A Monthly Spend Reconciliation Routine With Your Agency: A Checklist

Editorial team Spend Ledger

Prepare the records

• Agree who owns the reconciliation. Assign responsibility between your team and the agency so that missing records or unexplained differences do not sit without an owner.

• Set a recurring review point. Choose a regular point in your finance process to compare platform-reported spend with the agency’s invoice, rather than relying on memory or an informal discussion.

• Use the same reporting basis each time. Record whether the review compares billed media spend, platform-delivered spend, or a wider agency charge that also includes fees and other agreed items.

• Keep a reconciliation record. Use a shared document or your normal finance process to note the period, currency, totals, differences, classifications, owners and outcome.

• Write down the agreed scope. Check the agency agreement or other written terms for what the invoice includes, how fees are presented, how credits are handled and which party pays the platform.

• Keep access and responsibility clear. Confirm who can obtain the relevant platform reports and who can answer questions about invoice line items, so the review does not depend on assumptions about account ownership.

Gather the platform statement and agency invoice

• Download or obtain the platform’s spend statement for the period under review. Use the platform’s own reporting or billing records as the source for delivered spend, and retain the report or a clear record of its contents.

• Request the agency invoice for the same review. Check that you have the complete invoice and any supporting schedule needed to understand how its charges are calculated.

• Gather relevant credit records. Include platform credits, agency adjustments or other documented credits that affect the amount being compared, because a credit can change the payable balance without changing the underlying spend report.

• Collect records of agreed fees. Keep the written fee terms and any invoice detail that shows management charges or other agency services separately from media spend.

• Include communications that explain adjustments. Save written notes about corrections, billing changes or timing arrangements, since context can help distinguish an explained difference from an unresolved one.

• Check that the records cover the same account or activity. Confirm that the statement and invoice relate to the advertising activity being reconciled, not a broader agency relationship or a different account structure.

• Do not substitute a summary for supporting records. If a total is unclear, ask for the underlying statement or invoice detail rather than treating an unexplained figure as confirmed.

Match the period and currency

• Compare the dates or billing period shown on both records. A platform’s reporting period and an agency’s invoicing period may not align, so establish exactly what each total covers before comparing amounts.

• Note any difference in period boundaries. Record whether one document includes activity that falls outside the other document’s period, because this may explain a timing difference without establishing that either record is wrong.

• Confirm the currency on each record. Do not compare amounts as if they were in the same currency when the statement and invoice use different currencies.

• Check the written basis for any currency conversion. If the invoice converts platform spend, ask what method the agency used and whether that method matches the agreed terms.

• Separate reporting dates from payment dates. A charge appearing or being paid at a different time does not, by itself, show when the advertising was delivered.

• Record the scope of each total. Identify whether figures include taxes, fees, credits or adjustments, and keep unlike categories separate rather than forcing them into one comparison.

• Resolve an unclear basis before accepting a match. Ask the agency to explain the period, currency or scope in writing when the records do not make it clear.

Compare totals and list every difference

• Enter the platform-reported spend and invoiced amount as separate figures. Keeping the sources distinct makes it easier to see what is being compared and prevents an invoice total from being mistaken for delivered media spend.

• Compare like with like. Match platform spend against the invoice’s media-spend component, then review agency fees and other charges separately according to the written arrangement.

• List each difference individually. Record the amount, the affected line or period, and the documents used, rather than recording only a net difference that could conceal offsetting items.

• Show credits separately from spend. A credit may affect the balance due, but it should not be used to obscure the platform’s reported delivery total.

• Mark items that already reconcile. Note which lines match and which remain open, so the review focuses on exceptions without losing a record of what was checked.

• Avoid silently changing a source figure. If a report or invoice appears incorrect, preserve the original record and document the proposed correction separately.

• Ask for clarification where the arithmetic does not explain the difference. A total that cannot be traced to source records should remain unresolved until the agency provides a clear explanation or revised documentation.

Classify each difference

• Mark a difference as timing when the periods do not align. Record which activity or billing entry falls outside the comparison period and when it should be reviewed again under the agreed process.

• Mark a difference as credit when a documented credit affects the balance. Note its source, how it is applied and whether it reduces media charges or another invoice category.

• Mark a difference as fee when it relates to an agency charge. Compare the fee with the written terms and keep it separate from platform-delivered spend.

• Mark a difference as error when the records appear inconsistent or incorrectly calculated. Describe the specific entry that needs checking rather than assuming which party made the mistake.

• Use an unresolved category when evidence is incomplete. Do not force an uncertain item into timing, credit, fee or error until the supporting records make its nature clear.

• Record the evidence for each classification. Link the note to the relevant statement, invoice line or written agreement so another person can follow the reasoning.

• Revisit a classification if new information changes the explanation. Keep a record of the updated reasoning rather than overwriting the original note without explanation.

Agree who resolves each open item

• Assign an owner to every unresolved difference. Name the responsible role or team, such as the agency billing contact or your finance contact, so the next action is clear.

• State what the owner needs to provide or check. Make the request specific, such as a supporting report, an explanation of a credit, or confirmation of the fee basis.

• Agree how the response will be recorded. Keep explanations and corrections in the reconciliation record or in written communication that can be attached to it.

• Set a follow-up point through your normal process. Leave each open item visible until it is answered, corrected or formally recorded as a disputed amount.

• Escalate recurring or material discrepancies through the agreed contacts. Use the agency’s established account, finance or support route rather than relying on informal messages that may not reach the responsible team.

• Keep platform billing questions with the appropriate platform channel. If the agency cannot explain a platform-side charge or report, use the platform’s official billing or support channels and retain the response.

• Do not treat silence as agreement. Keep an item open when no adequate explanation or correction has been provided.

Record the outcome and close the review

• Write down the outcome for each difference. Record whether it was explained as timing, credited, confirmed as a fee, corrected as an error or left unresolved.

• Retain revised invoices and supporting corrections. Keep the original and revised records together so the audit trail shows what changed and why.

• Note how a credit or correction will be applied. Confirm whether it changes the current balance, a later invoice or another agreed accounting entry, and preserve the written confirmation.

• Record any amount still in dispute separately. Do not mark the reconciliation as fully resolved if a difference remains open or the parties have not agreed how to treat it.

• Confirm the final comparison in writing. Summarise the records reviewed, the reconciled categories and the remaining actions so both sides have a shared account of the review.

• Store the completed record with the relevant finance documents. Make it possible for an authorised colleague to understand the reconciliation without reconstructing the discussion from memory.

• Carry forward unresolved items into the next review. Keep their original period, owner and status visible so that they are not mistaken for a new difference or silently dropped.

Improve the routine without changing the rules

• Review recurring differences for process causes. Look for patterns such as mismatched period boundaries, unclear fee presentation or delayed credit documentation, and agree how records can be made easier to compare.

• Update the written reconciliation instructions when responsibilities change. Keep the process aligned with the current agency arrangement and account structure rather than relying on outdated assumptions.

• Ask the agency to separate spend, fees and credits clearly. Distinct invoice categories make it easier to compare delivered media with service charges and adjustments.

• Confirm reporting access through authorised channels. Ensure the people responsible can obtain the records needed for finance review without sharing credentials or bypassing platform controls.

• Keep the review focused on accurate accounting. A reconciliation should explain what was delivered, what was invoiced and what remains unsettled; it should not be used to avoid platform checks or restrictions.

• Check the platform’s current help and policy pages when its billing or reporting process is unclear. Platform procedures can change, so use official guidance for current requirements rather than relying on an old internal note.

• Treat the checklist as a control, not a guarantee. It can make responsibilities and differences more visible, but each figure still needs support from the relevant platform, invoice and written agreement.