Setting up Accounting Integration with QuickBooks Desktop

This video will walk you through the main steps of the setup process to link your CoConstruct account with QuickBooks Desktop. You can also review the written step-by-step directions below.

1. Overview
2. Configuring Web Connector
3. Linking QuickBooks to your CoConstruct account
4. A run-down of the accounting integration settings
5. Linking or importing your QuickBooks Items into CoConstruct
6. Linking each project to the right customer or job
7. Next steps
8. Troubleshooting issues with Web Connector

1. Overview

CoConstruct integrates with your desktop installation of QuickBooks by using a QuickBooks tool called the Web Connector.

This Web Connector needs to be configured to sync your QuickBooks information to CoConstruct, and once everything's set up, we'll automatically sync your data on a regular basis.

Supported versions: Before getting started, check our list of supported software to make sure that your version of QuickBooks is fully supported for the CoConstruct integration.

2. Configuring QuickBooks Web Connector

Start by heading to Settings > Accounting (note only admins will see this option). Click on "QuickBooks" and select the "Desktop" version.

1. Make sure you’re on the computer where you have QuickBooks Desktop installed. Open QuickBooks and log in as an admin.
   
   1. If you are using multiple company files in QuickBooks, you can only sync one with a single CoConstruct account
   2. Make sure the company file that you would like to sync is open
2. Download the QWC configuration file provided on the integration page.
3. Open that file. QuickBooks Web Connector should open automatically. (If QuickBooks Web Connector doesn’t open, you may need to download and install it.)
4. A window titled "Authorize New Web Service" will appear requesting your approval. Click "OK".
5. A window titled "QuickBooks - Application Certificate" will appear asking if you want to grant access. Select "Yes, whenever this QuickBooks company file is open." Click "Continue..."
   1. You do not need to grant access to personal data such as Social Security Numbers
6. On the next window titled "Access Confirmation," click "Done."
   1. When you confirm, the connection will be established and Web Connector will open.
7. QuickBooks Web Connector will now list "CoConstruct Accounting Service" as an application.
8. Enter the password that you use to log into CoConstruct in the "Password" field
1. If you ever change your CoConstruct email address or password, you will need to update your Web Connector setup. We have more information on these different scenarios here.
2. Check the box in the "Auto-Run" column to allow syncing to happen automatically, and choose a frequency (every 60 minutes is a good starting point).  When setting these auto-run periods, be aware of how long your Web Connector sync takes.  If the Web Connector attempts to start a sync while one is already running, it will lock up the syncing process, so be sure to give some lag time in between.
9. Check the box to the left of the "CoConstruct Accounting Service." Click the button at the top labeled "Update Selected."
10. Web Connector will start syncing. Wait for the progress to reach 100% and the "Last Result" to be a green "Connection Closed" message. This will indicate that the sync was successful. If you see an error at this step, repeat step 10 above and reach out to support with the specific error message you are seeing. Click "Hide" to ensure that Web Connector stays running in the background so the auto-runs will perform.

To open up Web Connector at any point in time after the initial setup:

In QuickBooks go to File > Update Web Services.  If you don't see that option, you can try searching for "Web Connector" from your computer's start menu.

To run a manual sync with Web Connector at any point in time outside of the scheduled auto-run times:

In Web Connector, check the box on the left beside "CoConstruct Accounting Service" and then click "Update Selected" at the top of the Web Connector window

3. Linking QuickBooks to your CoConstruct account

Back in CoConstruct, you've already done the heavy lifting, so you'll just need to confirm that you've configured Web Connector.

1. At the bottom right of your screen, select the green "Continue" button.
2. Your account is now connected to QuickBooks, and the remaining setup in this article will help to make sure your projects and accounting codes are linked up between the two systems.
3. Make sure you save before you exit the Accounting Integration settings page.

4. A run-down of the Accounting Integration settings

How do you want to link projects to QuickBooks?: This dropdown determines how your CoConstruct "projects" relate to your "customers" or "jobs" within QuickBooks. Choose whether you are tying your project costs to a given "customer" record, or if you have "jobs" set up underneath each of your customers in order to track this information.

Invoices
These settings relate to the invoice-syncing capability of the CoConstruct integration

Project Defaults - Change Orders > Invoices: Sets whether or not new change orders you create will automatically sync to create a new invoice in QuickBooks once they are fully-approved. This setting can be overwritten when you are creating individual change orders or variations.

Select an item code to be used on customer invoices: We need to specify a single item code to use on invoices generated by CoConstruct, so if you have one, we recommend choosing one specific to change orders.

What Accounts Receivable account do you use for customer invoices?: The A/R account that should be used for invoices that are created by CoConstruct.

Client Payments
This setting relates to syncing your clients' payments to the financial summary view

Project Defaults - Client Payments: Sets whether new projects will be set up for syncing your clients' payments. This setting can be changed on individual projects from the project Setup page.

Budget Actuals
These settings relate to the budget actuals integration

Project Defaults - Budget Actuals: Sets whether new projects will be set up for syncing your actuals. This setting can be overwritten when you are creating a new project.

Show budget actuals details to clients: If you share project budgets with your client, this sets whether you want your clients to be able to see the itemized breakout of your actuals (individual bills, payments or labor along with their dates), rather than just seeing the overall amounts.  This setting can be changed for individual clients from the project Setup page.

Select invoice items to include on budget (open-book projects only): This setting is covered in more detail here.

Purchase Orders
These settings relate to purchase order integration

Project Defaults - Purchase Orders > Bills: Sets whether purchase orders automatically push a bill to QuickBooks once marked "Work Verified".  This setting can be changed for individual projects on the project Setup page.

What Accounts Payable account do you use for vendor bills: The A/P account that should be used for bills that are created by CoConstruct for work-verified purchase orders.

5. Linking or importing your QuickBooks Items into CoConstruct

As a next step, you will want to ensure that CoConstruct and QuickBooks are speaking the same language by loading and linking your QuickBooks Items into CoConstruct as what our system calls  "accounting codes".

Do this by going to the "Accounting Codes" tab at the top of your accounting integration settings.

If you already have a list of accounting codes configured in CoConstruct, you will want to go through to link each code up with the corresponding Item from QuickBooks.

Otherwise, you can import your Item List directly into CoConstruct.

Note: If you are syncing budget actuals with CoConstruct, your full Item List will be imported when you do your first sync. As a result, the best practice will be to link or import things now and deactivate any extra Items that you don't need in your CoConstruct accounting code list.

Click here for more information on linking and importing accounting codes.

6. Linking each project to the right customer or job

Now your account is fully linked, but you also need to link up individual projects to your accounting system. Note that this can only by done by admin users in CoConstruct.

1. From the Settings > Accounting, navigate to the "Projects" page.  From an individual project's Setup page, you'll see the option to link the project to QuickBooks under a section heading of "QuickBooks Integration"

• Linking new projects when creating them.  Simply select to "Show optional settings" to view options for linking directly to QuickBooks.
• Use the Accounting Settings "Project" page to link any existing project OR individually link any project right from the Project Setup page.

• If the project has already been created in QuickBooks, you can select it from a dropdown
• Otherwise, if you haven't yet created the customer or job in QuickBooks, you can have CoConstruct create it for you using the "+" icon and simply typing in the names that you want to use on the QuickBooks side of things. Remember that Web Connector will need to run before you will see the customer and/or job created in your QuickBooks file

1. In QuickBooks, go to File > Update Web Services
2. Check the box next to "CoConstruct Accounting Service" and click the button at the top to "Update Selected"
3. While the earlier Web Connector syncing pulled in basic QuickBooks information, this new sync will pull in all of the relevant transactions, if any, for the newly-linked projects
4. You can then "Sync Data Now" on the Financial pages of your linked CoConstruct projects to pull in those transactions to the project

7. Next steps

Congratulations! You've walked through the setup and linked the important parts of your CoConstruct projects to the right records within QuickBooks.

Next, explore all the available integration features now that everything is linked up -- More information can be found here

8. Troubleshooting issues with Web Connector

Need to troubleshoot problems with Web Connector at any point?

We've got a guide that you can use as a jumping off point.

If you still need help, let us know!