Settings and activity
2 results found
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24 votes
Thanks for your feedback and for pointing out how the term "Reconcile" can be confusing—especially for those new to Xero or bookkeeping.
We get that using clearer terms like "Categorise" or "Allocate" might feel more intuitive and help reduce confusion when working through bank reconciliation.
Right now, this idea’s open for feedback and support, so feel free to keep voting and sharing how a change like this could help in your day-to-day.
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Bettina Zafiris
supported this idea
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29 votes
Hi community, we appreciate the support this idea is starting to gain. Our product teams are considering this idea among other improvements as they plan their roadmap and I'll update here if there's progress.
For the time being, you can change the dates to essentially reset this to the period you want to reconcile.
To open the period in an editable state from the 'All periods' list:
- Select the "Continue" button on a draft period, or
- Select "Edit" on a locked period, then "Continue" in the modal to unlock it
From there select the 'Edit date range' button in the top right hand side and change the dates to the period you want to work on. You can also click into the "Opening statement balance" and "Closing statement balance" fields to update these.
Bettina Zafiris
supported this idea
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I strongly support this suggestion and would consider it critical from both an efficiency and accounting accuracy standpoint.
The current terminology creates significant confusion between:
transactions that have merely been coded/categorized inside Xero, and
transactions that have actually been reconciled against a completed bank statement with verified beginning and ending balances.
In accounting practice, these are not the same thing. A transaction can appear as “reconciled” in Xero simply because it was matched or categorized, even though the actual bank account may not yet be fully reconciled to the statement. This creates risk for business owners and bookkeepers who may incorrectly assume the account has been formally reconciled.
Clearer terminology such as “Categorise,” “Allocate,” or “Match” for the day-to-day coding process would help distinguish it from true bank reconciliation.
This distinction is also extremely important from a workflow and time-management perspective. As bookkeepers and accountants managing large transaction volumes, we need to be able to quickly identify:
what has only been cleared/matched,
what has been categorized,
and what has actually been reconciled and verified to the bank statement.
When those terms are blended together, it becomes much more time-consuming to review accounts, troubleshoot discrepancies, train clients, and ensure accuracy in financial reporting.
A clearer separation in terminology and status indicators would improve efficiency, reduce user error, and create a more accurate understanding of account reconciliation for both professionals and business owners.