Good day, @laura73,
Posting transactions to the parent account will not impact the sub-accounts. The parent account's balance will decrease once you record money-out under entries under it, while the balance of the sub-accounts remains the same.
You can check the parent account if there are transactions that weren't assigned to the sub-account. This cause the difference between their balances.
If you want to inactive the sub-accounts, QuickBooks will create a journal entry to zero out the balance. Thus, you need to transfer all the transactions to the parent account first.
To make an account inactive:
- Click Accounting from the left menu, the select Chart of Accounts.
- Find the account you want to inactive.
- Click the drop-down under the Action column, then select Make Inactive.
- Click Yes to confirm.
You also check out to this page for your guidance with the steps above: How to delete an account or restore a deleted account.
Keep me posted if there's anything I can help with your accounts in QuickBooks. I'm always around whenever you need help.
