Integrating your accounting software with Buildxact is a great way to streamline your workload. Enter your expenses and income once, saving you time and money.
The Buildxact/QuickBooks 2-way Sync Process
The sync, or integration, process involves you (the user) defining whether you prefer the data to sync from QuickBooks to Buildxact, or, from Buildxact to QuickBooks. We have integration settings to support both options dependent on your preferred Accounting and Cost Tracking processes.
Versions of Quickbooks that Buildxact connects with in North America
We connect with online versions of Quickbooks (not desktop versions), all except the Simple Start product.
Establishing the initial connection
1. In the Buildxact Navigation menu, click Integrations
2. Click Integrations in the sub menu
3. Click Connect beside QuickBooks
When the Xero log in page opens, enter your log in details. If you are currently logged into QuickBooks this step will be skipped.
In the pop up, click Allow access
If you have not yet set up 2-step verification or multi-factor authentication for Buildxact you will be asked to do so. See the following article for step-by-step instructions on how this is done.
From here you will be taken back to Buildxact where you'll be prompted to set up the integration settings.
Buildxact to QuickBooks Integration Settings
You have the option to sync information relating to purchases made (Received Purchase Orders) and/or customer invoices (Invoiced Job Invoices). This option simply selects if you want to sync one or both into QuickBooks.
The sync item date indicates how far back Buildxact will look for items to sync. It can be useful as a “line in the sand” when changing from another program. This date will use the “Received Date” on purchase orders and the “Invoiced Date” on customer invoices to work out whether an item should sync. “To” accounts - Expenses You can further customize where we send things in QuickBooks via the “How does QuickBooks know which account to use?” section in this document.
This is the default account for all purchases made where the contact used on that order is set as a “Supplier” in your contacts section.
This is the default account for all purchases made where the contact used is set as a Contractor in your contacts section. Old tax settings relate to jobs linked to estimates created prior to Nov/2020.
This will generally be pre-set. For purchases where there is tax being added, we need to tell QuickBooks which tax type to use.
This will generally be pre-set. For purchases where there is no tax being added, we need to tell QuickBooks which tax type to use. New tax settings relate to jobs linked to estimates created after Nov/2020.
This will generally be pre-set. For purchases where there is tax being added, we need to tell QuickBooks which tax type to use.
This will generally be pre-set. For purchases where there is no tax being added, we need to tell QuickBooks which tax type to use.
9. This is the 'To account' in QuickBooks where we will send all customer invoices Income Tax types for our old tax settings. Old tax settings relate to jobs linked to estimates created prior to Nov/2020
10. This will generally be pre-set. For invoices where there is tax being added, we need to tell QuickBooks which tax type to use.
11. This will generally be pre-set. For invoices where there is no tax being added, we need to tell QuickBooks which tax type to use. New tax settings relate to jobs linked to estimates created after Nov/2020.
12. This will generally be pre-set. For invoices where there is tax being added, we need to tell QuickBooks which tax type to use.
13. This will generally be pre-set. For invoices where there is no tax being added, we need to tell QuickBooks which tax type to use.
Click Save Settings and Close.
Setting up tax rates for North American users
If you haven't already set up your tax rates in Buildxact then you need to do this first. It's important to do this first so that Buildxact and Quickbooks are in sync with the tax settings and hence both give the same result when doing calculations.
You can see how to update your tax settings here:
Selecting the correct QuickBooks accounts
This section will help you make the correct decision in selecting the 'to accounts' in QuickBooks for your purchase and client invoice information.
Expense account (purchasing)
You need to select an account with the type ‘Expense’.
Revenue account (client invoicing)
You need to select an account with the type ‘Income’.
How does QuickBooks know which account to use?
When we send a purchase or invoice to QuickBooks, we also send the “to” account which controls which account in QuickBooks the item lands in. This is quite a flexible process meaning you can change the account an item will go to within QuickBooks at several points.
Setting a default account on a contact
If you want to change the default account for a contact, head to the contact itself and there is an area where you can set this. This is good if every time you use a supplier they need to go to an account different to the main default account.
Changing the account on the order itself
Changing the account on the order itself is good for exceptions, or when you want to change the account at the last second.
Syncing with QuickBooks
This section will show you the two ways to sync data from Buildxact to QuickBooks, how to know if it is ready to sync, and the results of a sync. Buildxact will want to send data (sync) to QuickBooks when there are:
Purchase Orders marked Part Received
Purchase Orders marked as Received
3. Customer invoices marked as Invoiced
4. Customer invoices marked as Received
How to sync with QuickBooks
5. The Integrations tab will show the number of items to sync
6. Click the green Sync button
OR
7. Click the blue Sync now button on the integrations screen.
8. A message appears, as the sync occurs
9. Once sync is completed a message appears notifying the last successful sync.
10. Click View Log if you want to see a list of the sync history.
QuickBooks to Buildxact Integration Settings
This enables the transmission of Quickbooks' Online Bills into Buildxact's Imported Bills feature.
Once enabled the user will see:Select account codes: this drop down supports a multi-select of their Quickbooks Online account codes which they can use to filter which Quickbooks Online Bills come into Buildxact.
Viewing your imported bills, expenses & receipts
The bills and expenses you have entered into your accounting software will appear in Buildxact under Jobs in the left-hand menu.
Click on Jobs.
Select Imported Bills.
Please note that only bills created in the last 30 days will appear in this list.
The order in which bills and expenses appear in this list is determined by the date attached to the bill in your accounting software.
3. Select the job associated with this bill by clicking on the search box and selecting from the drop-down menu. The search function displays 20 jobs at a time.
4. To expand and view the line items attached to this bill click 'View line items'.
5. Click on the 'Ignore Bill' button to hide bills or items that aren't related to any jobs.
Creating a purchase or work order
It's possible to create a purchase order for an entire bill, category or individual item.
1. Once you have selected the job, category and item (as needed), click '+Create Order'
Please note: a job must be selected for the '+Create Order' button to become live.
Splitting a bill into multiple purchase orders
To do this, select a Job (1), Category (2) or Item (3) from the line items shown.
You can create a new category and/or item by typing into the relevant text box.
Click '+Create Order' (4)
Linking Bills to Existing Purchase Orders (PO)
Select a Job (the button then becomes enabled).
Click Link to an Existing Order.
Select a PO from the list of POs within the Job you are filtering by.
Click Next.
5. A PO side form will open displaying newly added items from the Bill. You can now edit existing/new PO items, delete items and invoices as needed.
6. Click Save & Close or Save & Send.
What does the data look like in QuickBooks?
Supplier and Contractor Purchase Orders
A PO in Buildxact will become a “Bill” within QuickBooks.
The Bill number is the combined Buildxact job number and purchase order number.
Click on the dropdown to shift this bill to another expense account.
Client Invoices
A client invoice within Buildxact will become a “Invoice” within QuickBooks.
We will bring through the customer details.
We will bring through the due date of the invoice.
Identifying contacts
If you want Buildxact to send items to a Supplier Expense account and a Contractor Expense account in QuickBooks, then we must know which of your contacts are Suppliers and which are Contractors. Please be doubly sure to have this set right for all your contacts as shown.
