How to Undo a Reconciliation in QuickBooks Online

To undo a reconciliation in QuickBooks Online, there are two safe ways to do this depending on your access level:

• QuickBooks Online Accountant (QBOA) users can undo entire reconciliations in one go.
• Standard QBO users must unreconcile transactions manually in the register (change the “R” to blank).

Back up Evidence and Plan the Change

Before you touch reconciled months, do these things:

• Download or save the Reconciliation Report(s) for the period(s) you’ll change.
• Download attachments (invoices, receipts, delivery proofs) — undoing may remove attachments.
• Note which months will be affected (undoing an earlier month can undo later months — work from the most recent backward).

Quick checklist to save first:

Why this matters: undoing is destructive — if you need to restore anything, you’ll want those copies.

Choose the Correct Undo Method (QBOA vs Standard QBO)

Use QBOA “Undo” if:

• You or your accountant use QuickBooks Online Accountant and you want to reverse an entire reconciliation quickly. This is the only QBO feature that supports a one-click undo of a completed reconciliation.

Use manual unreconcile if:

• You’re on Simple Start / Essentials / Plus / Advanced (regular QBO), or you only need to change a few transactions rather than the whole period. Manual unreconcile is done via the account register by clearing the “R” flag.

How to Undo an Entire Reconciliation (QuickBooks Online Accountant)

Only available when you open the client/company file from QBOA. If you don’t see the Undo option, you’re likely in a standard QBO user session.

1. Sign in to QuickBooks Online Accountant and open the client’s company file.
2. Go to Accounting → Reconcile.
3. Click History by account.
4. Choose the account and date range.
5. Locate the reconciliation row you want to undo and click View report.
6. In the Action column use the dropdown and select Undo.
7. Confirm by clicking Yes → Undo.

Important warnings (from Intuit):

• Undoing an older reconciliation will also undo all later reconciliations for that account. Work from the most recent reconciliation backward.
• Undo removes attachments on those reconciled transactions — make sure you've downloaded them.

How to Unreconcile Individual Transactions (All QBO Users)

If you don’t have QBOA or you only need to fix a few entries, unreconcile manually:

1. Go to Accounting → Chart of Accounts.
2. Find the account and click View register (or Account history).
3. Use filters or scroll to find the reconciled transactions — reconciled items show an R in the checkmark column.
4. Click the R until it becomes blank (one click cycles through R → C → blank depending on status).
   
   • R = Reconciled, C = Cleared, blank = not reconciled/uncleared.
5. Click Save on the transaction.

Repeat for every transaction you must unreconcile. If you need to unreconcile many transactions, consider whether QBOA access (or asking your accountant) is faster because the manual approach can be time-consuming.

What to Do after You Undo / Unreconcile

Once the reconciliation is undone or transactions are unreconciled:

• Review each transaction you unreconciled — correct dates, amounts, accounts, or tags that caused the original problem.
• Reconcile again with the bank statement: go to Accounting → Reconcile, enter the statement ending balance/date, and match transactions.
• Re-upload attachments if they were removed.
• Run a Reconciliation Report for the period to confirm everything matches.

Example workflow after undo:

1. Undo latest month (QBOA) or unreconcile targeted transactions (register).
2. Fix errors (duplicate entries, wrong dates, misplaced deposits).
3. Reconcile that month.
4. Move to the previous month if you had to undo earlier months.

Troubleshooting Common Issues

Problem: “Undo” is not visible in QBOA.

• Make sure you opened the client’s company file from within QuickBooks Online Accountant — the Undo button appears only in that context.

Problem: Transactions still show as reconciled after clearing the “R”.

• Refresh the register. If needed, open the transaction, Save again, and re-check. Check user permissions; only users with Modify rights can change reconciliation status.

Problem: Attachments disappeared after an undo.

• That’s expected if attachments were tied to reconciled transactions; retrieve from your downloaded backup or client records.

Reduce Reconciliation Headaches with DepositFix

If part of your reconciliation issues comes from payment posting errors, using a payments tool that syncs cleanly to QuickBooks Online can cut errors dramatically. DepositFix:

• Records payments with consistent descriptions and invoice matching.
• Syncs payments to QuickBooks so deposits are easier to match and reconcile.
• Reduces manual edits that later require unreconciling.

Automating payment collection and clean posting reduces the likelihood you’ll need this undo sequence in the future.