Payments not applied to invoices

• Duplicate invoices

• Customer credits

• Incorrect deposits

• Payments posted directly to income

• Journal entries affecting Accounts Receivable

A Data Review can help determine which balances are valid and which require further attention.

Accounts Payable Contains Old Bills

Accounts Payable can have similar problems.

You may see vendor bills that were already paid or balances you no longer owe.

Possible causes include:

• Bills paid using checks or expenses instead of bill payments

• Duplicate bills

• Vendor credits not properly applied

• Incorrect opening balances

• Transactions posted to the wrong vendor

These are exactly the types of issues that should be understood before entries are changed.

Undeposited Funds Has an Old Balance

Undeposited Funds is designed to be temporary.

It commonly holds customer payments until those payments are grouped into the deposit that actually reached the bank.

When old transactions remain in Undeposited Funds, it may indicate:

• Payments were never included in deposits

• Bank deposits were recorded separately

• Customer payments were duplicated

• Deposits were added through Bank Transactions instead of matched

A Data Review can help determine what created the balance and whether cleanup is needed.

Your Bank Transactions Are Creating Duplicates

Bank Transactions can be a tremendous time-saver when used properly.

But problems can occur when downloaded transactions are added even though the transaction already exists in QuickBooks®.

This can result in:

• Duplicate expenses

• Duplicate income

• Duplicate deposits

• Incorrect transfers

• Incorrect account balances

A review of the activity can help determine whether the problem is limited to a handful of transactions or has affected a much larger period.

You See Strange Balances on the Balance Sheet

The Balance Sheet is often where accounting problems become visible.

Warning signs may include:

• Negative asset balances

• Large clearing-account balances

• Old Accounts Receivable

• Old Accounts Payable

• Unexpected loan balances

• Large Undeposited Funds balances

• Equity balances that do not appear reasonable

The balance itself is only the clue.

The real work is understanding the transactions behind it.

Your Accountant Has Questions About the File

Sometimes a CPA, tax preparer, or accountant is the first person to notice that something does not look right.

They may identify:

• Unreconciled accounts

• Unusual balances

• Old receivables or payables

• Incorrect account classifications

• Duplicate activity

• Clearing accounts with unexplained balances

A Data Review can help investigate those areas and determine what needs to happen next.

A Data Review Is Not the Same as Cleanup

This distinction is important.

A Data Review is primarily about identifying and diagnosing.

A Cleanup is about correcting known problems.

A simple way to think about it is:

Data Review = What is wrong?

Cleanup = How do we correct it?

→ If you already know that duplicate transactions, reconciliation errors, incorrect balances, or other problems must be corrected, learn more about our Cleanup Services for QuickBooks® Users.

If you are not yet sure what is wrong, start with a Data Review.

What Does QuickTrainer Review?

Every situation is different, so the scope depends on the concerns within your file.

Areas we may review include:

• Chart of Accounts

• Bank accounts

• Credit card accounts

• Bank and credit card reconciliations

• Balance Sheet

• Profit and Loss

• Accounts Receivable

• Accounts Payable

• Undeposited Funds

• Clearing accounts

• Bank Transactions

• Duplicate activity

• Customer payments

• Deposits

• Vendor transactions

• Journal entries

• Beginning balances

• Payroll-related accounts

• Sales tax-related accounts

• Third-party application activity

The goal is to look for patterns and inconsistencies rather than simply focus on one suspicious transaction.

What Happens After the Data Review?

Once the review is completed, the next step depends on what we find.

The File May Be Fine

Sometimes a balance looks unusual but is completely legitimate.

A review can give you confidence that the accounting is functioning as expected.

Only a Few Corrections May Be Needed

The issue may be isolated to one account or a handful of transactions.

A large-scale cleanup may not be necessary.

Cleanup May Be Recommended

If the review reveals duplicate transactions, reconciliation problems, inaccurate balances, or widespread posting errors, cleanup may be appropriate.

You can learn more about Cleanup Services for QuickBooks® Users.

Training May Be the Best Next Step

Sometimes the file is corrected, but the underlying problem is the way transactions are being entered.

In that case, One-on-One Training for QuickBooks Users can help address the workflow that caused the problem.

The Setup May Need Attention

If recurring problems trace back to the way the company was originally configured, you may need to review the underlying setup.

QuickTrainer can help with Setup Services for QuickBooks® Users.

Why Review Before Making Changes?

One of the biggest risks in QuickBooks® is correcting the wrong thing.

For example, you may see a transaction that appears to be a duplicate and delete it.

But what if that transaction was already reconciled?

What if it is connected to a customer payment?

What if another transaction depends on it?

What if the transaction affected a prior tax year?

Accounting records are connected.

Changing one transaction can affect:

• Bank reconciliations

• Accounts Receivable

• Accounts Payable

• Sales tax

• Payroll liabilities

• Financial reports

• Prior-period balances

That is why diagnosis should come before correction.

Do Not Assume Every Problem Requires Cleanup

It is easy to hear the word “cleanup” and assume the entire QuickBooks® file needs to be rebuilt.

Often, that is not the case.

A Data Review can help determine the true scope of the problem.

The issue may turn out to be:

• One reconciliation

• A few duplicate transactions

• Incorrect customer payments

• A Bank Transactions workflow problem

• An old clearing-account balance

• A setup issue

• A training issue

Understanding the scope first can prevent unnecessary changes and unnecessary expense.

Can Regular Bookkeeping Help Prevent These Problems?

Yes.

Consistent bookkeeping and regular monthly review can catch problems before they become larger issues.

That may include:

• Reconciling bank and credit card accounts

• Reviewing Accounts Receivable

• Reviewing Accounts Payable

• Monitoring Undeposited Funds

• Reviewing unusual balances

• Examining financial reports

• Confirming Bank Transactions are being handled properly

If you would rather have ongoing help maintaining your books, learn more about Bookkeeping Services for Businesses Using QuickBooks® Software.

A Data Review Can Give You a Starting Point

One of the most frustrating situations for a business owner is knowing something is wrong but not knowing where to begin.

That is exactly what a Data Review is designed to address.

Instead of making random corrections, you begin by answering three important questions:

What is wrong?

Why did it happen?

What should we do next?

Once those questions are answered, the path forward becomes much clearer.

Not Sure What Is Wrong With Your QuickBooks® File?

If your numbers do not make sense, your reconciliations are off, or your financial reports contain balances you cannot explain, QuickTrainer can help.

A Data Review can help identify potential problems and determine whether you need cleanup, additional setup assistance, training, or another solution.

QuickTrainer is located in Wilmington, NC and works remotely with businesses throughout the United States.

📞 Call QuickTrainer at 910-338-0488
📧 Email: [email protected]
🌐 www.qti-wilmington.com

Let QuickTrainer give you back your time.

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