How to Reconcile Your Credit Card Statement Monthly

Many Calgary business owners reconcile their bank accounts but neglect their credit card accounts. This is a costly oversight. Credit cards often carry more transactions than bank accounts, and unreconciled credit card statements lead to missed expenses, incorrect categorisations, and GST tracking errors.

Why Credit Card Reconciliation Matters

Your business credit card is likely used for subscriptions, supplies, travel, fuel, meals, and online purchases. If these transactions aren't reconciled against your credit card statement, you risk: double-counting transactions, missing transactions that didn't feed into your accounting software, incorrect expense categorisation, and understating your actual business expenses.

Step-by-Step Reconciliation

1. Download your statement. Get the official credit card statement for the month from your card issuer.
2. Match transactions. Go line by line and match each statement transaction to the corresponding entry in your accounting software.
3. Investigate discrepancies. Missing transactions need to be added. Extra transactions in your books may be duplicates that need removal. Different amounts may indicate returns, fees, or errors.
4. Verify categories. As you review each transaction, confirm it's categorised correctly. Fuel should be in fuel, not office supplies.
5. Reconcile the balance. At the end, your accounting software balance should match your credit card statement balance exactly.

Common Issues

• Pending transactions. Some transactions may appear in your accounting software but not on your statement (or vice versa) due to timing. These are normal and will clear next month.
• Returns and credits. Ensure returns are matched to the original purchase and both are categorised consistently.
• Annual fees and interest. Don't forget to record credit card annual fees and any interest charges as business expenses.

How Often Should You Reconcile?

Monthly, at minimum. If your card has high transaction volume, consider reconciling bi-weekly to keep the task manageable.

Castle Reconciles Every Account

Every Castle Bookkeeping plan includes full reconciliation of all bank and credit card accounts, every month. Nothing slips through the cracks. Contact us for a free consultation.