Reconcile an account

Agree with your bank, down to the penny, once a month.

Last updated: April 16, 2026

Reconciling an account means matching every transaction in PennyBolt against your bank statement until the totals agree. It’s the check that tells you your file is correct. Do it once a month, at statement time, and you’ll catch every import error before it compounds.

flowchart LR
  A[Open your statement] --> B[Start reconciliation in PennyBolt]
  B --> C[Enter statement balance and date]
  C --> D[Mark each transaction cleared]
  D --> E{Difference = 0?}
  E -- yes --> F[Close reconciliation]
  E -- no --> G[Find the gap]
  G --> D

The reconciliation loop ends when PennyBolt’s cleared balance matches your statement.

Before you start

Have your bank statement in hand — paper, PDF, or your bank’s website showing transactions for the statement period. You need the closing balance and a list of every transaction that cleared during the period.

Start a reconciliation

In PennyBolt, select the account in the sidebar and click Reconcile (or go to Account → Reconcile).

Enter two things:

Statement date. The end date of the statement period.
Ending balance. The closing balance on your statement, exactly as printed.

Click Begin.

Mark transactions cleared

PennyBolt shows all uncleared transactions in the account. Work through your statement from top to bottom. For each transaction on the statement, find the matching entry in PennyBolt and check it off. PennyBolt calls this clearing the transaction.

As you clear transactions, PennyBolt shows a running difference at the top of the screen:

Cleared balance:    $1,204.87
Statement balance:  $1,204.87
Difference:         $0.00

When the difference is $0.00, every cleared transaction accounts for, and your file matches your statement.

Close the reconciliation

Click Finish reconciliation. PennyBolt marks all cleared transactions as reconciled and locks them. Reconciled transactions can’t be edited without unlocking.

If the difference is not $0.00, don’t click Finish — investigate first (see below).

Finding the gap

Difference is exactly one transaction amount. You missed a transaction. Scan your statement for any line item you didn’t check off, or check for a transaction in PennyBolt you forgot to mark. It could also mean a transaction is duplicated — check for two entries with the same date and amount.

Difference equals a round number. Often a data entry error: a $10.00 transaction entered as $100.00, or a sign error (expense entered as income). Sort the register by amount and look for the anomaly.

Difference is small and stubborn. A rounding difference in a split, or a transaction where your bank and PennyBolt disagree on the last cent. If you’ve verified everything else, it’s acceptable to add a small adjustment transaction rather than spend hours hunting a penny. Note what you did in the memo.

Transactions appear in PennyBolt but not on the statement. These are future-dated transactions or transactions that haven’t cleared your bank yet. Leave them unchecked; they’ll appear on the next statement.