Purpose
This article provides background information on the integration of QuickBooks Online (QBO) with your account.
Audience
This article is directed toward administrators (admins).
Background
The basic API integration built with QBO allows you to sync data between the two systems. This eliminates any manual file import for finance teams. The sync is bidirectional, meaning that data flows from QBO into the platform and from the platform into QBO.
Admins can choose to sync from the platform to QBO either: approved expense report data (once an hour) or posted transaction data (at the time of posting). To set up and manage an integration with QBO, take the following steps described in the linked articles:
For syncing expense reports: Assign a class to each employee (optional).
Prerequisite
To complete the integration between the platform and QBO, you need a QBO administrator username and password.
Known limitations
The QuickBooks integration is for QBO, not QuickBooks Desktop. QuickBooks Desktop (QBD) is a different version. This article covers the QBO integration.
The platform does not support building custom files for any version of QuickBooks, either QBO or QBD.
QBO Bill page overview
Each QuickBooks Report is created as either a bill (Figure 1) or a journal entry (Figure 2) and is associated with a vendor that the platform creates when you enable the Expense Reports integration.
Figure 1. QBO Bill page overview
Figure 2. Journal Entry page overview
Note: The Vendor that the platform creates for expense reports and transactions defaults to "Expense reports from TravelBank" and "Transactions from TravelBank" respectively. For instance, if you have an expense or transaction at a coffee shop named “Coffee Corner,” you might expect “Coffee Corner” to go in the Name field as the Vendor. However, "Coffee Corner" goes into the Description field, and the Name field defaults to "Expense reports from TravelBank" or "Transactions from TravelBank" as applicable.
Data synced for bills
The platform syncs the following data for bills through the QBO integration:
Bill date: The platform uses bill entries to sync reports into the correct accounting period. The bill date is set to the date of the last expense on the report. If the period is closed in QBO, the platform sets the date to the first day of the current period.
Category details:
Category
Description: The platform provides the following information about each expense: the vendor, the customer name, any description an employee added, and whether the expense was charged to the corporate card.
Note: The content in the Merchant and Description fields in the platform are combined into the Description field in QBO (Figure 4). For example, if you have an expense or transaction at a coffee shop named "Coffee Corner," in the platform the Merchant field would be “Coffee Corner” and the Description field would be whatever comment you add, such as “Coffee for client meeting.” When the expense or transaction syncs to QBO, the QBO Description field would be Row 1: “Coffee Corner” Row 2: “Coffee for client meeting” or whatever you added in the platform Description field.
Amount
Billable
Tax
Customer
Memo: The platform adds employee information into this field, including the employee name and email address (Figure 4).
Attachments: You can view receipt images users attach to their expenses directly in QBO (Figure 3).
Figure 3. Receipt images attached to a bill in QBO
Data synced for journal entries
The platform syncs the following data for journal entries through the QBO integration:
Journal date: The platform uses journal entries to sync reports into the correct accounting period. The journal date is set to the date of the last expense on the report. If the period is closed in QBO, the platform sets the date to the first day of the current period.
Category details:
Category
Description: gets set the "Merchant" appended with the "Description"; the platform provides the following information about each expense: the vendor, the customer name, any description an employee added, and whether the expense was charged to the corporate card.
Note: The content in the Merchant and Description fields in the platform are combined into the Description field in QBO (Figure 4). For example, if you have an expense or transaction at Coffee Corner, in the platform the Merchant field would be “Coffee Corner” and the Description field would be whatever comment you add, such as “Coffee for client meeting.” When the expense or transaction syncs to QBO, the QBO Description field would be Row 1: “Coffee Corner Row 2: “Coffee for client meeting” or whatever you added in the the platform Description field.
Amount
Billable
Tax
Customer
Memo: Employee name and email; the platform adds employee information into this field, including the employee name and email address (Figure 4).
Attachments: Receipts (if attached) are synced; You can view receipt images users attach to their expenses directly in QBO.
Figure 4. Journal entry page showing Description, Name, and Memo fields
Other articles on the QBO integration
For more information on the QBO integration, review our other articles:
Frequently asked questions
What if there is no accounts payable account to select in various fields of the QBO Integration page?
If there is not an accounts payable account available on the QBO Integration page, you need to set up an accounts payable account in your QuickBooks environment.
In QBO, from the navigation menu take the following steps:
Select Transactions > Chart of Accounts.
Select New. This brings up a New account dialog (Figure 5).
Figure 5. New account dialog
Select Liabilities.
In the Save account under* dropdown field, select Accounts Payable > Accounts Payable (A/P). This automatically completes the Tax form section* field with the previously selected Accounts Payable (A/P).
Name your new account, for example: Accounts Payable (Figure 6).
Figure 6. Newly created accounts payable account
Once you have created your accounts payable account, return to the platform and refresh the Company Settings > Integrations > QBO Integration page. The new account is available for you to select in various fields.
Need help?
If you need help, contact the Client Services team using the online chat feature.
Created: January 20, 2020
Updated: February 3, 2026