How to QUICKLY Recategorize Transactions for a Payee - aka How to Manage Blue Categorization Engine

Goal: to learn how to mass fix miscategorization of the Blue Coding or Categorization Engine.

Changing Payee Category

The Payee management section of Cheqbook is where the Blue engine is easily managed.  It's even possible to change all the transactions for a given payee by merely changing the default category for that payee using the steps below:

• Click Payees from the menu on the left
• Search for the Payee you wish to work with.  
• Then click Edit beside that payee.
• Change the Default Category to the new one you want to use.
• Click Save.
• You will be PRESENTED WITH a complete list of all the Transactions previously categorized for that payee.  You may select All or just some of those transactions. 
• When you click Confirm all the transactions you selected will be updated for you to the new category.
• Also, any future uploads or downloads will now use the new account you want those transactions categorized to.

Changing Bank Description MAPPED to that Payee

The Payee management section has another, powerful tool to make mass corrections to transactions that went sideways and were miscategorized.  

The Blue engine works by taking bank descriptions, say "Ace Hardware Downtown", and mapping them to a payee we can call "Ace Hardware".  As you saw above that payee is then categorized based on the default category.  But the blue engine also maps more than one bank description to a single Payee.  For example both bank vendor names "Ace Hardware Downtown" and "Suburban Ace Hardware" can be mapped to the payee "Ace Hardware".

However, sometimes something like this occurs:  the bank description "Ace Gasoline" accidently gets matched with payee "Ace Hardware".  

To help fix these errors Cheqbook also lets you remap those bank descriptions.  Here's how to do so: 

• While in the edit payee screen you found above, review the Blue Categorization section on the right, you'll see a list of bank descriptions mapped to that vendor.  Make sure the one you want to re-map is listed there.
• Then click on "Edit Matches" in the Blue Categorization section.
• You'll be presented with a screen that lists each of those bank desriptions again, and gives you the option to "Unmap" or "Remap to:" with a drop down list of all the other vendors.
  • If you need to unmap something entirely, like the word "check paid", then click unmap.  This happens when the first of something generic gets mass categorized by entering the vendor for the first check.  It also applies if you haven't setup the new vendor yet, just unmap it then return to the register and create a new payee when you categorize it correctly.
  • If you already have a payee that this bank description should be properly mapped to, then select that payee from the drop down and hit the "Remap" button.
• As above, you will be PRESENTED WITH a complete list of all the Transactions previously categorized for that bank description.  You may select All or just some of those transactions.  
• When you click Confirm all the transactions you selected will be updated for you to the new category.
• Also, any future uploads or downloads will now use the new account you want those transactions categorized to.
   

Merge Payees 

A somewhat common issue with Cheqbook is that multiple Payees can be created for the same vendor.  This usually happens if someone is accepting yellow transactions by clicking on the icon to turn it green, when the vendor description doesn't match an existing Payee.  

For example "Ace Hardware 23423" is the description, it's already categorized yellow to repairs, which is correct.  If you click on the icon and turn it green your books will be correct, but you'll have created another payee in addition to the existing "Ace Hardware".  

To fix this you can merge secondary payees back into the master payee.  

• While in the edit payee screen for the secondary payee (aka "Ace Hardware 23423"), click on the orange "Merge" button in the upper left.
• Start typing the name of the payee you want to merge this payee into.
• When it appears select it.  
• Then hit merge.  

That payee and all it's transactions will now be part of "Ace Hardware" the master payee. 

Other Resources:

https://help.cheqbook.com/hc/en-us/articles/360002044694-How-Keywords-and-Excluded-Terms-work