Bookkeeping Checklist for Contractors (Weekly, Monthly, Year-End)

A contractor's bookkeeping checklist covers four rhythms: weekly (invoice jobs, enter bills, code costs to jobs, review the bank feed), monthly (reconcile every account, review A/R aging, close job costs, read the P&L and WIP), quarterly (estimated taxes, sales tax, payroll filings) and year-end (1099s, inventory, fixed assets, handing clean books to your CPA).

Why do contractors need a bookkeeping routine?

Because the books get used for decisions all year, not just at tax time. Pricing depends on knowing job costs. Cash planning depends on an accurate A/R aging. Bonding and loans depend on clean statements. And a shoebox of receipts in January costs more in CPA fees and missed deductions than an hour a week ever would. This checklist assumes QuickBooks Online or similar, with a chart of accounts that separates job costs from overhead.

Weekly bookkeeping checklist

1. Invoice every finished job. Same day if possible. Unbilled work is cash you don't have. See how to get paid faster.
2. Record payments and deposits. Apply each payment to its invoice so accounts receivable stays accurate. Match deposits to the bank.
3. Enter supplier and sub bills into accounts payable, each coded to a job and a cost account, with the due date.
4. Clear the bank and card feeds. Categorize every transaction; attach receipts. Don't let "uncategorized" pile up.
5. Code field time to jobs. Approve timesheets with job assignments so labor lands in job costing.
6. Check what's due. Bills due this week and payroll, against the bank balance. See cash flow for contractors.

Monthly close checklist

1. 1

   Reconcile every account.

   Checking, savings, every credit card, loans and lines of credit, and any payment processor balance. The reconciled balance must equal the statement. Unreconciled months hide missing transactions and duplicates.

2. 2

   Review accounts receivable.

   Run the A/R aging. Chase anything past due using the collections plan. Fix unapplied payments and credits. Decide on write-offs.

3. 3

   Review accounts payable.

   Run the A/P aging. Match supplier statements to your bills. Catch missing credits and duplicates.

4. 4

   Close job costs.

   Make sure all materials, subs, labor and rentals for the month are coded to jobs. Run job profitability and compare to the estimate. See how to do job costing in QuickBooks.

5. 5

   Update the WIP report (if you have jobs longer than a month).

   Estimates to complete, percent complete, over and under billings. See WIP report.

6. 6

   Record payroll and payroll liabilities.

   Confirm payroll posted correctly, with field wages in cost of goods sold and office wages in overhead, and that payroll tax deposits cleared.

7. 7

   Post recurring entries.

   Depreciation, loan interest vs. principal splits, prepaid insurance amortization, and customer deposits earned this month.

8. 8

   Read the P&L and balance sheet.

   Compare to last month and the same month last year. Investigate anything that moved more than a few points. See how to read a profit and loss statement.

9. 9

   Set aside tax money.

   Move a share of the month's profit to a tax savings account. See how much to set aside for taxes.

10. 10

    Back up and lock the period.

    Set a closing date in QuickBooks so last month's numbers don't change after you've reviewed them.

Quarterly bookkeeping checklist

• Federal estimated taxes. The IRS lists the payment due dates for individuals as April 15, June 15, September 15 and January 15 of the following year (when a date falls on a weekend or holiday, the deadline moves to the next business day). Sole proprietors, partners and S corporation shareholders generally use Form 1040-ES. See quarterly estimated taxes for contractors and the quarterly estimated tax calculator.
• State estimated taxes, on your state's schedule.
• Sales and use tax returns, if your state taxes your work or materials. Filing frequency depends on the state and your volume. See sales tax on labor vs. materials.
• Payroll tax filings (such as federal Form 941 and state unemployment returns), usually handled by your payroll provider; confirm they were filed and paid.
• Review subcontractor files. W-9 and certificate of insurance on file for every sub you've paid this quarter.
• Review pricing against margins. A quarter of job cost data is enough to see which job types are underpriced.

Year-end bookkeeping checklist

1. Issue Forms 1099-NEC. The IRS instructions say to furnish payee statements and file with the IRS by January 31. For payments made in tax years beginning after 2025, the reporting threshold for nonemployee compensation is $2,000. See 1099s for subcontractors.
2. Confirm W-2s and payroll year-end with your payroll provider.
3. Count inventory if you keep it, and reconcile truck stock. See cost of goods sold for when a formal inventory is required.
4. Update the fixed asset list. Trucks, equipment and tools bought or sold this year, with dates and amounts, for depreciation and Section 179 decisions.
5. Review A/R for write-offs and A/P for bills you'll never be charged.
6. Reconcile loan balances to lender statements and split the year's payments into interest and principal.
7. Review owner draws, distributions and payroll with your CPA, especially for an S corporation.
8. Finalize the WIP schedule as of December 31 for your CPA, bank and surety.
9. Hand over clean books. A reconciled, categorized file with a year-end WIP report and fixed asset list is what your CPA needs to prepare returns efficiently.

Bookkeeping checklist by trade: what to add

Common contractor bookkeeping mistakes

• Skipping reconciliations. The single biggest cause of wrong numbers.
• Mixing personal and business. One business checking account and one business card, no exceptions.
• Costs not coded to jobs. Every job looks profitable and the P&L can't say which ones aren't.
• Field labor in overhead. Gross margin is overstated and prices end up too low.
• Letting the bank feed decide. Auto-categorization rules put a $4,000 condenser in "Supplies" if you let them.
• Waiting for January. Year-end cleanup of twelve months costs far more than a monthly close.