Moving from QuickBooks Desktop Enterprise to QuickBooks Online or Intuit Enterprise Suite (IES) involves more than changing software. Your team also needs to learn a new accounting vocabulary.
A familiar feature may have a different name, appear in a different menu, or follow a different workflow. For example, memorized transactions become recurring transactions. Customer:Job may map to a sub-customer or project. In IES, dimensions expand how you organize financial reporting.
This QuickBooks terminology translation guide explains the most common differences across QuickBooks Desktop Enterprise, QuickBooks Online, and Intuit Enterprise Suite. Use it to plan data mapping, update procedures, and prepare your team for migration.
In This Article
- Why QuickBooks Terminology Matters During Migration
- Quick Answer: The Biggest Terminology Shifts
- Setup and Administration Terms
- Lists and Records Terms
- Transaction Terms
- Tracking and Reporting Terms
- Multi-Entity Terms
- Inventory and Project Terms
- How to Use This Guide During Migration
- Frequently Asked Questions
Why QuickBooks Terminology Matters During Migration
Terminology differences affect how your team enters transactions, configures settings, and builds reports. Learning a new feature name is usually straightforward. Understanding a different accounting structure requires more planning.
For example, translating a Desktop class list into IES dimensions involves deciding how leadership wants to measure performance. That decision should happen before you move historical data.
Three areas need particular attention:
- Data mapping: Document where each Desktop list, item type, and transaction type belongs in the new system. Identify anything that needs cleanup or a different structure.
- Internal controls: Update closing procedures, approval policies, and user permissions to reflect the new platform.
- Training and adoption: Explain how familiar concepts translate into daily workflows. A new login alone does not prepare someone to code transactions correctly.
How to read the comparisons: The QuickBooks Online column covers multiple subscription levels, including Advanced. Features vary by plan, configuration, and rollout. Confirm availability in your destination account before finalizing the migration scope. Some IES industry features are available through beta or early access programs.
Quick Answer: The Biggest Terminology Shifts
The most significant changes involve company files, preferences, reporting segments, jobs, and multi-entity accounting.
- Company file becomes a cloud company: You no longer work with a locally hosted .QBW file. Backup and recovery procedures still need to be documented.
- Preferences become Account and Settings: Many configuration options move into function-based settings. Review company settings separately from individual user permissions.
- Classes gain additional reporting options: IES supports classes, locations, and dimensions. Dimensions help separate reporting categories that may have been combined in one Desktop class list.
- Customer:Job maps to sub-customers or projects: Choose the destination based on customer relationships, billing requirements, and project profitability reporting.
- Separate files become a connected multi-entity structure in IES: Parent and child entities support consolidated reporting, standardized accounts, and intercompany workflows.
Setup and Administration Terms
QuickBooks Desktop Enterprise administration centers on a company file. QuickBooks Online and IES administration centers on a cloud company, user access, and account configuration.
| QuickBooks Desktop Enterprise | QuickBooks Online / Advanced | Intuit Enterprise Suite | Migration Consideration |
|---|---|---|---|
| Company file (.QBW) | Cloud company and subscription | Cloud companies, with parent and child entities for multi-entity organizations | Replace local file hosting and file handoffs with managed access. |
| My Preferences and Company Preferences | Account and Settings | Account and Settings, organized by function | Review company-wide configuration decisions before users begin entering data. |
| Admin | Primary admin and other user roles | Primary admin, user roles, and consolidated access permissions | Document account ownership and who can grant access. |
| Closing date and closing date password | Close the books | Close the books and audit log | Configure closing protections and document how your team reviews changes. |
| Accountant’s Copy | Accountant user access | Accountant user access | Your accountant works in the live company. Coordinate access and changes. |
| Backup (.QBB), Verify Data, and Rebuild Data | Cloud-hosted data; backup and restore in Advanced | Online backup and restore, with a personal cloud backup option | Replace Desktop file maintenance with a documented backup and recovery process. |
Intuit documents how to enable and use backup and restore in QuickBooks Online Advanced and IES. Review what the service includes before relying on it for recovery.
For a walkthrough of where Desktop preferences now live, read our Intuit Enterprise Suite settings migrator’s guide.
Lists and Records Terms
Desktop lists do not always have a direct equivalent in the cloud. Decide how each record should be used before conversion, especially customer jobs, pricing structures, and Other Names.
| QuickBooks Desktop Enterprise | QuickBooks Online / Advanced | Intuit Enterprise Suite | Migration Consideration |
|---|---|---|---|
| Item list | Products and services | Products and services | Review inactive items, duplicates, and account assignments before migration. |
| Group item | Bundle | Bundle | Test component pricing and how the bundle appears on sales forms. |
| Customer:Job | Sub-customer or project | Project or an appropriate customer structure | Choose the structure based on billing and profitability needs. A dimension can supplement reporting but does not replace a customer or project record. |
| Other Names list | No separate Other Names list | No separate Other Names list | Determine whether each active name belongs in customers, vendors, or employees. |
| Price levels | Price rules, where available | Price rules and available pricing options | Confirm availability and test customer-specific, promotional, or quantity-based pricing requirements. |
| Customer label | Customer label setting | Customer label setting | Use terms such as clients, members, donors, or patients when appropriate. |
Transaction Terms
Many transaction names stay familiar. The differences that need the most attention involve posting behavior, payment recording, receiving inventory, and recurring entries.
| QuickBooks Desktop Enterprise | QuickBooks Online / Advanced | Intuit Enterprise Suite | Migration Consideration |
|---|---|---|---|
| Enter Bills | Bill | Bill | The core accounts payable concept remains the same. |
| Write Checks | Check or expense | Check or expense | Use the transaction type that matches the payment. Paying an existing bill requires a bill payment. |
| Make Deposits | Bank deposit | Bank deposit | Group received payments to match the actual bank deposit. |
| Undeposited Funds | Undeposited Funds, sometimes labeled Payments to deposit | Undeposited Funds / Payments to deposit | Confirm the account’s detail type and reconcile stale balances before conversion. |
| Memorized transactions | Recurring transactions, where supported | Recurring transactions, plus workflow automation | Review schedules, templates, and automation separately from historical transactions. |
| Statement charge | Delayed charge as a potential workflow alternative | Delayed charge as a potential workflow alternative | A delayed charge does not post until invoiced. Review accounts receivable timing. |
| Finance charges | Late fees | Late fees | Check calculation rules and customer billing policies. |
| Item receipt | Validate the available receiving workflow; commonly handled through bills | Item receipt | Test receiving goods before the vendor bill arrives. |
| Sales order | Sales order in Plus and Advanced; other plans may require an inventory add-on | Sales order | Validate order entry, committed quantities, fulfillment, and invoicing. |
Sales orders are no longer an automatic reason to rule out QuickBooks Online. Intuit’s current sales order documentation lists manual sales orders for QuickBooks Online Plus, Advanced, and IES. Test the complete workflow against your business requirements.
Tracking and Reporting Terms
QuickBooks Desktop Enterprise uses classes and other record structures to organize reporting. QuickBooks Online offers classes and locations in supported plans. IES adds dimensions to analyze financial performance across more business segments.
| QuickBooks Desktop Enterprise | QuickBooks Online / Advanced | Intuit Enterprise Suite | Migration Consideration |
|---|---|---|---|
| Class | Classes and locations in supported plans | Classes, locations, and dimensions | Separate reporting categories instead of combining department, region, and business line in one list. |
| Custom fields | Custom fields, with options varying by plan | Custom fields and dimensions for different tracking needs | Decide which fields provide descriptive information and which should segment financial reports. |
| Memorized reports | Custom reports | Custom reports, management reports, and report settings | Rebuild and validate the report package leadership uses. |
| Reports and Graphs preference for cash or accrual | Accounting method setting | Accounting method setting on the Advanced tab | Set the default reporting basis and verify individual report settings. |
Classes vs. Dimensions in Intuit Enterprise Suite
IES supports reporting across up to 20 dimensions. Dimension values can use nested hierarchies, with up to five levels. This lets your reporting structure reflect categories such as department, region, product line, or funding source.
For example, a business using classes such as “West-Service” and “West-Installation” could evaluate separate Region and Service Line dimensions. The design should follow the reports leadership needs and the information staff can consistently enter.
Read our guide to Intuit Enterprise Suite dimensions for structure and use cases. Intuit also explains how to create and manage dimensions in IES.
What About Legacy Tags?
Do not build a new reporting structure around the legacy Tags feature. Intuit announced its retirement and directed users toward custom fields. Review any historical tag reporting during migration planning, then choose supported fields or dimensions for ongoing tracking.
Multi-Entity Terms
Multi-entity accounting involves more than translating labels. QuickBooks Desktop Enterprise and standard QuickBooks Online generally maintain separate books for each company. IES connects entities through a consolidated management structure.
| QuickBooks Desktop Enterprise | QuickBooks Online / Advanced | Intuit Enterprise Suite | Migration Consideration |
|---|---|---|---|
| Separate company files | Separate company subscriptions | Parent and child entities with a consolidated view | Map legal entities, ownership, and operating relationships before configuration. |
| Combine Reports from Multiple Companies | Separate-company reports, often combined through spreadsheets or apps | Consolidated reports | Validate reporting scope, account mapping, and eliminations. |
| Chart of accounts in each file | Chart of accounts in each company | Shared chart of accounts managed through the parent company | Standardize accounts so comparable activity rolls up consistently. |
| Manual intercompany entries in separate files | Entries recorded in separate companies | Intercompany transactions and eliminations | Configure due-to and due-from accounts, permissions, and reconciliation procedures. |
Intuit describes IES consolidated reporting and intercompany transactions with automatic eliminations as part of its multi-entity capabilities. These features still depend on accurate entity setup and accounting policies.
For account structure considerations, read our guide to the multi-entity chart of accounts in Intuit Enterprise Suite.
Inventory and Project Terms
Inventory and job costing differences can affect margins, purchasing, and billing. Validate these workflows with both finance and operations before choosing a platform or migration approach.
| QuickBooks Desktop Enterprise | QuickBooks Online / Advanced | Intuit Enterprise Suite | Migration Consideration |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average cost, or FIFO with Advanced Inventory | FIFO for standard inventory workflows; confirm available options | FIFO or moving average cost | Review valuation and cost of goods sold with your CPA before setup and conversion. |
| Unit of measure | Validate requirements; an app may be needed | Units of measure | Confirm base, purchase, and sales units and their conversions. |
| Jobs and job costing | Projects and available project financial tools | Projects with basic or detailed costing, phases, cost groups, and budgets where available | Test project structure, cost assignments, and profitability reports. |
| Job costing preferences | Customer and project expense-tracking settings | Customer and project expense-tracking settings | Verify that expenses, items, and time reach the correct project reports. |
| Estimates and progress invoicing | Estimates and progress invoicing; additional tools vary by plan and rollout | Estimates and progress invoicing, plus construction features such as change orders and AIA-style billing where available | Test billing schedules, scope changes, and required customer forms. |
IES supports moving average cost as an alternative to FIFO, which may help businesses preserve their Desktop costing approach. Intuit also documents units of measure for buying, stocking, and selling in different quantities.
For construction businesses, confirm access to detailed costing and other industry features before implementation. Intuit identifies some construction capabilities as beta or early access features, so availability and functionality can change.
How to Use This Guide During Migration
A terminology crosswalk becomes useful when it leads to documented decisions. Use the comparisons to build a migration plan, then test the results in the destination system.
- Build a mapping workbook: List the Desktop records, item types, transactions, and reports your team uses. Document each destination, decision, and owner.
- Resolve exceptions before conversion: Review Other Names, stale Undeposited Funds balances, unused recurring entries, and workflows without a direct equivalent.
- Design reporting segments: Decide how classes, jobs, and custom fields should map to the destination structure. Document how historical and future reports will remain comparable.
- Update controls and procedures: Rewrite close checklists, approval policies, access reviews, and recovery procedures using the new system’s terminology.
- Test representative workflows: Run examples covering customer billing, vendor payments, inventory receiving, project costs, and intercompany activity.
- Train on accounting concepts: Give staff a concise terminology guide and show how each change affects transaction entry and reporting.
If you are still choosing a platform, explore our comparisons of Intuit Enterprise Suite vs. QuickBooks Desktop Enterprise and Intuit Enterprise Suite vs. QuickBooks Online Advanced. You can also request an Intuit Enterprise Suite fit assessment.
FAQ: QuickBooks Desktop, QuickBooks Online, and IES Terminology
What is Customer:Job called in QuickBooks Online and IES?
A Desktop Customer:Job typically maps to a sub-customer or project in QuickBooks Online. In IES, projects support job profitability tracking, with additional costing options where available. Choose the structure based on billing, customer relationships, and reporting requirements.
What happened to Undeposited Funds?
The clearing-account concept still exists. Your account may display Undeposited Funds or Payments to deposit. Intuit advises checking the account’s Undeposited Funds detail type because the account can be renamed. Reconcile outstanding payments before migration.
Do classes still exist in Intuit Enterprise Suite?
Yes. IES supports classes and locations, alongside dimensions for additional financial segmentation. Plan how each tracking field will be used so users code transactions consistently.
What are memorized transactions and reports called in the cloud?
Memorized transactions generally become recurring transactions, while memorized reports become custom reports. Review templates, schedules, filters, and report layouts during migration instead of assuming they will transfer unchanged.
What replaces the QuickBooks Desktop closing date password?
Close the books provides the comparable closing-date control in QuickBooks Online and IES. Configure the closing date and available password protection, then document how authorized changes and audit activity will be reviewed.
Does QuickBooks Online support sales orders?
Yes. Intuit currently documents manual sales orders for QuickBooks Online Plus and Advanced, as well as IES. Simple Start and Essentials require the inventory add-on for this functionality. Validate availability and workflow behavior in your account.
How does IES handle multiple companies differently from QuickBooks Desktop?
QuickBooks Desktop maintains separate company files and offers combined reporting for certain reports. IES connects parent and child entities through a consolidated view, with shared account structures, consolidated financial reporting, and intercompany workflows.
Need Help Translating Your QuickBooks Desktop Setup to IES?
The right mapping decisions help protect your reporting, controls, and historical data when you move to Intuit Enterprise Suite.
Contact Fourlane to discuss Intuit Enterprise Suite data migration with an accounting systems expert.
- Desktop and QuickBooks Online list, item, and transaction mapping
- Dimensions design and financial reporting structure
- Multi-entity setup, shared chart of accounts, and intercompany configuration
- Project and job costing configuration