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Count the cash box after an event

Two adults count the box separately, each records their own tally, and nothing is deposited until both have signed.

When you are done

You will have a cash count signed by two named people, a recorded variance against the booth tally, and a deposit written to the register.

Who else you need

This needs two people by design and cannot be completed alone. Two unrelated adults count the box separately and each signs. Every money-handling guide published by a state PTA asks for the same thing, and your insurer may treat a single-counter deposit as an uncontrolled one. Confirm your own carrier's conditions.

Open the count before the box leaves the room

  1. Open Event cash counts from the left sidebar and fill in the form headed Open a count.

  2. Give the Event and Where it was counted.

  3. Set Counted on to the day of the event, not the day you get to the bank.

  4. Enter Starting float: the money put in the box before the event so it could make change.

    It is excluded from the deposit and is never counted as revenue. A box holding $850.00 that started with a $200.00 float deposits $650.00.

  5. Enter Tallied at the booth: what the people running the table believed they took.

    It is what the count is measured against.

  6. Choose the Category and Fund the money belongs to, then open the count.

What the form asks, and why the float is separateOpen a count before the box leaves the room. Counted on is the day of the event, not the day you get to the bank. Starting float is the money put in the box beforehand so it could make change — it is excluded from the deposit and is never counted as revenue. Tallied at the booth is what the people running the table believed they took, and it is what the count is measured against.Open a countEventFall CarnivalWhereTicket booth, blacktopCounted on18 Oct 2025Starting float$200.00Tallied at the booth$650.00The float goes in, and comes back outCounted in the box$850.00Less the float$200.00Deposited: $650.00

Each counter enters their own tally

Do this at the event, with both people at the table. A count entered the next morning from a memory of the box is one person counting twice.

  1. The first counter enters how many of each denomination are in the box.

    $100, $50, $20, $10, $5, $1, 25¢, 10¢, 5¢, 1¢. The running total appears as they type.

  2. They choose Sign for this count when the total matches what they counted.

    $850.00, in the example above.

  3. The second counter signs in and does the same, from their own count of the same box.

    Neither sees the other's figures before signing.

Two people count the same box, separatelyEach counter enters how many of each denomination are in the box — $100, $50, $20, $10, $5, $1, 25¢, 10¢, 5¢, 1¢ — and a running total appears as they type. Neither sees the other's figures before signing. Do this at the event with both people at the table: a count entered the next morning from a memory of the box is one person counting twice. Until the second counter has signed, the count reads Needs a second counter and cannot be deposited.Maya counts$2024$1011$59$155Her total: $850.00Rae counts$2024$1011$59$155Her total: $850.00MayasignedRaesignedNow it can be deposited

Read the variance before depositing

Once both have signed, PTO HQ compares the two counts against each other and against the booth tally.

  • "Matches the booth tally." means the money and the expectation agree, and the deposit can go ahead.
  • "Off by $5 or less — the handbooks say count it again." is the ordinary miscount. Count the box a third time before accepting it.
  • "Off by more than $5. Over $10 this goes to the board before it is deposited." is the one to stop on. Take it to the board, and record what the board decided in the minutes.
What the variance meansPTO HQ compares the two counts against each other and against the booth tally. Matching means the deposit can go ahead. Off by $5 or less is the ordinary miscount and the handbooks say count it again. Off by more than $5 stops there, and over $10 it goes to the board before it is deposited — record what the board decided in the minutes.Matches the booth tally.Off by $5 or less — the handbooks say count it again.Off by more than $5. Over $10 this goes to the board.Confirm your own insurer’s conditions. This is not insurance advice.

Deposit it

  1. Choose the deposit control on the signed count.

    PTO HQ writes the deposit to the register against the category and fund you chose, net of the starting float.

  2. Take the paper deposit slip and the printed count sheet to the bank together.

  3. File the count sheet in the Records vault.

How to check it worked

  • The count shows both counters by name with the date each signed.
  • The variance line states the difference against the booth tally in dollars.
  • After depositing, a new register entry appears for the counted amount less the float.
  • Until the second counter has signed, the count reads "Needs a second counter" and cannot be deposited.

If it did not work

What you seeWhat it meansWhat to do
The count reads "Needs a second counter".Only one person has signed. Nothing can be deposited until the second one has.Have the second counter sign in and enter their own tally. If your board has only one active member, invite a second from the Board tab in Settings.
The count reads "The two counts disagree".The two people counted the same box and reached different totals.Count it a third time together and correct whichever tally was wrong. A disagreement resolved by picking one at random is not a count.
The deposit is smaller than the amount counted.The starting float is excluded. It was your money before the event and is not revenue.Nothing to fix. Check the float you entered matches what actually went into the box.
You cannot open a count because there are no categories or funds.A count has to be recorded against a category and a fund, and this organization has neither yet.Add them from the Chart of accounts and the Funds pages, then open the count.

This isn't legal, tax, or insurance advice. Confirm filing dates, bonding conditions, and your state's requirements with your CPA, your state PTA, and your insurer.