Record a customer refund in QuickBooks Online (2024)

To watch more how-to videos, visit our video section.

Step 1: Enter a credit memo

1. Select + New and select Credit memo.
2. In the Customer field, select the appropriate customer.
3. Enter the Credit Memo Date, Amount, Tax, and Product/Service (This is the category, product, or service you’re getting a credit for).
   Note: If you choose an inventory item, QuickBooks will put it back into inventory. If the item is defective or if you don’t want it added back to inventory, you can make an inventory adjustment.
4. Select Save and close.

Note: If the customer has overpaid, you do not need the credit memo as you will already have an unapplied credit that acts as your credit memo.

Step 2: Make the refund

1. Select + New and select Expense.
2. In the Payee field, select or enter the desired customer.
3. In the Payment account field, select the bank the money is being refunded from.
4. In the Category field, select the Debtors account (Accounts receivable).
5. In the Amount field, enter the amount of the refund.
6. In the Tax field, select the appropriate Tax (not inclusive/exclusive of tax).
7. Select Save.
8. Next, go to + New and select Receive payment.
9. Add the Customer and select the Payment method and Deposit to.
10. Balance should be 0 as they will cancel each other out.
11. Select Save and close.
12. If you have Online Banking, go to Transactions, then Bank transactions (Take me there). Then match the record you found.

You can use refund receipts if a customer asks for a refund for an item or service. If they used a credit card, learn how to refund a credit card payment.

Note: To avoid a double refund, make sure you haven't entered a credit memo yet.

To watch more how-to videos, visit our video section.

1. Select +New.
2. Select Refund receipt or Give refund.
3. Select the Customer ▼ dropdown, then select the customer you want to refund.
4. Select the Refund From ▼ dropdown, then select the bank you deposited the payment for the invoice to.
5. Add all products or services the customer returned in the Product/Service column.
6. Make sure to fill the date, quantity, rate, amount, sales tax, and other fields accordingly, then select Save and close.
   Note: If you want to give a partial refund, only add the items or amount you want to refund.

You can record a refund to your customer using Check or Expense if:

• They want to redeem their open credits.
• They made a prepayment for an order but canceled it before receiving the goods or services.
• They want you to reimburse an accidental overpayment.

Using Check or Expense to record the refund reduces your bank's balance and offsets the customer's open credit, overpayment, or prepayment.

Step 1: Record the refund for your customer

1. Select +New.
2. Select Expense, Add expense or Check. If you're in Business view, follow the steps to switch to Accountant view first. Then come back to these steps.
3. Select the customer you want to refund from the Payee ▼ dropdown.
4. From the Payment account ▼ dropdown, select the bank account where you deposited the overpayment to.
5. On the first line of the Category column, select Accounts Receivable.
6. Enter how much you want to refund in the Amount field.
7. Fill out the other fields as you see fit, then select Save and close.

Step 2: Link the refund to the customer's credit or overpayment

1. Select +New.
2. Select Receive payment.
3. Select the same customer you used for the check or expense when recording the refund.
4. Fill out the other fields as you see fit.
5. In the Outstanding Transaction section, select the checkbox for the Expense or Check you created when recording the refund.
   Note: If you have automation to apply bill payments turned on, this step is done for you.
6. Make sure the payment is equal to the open balance, then select Save and close.