How to Pay Bills from Vendors

In this article:

• Pay Bills –Use this method when paying previously entered bills. 
• Enter and Pay a Bill –A “quick pay” method. Use this for one-time payments when you don’t need to track an unpaid bill beforehand. 
• Record Past Payments — Typically this is used when you’re recording a prior payment made outside of the software, but you can also record payments when you handwrite a check and don’t want to enter a bill beforehand. 

Pay Bills (After Entering a Bill)

This method is best for paying bills you have previously entered. See “Entering Bills for Your Vendors” for more information. It ensures you track both the expense and payment in your records for accurate reporting.

1. Go to Accounting > Payables > Pay Bills.
2. Choose Vendor(s)
   • You can filter vendors and select more than one to pay at the same time. 
   • Click “Apply Filter”
3. Select the Bills to Pay:
   • Use the checkboxes to choose the bills you want to pay.
   • Sort columns to locate specific bills.
4. Enter Payment Details:
   • Payment Type: Choose the method (e.g., check, credit card, cash).
   • Withdrawal Account: Select the bank account or payment source.
   • Payment Date: Enter the date for the payment.
5. Click “Save and Continue”
6. Approve Payments:
   • Review the payment summary. If everything is correct, click Approve Payments. 
   • If edits need to be made, click “Back to Step 1.”
7. Print Checks (If Applicable):
   • For check payments, click the “Print Vendor Checks” button
   • Enter the starting check number when prompted.
   • Click Download and Print Checks.
   • Load check stock into your printer and print directly from the file. Or click “I’ll print later”
     • To print later, go to Payables > Print Vendor Checks

Once approved, the bills are marked as paid and moved to the Vendor Payment History.

Enter and Pay a Bill (Pay Without Entering a Bill)

Use this method for one-time payments when you don’t need to track an unpaid bill beforehand. This is a fast and direct way to handle vendor bills.

1. Go to Accounting > Payables > Enter & Pay Bills.
2. Enter Payment Details:
   • Payment Information:
     • Choose the Payment Type (e.g., check, credit card, cash).
     • Select the Withdrawal Account and 
     • Enter the Payment Date.
3. Enter Bill Details:
   • Select the Vendor from the dropdown or click + Add New. 
   • Add Statement Info:
     • Statement number # (optional) 
     • Statement date
     • Due date
     • Purchase order # (optional)
   • Expense Assignment:
     • Select an Expense Account (or applicable account)
     • Department (if applicable) 
     • 1099 Type
   • Enter Payment Amount
4. Add Multiple Payments (Optional):
   • Click + Add Line Item to pay for multiple items for the same vendor.
   • For each line, specify the account, department, description, and amount.
5. To pay a different vendor, click “Add Another Payment” button and repeat the steps.
6. Approve and Print Payments:
   • Click Save and Continue to review the summary. Click “Back to Step 1” to edit. 
   • Click the “ Approve Payments” button to finalize
7. Print Checks (If Applicable):
   • For check payments, click the “Print Vendor Checks” button
   • Enter the starting check number when prompted.
   • Click Download and Print Checks.
   • Load check stock into your printer and print directly from the file. Or click “I’ll print later”
     • To print later, go to Payables > Print Vendor Checks

This payment is directly recorded in the Vendor Payment History.

Record Past Payments

This method is used for recording payments already made outside of Patriot, but you can also use it to log payments when you will handwrite a check and don’t want to enter a bill beforehand.

1. Go to Accounting > Payables > Record Past Payments
2. Enter Payment Information:
   • Payment Details:
     • Select the Payment Account
     • Choose the Payment Type (e.g.check, cash).
   • Vendor: Select the vendor from the dropdown or click + Add New. 
   •  Enter the Payment Date and reference number (if applicable)
3. Expense Assignment:
   • Select an Expense Account (or applicable account)
   • Department (if applicable) 
   • 1099 Type
4. Enter Payment Amount
5. Add Multiple Line Items (Optional):
   • Click + Add Line Item to divide the payment into multiple expense categories.
   • For each line, adjust the account, department, and amount as needed.
6. Save the Payment:
   • Click Save to log the payment in your Vendor Payment History.

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