How to Handle Vendor Check Payments in Odoo 18 Accounting: Complete Guide
By Braincuber Team
Published on February 28, 2026
A $4.2M home goods brand we audited was hand-writing 73 vendor checks per month. No check register. No reconciliation trail. Their bookkeeper was matching checks to bills using a spiral notebook and a highlighter. When we looked at the bank reconciliation, $6,300 in outstanding checks hadn't been matched in over 90 days. Odoo 18 handles the entire check lifecycle—register the payment, print the check from a configured layout, and reconcile it against the bank statement. Zero notebook required. This beginner guide is the complete tutorial.
What You'll Learn:
- How to enable check payments in Odoo 18 Accounting Settings
- Configuring check layout and margin settings for your printer
- Registering a vendor bill payment by check
- Printing checks directly from the Accounting dashboard
- Reconciling issued checks with bank statements
- Tracking check history through the Check Register report
Why Manual Check Management Bleeds Money
Checks feel old-school, but 37% of B2B payments in the US still happen by check. The problem isn't the check itself—it's the manual tracking. Hand-writing checks, logging them in a separate spreadsheet, then trying to match them to bank statements 30 days later. One missed check = one unreconciled transaction = one audit finding. Odoo 18 digitizes the entire flow inside your accounting module.
Integrated Check Printing
Print checks directly from Odoo with US-standard layouts (Top, Middle, Bottom). No separate check-writing software. The check includes vendor name, amount, date, and memo—pulled from the vendor bill automatically.
Automatic Reconciliation
Match printed checks to bank statement transactions in seconds. Odoo's reconciliation engine suggests matches based on amount and date. No more stale outstanding checks hiding in your register for 90+ days.
Check Register Reporting
Generate detailed check reports by month, quarter, or year. See every check issued, its status (printed, reconciled, void), and the vendor it was issued to. Audit-ready without digging through file cabinets.
Error Reduction
When your warehouse guy hand-writes a check for $1,350 but the bill says $1,530, nobody catches it until the bank statement doesn't match. Odoo pulls the amount directly from the bill. Zero transposition errors.
Configure and Enable Check Payments
Before you can pay vendors by check, you need to activate the feature and set your check layout. This takes about 2 minutes. The layout determines where the check prints on the page—top, middle, or bottom—and you can adjust margins to match your pre-printed check stock.
Enable Check Payments
Navigate to the Accounting module. Go to Configuration > Settings. Find the Vendor Payments section and enable the Check option. Click Save. This activates check as a payment method across all vendor bill payments.
Configure the Check Layout
After enabling checks, configure the Check Layout dropdown. Options include Print Check (Top) - US, Print Check (Middle) - US, and Print Check (Bottom) - US. Select the one that matches your pre-printed check stock. Adjust Check Top Margin and Check Left Margin values to fine-tune alignment with your printer. Select None if you don't need a specific layout.
| Layout Option | Check Position | Best For |
|---|---|---|
| Print Check (Top) - US | Check prints at the top of the page | Standard US check stock with stub at bottom |
| Print Check (Middle) - US | Check prints in the middle of the page | Three-part check stock with stubs top and bottom |
| Print Check (Bottom) - US | Check prints at the bottom of the page | Check stock with voucher/stub at top |
| None | No layout applied | When you register checks manually but don't print from Odoo |
Register, Print, and Reconcile Check Payments
The check workflow has three stages: register the payment on the vendor bill, print the physical check, and reconcile it when the bank statement arrives. Miss any stage and your books won't balance. Here's each step.
Open the Vendor Bill
Go to Accounting > Vendors > Bills. Select the vendor bill you want to pay by check. If the bill hasn't been created yet, click New, enter the vendor, product lines, and amounts, then click Confirm to validate the bill. The bill must be in Posted state before you can register a payment.
Register the Check Payment
On the validated bill, click Pay. In the payment popup, select Check as the Payment Method. Verify the Amount, Payment Date, and add an optional Memo. Click Create Payment. The bill status changes to In Payment—meaning the check has been registered but not yet reconciled with the bank.
Find Checks Ready to Print
Go to the Accounting Dashboard. In the Bank journal section, you'll see a Checks to Print counter showing how many registered check payments are waiting. Click it to see the full list of pending checks. This is your print queue.
Print the Check
Select the check(s) from the list and click Print. Odoo generates the check using your configured layout (Top, Middle, or Bottom). The check includes vendor name, payment amount, date, and memo—all pulled directly from the vendor bill. Load your pre-printed check stock into the printer and print. The check number is assigned automatically.
Test Your Check Layout on Plain Paper First
Before loading expensive pre-printed check stock, print a test check on plain white paper. Hold it up against your check stock to verify alignment. Adjust the Top Margin and Left Margin in Settings until the amounts, date, and payee name land in the right boxes. We've seen brands waste $85 in check stock because they skipped this step.
Import the Bank Statement
When the check clears your bank, import the bank statement. Go to the Accounting Dashboard, select your Bank journal, and click New to create a bank statement entry. Enter the transaction details: date, description (vendor name), amount, and currency. Click Save & Close.
Reconcile the Check
Odoo displays the bank statement line alongside matching entries. The check payment you registered earlier should appear as a suggested match. Verify the amount matches, then click Validate. The statement line gets the Matched label, and the vendor bill status updates to Paid. The check is now fully reconciled.
Review the Check Register
Go to Accounting > Reporting > Check Register. This report shows all check transactions: check number, date, vendor, amount, and reconciliation status. Filter by month, quarter, or year. Use this report for audit preparation—it's every check you've ever issued, in one place. No more filing cabinets of check stubs.
Monitor Outstanding Checks
Checks that have been printed but not yet reconciled with a bank statement are outstanding. Filter the Check Register for unreconciled entries. Any check outstanding for more than 30-45 days should be investigated—the vendor may not have cashed it, or it could be lost. Outstanding checks over 90 days are a reconciliation red flag that auditors will question.
VENDOR CHECK PAYMENT WORKFLOW:
SETUP (one-time):
1. Accounting > Settings > Enable Check Payments
2. Select Check Layout (Top/Middle/Bottom - US)
3. Adjust Top Margin and Left Margin for your printer
4. Test print on plain paper before using check stock
PER-PAYMENT:
5. Open vendor bill > Click Pay > Select Check
6. Enter amount, date, memo > Create Payment
7. Dashboard > Bank > Checks to Print > Select > Print
8. When check clears: import bank statement
9. Reconcile: match check payment to statement line
10. Validate > Bill status = Paid
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I enable check payments in Odoo 18?
Go to Accounting > Configuration > Settings, find the Vendor Payments section, enable the Check option, and save. Then select your preferred check layout from the dropdown.
Can I print vendor checks directly from Odoo 18?
Yes. After registering a check payment, go to the Accounting Dashboard, click Checks to Print in the Bank journal section, select the checks, and click Print. Odoo generates the check using your configured layout.
How do I reconcile a check payment with a bank statement in Odoo 18?
Import the bank statement, then open the reconciliation view. Odoo matches the check payment with the statement transaction. Click Validate to confirm. The vendor bill status updates to Paid.
Which check layout should I use in Odoo 18?
Choose the layout that matches your pre-printed check stock: Top, Middle, or Bottom. Most US businesses use Top layout. Always test print on plain paper first to verify alignment before using actual check stock.
Where can I see the check register in Odoo 18?
Navigate to Accounting > Reporting > Check Register. This shows all check transactions with check numbers, dates, vendors, amounts, and reconciliation status. Filter by month, quarter, or year.
Need Help with Odoo 18 Check Payment Setup?
Our team configures check layouts, payment workflows, bank reconciliation, and check register reporting—so your vendor payments are tracked from issuance to clearance without the spiral notebook.