How to Connect Your Accounting Software

Complete guide to connecting OpsCel to Xero or QuickBooks Online

Before You Start

Requirements

  • OpsCel account on Team plan or above
  • Admin access to your Xero or QuickBooks account
  • At least one invoice ready to post (for testing)

Choose One Integration

You can connect either Xero or QuickBooks—not both at the same time. Choose the accounting software you currently use.

What Gets Synced

From OpsCel → AccountingFrom Accounting → OpsCel
  • Invoices
  • Customers (auto-created)
  • Line items with tax
  • Payment status

Connecting to Xero

Step 1: Open Accounting Settings

  1. Click Settings in the sidebar
  2. Click Accounting Integration
  3. You'll see the option to connect Xero or QuickBooks

Step 2: Start the Connection

  1. Click Connect to Xero
  2. You'll be redirected to Xero's login page

Step 3: Authorise OpsCel

  1. Log in to your Xero account (if not already logged in)
  2. Select the Xero organisation you want to connect
  3. Review the permissions OpsCel is requesting:
    • Accounting transactions: To create invoices
    • Contacts: To create/link customers
    • Settings: To read your chart of accounts
  4. Click Allow access

Step 4: Confirm Connection

You'll be redirected back to OpsCel. You should see:

  • ✓ Connected to Xero
  • Your Xero organisation name displayed
  • Option to disconnect

Step 5: Set Up Account Mappings

Before posting invoices, map your product categories to Xero accounts. See Setting Up Account Mappings.

Connecting to QuickBooks

Step 1: Open Accounting Settings

  1. Click Settings in the sidebar
  2. Click Accounting Integration
  3. You'll see the option to connect Xero or QuickBooks

Step 2: Start the Connection

  1. Click Connect to QuickBooks
  2. You'll be redirected to Intuit's login page

Step 3: Authorise OpsCel

  1. Log in to your QuickBooks account (if not already logged in)
  2. Select the QuickBooks company you want to connect
  3. Review the permissions OpsCel is requesting:
    • Accounting: To create invoices and access contacts
  4. Click Connect

Step 4: Confirm Connection

You'll be redirected back to OpsCel. You should see:

  • ✓ Connected to QuickBooks
  • Your company name displayed
  • Option to disconnect

Step 5: Set Up Account Mappings

Before posting invoices, map your product categories to QuickBooks accounts. See Setting Up Account Mappings.

Setting Up Account Mappings

Account mappings tell OpsCel which revenue account to use for each product category. This ensures income is recorded correctly in your accounting software.

❌ Without Mappings

  • All invoice line items go to a default income account
  • Your accounts won't show breakdown by service type
  • Year-end reporting is harder

✓ With Mappings

  • Labour income goes to "Labour Income" account
  • Materials income goes to "Materials Sales" account
  • Your accountant gets clean, categorised data

Step 1: Open Account Mappings

  1. Go to Settings → Accounting Integration
  2. Scroll down to Account Mappings
  3. You'll see your product categories listed

Step 2: Map Each Category

For each category (Labour, Materials, Equipment, Other):

  1. Click the dropdown next to the category
  2. Select the appropriate revenue account from your accounting software
  3. Repeat for all categories

Example Mappings:

OpsCel CategoryXero/QuickBooks Account
LabourSales - Labour
MaterialsSales - Materials
EquipmentSales - Equipment Hire
OtherSales - Other

Step 3: Save Your Mappings

Click Save Mappings when done.

Creating Accounts in Your Accounting Software

If you don't have the right accounts set up:

In Xero:

  1. Go to Accounting → Chart of Accounts
  2. Click Add Account
  3. Choose "Revenue" as the account type
  4. Name it (e.g., "Sales - Labour")
  5. Save and return to OpsCel

In QuickBooks:

  1. Go to Settings → Chart of Accounts
  2. Click New
  3. Choose "Income" as the account type
  4. Name it (e.g., "Labour Income")
  5. Save and return to OpsCel

Then refresh the account list in OpsCel and complete your mapping.

Posting Your First Invoice

Once connected and mapped, you're ready to post invoices.

Step 1: Create an Invoice

Create an invoice as normal (from a job or manually). Make sure it's in Posted status.

Step 2: Open the Invoice

Go to the invoice detail page.

Step 3: Post to Accounting

  1. Click Post to Xero or Post to QuickBooks
  2. A confirmation dialog appears
  3. Click Post Invoice

Step 4: Verify in Your Accounting Software

  1. Open Xero or QuickBooks
  2. Go to Invoices
  3. Find the invoice by number
  4. Verify details are correct

What If the Customer Doesn't Exist?

OpsCel automatically creates the customer in your accounting software using:

  • Customer name
  • Email address
  • Business address (if available)

The customer is linked, so future invoices post to the same record.

How Payment Sync Works

When customers pay invoices, the status syncs back to OpsCel.

For Xero

Xero sends webhook notifications when invoice status changes. OpsCel receives these and updates:

  • Invoice status (Paid, Partially Paid)
  • Payment date
  • Amount paid

Timing: Usually within 1-2 minutes of payment being recorded in Xero.

For QuickBooks

QuickBooks webhooks notify OpsCel of changes. Additionally, OpsCel checks for updates hourly as a backup.

Timing: Usually within 5 minutes, guaranteed within 1 hour.

What You'll See

On the invoice in OpsCel:

  • Status changes from "Posted" to "Paid"
  • Payment date is recorded
  • Accounting sync status shows "Synced"

Managing Your Connection

Viewing Connection Status

Go to Settings → Accounting Integration to see:

  • Which service is connected
  • Organisation/company name
  • Last sync time
  • Any errors or warnings

Disconnecting

If you need to disconnect:

  1. Go to Settings → Accounting Integration
  2. Click Disconnect
  3. Confirm the action

What happens:

  • No more invoices can be posted
  • Existing posted invoices remain in your accounting software
  • Payment sync stops
  • You can reconnect anytime

Reconnecting

If your connection expires or you need to reconnect:

  1. Go to Settings → Accounting Integration
  2. Click Reconnect to Xero/QuickBooks
  3. Follow the authorisation steps

Connections may expire if:

  • You changed your Xero/QuickBooks password
  • You revoked access in your accounting software
  • The refresh token expired (rare, usually 60+ days)

Troubleshooting

"Connection expired" Error

Cause: Your accounting software session timed out or was revoked.

Fix:

  1. Go to Settings → Accounting Integration
  2. Click Disconnect
  3. Click Connect again
  4. Re-authorise access

"Customer sync failed" Error

Cause: The customer couldn't be created in your accounting software.

Common reasons:

  • Customer email is invalid or missing
  • Customer name is blank
  • Duplicate customer exists

Fix:

  1. Check the customer has a valid email in OpsCel
  2. Ensure name is filled in
  3. Try posting again

"Account mapping missing" Error

Cause: A line item category doesn't have an account mapped.

Fix:

  1. Go to Settings → Accounting Integration → Account Mappings
  2. Map the missing category to an account
  3. Try posting again

"Invoice already exists" Error

Cause: An invoice with the same number exists in your accounting software.

Fix:

  • This is a safety feature to prevent duplicates
  • Check if the invoice was already posted
  • If it was deleted in accounting software, it may need to be recreated there manually

"Rate limit exceeded" Error

Cause: Too many requests sent to the accounting API.

Fix:

  • Wait 5-10 minutes
  • Try again
  • If persistent, contact support

Invoice Posted But Wrong Account

Cause: Account mappings were incorrect when posted.

Fix:

  1. In your accounting software, edit the invoice
  2. Change the account for affected line items
  3. Update your mappings in OpsCel to prevent future issues

Best Practices

1. Set up mappings before posting

Map all your categories to accounts before posting your first invoice. This ensures clean data from the start.

2. Test with one invoice first

Post a single invoice and verify it appears correctly in your accounting software before posting in bulk.

3. Keep customer data consistent

Use consistent customer names and emails. This helps the automatic customer matching work correctly.

4. Review sync status regularly

Check the Accounting Integration page weekly to catch any sync errors early.

5. Don't edit posted invoices in accounting software

Make changes in OpsCel and void/recreate if needed. This keeps records consistent.

Need Help?

If you're having trouble connecting or posting invoices, our support team can walk you through the setup.

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