How to Reconcile (or Balance) a Check Register

Unfortunately, most of us didn't get to learn about banking and balancing checkbooks when we were in school. But it IS one of those things you should know how to do--especially the way the economy is right now, you want to be sure you're keeping track of every dollar that comes in and every dollar that goes out.

The obvious first step is to make sure that throughout the month, you write down every deposit and every withdrawal or debit. You'll want to be exact, and if you need to, reference your online bank account on a weekly basis to make sure you didn't miss anything. Be sure to include any service charges, bank fees, and interest that you accumulated during the month. 

When you receive your bank statement from the bank, you'll want to sit down with your check register, calculator, and statement. Be sure your check register is calculated up to date.

Go through your check register and match it up with the statement for the bank account. Mark off anything that shows on the bank statement that has cleared.

When you're done, note the checks that have not cleared and the deposits that have not shown on your statement yet.

Take the balance from your check register and ADD any of the checks that have not cleared and are still what the bank calls "outstanding."

Then SUBTRACT any deposits that did not show on your statement.

The number you come up with WILL match the bank statement's final total. If it does not, you'll want to go back to the beginning and make sure you have everything figured in.

Sara Haley is a freelancer currently living in Nebraska with her husband and two children, along with numerous four-legged friends.  She writes for Bukisa, eHow, and her own personal blog at sarakhaley.blogspot.com.  She has written for numerous publications both online and off, and continues to enjoy sharing her knowledge and love for life with others.