Bring bank statements into Clippter, then tell each line what it is: overhead, payroll, a project cost, income on an invoice, a tax remittance, or an internal transfer. That allocation is what feeds Finance Dashboard and project Spent.
Where
Finance → Cost / Expenses (/finance/costs).
Set up cost categories first under Settings → Company Finance → Cost structure (also its own Settings card). Operating sub-lines are used when you allocate as Overhead. Project cost types are used when you allocate as Project cost.
Before you start
- Fill banking and tax fields under Company finance so invoices and quotes are not blocked.
- Add at least one bank account on Cost / Expenses (Add account). Without an account you cannot import.
- Know which lines are agency overhead, which are project spend, and which are money in from clients.
Add a bank account
- Open Cost / Expenses.
- Under Bank accounts, choose Add account.
- Enter a Name, type (Bank / Credit card), optional IBAN / last 4 digits.
- Save.
You can manage more than one account if you use several IBANs.
Import statements
Preferred order: CAMT.053 → MT940 → CSV (Excel TXT).
Accepted files: .xml, .sta, .txt, .940, .csv, .zip (CAMT in a zip is unpacked automatically).
- On the account, click Import.
- Pick the statement file.
- Review the result (new vs already imported / skipped).
- Open Transactions. New rows start as Unallocated until you set Allocation and complete Link.
You can also Add transaction manually when something never appeared on a file.
Allocation types
On each transaction, set Allocation:
| Allocation | Use it for |
|---|---|
| Unallocated | Not booked yet |
| Overhead | Operating cost (facility, tools, and so on), pick an operating sub-line from Cost structure |
| Payroll | Salary / contractor pay from the bank, link a team member, or General payroll |
| Project cost | Spend on a job, pick Project (optional quote line / category / type) |
| Income | Money in: Select invoice (or Split payment across invoices) |
| Internal transfer | Move between your own accounts (not revenue, not expense) |
| Payroll & withholding taxes | Wage tax remittances |
| Corporate / profit tax | Profit tax paid |
| VAT / GST remittance | Sales-tax paid to the authority |
Suggested allocations may appear from past patterns. Use Apply suggestion or Dismiss suggestion.
You can allocate in bulk when many lines share the same treatment (including General payroll where that bulk option appears).
Link income to an invoice
When money lands in the bank:
- Find the incoming line.
- Set Allocation to Income.
- Link the matching invoice (or split across invoices when one payment covers several).
That is one way payments show up as paid. You can also use Record payment / Mark as paid on the invoice itself. Prefer one clear habit so you do not double-count. See Invoices and payments.
Split across projects or invoices
One bank line can be split when one payment or cost covers more than one project or invoice. Use the split flow on the transaction, then save. Unassigned leftovers may show as unassigned overhead or similar until you finish the split.
Cost structure and ledger codes
Under Cost structure:
- Operating cores group your P&L (for example facility costs). Sub-lines are what you pick for Overhead.
- Project cost types are what you pick for Project cost.
Add a Ledger code on a line when your accountant needs exports to map to the chart of accounts. Reporting can export allocated bank lines with those codes.
What this feeds
- Finance Dashboard: overhead, payroll (bank), project costs, income, tax cash, see How Clippter calculates profit and costs.
- Project Spent: bank Project cost lines on that project, plus labor from time (separate from bank).
Things that trip people up
- Importing with no bank account selected.
- Leaving lines Unallocated and wondering why the dashboard looks empty.
- Booking project spend as Overhead (or the reverse).
- Linking Income without an invoice, or recording the same payment twice (bank + Record payment).
- Expecting logged time alone to appear as a bank cost, labor is calculated from contracts and time; bank payroll is separate.