How are a month's bank transactions categorized before close?

Short answer

Each line is matched to an existing record first, then categorized, split, or excluded, and the queue is cleared before the books tie to the bank.

Before close, every bank and card line from the month needs one place in the books. The work runs in a set order so nothing is recorded twice, and the month stays open until the ledger cash balance agrees with the bank statement.

The order the month's lines are worked in

Match before categorizing: A line that pays a bill or collects an invoice already in the books is linked to that record. Categorizing it instead creates a second expense or deposit.
Record transfers and card payments once: Money moved between the company's own accounts is a transfer, and a payment toward a company card reduces the card liability. Neither is income or expense, so each is recorded from one side and matched on the other.
Split mixed lines: One payment that covers several purposes is split so each part lands in its own account.
Categorize what's left: Bank fees, interest, and payments with no prior record get an account, plus a department or class where reporting requires one.
Exclude duplicates: Lines imported twice, or that don't belong in the books, are excluded so nothing posts.

Tying out the month

The queue is clear when no line dated in the period is left unreviewed. The ending cash balance in the ledger is then compared to the bank statement for the same date. A gap usually traces back to a line recorded twice or a line still waiting for review, and either one is fixed before the period closes.

Working the month's queue in Ramp Stack

In Ramp Stack, the month's lines sit in the Bank transactions workspace, which brings activity from Ramp and from linked external bank accounts into one list. Each line arrives with a suggested category or a likely match based on the company's past bookkeeping, so review starts from a proposed answer.

Lines move through three statuses. Needs review holds anything not yet confirmed, and that's where the bookkeeper accepts or changes the suggestion, splits a line, links it to an existing bill, invoice, or record, marks it as a transfer or card payment, or excludes it. Confirmed lines move to Ready to sync, then show as Synced once they reach QuickBooks Online.

Approved lines are sent to QuickBooks Online as the matching record type, such as a purchase, deposit, or bill payment. A line linked to an existing record creates nothing new, so the match-first order carries through to the ledger.

Stack runs its own bank feed rather than reading the QuickBooks Online review queue. If the same account also downloads into QuickBooks Online directly, those downloaded lines are matched to the records Stack already created instead of being added again.