A community member asked if there was anything like a âCheckbook Registerâ that not only includes the date, description and amount of a transaction, but a running balance so you can see what remains in your account. A few others have asked for similar functionality, and I thought the code required is similar to a few templates Iâve already released or are in the works, so I was able to throw this together pretty quickly.
Getting a reliable running balance requires having a reliable starting balance. Because of this, the âAccount Registerâ template relies on the âAccount Reconciliationâ template. If you donât already have it installed, it will be installed when you install Account Register. Once installed, take the time to fully reconcile the accounts that youâd like to use in the âAccount Registerâ template. âAccount Registerâ gets itâs list of accounts, and their opening dates and balances from âAccount Reconciliationâ, so itâs an important step.
Usage
Once the template has been copied, itâs a simple matter of choosing the account you want to see the register for, and the time period youâd like to see the transactions from, both selections are highlighted in green. Everything looks correct in my setup (the balances match those on my Balance sheet), but use caution and donât base any important financial decisions on this template without double-checking the numbers! Let me know if you run into any problems or if the numbers arenât coming up right.
Notes
I kept this pretty simple, mimicking the functionality of a real checkbook register. Note that itâs use isnât limited to checking accounts, it should work fine with any accounts that you reconcile transactions for in Account Reconciliation. An Excel version is available here.
I think I followed all of your instructions, but when I click on the drop down to select the account, none appear. I installed and reconciled my account first.
Click the â+â above column H to open the helper data. In column L, row 11 there should be a list of the accounts from the Account Reconciliation sheet, do you see those? If not, what shows up in the formula bar when you click on L11?
hi jpfieber - yes, I clicked the + and saw both Accounts(Checking, Savings) that are coming from the account reconciliation tab. when I click in the Accounts dropdown, itâs blank, nothing shows. I played around with the Data verification and changed the range to L11:L20 and that fixed the issue. I most likely dumbed-down some code but so far so good.
Ahh, I just checked the shared template and somehow the data validation range is set wrong. Anyone that is having the same issue (@laura ) can either delete the template and re-download it, or select cell G3, choose âData Validationâ from the âDataâ menu, and change the âList from a rangeâ setting from =$L20:$L to =$L$11:$L.
Thanks for reporting that issue!
Thank you! I changed the data verification range and it works now. Thanks for the new template. I have been sorting my transactions by account and then copying them to another sheet to get my bank balance. Some things are on more of a cash flow basis (credit card payments) than a monthly expense basis.
Thanks for this new template! Since credit card balances are shown as positive as liabilities, the register then decreases the running balance as charges (which show as negative) are added. Is there a way to identify this as a liability so the starting balance shows negative and grows as charges are made?
OK @jshelham , I updated the shared template to reverse the polarity of transactions in a liability account. Delete the template and re-copy and let me know if itâs behaving!
Found the problem, sorry for the hassle, delete your sheet and recopy from the shared template.
Found a few more small issues, 1.12 is now the current version and seems to be working fine in my Foundation template.
Congratulations, @jpfieber, on another well-built template that delivers on a popular user request. Iâm impressed at how you continue to hone in on key functionality that can be delivered or improved, like the running balance, and knocking it out of the park.
No pressure to change anythingâ I know you are busyâ but the only two observations I had when I goofed around with it were:
The period includes a âCustomâ option but I couldnât figure out where to enter those dates.
I absolutely see the synergies of integrating with your Account Reconciliation template but I wonder if adding a lookup table for starting balance overrides in the hidden area would allow register/not-reconciliation focused users to use the new template when the Account Reconciliation sheet is not present.
As part of the Tiller Builder Rewards Program, the Tiller team is excited to award you $250 for building the Account Register and documenting it so it can be used by the entire Tiller community.
Funny you should post this today as Iâve been working on the Excel version and should have it ready for release tonight. Thanks for the award and the feedback!
For your first comment, I think youâre using an old version, which did have that problem. I use Conditional Formatting to hide the date fields when Custom isnât chosen, and there were some issues with that in the first couple versions I shared. Try downloading the template again and it should/better be working.
I have already been giving thought to your second suggestion, as many users wonât want to go through the effort of the reconciliation process. The problems Iâm seeing are:
Getting an accurate starting balance from âBalance Historyâ may be a problem if manual transactions have been entered without updating the history, especially if transactions were migrated/added from before the first Tiller sync.
Having an accurate running balance relies on all the transactions between the opening balance and the beginning of the chosen period being accurate (no duplicates/missing/mis-categorized, etc)
Iâll continue to give thought to the possibility as it would be nice for more users to be able to take advantage of this template. If you, or anyone else, have thoughts on how to get an accurate running balance without relying on my Account Reconciliation template Iâm happy to consider adding other options!
Hi Jpfieber! Congratulations! I love your new sheet that you created. I only use Google sheets, AND I am an ultra newbie, terrified a bit of Tiller and $. Is this a sheet you would still recommend for me? I love the functionality, but I am unable to handle anything too complex. Is it straightforward to install, or use even if I donât know what I am doing?
Account Register is super simple to use, so that part shouldnât be much of a challenge. For it to have reliable numbers, you need to have a known âstarting balanceâ for each account, and know that all your transactions are âcleanâ (no duplicates/missing/miscategorized, etc) which is what my Account Reconciliation sheet helps with. Itâs very easy to install since itâs available in the Community Solutions add-on, but depending on how many accounts and transactions you have, can take a little time and effort to use. Once you make sure all of your transactions are clean and your balances are showing correctly (bank statements match totals in Account Reconciliation sheet), itâs easy to keep up with, and then Account Register works like a charm.
Wow, thank you for this quick response. So it sounds like I should first go in and install your account reconciliation sheet? Correct? I have loads of accounts, 4 bank accounts, 5 credit cards, and well I think that is all. How will I know if my bank statements match to totals in account rec sheet? Arenât those number fluctuating on a daily basis?
I will go in and play with it a bitâŚI hope I donât mess anything up in my account.
Yea, install Account Reconciliation (Account Reconciliation - Google Sheets) and follow the instructions in that post. That sheet âreconcilesâ your transactions with bank statements. Once you have the first month for the account matching your bank statement, itâs a simple matter of putting in the date and balance of the next statement and seeing if it comes up green. If so, you can move to the next month, if not, you need to find how your transactions donât match the statement and fix it. Once you get all of your accounts balanced in Account Reconciliation, Account Register will display a running balance for any of them.
