Let us look at two examples of printing checks. For testing purposes, we are going to print them on plain paper or, preferably, on a copy of your check sheet. When printing real checks though, you will be using pre-printed 3-to-a-page checks or Voucher checks, which have one check and a voucher in one page. In the first test, we will print a single check with address. In the second, we will print three checks in one go.
- Prerequisite: Please make sure that you have entered the transactions for which you want to print the check in the account register first.
- Open the account register that you want to print from. In this case, open the Checking Account register. Make sure the transaction for which you want to print the check is selected. The cursor should be on that transaction and that line should be highlighted.
- Select from the menu File | Print Checks. The Print Check dialog will open. Select Quicken/QuickBooks (tm) US-Letter in the Check Format dropdown list. Make sure Check Position is Top, if not already so. Make sure Date Format is US (12/31/2001), if not already so.
- In the Address pane, the name will be pre-filled. Fill out the other address lines manually.
- Please note that the Checks on first page field is disabled indicating that you can print only one check at a time as shown in the following screenshot:
- Check everything and click Print. The print output should appear as shown in the following screenshot:
- Compare the printed page with the check sheet and make sure that the printed text is properly aligned. If you are using plain paper, you can put the printed sheet behind the check sheet and hold them against a light to check the alignment. Checks are available with or without lines printed. Order what works best for you.
- Printing multiple checks in one go: To print multiple checks in GnuCash you need to do a search to find the transactions you wish to print. Let us say that you have three checks to print for Zebra Electronics. Now that you are familiar with searching, go ahead and get those three payments in the Search Results window.
- With this window open, invoke File | Print Checks. Now the magic will happen and the Checks on first page field will be enabled. Select the Quicken(tm) Wallet Checks w/ side stub in Check format and change the Checks on first page field to 3 as shown in the following screenshot:
- Check everything and click Print. You should see that all three checks print in one go.
We did say that cash flow management is an important part of running a business successfully, and that you should control your cash outflows very carefully. However, that doesn't mean that you don't issue any checks at all. That will be counterproductive. Remember, we also said that you have to pay your bills on time in order to maintain good credit scores? It is good to know how to print checks, for those rare occasions when you do want to make a payment.
As we saw in this tutorial, checks are printed in GnuCash primarily from the account register.
Tip
Printing Memo on checks
Checks usually have a place for a Memo. You might want to write the Account Number, Policy Number, Loan Number, and other such cross reference information there. This Memo field serves as important reference information, especially if the check gets detached from the accompanying statement that shows what that payment is for.
With the account register open, from the menu select View | Double Line. You will now see an extra line for each transaction and a Notes field below the Description field. Add whatever information you want to print in the Memo field of the check in this Notes field.
Also, as we saw in this tutorial, you do get options to select a check format and change the date format.
If you are using 3 checks to a page sheet, there are two ways of printing one check at a time:
- After printing each check, you can tear it off. Next time when you print, send the smaller page through the printer again for the next check. Always leave the Check Position as Top. The printer will print, starting at the top of the page, as if it has a full sheet.
- Alternatively, you can send the already printed check through with the rest of the full sheet and you can set the Check Position as Middle or Bottom setting, as the case may be.
If you are printing a small number of checks and need to send them out as soon as you print them, you may prefer the first option.
The following two Check Formats allow you to print an optional address:
- Quicken/QuickBooks US-Letter
- Voucher Check 3-part US-Letter
When you select either of these Check Formats in the Print Check dialog, the Address pane will become enabled. The name of the payee will be populated by the system from the selected transaction. However, you have to enter the address manually.
If you invoke File | Print Checks… from an account register, you will only be able to print a single check at a time for the one selected transaction.
To print multiple checks in GnuCash, as you saw in the tutorial above, you need to do a search to find the transactions you wish to print. However, please note that all the transactions in the Search Results window must be from a single account, such as the Checking Account. Otherwise, it will cause an error. So make sure you have transactions from a single account, for each invocation of printing, to avoid this error.
If none of the standard formats are suitable for your purpose, you can create a custom check format and save it for your use. However, this is painstaking work and be prepared for several trial print runs to get it just right. Here is a brief outline of how to create a custom check format.
In the Check format field, select Custom and switch to the Custom format tab. You will now find that all the fields are enabled.
The Custom format tab has a line across the tab dividing it into a top pane and a bottom pane. The top pane allows you to position individual fields in the check. It contains two columns to enter in the x and y co-ordinates of the field position on the check. Positions in the Custom Check Format entry area are specified horizontally with an x value of 0.000 at the left edge of the check with x increasing to the right. Vertically y values start with 0.000 at the top edge of the check with y increasing as you travel down.
The bottom pane allows you to position the entire check correctly on the page. The Translation field is the distance from the top left corner and the Rotation field rotates the check clockwise by the Degrees entered. The Units field in the bottom pane specifies the units used in all the x and y fields in the entire tab. You can choose from Points (same as Pixels), Inches, Centimeters, and Millimeters as shown in the following screenshot:
Make sure you save the custom check format and give it a name of your choice. Then it will appear as an additional selection in the Check format field.
GnuCash doesn't have a way to print receipts for payment received. However, if what your customer needs is a record of having made a payment, you can offer the following alternative.
From the menu, select Reports | Business | Customer Report. In the Options dialog select the customer and put in a date range. You will see a record of invoices and payments during that period. You can print this report and give it to the customer. Unlike a simple receipt, this report has the added advantage that it shows current balance and serves as a reminder to the customer for any payments still due. If your customer expresses frustration asking you why they are being reminded about the next payment when they are asking for a receipt for this one, you can always blame it on your quirky accounting software. Neat!
- The Print Checks menu is available only from which window?
a. Account Tree window
b. Account Register window
c. Transaction Report window
d. View Invoice window