The Month-End Close Checklist Every Small Business Needs

The month-end close is the heartbeat of a healthy accounting system. Done right, it takes 2–4 hours and leaves you with a clean, accurate picture of exactly where your business stands. Done wrong — or skipped entirely — it turns into a quarterly nightmare that costs 10× as long and produces numbers you don't fully trust.

Here's the complete checklist we use for every client.

Week 1 of the following month: Data entry and imports

Bank and credit card transactions

• Import all bank transactions for the month (via direct feed or CSV)
• Import all credit card transactions
• Categorize every uncategorized transaction — no "Miscellaneous" catch-alls
• Match receipts to transactions for expenses over $30 (required for ITCs)

Accounts receivable

• Record all invoices issued during the month
• Record all payments received
• Run an AR aging report — flag anything over 30 days for follow-up

Accounts payable

• Enter all vendor bills received (even if not yet paid)
• Record all payments made to vendors
• Verify that recurring bills (subscriptions, insurance, rent) hit the correct period

Week 1–2: Reconciliations

This is the most critical step. Every account with a statement needs to be reconciled.

Bank reconciliations

• Reconcile every business bank account to the bank statement
• Investigate and resolve any discrepancies (not just "clear" them)
• Ensure beginning balance matches last month's ending balance

Credit card reconciliations

• Reconcile every business credit card to the statement
• Confirm personal charges (if any) are coded to owner's drawings, not expenses

Payroll reconciliation

• Confirm payroll entries match payroll reports for the period
• Verify CRA remittances are recorded and timely
• Check that gross pay, source deductions, and employer contributions are correctly split

Week 2: Adjusting entries

Depreciation and amortization

• Post monthly depreciation for all capital assets (CCA schedule)
• Verify prepaid expenses are being amortized correctly

Accruals

• Accrue expenses incurred in the period but not yet invoiced (accrual accounting)
• Reverse last month's accruals that have since been invoiced

Inventory (if applicable)

• Update inventory counts or run inventory costing reports
• Record any inventory adjustments, write-downs, or scraps

Intercompany (if applicable)

• Record and reconcile any intercompany transactions
• Verify related-party balances net to zero

Week 2–3: Review and finalize

Balance sheet review

• Review all balance sheet accounts for reasonableness
• Investigate any account with an unusual balance or movement
• Confirm all liability accounts (loans, taxes payable, deferred revenue) are accurate

P&L review

• Compare current month to prior month and budget — explain major variances
• Verify gross margin is in line with expectations
• Check that large or unusual expenses are properly authorized and categorized

HST/GST

• Verify HST collected matches your taxable revenue for the period
• Confirm ITC claims are supported by receipts
• If filing quarterly or monthly, prepare your HST return

Final sign-off

• Lock the period (if your accounting software supports it)
• Export and save the final trial balance, P&L, and balance sheet
• Send management financials to stakeholders

The one thing most businesses skip: the narrative

Numbers without context are just numbers. The most valuable part of a month-end package is a brief written summary — 5–10 sentences — that answers:

• What drove the biggest revenue and expense movements this month?
• What's the current cash position and runway?
• What should the owner pay attention to next month?

That's the difference between accounting and financial management.

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If this checklist feels overwhelming to execute monthly, that's exactly what we're built for. Book a free audit to see how your current close process compares — and what it would look like with professional support.