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Last updated on Aug 20, 2026
Sometimes a QuickBooks Desktop sync aborts partway through with no clear explanation, because the Web Connector could not connect to QuickBooks at all. When this happens, the Web Connector log or status window shows the following message:
QBWC1013: Error connecting to QuickBooks. Returning error message to application.
This error means the Web Connector was unable to connect to your QuickBooks company file.
The Web Connector is an Intuit application and a Windows application, so it is vulnerable to the same crashes and "Windows gremlins" that can affect any Windows program. Before the Web Connector ever connects to Maxio, it must first connect successfully to QuickBooks. If it cannot make that initial connection, it will never attempt to reach Maxio at all.
Because of this, the failure happens entirely on the QuickBooks and Web Connector side, before Maxio is involved. The Maxio Platform server logs will not contain any information about the problem, and Maxio support cannot resolve QBWC1013 from the server side, since the sync request never reaches Maxio's servers to begin with. There are hundreds of different Web Connector error codes; this article covers QBWC1013 specifically.
As with most Windows application issues, the first thing to try is a restart.
To restart QuickBooks and the Web Connector
If restarting does not fix the connection, check the Web Connector log for errors. The log can be large, since it can be shared by any application that uses the Web Connector, and it might be set to "verbose" logging, meaning it could contain many thousands of pages of information. The log itself is full of technical information and will likely contain errors. Search the log for the strings "QBWC" or "Error" to find what QuickBooks reported.
If the Web Connector still does not work or continues to crash, reboot the computer again, then click the Troubleshoot button in the top right corner of the Web Connector. This runs a generic Intuit-provided troubleshooting sequence that checks the Web Connector and its ability to communicate with your QuickBooks company file.
If you are still unable to connect to QuickBooks after trying these steps, contact Intuit support, since this failure occurs before Maxio is involved.
For a full list of Web Connector error codes and how to gather diagnostic information for Maxio support, see QuickBooks Web Connector Errors.
If your Web Connector log is not recording anything despite verbose logging being turned on, see There Are No Entries in the Web Connector Log File.
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