Accounting Settings

The Accounting Settings page lets you configure how MaidCentral Pulse handles invoicing, payments, and integrations with external accounting systems like QuickBooks Online.

Accessing Accounting Settings

1. Click Settings in the main navigation
2. Select Integrations & System from the sidebar
3. Click Accounting

Understanding Providers

MaidCentral Pulse supports three accounting modes:

Mode	Description	Best For
Native	Built-in invoicing with local storage	Companies not using QuickBooks
QuickBooks Online	Sync invoices and payments to QBO	Existing QBO users
Hybrid	Native with automatic QBO sync	Most businesses

Native Mode (Default)

Native mode provides full invoicing capabilities without any external dependencies:

• Create and manage invoices
• Record payments
• Issue credit memos
• Generate PDF invoices
• Send invoice emails

All data is stored locally in MaidCentral Pulse. This is the default for all new accounts.

QuickBooks Online Integration

If you use QuickBooks Online for accounting, you can connect your QBO account to automatically sync:

• Invoices - Created invoices sync to QBO
• Payments - Recorded payments appear in QBO
• Refunds - Refunds sync to QBO as refund receipts
• Customers - Customer accounts stay synchronized
• Credit Memos - Credits sync to QBO, and applying a credit to an invoice reconciles at the invoice's next sync

Connecting to QuickBooks Online

Step 1: Initiate Connection

1. Go to Settings → Integrations → Accounting
2. Find the QuickBooks Online card
3. Click Connect to QuickBooks

Step 2: Authorize Access

1. You'll be redirected to Intuit's login page
2. Sign in with your QuickBooks credentials
3. Select the company you want to connect
4. Click Connect to authorize MaidCentral Pulse

Step 3: Initial Sync

After authorization, MaidCentral Pulse automatically:

1. Imports your QBO customers
2. Matches them with existing customer records
3. Creates accounts for any new customers

This process typically takes 1-5 minutes depending on your customer count.

Step 4: Verify Connection

Return to Accounting Settings and verify:

• Status shows "Connected"
• Company Name displays your QBO company
• Last Sync shows a recent timestamp

Sync Settings

Sync Mode

Choose how often data syncs to QuickBooks:

Mode	Behavior	Recommended For
None	No sync to QBO	Native-only users
Real-Time	Sync immediately after each operation	Critical QBO integration
Batch	Sync periodically (every hour)	Standard usage, lower API costs

Recommendation

Batch mode is recommended for most businesses. It reduces API calls and handles temporary connectivity issues gracefully.

Force Sync

If you need to sync immediately:

1. Click Force Sync Now in the Sync Settings card
2. All pending items will be pushed to QBO
3. Wait for the confirmation message

Sync Queue Monitoring

The Sync Queue shows items waiting to be synced or that encountered errors.

Queue Statistics

Status	Meaning
Pending	Waiting to sync
Synced	Successfully synchronized
Error	Failed, will retry automatically
Blocked	Requires manual intervention

Handling Errors

When an item shows Error status:

1. Click the item to view the error message
2. Most errors resolve automatically on retry
3. For persistent errors, click Retry to attempt again

Handling Blocked Items

Blocked items require action:

1. Review the block reason (usually authentication expired)
2. If OAuth expired, reconnect QuickBooks (see below)
3. Click Unblock to allow the item to retry

Reconnecting QuickBooks

If your QuickBooks connection expires:

1. You'll see a Blocked status on the QBO card
2. Click Reconnect
3. Sign in to QuickBooks again
4. Authorize access
5. Pending items will automatically sync

30-Day Window

After disconnecting, you have 30 days to reconnect without losing your sync mappings. After 30 days, you'll need to set up the connection from scratch.

Switching QuickBooks Companies

If you try to reconnect QuickBooks and authorize a different company than the one already linked, Pulse blocks the switch with an interstitial screen rather than silently re-pointing your data:

1. The screen shows your currently connected company side by side with the new company you just authorized in Intuit.
2. It lists what a switch would unlink: invoices, payments, customers, the sync queue, rate modifications, employees, scope of work, gift cards, payment methods, and GL mappings.
3. To confirm, type the new company's exact name.
4. Choose Cancel, keep [current company] to back out and stay on your current connection, or Clear [N] links and connect [new company] to proceed.

warning

Clearing links is not reversible from Pulse. Only confirm a company switch if you intend to start syncing against the new QuickBooks company going forward.

After a confirmed switch, sync is deliberately turned off ("Sync is off — nothing is syncing to QuickBooks") until you revisit Accounting Settings and confirm your account and item mappings are ready for the new company. The switch also clears the QuickBooks item used for the Credit Card Surcharge line, so sales tax is not collected on surcharges until that item is set again for the new company; contact MaidCentral support if you need help with it.

Disconnecting QuickBooks

To disconnect your QuickBooks account:

1. Go to Settings → Integrations → Accounting
2. Click Disconnect on the QBO card
3. Confirm the disconnection

What happens:

• Sync stops immediately
• Your data remains in MaidCentral Pulse (local)
• QBO data is not affected
• You have 30 days to reconnect

Tax Configuration

Tax Provider

QuickBooks now calculates and owns all sales tax — there is no separate Pulse tax-rate table to configure. When you connect QuickBooks, the Tax Settings card reports which method your company uses, detected from your QuickBooks company's own Preferences:

Provider	Description
QBO Automated Sales Tax	QuickBooks calculates tax based on the job address and each item's own taxable/exempt status
QBO Global Tax	Canadian GST/HST/PST via QuickBooks

This is reported, not chosen — there is nothing to select here. Tax rates, taxable/non-taxable status, and tax codes are all managed in QuickBooks, and Pulse reads them at invoice-sync time.

Setting Up Tax Codes

1. Go to the Tax Settings card
2. View available tax codes (read from QuickBooks)
3. Select a Default Tax Code for new invoices

Tax-Exempt Customers

For tax-exempt customers:

1. Go to the customer's account settings
2. Check Tax Exempt
3. Enter the exemption reason
4. All their invoices will use the "NON" (non-taxable) code

Troubleshooting

"Connection Blocked" Error

Cause: OAuth token expired or revoked

Solution:

1. Click Reconnect in the QBO card
2. Sign in and authorize again

Why does Connect to QuickBooks fail with "QuickBooks did not confirm access to that company"?

Pulse connects a QuickBooks company only after QuickBooks confirms your sign-in can open it. If it can't, nothing changes and your existing connection stays as it was.

Solution:

1. Sign in to Intuit as a user of the company you are picking
2. Click Connect to QuickBooks again (Re-authenticate if the card shows Blocked)

If QuickBooks was briefly unavailable, try again in a few minutes.

MaidCentral V2 saves the connection without this check. (Pulse reference D-60)

"Sync Failed" on Invoices

Cause: Customer not found in QBO

Solution:

1. Ensure customer exists in QBO
2. Check the customer mapping in Account Settings
3. Click Retry on the failed item

Invoices Show $0 Tax

Cause: Using QBO Automated Sales Tax (tax calculated after sync)

Expected Behavior: Tax is calculated by QBO when the invoice syncs. Until then, tax shows as $0 with a "Tax Pending" indicator.

Queue Items Stuck in "Pending"

Cause: Sync mode set to "None" or sync disabled

Solution:

1. Check Sync Mode is set to "Real-Time" or "Batch"
2. Click Force Sync Now to process immediately

High Number of Errors

Cause: Rate limiting or API issues

Solution:

1. Switch to Batch mode to reduce API calls
2. Wait 15 minutes and try again
3. Check Intuit's status page for outages

Best Practices

1. Use Batch Mode - Reduces API costs and handles transient failures
2. Monitor the Queue - Check weekly for blocked or error items
3. Keep Tokens Fresh - Reconnect immediately if you see connection warnings
4. Match Customers First - Ensure customer records match before syncing invoices
5. Test with a Single Invoice - After connecting, create one test invoice to verify sync

Related Topics

• Accounting Settings — Advanced Configuration - Automation rules, account mappings, customer sync, and advanced QBO settings
• Creating Invoices - Creating and managing invoices
• Managing Customers - Managing customer accounts