DIY A2X setups usually fail in the same predictable places: taxes land in revenue, refunds post as negative sales without a contra, reserves disappear, and fees get mixed together so you can’t tell if the platform or the processor is drifting.
The result? Your GL rarely matches the bank, month‑end slips, and the team stops trusting the numbers.
Here’s the peer‑reviewed mapping checklist we run for Shopify and Amazon sellers. Work through this once and $0‑variance reconciliations become routine:
- Fees: Split platform vs PSP. Shopify/Amazon fees belong in their own accounts; Stripe/PayPal in another. This lets you spot rate drift fast.
- Refunds/Chargebacks: Route to contra revenue. Revenue should reflect sales after reversals, not just hopes and dreams.
- Reserves/Withholds: Track on the balance sheet. Recognize releases cleanly; never bury them in revenue.
- Taxes: All GST/HST/PST to liability accounts (never revenue). In your Close Pack we document GST/HST recovery opportunities; filings happen when engaged.
- Multicurrency: Choose one FX source. A2X postings should be respected by the GL and confirmed by the bank.
- Inventory & COGS: If you carry stock, align landed cost and returns timing so COGS is real.
Once these are in place, we validate with a deposit‑to‑bank screenshot and lock in the cadence: inputs by Day‑5, Close Pack on the 15th, <24‑hour replies all month. That’s how founders keep finance predictable while they scale ads, product and logistics.
Need a second set of eyes? Book the Free E‑commerce Diagnostic. We’ll review your A2X health, show the exact lines creating variance, and give you a cutover plan for QuickBooks Online or Xero that your team can execute immediately.
