Transfers
A transfer is simply money moving between your own accounts—like paying your credit card or moving money from checking to savings. It’s not income or spending, just money changing places.
You’ll see transfers all the time, even if you don’t think about them. Most of the time, Quicken handles them automatically and they just show up in your register. Knowing what transfers are helps everything else make more sense and keeps your balances and reports accurate.
What Is a Transfer?
A transfer is money moved from one account you own to another account you own.
Common examples include:
Moving money from checking to savings
Paying a credit card from your checking account
Transferring funds between business and personal accounts
Recording owner contributions or owner draws
Moving cash between accounts
A transfer does not represent new income or a new expense—it simply records that money changed locations.
Why Transfers Matter
Using transfers correctly ensures:
Accurate account balances
Money leaves one account and arrives in another, just like in real life.Clean reports
Transfers don’t inflate income or expenses, keeping budgets and reports accurate.Clear separation of activity
Especially important when tracking business and personal finances.Easier reconciliation
Transfers help your Quicken balances line up with your bank and credit card statements.
When transfers are miscategorized as income or expenses, reports become misleading and harder to trust.
How Transfers Appear
Every transfer creates two connected transactions:
One transaction shows money leaving the source account
One transaction shows money entering the destination account
Together, they represent a single real-world event.
For example:
In checking: –$500 (transfer out)
In savings: +$500 (transfer in)
Both transactions are linked and cancel each other out in overall spending and income reports.
Automatic vs. Manual Transfers
Most transfers are handled automatically for you.
When Quicken downloads transactions from your bank or credit card, it often recognizes transfers and records them correctly without any action on your part. For example, when you make a credit card payment from your checking account, Quicken typically records that payment as a transfer between the two accounts automatically.
In some situations, however, you may need to assign a transfer manually.
This usually happens when a single bank transaction represents multiple underlying payments. A common example is a bulk deposit. When you deposit several sales receipts together using the Undeposited Funds account, your bank shows one combined deposit. To keep your records accurate, you’ll need to categorize that bank deposit as a transfer to Undeposited Funds.
Once assigned, Quicken connects the deposit to the individual receipts and clears the Undeposited Funds balance, ensuring everything lines up with your bank statement.
Most Transfers Happen Automatically
Most of the time, you don’t need to do anything.
When Quicken downloads transactions from your bank or credit card, it usually recognizes transfers on its own. For example, when you pay your credit card from your checking account, Quicken automatically records that payment as a transfer between the two accounts.
In these cases, transfers simply appear in your register—you don’t need to create or assign them yourself.
When You Need to Assign a Transfer Manually
You’ll only need to assign a transfer in a few specific situations—usually when Quicken needs extra context to understand how money moved.
The most common example is Undeposited Funds. When you deposit several payments together, the bank shows one combined deposit. To connect that deposit to the individual receipts or invoices you already recorded, you need to categorize that bank bulk deposit as a transfer to Undeposited Funds.
Other situations where you may assign a transfer manually include:
Recording owner contributions or owner draws between personal and business accounts
Entering transfers for accounts that aren’t connected to a bank
Creating or adjusting transactions manually
When Not to Use a Transfer
A transfer should not be used when money is earned or spent.
Do not use a transfer when:
You receive income from a customer or employer
You pay a vendor or make a purchase
You record a refund or reimbursement from someone else
In those cases, use an income or expense category instead.
Common Transfer Examples
Example 1: Moving Money to Savings
You move $1,000 from checking to savings.
Checking account: –$1,000 (transfer out)
Savings account: +$1,000 (transfer in)
No income or expense is recorded—just a change in location.
Example 2: Paying a Credit Card
You pay your credit card bill from checking.
Checking account: –$750
Credit card account: +$750
The original purchases were already recorded as expenses. The payment itself is just a transfer.
Example 3: Owner Contribution (Business)
You move personal funds into your business checking account.
Personal account: –$2,000
Business account: +$2,000
This is recorded as a transfer, not business income.
Example 4: Owner Draw (Business)
You move money from your business account to your personal account.
Business account: –$1,200
Personal account: +$1,200
This is a transfer—not an expense.
Transfers and Reports
Because transfers aren’t income or expenses:
They do not appear in spending or income reports
They do not affect budgets
They do not impact profit or tax summaries
This keeps reports focused on real earning and spending activity.
How Transfers Support Accuracy
Using transfers correctly helps ensure:
Account balances reflect reality
Income and expense totals are not overstated
Cash flow is easier to understand
Business and personal finances stay properly separated
If reports ever look unusually high or off, miscategorized transfers are often the cause.
The Bottom Line
Transfers track how money moves within your financial world. They don’t represent earning or spending—they simply show money changing accounts.
Most transfers happen automatically, but understanding when to assign one manually gives you full control and keeps your records accurate.