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A repeatable accounting rhythm

A monthly close checklist for maintaining useful books throughout the year.

Use this sequence to reconcile balances, document open questions, and prepare financial reports for tax work and management decisions.

Request a ConsultationUse the Guide
Who it is forBusiness owners, bookkeepers, and finance staff
JurisdictionGeneral accounting workflow
Last reviewedAugust 8, 2026
UseGeneral educational information, not individualized advice
A reliable monthly close confirms that activity is complete. It reconciles bank, card, loan, processor, payroll, receivable, payable, and other agreed accounts; records supported adjustments; resolves unusual items; and delivers reports with a short list of open questions.

01

Collect and confirm access

The close starts with complete source information and working system access.

Confirm bank feeds, statements, credit cards, loans, processors, payroll reports, and other agreed systems are available.
Collect invoices, receipts, bills, deposit support, loan statements, lease information, and unusual-transaction explanations.
Identify new accounts, cards, loans, owners, employees, vendors, systems, locations, or business activities.
Confirm the period’s sales, deposits, transfers, owner activity, and payroll-provider reports are complete.
Separate business records from personal items and label missing support.
Payroll is processed by the selected provider. The accounting close uses provider-generated reports when included in scope.

02

Reconcile the balance sheet

The underlying balances must be explained before the profit-and-loss statement is reliable.

Reconcile agreed bank and credit-card accounts to the statement ending balance.
Reconcile loans, lines of credit, payment processors, and clearing accounts.
Review accounts receivable, customer deposits, accounts payable, and unpaid items.
Review payroll liabilities and benefit or tax balances against provider reports.
Review fixed assets, inventory, prepaids, accrued items, equity, contributions, distributions, and owner loans.
Old differences should not be forced to miscellaneous expense merely to make an account reconcile.

03

Review activity and adjustments

Use consistency and business context to find transactions that need support or different treatment.

Review uncategorized, duplicate, unusually large, negative, personal, or unfamiliar transactions.
Record agreed depreciation, prepaid, accrual, allocation, payroll, loan-interest, and other supported adjustments.
Compare to prior month, prior year, budget, and operational expectations where available.
Document estimates, assumptions, reclassifications, and unresolved items.
Confirm sales-tax, payroll, inventory, merchant, and other operational balances owned by other providers or staff.
Judgment-heavy, tax, legal, valuation, assurance, or specialty work may be outside routine bookkeeping scope.

04

Deliver, discuss, and carry forward

The close is complete when reports and open items reach the people responsible for decisions.

Deliver the agreed profit and loss, balance sheet, cash-flow or management reports after review.
Summarize material changes, unusual items, cash concerns, past-due balances, and unresolved questions.
Assign each open item to a person and target date.
Protect the closed period and document later changes.
Carry forward tax estimates, owner compensation, reporting, budget, and advisory questions to the appropriate review.
A useful close depends on complete, reviewed records.

Sources and limits

Verify current rules before acting.

This workflow is a general guide. The actual close depends on accounting basis, systems, transaction volume, controls, inventory, industry, lender or investor requirements, and the agreed engagement. It is not an audit or assurance procedure.

Related next steps

Services related to this guide.

The service scope depends on your records, entities, states, transactions, deadlines, and goals.

Bookkeeping

See the recurring categorization, reconciliation, cleanup, and report-delivery scope.

Explore bookkeeping →

Financial Statements & Reporting

Turn maintained records into useful statements and management reporting.

Explore reporting →

Business Advisory

Use reliable information for cash flow, forecasts, compensation, and decisions.

Explore advisory →
How long should a monthly close take?

Timing depends on complexity, transaction volume, systems, records, and how quickly questions are answered. The engagement should define a realistic target after complete information is available.

Do you need payroll reports every month?

If payroll activity is included in the bookkeeping scope, provider-generated reports commonly support wage, tax, benefit, liability, and cash entries. Mehdiani does not process payroll.

What if an account does not reconcile?

Investigate missing, duplicate, uncleared, misdated, or incorrectly classified activity and compare the accounting balance to the actual statement or support. Do not hide the difference.

Is a monthly close the same as an audit?

No. Bookkeeping and close procedures do not provide audit, review, or assurance unless a separate engagement explicitly says otherwise.

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