How to View Journal Entries in QuickBooks Online?

At the heart of any accounting system is the journal entries that capture all the financial transactions that take place in a business. It is important to know how to see these entries in order to keep proper records, reconcile, and perform financial analysis. This tutorial will take you through some steps on how you can view and interpret your journal entries in QBO.

What Are General Journal Entries & How Does It Work for QuickBooks?

General journal entry is a basic accounting entry which describes a financial transaction and presents the debit and credit entries to particular accounts. It is the journal into which all financial transactions are initially recorded, be it sales or purchases, payroll and expense payments. It is the original book of entry that gives chronological history of all transactions before they can be transferred to ledger accounts.

How it works for QuickBooks?

Most common daily transactions (such as creating invoices, recording bills or entering sales receipts) in Frequently Asked Questions automatically create underlying journal entries. These routine activities generally do not require you to manually journalize them except when you are making certain adjustments/corrections or otherwise complicated transaction that do not qualify in the standard forms.

When you enter a transaction in QuickBooks Online (e.g. an invoice), the program will automatically debit Accounts Receivable and credit Sales Revenue with the amount. It is user friendly even to someone who is not much conversant with accounting because the double entry accounting is done in the background by QBO. But to accountants, and to smart business owners, the ability to see these underlying entries is essential to their comprehension of the financial effect of transactions, and to debug problems with discrepancies.

Purpose of Journal Entries

• Chronological Record: Provides a financial transaction account by date.
• Double-Entry Accounting: It helps to make sure that to each debit, there must be an equal and opposing credit to render the accounting equation (Assets=Liabilities+Equity).
• Audit Trail: Provides a comprehensive trail to track down the transactions to their source.
• Correction & Adjustment: applied to correct an error or to make a non-routine adjustment (e.g., depreciation, accruals).
• Complex Transactions: To record those transactions that do not fit in QBO standard forms.

How to View Journal Entries in QuickBooks Online: A Comprehensive Look at the Process

There are a number of ways to see journal entries in QuickBooks Online, depending on whether you're seeking a particular transaction or an overall picture.

Method 1: From a Specific Transaction

This is the most popular method of seeing the journal entry behind a certain transaction that you have already made.

• Go to the Transaction: Navigate to the corresponding area in which the transaction has been generated (e.g. Sales Invoices, Expenses Bills, Banking Bank Transactions).
• Enter the Transaction: Select the particular invoice, bill, expense or any other transaction that you want to review.
• Get More Options: A "More" button or a small down arrow will be at the bottom of the transaction screen (usually close to the print or delete buttons).
• Choose either Transaction Journal or Journal Report: When one clicks on more a drop down menu will appear. Select Transaction Journal (or in some cases Journal Report).
• See Journal Entry: The debits and credits of that particular transaction will be shown in a pop-up window or on a new tab, which will indicate the accounts and the amounts that have been affected.

Method 2: Using the "Journal" Report

This procedure enables you to prepare a report showing all the journal entries within a given period.

• Visit Reports: In the left-hand navigation bar, select Reports.
• Journal: Type Journal into the search bar that says "Find report by name" and select the Journal report.
• Tailor-made Report: Report period:
• Select the preferred date range (e.g. This Month, Last Year, and Custom).
• Columns: The columns can be tailored to show such information as "Transaction Type," "Transaction Number," "Date," "Account," "Debit," "Credit," "Name" (of customers/vendors), "Memo" etc.
• Filter: When you know the type of entries you want to search, you may filter by transaction type, account or customer/vendor.
• Run Report: To generate the journal entry list, select Run report.
• Drill Down: On this report, you will also be able to click on any transaction to open it and see its details, including the particular transaction journal in case it is necessary.

View Journal Entries through Audit Log in QuickBooks Online

An efficient tool for tracking user activity and book modifications is QuickBooks Online Audit Log. Though it does not show journal entries in a conventional debit/credit format, it does show a detailed history of the date a transaction was created/modified / deleted and by whom. This can be absolutely helpful in terms of forensic accounting, detecting unauthorized modifications, or getting the picture of the sequence of the events that have resulted into a particular journal entry.

See More: How to Make Adjusting Journal Entries in QuickBooks

How to View Journal Entries (Indirectly) Using the Audit Log

To view the Audit Log:

• In the upper right corner of your QuickBooks Online screen, click the Gear symbol.
• Go to Settings (Tools) Audit Log.

Audit Log filtering

• Users: Search by user that created or edited the entry (when known).
• Date: Select the relevant time frame for the creation or modification of the entry.
• Events: This is very important. To further reduce to journal entries, you will have to consider what kind of transaction gives rise to journal entry. For example:
• General Journal Entry Made
• Deleted General Journal Entry
• General Journal Entry ( Edited )
• It is also possible to filter on the higher-level transaction types such as "Invoice," "Bill," "Expense", etc. as these activities generate underlying journal entries.
• Click "Apply."

Log Review: A chronological list of the activities will be shown in the log. Each line displays:

• Date and Time: The date and time that the action took place.
• User: Who did the act
• Event: What was the action (e.g. "Created Invoice", "Edited Bill")
• Change: Gives an overview of the change.

 Click the View Details:

Under the History column of a particular event. This will show you the terms of the transaction before and after it happens. Although it will not specifically display debits and credits in journal entry format, it will display the modifications to accounts, amounts and other appropriate fields which make up the actual journal entry.

When to use the Audit Log

• Exploring unexplained absence or changes.
• Identifying the person who Added or recently updated a specific transaction.
• Appreciation of the sequence of transactions.
• Forming deleted entries (however, not restoring them straightaway).

The diary entries may be seen by using QuickBooks Online Advanced Search.

Another fast method to locate particular transactions, including journal entry-generating ones, in QuickBooks Online is via the Advanced Search (or Magnifying Glass icon). Although it does not provide you a direct view of journal entry, it helps you to find the source transaction faster, on which you may then get its journal entry.

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How to Use Advanced Search

• Magnifying Glass Icon: This can be found on the top right corner of your QuickBooks Online screen adjacent to the Gear icon.
• Choose the option of "Advanced Search" (or search and then advanced):
• Set Your Search Criteria:

Transaction Type: It is the best filter to use when searching transactions that result in journal entries. Select General Journal Entry from the drop-down list to find manually typed journal entries. It is also possible to choose other types of transactions such as Invoice, Bill, Expense, Sales Receipt, etc. to locate the journal entries behind them.

• Date: Enter a date range, in case you know the date on which the transaction was made.
• Amount: When you know the value of a transaction you are seeking, enter an amount.
• Reference No.: And you have a particular invoice number, bill number, or journal entry number.
• Customer/Vendor: To find transactions of a particular entity.
• Account: It is possible to search by account on transactions impacting an account.
• Click Search.
• Examine the Results: A list of transactions that fit your search parameters will show up as the search's outcome.
• Open and View: You can open any transaction in the search results by clicking on it. After the transaction is open, then you may proceed with the steps "More" > "Transaction Journal" (as outlined in Method 1: From a Specific Transaction) in order to see the journal entry behind the transaction.

When to use Advanced Search

• You are aware of some facts concerning the transaction (type, date, amount, and customer/vendor).
• You wish to jump fast to a particular transaction to see its journal entry.
• What you are seeking are manually prepared journal entries.

How to Export Journal Entries from QuickBooks Online?

You may want to export journal entries out of QuickBooks Online when you need to do more thorough analysis in a spreadsheet application (such as Excel), need to create a backup of the data or need to exchange file information with an accountant.

Method 1: Exporting from the "Journal" Report

This is the most basic, and all-inclusive method of exporting a list of journal entries.

Produce Journal Report:

• Click on Reports on the left-hand navigation bar.
• Locate and choose the Journal report.
• Modify the report period and columns as preferred (e.g., make sure that there are columns Debit and Credit).

Export the Report:

• An Export icon (usually a square with an arrow pointing out or a mini-spreadsheet icon) will appear in the upper right corner of the created report.
• Select the icon marked "Export".
• Select Export to Excel (or Export to PDF in case you only want a printable version).
• Select the File: An Excel (.xlsx) file containing the report will be downloaded. Load it into your spreadsheet application to read and massage the data.

Method 2: Exporting from Other Reports (e.g., General Ledger, Transaction List by Date)

Although not specifically "Journal Entries," much of the reports have journal entry data behind them and may be exported.

Produce Report: In the Menu Bar, click on "Reports" and then on an appropriate report (e.g., "General Ledger, "Transaction List by Date, Profit & Loss, Balance Sheet).

Customize and Filter: Change the report period and use filters when necessary to narrow down on the transactions of your interest.

Export: Click on the "Export" icon (as mentioned above) to export the report to excel.

Method 3: Exporting Data from Settings (Limited Scope)

That approach is more general data export than journal-entry-specific raw debit/credit data, but can be useful to obtain lists of transactions.

• Settings: Select the Gear symbol located in the top right corner.
• Click on export data under tools.
• Select Data Type: You may choose such categories as Lists (e.g. Chart of Accounts, Customers, and Vendors) and Transactions (e.g. Invoices, Bills, Sales Receipts).
• Select Items to Export: tick the particular type of transactions to be exported.
• Select Export to Excel.

Important Considerations for Exporting

• Customization: Don’t be afraid to always customize your report (columns, filters, and dates) prior to exporting so that you end up with exactly the data you want.
• Large Reports: If the date range is quite broad, the export process might take a while.
• Data Integrity: Exported data is a point-in-time. Exporting will not include any future changes made in QBO after the export process.

Suggested Reading: How to Install and Use QuickBooks Database Server manager

How to Access Deleted Journal Entries in QuickBooks Online

Transactions are not immediately deleted in QuickBooks Online permanently. Rather, when you delete a transaction it is flagged as deleted in the system, and the deletion is logged in the Audit Log. This is an important characteristic to have an audit trail and also to recover.

How to View Deleted Journal Entries (and other transactions)

The main means of seeing deleted journal entries (as well as other deleted transactions which would have had underlying journal entries) is via the Audit Log.

Open Audit Log

• Select the Gear icon on the right in the top corner.
• Go to Tools then Audit Log.

Deleted Events Filter

• Users: Search by user that made the deletion in case it is known.
• Date: Choose the period of time when the deletion has taken place.
• Events: This is essential. Select Deleted or deleted general journal entry specifically, in the Events drop down list. Also, you can search "Deleted Invoice," "Deleted Bill," etc. in case you think an automated journal entry has been deleted.
• Click "Apply."

View Deleted Entries

• The Audit Log shall show the deleted items in a list form. Every entry will indicate:
• Date and Time: The time when deleted happened.
• User: What deleted the transaction
• Event: Deleted [Transaction Type] (e.g. Deleted General Journal Entry).
• hange: You will frequently have a summary or, "View" link that will enable you to view the particulars of transaction prior to its deletion. When you click on View, you will most likely see the entire transaction information, which includes the accounts and amounts that were originally included in the journal entry.

Important Notes about Deleted Entries

• No Direct Restore: You can't just "undelete" a transaction from the Audit Log. In case you require restoring a journal entry or a transaction that was deleted, you will be forced to re-enter it manually in QuickBooks Online. The Audit Log simply gives the details with which to do so.
• Audit Trail: This is an important internal control as the deletion of transactions is tracked in the Audit Log, making it transparent and accountable to all changes that happened to your financial records.

Why View Deleted Entries?

• Error Correction: To comprehend what was removed accidentally and insert it once again properly.
• Fraud Detection: To detect unauthorized deletions.
• Reconciliation: To know why some transactions may not be appearing in reports.

Final Words

Journal entry viewing is one of the essential skills that a business owner, bookkeeper, and accountant should understand when they are working on QuickBooks Online. Although QuickBooks disguises many of the doubles of the accounting entry, the option to view the journal entries behind the scenes is a priceless offer of knowledge about your financial dealings.

Regardless of whether you are dealing with the direct "Transaction Journal" view of a particular entry, the overall "Journal" report, the historical tracking of the "Audit Log" or the rapid search of the "Advanced Search" QBO offers a variety of options to get to this essential data. You can also export these entries to further enable you to do a detailed analysis and expediently share financial data. Learning to use these viewing options will give you a better insights into your financial information, improve your capacity to troubleshoot mismatches and assure the completeness and reliability of your accounting ledger.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the need to see journal entries in QuickBooks Online when it does automatically?

Although QBO makes several entries automatically, it is important to view them when:
• Understanding of the transaction's credits and debits.
• Balancing or discrepancy trouble-shooting.
• Manual adjustment or correction.
• Having your books audited.
• Comprehending the complete financial implications of intricate transactions.

Is it possible to edit journal entry through the Journal report?

No, you cannot edit directly through the report journal. Just click on any transaction in the report and it will take you back to the original transaction form (e.g., invoice, bill or even the general journal entry form itself). After opening the original form, then you are able to make edits.

What is the difference between a General Journal Entry and other transactions such as Invoices or Bills?

A bill or invoice is a unique type of business transaction form that is used to document regular activities, such as vendor purchases and consumer sales.  When you enter an Invoice, QBO will create the journal entry behind the scene (e.g., Debit Accounts Receivable, Credit Sales Income). General Journal Entry refers to direct entry in journal. It supports transactions that cannot be classified under the normal QBO forms, like depreciation, accruals, prepayments or error corrections.

When I delete a transaction, will it be removed permanently out of QuickBooks Online?

No, not all together. Although the transaction will be deleted out of active reports, the deletion will be recorded in the Audit Log. Until such a time that you can abandon or Restore a deleted transaction, you can see information about it in the Audit Log, which is useful to recreate it or to know what was deleted. The transaction would have to be re-keyed in.

Can I export journal entries in more formats other than Excel?

Usually, when reports are exported from QuickBooks Online, the external file formats available are Excel (.xlsx) and PDF; some reports also have an option in CSV, which is a plain text, comma-separated file.