How to create a vendor in QuickBooks Online

Feb 5, 2022

How to create a vendor in QuickBooks Online

Navigate to the Vendor Center (click Expenses on the left navigation bar and select the Vendors sub-tab). Click the green New Vendor button at the top right of the screen. Enter the required information about your vendor: name, address, and other contact information. If tracking billable time, enter the Billing rate here. You can store the vendor’s Business ID number as well. And, with any QuickBooks Online subscription level, you can click the box to Track payments for 1099 reporting.

Vendors can be created on the fly. Create a new vendor during the process of entering a purchase transaction. To do this, select Add New from the drop-down box in the Payee/Vendor field of a purchase transaction (such as expenses, checks, and bills).

Create Expense/Purchase Transactions

There are seven types of expense/purchase transactions available to use in QuickBooks Online:

• Expense
• Check
• Bill
• Pay Bill
• Purchase Order
• Vendor Credit
• Credit Card Credit • Print Checks

The three main ways to create these transactions are:

• Use +New at the top of the left navigation bar
• Open the Vendor Center and select one of the Action types available in the far-right column of each vendor’s listing (click the drop-down if necessary)
• Open the Vendor Center -> open a vendor profile -> click New transaction

When creating an expense, check or bill transaction follow these steps:

1. Select or type in a Payee (Vendor) if one has not pre-filled for you. (If the name does not exist in QuickBooks, you will be prompted to add that name on the fly to the list of vendors. Next specify it is a Vendor from the drop-down, then choose whether to add Details now or Save the name to add details later.)

2. If it is an expense or check transaction, select the appropriate Payment account the transaction is affecting, typically a checking or credit card account. (If it is a bill, QuickBooks knows you are affecting Accounts Payable and will not provide a field for that account.)

3. Enter (or choose) the appropriate Date for the transaction. You can click the calendar icon in the date field and a calendar will pop up from which to choose a date.

• The default date is the last date used on the previous transaction entered
• If entering an expense transaction, use the date of the expense from your checking or credit
• card account statement
• If you are entering a check transaction, use the date written on the check
• If you are entering a bill, use the date of the vendor bill; bill transactions also have fields for entering Terms and Due Dates

4. Enter a Reference number for the transaction if appropriate (i.e., check number or vendor bill number).

5. If you set up and use Product/Service items within your QuickBooks Online file, use the Item details section (the lower section) of the transaction screen to record the remaining details (you may have to click the sideways caret to expand a section):

• Product/Service item (required)
• Description (optional)
• Quantity (optional)
• Rate (optional)
• Amount (required)
• Billable (if activated and appropriate)
• Tax (if you plan to charge sales tax when billing this back to a customer)
• Customer (if using the Billable field)

6. If you are not using a Product/Service item to record the transaction, use the Category details section (the top section) to record the remaining details. (You can use both the Item details and Category details sections in a transaction):

• Account (required)
• Description (optional)
• Amount (optional)
• Billable (if activated and appropriate)
• Tax (if you plan to charge sales tax when billing this back to a customer)
• Customer (if using the Billable field)

 

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