Available for: Accounting Basic, Accounting Premium
Patriot's accounting software offers three ways to pay vendor bills. Choose the method that fits your workflow:
Pay Bills — Use when paying bills you've already entered in the software.
Enter and Pay a Bill — Use for one-time, direct payments when you don't need to track an unpaid bill first.
Record Past Vendor Payments — Use to log payments already made outside of Patriot, or to record a handwritten check without entering a bill first.
Pay Bills (After Entering a Bill)
This method is best when you've already entered a bill using the Entering Bills for Your Vendors workflow. Paying a previously entered bill ensures both the expense and the payment are recorded in your books for accurate reporting.
Go to Accounting > Payables > Pay Bills.
Choose vendor(s): Filter the vendor list as needed. You can select more than one vendor to pay at the same time. Click Apply Filter.
Select the bills to pay: Use the checkboxes to choose which bills to pay. Sort columns to locate specific bills.
Enter payment details:
Payment Type: Select the payment method (check, credit card, or cash).
Withdrawal Account: Select the bank account or payment source.
Payment Date: Enter the date of the payment.
Click Save and Continue.
Approve the payment: Review the payment summary. If everything looks correct, click Approve Payments. To make changes, click Back to Step 1.
Print checks (if paying by check):
Click Print Vendor Checks.
Enter the starting check number when prompted.
Click Download and Print Checks.
Load check stock into your printer and print from the downloaded 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 First)
Use this method for one-time payments when you don't need to track the unpaid bill ahead of time. This is the fastest way to record a vendor payment.
Video Walkthrough
Video summary: Starting from Accounting > Payables > Enter & Pay Bills, enter payment details (payment type, withdrawal account, date), select your vendor, fill in bill details (statement number, date, due date, expense account, 1099 type, and amount), then save and approve. For check payments, print directly or save to print later from Payables > Print Vendor Checks.
Go to Accounting > Payables > Enter & Pay Bills.
Enter payment information:
Payment Type: Select check, credit card, or cash.
Withdrawal Account: Select the bank account or payment source.
Payment Date: Enter the date of the payment.
Enter bill details:
Vendor: Select the vendor from the dropdown, or click + Add New to add a new vendor.
Statement info (optional): Enter statement number, statement date, due date, and purchase order number as applicable.
Expense Assignment:
Select the Expense Account (or applicable account).
Select the Department (if applicable).
Select the 1099 Type.
Amount: Enter the payment amount.
Add multiple line items (optional): Click + Add Line Item to split the payment across multiple expense categories for the same vendor. For each line, specify the account, department, description, and amount.
Pay a different vendor (optional): Click Add Another Payment and repeat the steps above.
Click Save and Continue to review the summary.
Click Back to Step 1 to make edits.
Click Approve Payments to finalize.
Print checks (if paying by check):
Click Print Vendor Checks.
Enter the starting check number when prompted.
Click Download and Print Checks.
Load check stock into your printer and print from the downloaded file. Or click I'll Print Later.
To print later, go to Payables > Print Vendor Checks.
The payment is recorded directly in the Vendor Payment History.
Use this method to log a payment that was already made outside of Patriot — for example, a check written by hand, a bank transfer processed outside the software, or any payment you didn't record in Patriot at the time it was made.
Go to Accounting > Payables > Record Past Payments.
Enter payment information:
Payment Account: Select the account the payment came from.
Payment Type: Select the payment method (check or cash).
Vendor: Select the vendor from the dropdown, or click + Add New.
Payment Date: Enter the date the payment was made.
Check Number: Enter the check number (if applicable).
Expense assignment:
Select the Expense Account (or applicable account).
Select the Department (if applicable).
Select the 1099 Type.
Enter the payment amount.
Add multiple line items (optional): Click + Add Line Item to split the payment across multiple expense categories. For each line, adjust the account, department, and amount as needed.
Click Save to log the payment in the Vendor Payment History.