Quick Start Guide
This guide gets you set up to reconcile payments with confidence—so you can quickly see what’s paid, what’s still open, and what needs attention.
When to Use This Guide
Use this guide if you’re new to SettleWise or you’re onboarding a new organization and want a clean, repeatable reconciliation flow.
What You’ll Accomplish
- Get access and confirm you’re in the right organization
- Understand the core places you’ll work (Invoices, Payments, Customers)
- Configure the minimum settings to start reconciling reliably
- Create and send your first invoice (so you have something to reconcile)
Before You Begin
Make sure you have:
- A SettleWise account
- Access to the right organization (Admin if you’re doing setup)
- Any payment proof you might need (email confirmation, receipt, bank reference)
QuickBooks is optional. Start by making reconciliation clear and traceable—sync comes after.
Your Mental Model (2 Minutes)
Reconciliation is easiest when you understand statuses:
- Invoice: OPEN → PARTIAL → PAID
- Payment: PENDING → COMPLETED (or REQUIRED ACTIONS if something needs review)
Steps
Sign In to Your Account
Sign in to SettleWise and confirm you’re in the correct organization.
If you don’t have access yet, contact your administrator to invite you to the organization.
Learn the Three Places You’ll Use Most
You’ll typically reconcile through:
- Invoices: what customers owe (and what’s already paid)
- Payments: money received (and what it was applied to)
- Customers: balances, credits, and history
Configure the Basics (Once)
Go to Settings → Organization and confirm:
- Business information (name, email, defaults)
- Payment methods you use (wire, check, cash, ACH, etc.)
- Optional: QuickBooks connection (only if you plan to sync)
Create and Send Your First Invoice
Navigate to Invoices → Create Invoice. Send it to a customer so you can see the full lifecycle from invoice → payment → reconciliation.
See our detailed guide on Creating and Sending an Invoice for more information.
Reconcile Your First Payment (Once You Receive One)
When you receive a payment, reconcile it so the trail stays clean (payment → allocation → invoice status).
If a payment needs help (wrong amount, missing invoice, duplicate), resolve it before syncing to accounting.
Common Gotchas
- Payment shows REQUIRED ACTIONS: It needs a quick review (amount, invoice assignment, or duplicate).
- Partial payments are normal: Invoices can be PARTIAL until fully paid.
- One payment can cover multiple invoices: Allocation is expected—focus on the resulting invoice statuses.
You’re Set When…
- You can find an invoice and see whether it’s OPEN, PARTIAL, or PAID
- You can open a payment and understand if it’s PENDING, COMPLETED, or REQUIRED ACTIONS
- You know where to resolve a payment that needs attention
Next Steps
Now that you're set up, explore:
- Dashboard Overview - Learn about the main interface
- Create Your First Invoice - Detailed invoice creation guide
- How-To Guides - Step-by-step workflows for common tasks
- Record a Payment - Apply money to invoices with traceability
Using the AI Assistant
You can also use natural language to perform tasks. Try saying:
"Crear una factura para Juan Pérez por $1,500"
or
"Show me unpaid invoices"
The AI assistant will guide you through the process.