A checking account register book is a valuable tool for tracking your personal finances. It allows you to record and update your account balance, withdrawals, deposits, and pending transactions. Using a register helps you stay organized and avoid costly mistakes.
Registers can be paper-based, app-based, or spreadsheet-based. You might receive one when opening a bank account, download one online, or create your own. No matter how trustworthy your bank is, keeping track of your own transactions is crucial. You may even be more aware of upcoming transactions than your bank.
A checking account register is essentially a ledger used to manually record your banking transactions. The main purpose of using a register is to track your account balance, including transactions that may not yet be reflected. Regularly using a register can help you control spending, avoid overdraft fees, and catch bank errors.
A bank account register is a list of the transactions in your bank account, along with a running balance that shows how much money you have available to spend. You can use a paper register, an app, or a spreadsheet to keep these records. Whenever you spend or add money to your account, you need to update the list. It’s good practice to periodically reconcile your register with your bank statement.
Registers usually come with each order of checks and often have multiple columns or fields that allow you to track your transactions and balance. Registers can also be electronic or homemade, allowing you to customize your system and keep track of your account without needing to buy new registers.
If you don’t receive a register with your order of checks and would like to have one, you have a few options, some of which are free: Download a free template for Microsoft Excel or Google Sheets, order new registers from an online check printer or your bank, buy registers from an office supply store, take the register from an old checkbook, or make a simple register yourself with your favorite design tool or spreadsheet.
Paper check registers have been used for years and some people prefer to record this information by hand. You can also print a basic register available online. Designing your own register on paper or a spreadsheet is fairly easy and can be customized to fit your needs such as size, format, and column headings.
To create a register, create a document with the following columns across the top: Check Mark (to mark items that have been processed by the bank), Check Number or Category (to record check numbers), Date (the date of the transaction), Description (helpful notes about the transaction), Payment/Debit (-), Deposit/Credit (+), Balance (your current account balance after the transaction).
Account registers help you stay on top of the transactions in your account. Even if you check your account balance online, your available balance may provide misleading information. Banks sometimes make mistakes and you might also forget about pending transactions.
Your register will help you: Identify bank errors (these errors are rarely in your favor and should be reported as soon as possible), Detect identity theft (if you see something you don’t expect, report it as quickly as possible for full protection under US law), Avoid bounced checks (these are costly and create a domino effect on your finances), Know how much you can spend (you’ll know whether you need to transfer money into your checking account to cover expenses. For example, you can avoid overdraft fees by transferring money from your savings account to cover upcoming expenses), Know what you’ve paid off (track all of your paid debts, the amounts, and the dates in case you need proof of payment), See spending trends (manually entering your spending forces you to pay attention to what you are spending and make changes if needed).
Online account information can be misleading if you lose track of outstanding checks or automatic withdrawals. A register helps you know how much money you really have to spend.
It’s important to be diligent about updating your register with each transaction so it serves as a reliable source of information about your financial activity. When you write a check or use your debit card, you should record the transaction in your register immediately. At a minimum, save your ATM and debit card receipts and enter those transactions weekly. The more problems you have with running out of money, the more often you need to update your register.
You should also reconcile your register with your recent bank statement to look for any discrepancies. In addition, your bank statement shows items that may not be in your register, including: Fees you paid to the bank, Interest payments from the bank, Automatic/ACH transactions, such as your direct-deposited paycheck or bills paid automatically from your bank account. Registers help you track all of your transactions to avoid penalties such as overdrafts or late fees. They can serve as an accurate record of your financial situation to help you manage your money more effectively. To start filling out your register, record your current balance at the top of the far-right column. Record all checks, debits, credits, and deposits in the register. For each transaction, list the check or transaction number, the date, a description, and the debit or credit amount. Add credits and subtract debits, updating your balance on each transaction line. Mark transactions with checks when they clear your bank account. You can buy blank, generic check registers from a wide range of retailers in person and online, including office supply stores, Walmart, and Amazon. You can also order them from your check printing company.
