How to delete multiple journal entries in QuickBooks Online
There is no batch delete for journal entries, and no void button either — so the tricky part is not how to delete them, it is deciding whether you should.
QuickBooks Online has no bulk delete for journal entries. Each entry is removed individually from the journal list, and an entry dated inside a closed period cannot be deleted at all until the period is reopened. If the entry matters to your audit trail, the accounting route is a reversing entry, not a deletion.
Deleting a journal entry, step by step
There is no multi-select here, so the process is deliberately repetitive:
- Open the Journal Entries list — Accounting → Chart of Accounts → Journal Entries, or use the search box.
- Open the entry you want to remove.
- Choose Delete (from the row action or the More menu) and confirm.
- Repeat for the next entry. Every record needs its own confirmation.
Last checked 26 September 2026. Menus move; if your screen differs, trust the product over this page.
Why journal entries are one at a time
This is not an oversight. Deleting a recorded transaction is irreversible, and it can silently break a reconciliation or remove part of an audit trail. QuickBooks Online therefore has exactly one batch delete — for bank-feed entries that have not yet been added to the books — and nothing for the records that are already in them. Journal entries are the clearest case: no batch route exists at all.
When reversing is the right move instead
A journal entry is usually there for a reason: an adjustment, an accrual, a correction, a reclass. If it has been reconciled, reported, or seen by your accountant, deleting it removes the evidence that the adjustment ever happened. The honest alternatives:
- Reversing entry. Post an equal and opposite entry, dated in the current period, with a note referencing the original. The net effect is zero and the trail stays intact. This is the closest thing to “voiding” a journal entry, because QuickBooks has no void for one.
- Correcting entry. If the entry was wrong rather than unnecessary, post the correction and leave the original visible.
- Delete. The right call for a genuine mistake with no downstream effect — a test entry, or something created by a bad import that was never reconciled.
Closed periods will stop you
If you have closed the books — Settings → Advanced → Accounting → Close the books — QuickBooks refuses to delete anything dated inside that period. It will not silently skip the entry either: it reports the entry as refused and names the closing date, and other entries in the same run still delete. Reopen the period if the deletion is genuinely warranted, or reverse the entry instead.
A reconciled entry behaves differently from a closed one, and the difference is worth knowing. Where a closed period is an outright refusal, a reconciled entry only produces a warning — QuickBooks will delete it if you confirm. A warning on an irreversible action is not permission.
Deleting is not the same as voiding
Deleting removes the record and leaves no trace. Voiding keeps the entry in the audit trail and nets it to zero. For most transactions QuickBooks offers both; for journal entries it offers only the first, which is why so many clean-ups that should be “voids” turn into deletions — and why a reversing entry exists. The rule of thumb: if anyone outside your books has seen it, or it has been reconciled or reported, do not delete it.
What it costs you to do this by hand
At maybe two or three deletes a minute including confirmation and checking, a hundred journal entries is the better part of an hour. A bad import that created a thousand of them is a day you did not plan to lose. The alternative routes — and their costs — are covered on the main bulk-delete page.
If you are doing this in bulk
Multi-Delete is a tool we are building for exactly this: connect to QuickBooks, preview the exact set, force an export, dry run, then delete in batches and download a log of everything deleted and everything skipped, with the reason. It is not finished and not for sale, and the pages here stay free and need no signup. Until it exists, the manual route above is the honest one — and exporting first is the part you should never skip, because deletion in QuickBooks has no undo and no bin.
Questions people actually ask
Can you delete multiple journal entries at once in QuickBooks Online?
No. Journal entries are deleted one at a time from the journal list, and each deletion needs its own confirmation. The only built-in batch delete in QuickBooks Online is for bank-feed entries you have not yet added to the books — it does not touch recorded journal entries.
How do I delete a journal entry in QuickBooks Online?
Open the Journal Entries list (Accounting, then Chart of Accounts, then Journal Entries — or use the search box), open the entry, choose Delete from the row or the More menu, and confirm. Then repeat for the next one. There is no way to select several and delete them together.
Should I void a journal entry instead of deleting it?
QuickBooks Online does not give journal entries the Void button it offers invoices and bills, so there is nothing to void. If you need the entry to stay visible in the audit trail, the accounting alternative is a reversing entry: an equal and opposite entry, usually dated in the current period and noted with a reference to the original. The original stays, the effect is cancelled.
Why can’t I delete a journal entry?
The usual reasons: the entry is dated inside a closed period, and QuickBooks refuses until the period is reopened; your user role does not have delete permission; or the entry is part of a reconciliation. QuickBooks warns that deleting a reconciled entry may put your books out of balance the next time you reconcile — but it will still delete it if you confirm, which is exactly why that warning should stop you.
Does deleting a journal entry break my reconciliation?
It can. If the entry was part of a reconciled period, removing it leaves the reconciliation out of balance, and QuickBooks warns you before it lets you proceed. Undoing the reconciliation first, or reversing the entry instead of deleting it, avoids the problem entirely.
Can I delete all journal entries and start again?
Not in bulk. There is no select-all delete for journal entries, or for transactions generally — see “Can you delete all transactions in QuickBooks Online and start over?” for the real options and what each one costs you.
Related: bulk delete transactions in QuickBooks Online · invoices and recurring transactions · deleting everything and starting over.