If your company is moving from QuickBooks Desktop (QBDT) to QuickBooks Online (QBO), there are a few things you should know before you start. This article explains how that move works with Adaptive, what you are responsible for, and what the Adaptive team will handle for you.
The actual migration from QuickBooks Desktop to QuickBooks Online happens on your side (through Intuit’s migration process or your advisor). Adaptive does not perform the Desktop-to-Online file conversion. We prepare your new Adaptive account and sync connection so that once you are on QBO, Adaptive can sync your data as expected.
❗ Important:
Please contact us before you migrate. We need to coordinate timing and will set up a new Adaptive account (a fresh workspace) connected to QuickBooks Online so your information can sync cleanly.
Attachments added in Adaptive do not sync to QuickBooks Desktop. Any attachments on bills or receipts will not be included when data is migrated from QuickBooks Desktop to QuickBooks Online, and they will not appear if those records are later imported into Adaptive. If you rely on images for bills or receipts, plan for that gap when you move to QBO.
Your responsibilities after migration
After the migration, there is usually follow-up work in Adaptive and QuickBooks Online. Your team should plan for the following:
Reconnect credit cards — Re-authorize connections so transactions pull correctly.
Reconnect bank accounts — Re-establish connections for the new QBO environment as needed.
Reconnect email integration (if you use it) — Restore forwarding or inbox settings so email capture works again.
Match transaction backups to bills, receipts, and draws — Reconcile historical activity so records line up. This is typically the most time-consuming step.
Pull over vendor documents — Move or re-attach vendor documentation as needed. This is usually the second most time-consuming step.
Rebuild approval workflows — Approval rules do not carry over automatically; recreate them in the new account. Please ensure users are associated with the correct job if using the "people on a job" workflow.
Move lien waiver templates — Recreate or migrate templates in the new workspace.
Adaptive’s responsibilities
When you work with us on this transition, we will:
Move users to the new account — Invite or transfer users; rebuild roles and permissions if needed so access matches your old setup.
Email for inbox — Help ensure email is adjusted in the QuickBooks Desktop–linked account as required, and that the new Adaptive account uses the same email address you used before for inbox-related features.
Activate jobs — Turn jobs on in Adaptive and align them with your new sync.
Import budgets for active jobs — Load budget data for jobs that should be active in the new account.
Transfer Adaptive-specific data — Move Adaptive Cards and vendor ACH information from the old account to the new one.
General Settings — Restore defaults and options from the General Settings page (for example: billable settings, lines shown, logo, journal entry sync, and similar options).
Admin-only settings — Where applicable, restore settings that live under Admin (for example: skip cost validation on draft, or other options that are not updated automatically yet—such as recent payment approval settings).
Credit card transaction pull date — Set the pull date back to the start date of your current reconciliation period so you do not miss transactions during the transition.
If you are planning a QuickBooks Desktop to Online migration, reach out to us first so we can schedule the new account and walk through this checklist with you.
If you have any additional questions please don't hesitate to contact our support team at [email protected].