This feature is only available for Lightspeed Retail merchants on select pricing packages.

QuickBooks® Integration Troubleshooting

This guide focuses on problems you may encounter with Lightspeed Retail’s QuickBooks Integration. If you have not set up QuickBooks integration, visit the QuickBooks Integration Setup article.

Table of Contents

QuickBooks Integration Disconnected

Your QuickBooks integration has been disconnected. You will no longer to be able to send transactions or summary information directly to your QuickBooks account from Lightspeed Retail.

QuickBooks Disconnected

Your QuickBooks integration has been disconnected and your data will no longer post to QuickBooks from Lightspeed Retail. To reconnect Lightspeed Retail and your QuickBooks account, please follow the steps below.

  1. Go to the BackOffice QuickBooks page to reconnect your accounts.
  2. Follow the steps here to reconnect QuickBooks to Lightspeed Retail.

Syncing Issues

At some point, you may run into an issue with how Lightspeed Retail data syncs to QuickBooks. Let’s take a look at common problems that affect the syncing process.

My data is not syncing to QuickBooks.

There are a few reasons why register data may stop syncing. Follow the steps below to review each potential issue and narrow down the cause of the problem.

  1. Go to QuickBooks settings and check if setup is complete.

    If you do not see ‘Syncing’, complete the steps to finish enabling the integration.

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  2. Close all register shifts.

    For the Summaries posting method, shifts only post to QuickBooks after they are closed at the register.

  3. Make sure sales tax is set up in QuickBooks Online.

    Data will only sync if tax is set up in QuickBooks. For help completing this step, visit QuickBooks Support.

If syncing does not resume after completing the above steps, follow the steps below to check for errors:
  1. Click 'Integrations' and select 'QuickBooks Accounting'.
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  2. Under 'Synced Shifts' or ‘Pending Transactions’, look for rows with a red X.

    A red X means there was an error, a green checkmark means no errors.

  3. If viewing the ‘Synced Shifts’ table, click a row with an error to expand its view.
  4. Click 'View Errors' or ‘Review’ to see the error for the register shift or transaction.

  5. Find your error message in the Common Syncing Errors section and follow the steps to resolve it.

My data syncs to the wrong QuickBooks accounts.

Update your account mapping to change the accounts that Lightspeed Retail syncs with. This ensures all future register shifts and transactions will properly sync to QuickBooks.

  1. Update your account mapping to change which accounts receive which data.

    Visit our QuickBooks Integration®: Advanced Topics article to learn how to update account mapping.

  2. (Optional) In QuickBooks, manually move data that has already synced.

How do I change my QuickBooks posting method?

Change your posting method to control whether each individual sale and return transaction is synced to QuickBooks or only a single Sales Receipt is synced at the end of each shift.

This feature is only available to select Lightspeed Retail merchants. If you don’t see the option to update the posting method (step 3), stay tuned as we roll out this feature for everyone.

  1. Follow the steps here to close all register shifts.
  2. In BackOffice, click ‘Integrations’ and select ‘QuickBooks Accounting’.
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  3. Click ‘Settings’ and select ‘Update Posting Method’.
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  4. Select a posting method.
    • Summaries (default) | Posts a summary of each register shift to QuickBooks as a single Sales Receipt soon after the shift is closed.
    • Individual Transactions | Posts each sale and return as a separate Sales or Refund Receipt to QuickBooks soon after being performed.
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  5. Click ‘Back to Dashboard’ to return to the QuickBooks Dashboard.

I cannot update my posting method.

If you receive an error when updating the QuickBooks posting method, it means register shifts were left open. Close all register shifts to be able to update the posting method.

  1. Follow the steps here to close all register shifts.
  2. Update the QuickBooks posting method.

Sales tax is not posting to Sales Receipts in QuickBooks.

Tax is only included on Sales Receipts if sales tax is set up in QuickBooks Online. Set up sales tax by following the steps below to ensure all future Sales Receipts will include tax.

  1. In QuickBooks Online, click ‘Taxes’ and select ‘Set Up Sales Tax’.
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  2. Follow the prompts to set up sales tax in QuickBooks.

    If you need help setting up sales tax, visit QuickBooks Support.

How do I manually enter data?

Check out QuickBooks Support to learn how to make journal entries.

Common Syncing Errors

Here are some common syncing errors you may encounter while troubleshooting QuickBooks integration. If you’re not sure how to check for an error, see this issue above.

“It appears we cannot connect to your QuickBooks Online account”

This error occurs when there is a problem with the connection between Lightspeed Retail and QuickBooks.

  1. Log in to QuickBooks and make sure the account is active.
  2. In BackOffice, click 'Integrations' and select 'QuickBooks Accounting'.
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  3. Click ‘Settings’ and select 'Disconnect QuickBooks'.
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  4. Click 'OK'.
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  5. Reconnect QuickBooks to Lightspeed Retail.

“It appears that you had a shift with a negative amount”

This error is caused when a register shift’s total returns amount exceed its total sales.

  1. Manually enter the register shift's data into QuickBooks.

“An Account or Item that we use to sync your data was deleted”

If you delete a QuickBooks account or item that is used in your account mapping, Lightspeed Retail will no longer be able to sync. Reactivate deleted accounts and products/services to restore syncing with QuickBooks.

Restore Deleted Accounts

Any account used in Lightspeed Retail’s account mapping must be active in QuickBooks.

  1. In QuickBooks, click the gear and select 'All Lists'.
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  2. Pick 'Chart of Accounts'.
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  3. Click the gear and check the 'Include inactive' box.
  4. Look for Lightspeed Retail accounts marked ‘deleted’ and click 'Make active'.
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  5. Contact us for help resyncing register shifts that failed to post to QuickBooks.

Restore Deleted Products/Services

Products/services that must be active include: SK-RETURNS, SK-DISCOUNTS, SK-GRATUITY, and Lightspeed Retail department names.

  1. In QuickBooks, click the gear and select 'All Lists'.
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  2. Pick 'Products and Services'.
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  3. Click the filter button.
  4. Change the status to 'All' and click 'Apply'.
  5. Look for products/services marked ‘deleted’ and click 'Make active'.
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  6. Contact us for help resyncing register shifts that failed to post to QuickBooks.

“Customer cannot post due to lack of TaxAgency”

This error occurs when sales tax is not set up in QuickBooks Online and the Lightspeed Retail QuickBooks integration posting method is set to ‘Individual Transactions’. Follow the steps below to resolve this issue.

  1. Set up sales tax in QuickBooks Online.

    For help completing this step, visit QuickBooks Support.

  2. Follow the steps here to retry posting the failed transaction.

“The optional setting 'Post to QuickBooks Departments / Locations', may not be supported”

The ‘Post to QuickBooks Departments’ and ‘QuickBooks Locations Setting’ settings are only supported by QuickBooks Online Plus. If you downgraded your QuickBooks subscription or enabled one of these settings by accident, follow the steps below to fix the error.

  1. In BackOffice, click 'Integrations' and select 'QuickBooks Accounting'.
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  2. Click ‘Settings’ and select 'Update Account Mappings'.
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  3. Disable the department or location setting.
    • If a pop-up appears, select ‘Optional Settings’. Disable ‘Post to QuickBooks Department’ and click ‘Save’.
    • If an overlay appears, disable ‘QuickBooks Locations Setting’ and click ‘Save’.
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  4. Contact us for help resyncing register shifts that failed to post to QuickBooks.

“There has been an error posting data to your QuickBooks Online account”

This is a generic error that appears when a register shift or transaction fails to sync for any reason other than those listed above.

  1. Contact us for help resyncing data that failed to post to QuickBooks.