QuickBooks Check Printing Primer:
A Step-By-Step Guide
We’ve got everything you need to know about QuickBooks business check printing right here in a simple step-by-step guide!
Checksforless.com® provides the highest quality QuickBooks compatible laser checks for your business at the lowest prices in the nation, offering the best customer service and QuickBooks compatible product value in the industry. Our QuickBooks compatible printable checks and QuickBooks compatible deposit tickets are the answer when you need one voucher for your files and one for the vendor.
Here is the list of full
QuickBooks options that we offer; please visit this product page for full details and pricing information.
Checks
- Laser Voucher Checks (1,2,3 parts)
- Laser Wallet Checks (1 part only)
- 3 Per Page Laser Checks (1 part only)
Starter Kits
- Laser Voucher Starter Kit
- 3 Per Page Starter Kit
- QuickBooks Compatible Starter Kit
Accessories
- QuickBooks Compatible Deposit Tickets
- Regular Seal Business Check Envelopes 9379
- Self-Seal Business Check Envelopes 9379-SS
Bonus note: While normally it can be difficult to write QuickBooks checks across different bank accounts, a check writing add-on software makes it easy to write and print checks. If you rely on this method, you no longer have to manually enter checks.
The Federal Reserve and all banks require that checks be printed with MICR (Magnetic Ink Character Recognition) ink or toner for ease of processing. MICR ink or toner is needed specifically for the MICR line – the special numbers at the bottom of checks that include the account number, the bank’s routing number, check number, and other details. Without this ink, you open yourself up to security problems, financial risks, not to mention that non-MICR printed checks are likely unreadable to most financial institutions, further resulting in processing delays and fees.
You will need MICR ink for check printing on inkjet printers, and you will need MICR toner for check printing on laser printers.
Note on preprinted checks: If this MICR line (bank account number, routing information, etc.) has been preprinted by a check printer and you are
only printing payee information and the amount, you don’t need magnetic ink. For our preprinted checks, Checksforless.com® offers a 100% financial institution compatibility guarantee. Our state-of-the-art MICR matching system ensures readability by all financial institutions.
If you’d like to learn more about MICR ink/toner and all of the details, please visit our
MICR Ink and Toner page.
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Business Check
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You can print your own checks if you have add-on check printing software with QuickBooks. All you need is your printer turned on and your blank check stock in the printer tray.
We explored how to find a printer in our
Printer Types article, but at the very basic top-level recommendation, it all comes down to the check volume that your business prints on a regular basis.
Here is a very abbreviated printer recommendation to consider if you are printing your own checks:
- Small, printed-check volume (and satisfied with slower printing speeds and less accessories): Inkjet MICR printers
- Large, printed-check volume/many employees involved (and looking for faster printing speeds, more accessories, and more security features): Workgroup laser MICR printers
Bonus tip: If you want to know brand/make/model of printer that most QuickBooks users prefer, look online for forums!
How To Test Your QuickBooks Business Check Printer
While the best way to navigate the QuickBooks platform is to explore the software itself, this is a very basic overview to get you started, leveraged from an online blog tutorial:
Manual checks: First, click on the + icon at the top side. Manually type in the date and check number in the appropriate fields. There will be a ‘pay to the order of’ column. Fill the name of the person or the company there and the check amount. Print a test.
Laser checks: First, open up the QuickBooks software. From the left menu you should select Expenses. In that particular option there will be ‘print checks’ option. At the bottom side of the page ‘print setup’ will be there. Select the check type you want to print. Load the printer tray with blank check paper. Print a test.
In the Print checks setup module, select either Standard or Voucher style for the type of checks you want to print. For your test run, load the blank paper into the printer, click “view preview” and print the sample.
Once you have your test page, hold it up in front of a light. Place one of your blank QuickBooks checks on top of it. The sample numbers on your printout should align with the amount boxes on your checks; if this isn’t the case, don’t panic! Go back to the Print checks setup module to realign the fields and be sure to click “no” when it asks if the fields are lining up properly. For other tips, check out our troubleshooting section next.
Two bonus tips:
- Remember to update the Adobe PDF reader.
- According to experts, most QuickBooks users have the best luck with the Chrome browser.
How to Troubleshoot Your QuickBooks Business Check Printer
Sometimes checks and deposits don't print the same for all users since each printer pulls the paper a bit differently. Follow these instructions to adjust your printing to work with your QuickBooks compatible documents:
Go to File and click on Printer Setup in the upper left-hand side of the screen, click on Form Name then on Check, Deposit or applicable form. If a check, go to the check style: Standard, Voucher or Wallet. On the right-hand side of the screen you will see a column of buttons, starting with OK, click on Align at the bottom. Adjust as much as needed, then print a test on white paper. Align this test with your actual form up to the light to be sure the alignment worked. Adjust as necessary. Select OK to save and OK to leave the setup.
Additionally, according to online bloggers, fine-tune printing may help with some extra direction from you. For example, drag and drop the amount grid to match the spot where the misaligned numbers are printing on your test run checks. You should “drag and drop” the grid to the place where the amount is actually appearing on your test printouts, not where you want the grid to appear on the sample image. This gives QuickBooks some intel on your needed alignment adjustments for the next test page.
Lastly, just in case you have a very specific printing issue, we grabbed this helpful troubleshooting checklist directly from the QuickBooks site on aligning preprinted checks for your printer:
The check letters are printing too high
To shift the information down, enter a letter that's further down in the list.
For example, if the letter that appears just above the Pay to the Order of line is L, enter a letter from M through X to move the information down enough to align with your check stock. (This is the line where the employee's name is printed.)
The check letters are printing too low
To shift the information up, enter a letter that's further up in the list.
For example, if the letter that appears just above the Pay to the Order of line is L, enter a letter from A through K to move the information up enough to align with your check stock. (This is the line where the employee's name is printed.)
The check numbers are printing too far left
To shift the amount to the right, enter a higher number.
For example, if the number that appears completely to the right of the dollar sign is 5, enter a number between 6 and 9.
The check numbers are printing too far right
To shift the amount to the left, enter a lower number.
For example, if the number that appears completely to the right of the dollar sign is 5, enter a number between 0 and 4.
If you rely on QuickBooks products, you also should rely on Checksforless.com®.
We guarantee that your laser checks will be 100% compatible with your current QuickBooks accounting system.
Order online at
Checksforless.com® or call 800-245-5775 toll-free to get started. While our
FAQ page is a great place to check out more information, our team of customer service experts are always happy to help you with any more specific questions you have along the way.
When you are ordering your QuickBooks checks, Checksforless.com® will beat any lower price you find by 10%. We are also proud to offer a 100% satisfaction guarantee. Our quick production time is 4-5 days, not including shipping time. If you need your order faster than our standard delivery time, you may choose from our expedited in-plant rush services and expedited shipping services or talk to us directly.
We look forward to helping you with all of your QuickBooks needs, and for more specific software/printing questions, please also be sure to contact the vendors directly, too.
This page is made possible by Checksforless.com®. For more than 35 years, Checksforless.com® has provided over 500,000 businesses with high quality business checks, deposit slips, and other banking supplies with easy ordering and fast production times; all at the guaranteed lowest price in the nation. Our discount business checks are easily customizable and compatible with over 4,500 software programs including QuickBooks and Peachtree/Sage 50 (formerly Peachtree). Email or call us toll-free at 800-245-5775 or visit us online at Checksforless.com®.