Manual
General ledger
The general ledger is where every posting ends up in money: sales, purchases, stock, payments and journals all write G/L entries to the accounts of the chart of accounts. The financial statements, the trial balance and the account schedules are read from those entries.
How amounts reach the ledger
| Where an amount starts | How it reaches the general ledger |
|---|---|
| Sales and purchase documents | Posting writes the sale or purchase, the VAT and the receivable or payable, to the accounts the posting groups name. |
| Stock movements | Each value entry posts to an inventory account and its other side. |
| Payments and receipts | Posted through the cash receipt or payment journal, between a bank account and a customer or vendor. |
| Journals | Each line debits one account and credits another (its balancing account) directly. |
So most entries come from documents, and the accountant’s own postings (salaries, depreciation, bank charges, corrections) are made on the General Journal.
Where to find it
In the Accountant’s menu:
- Activity: Chart Of Accounts, Accounting Periods, G/L Budgets, Account Schedules, Column Layouts.
- Journals: Cash Receipt Journals, Payment Journals, General Journal.
- Entries: General Ledger Entries, and the customer, vendor and bank account entries.
- Posting Groups and Setups: the posting groups, General Posting Setup, VAT Posting Setup, General Ledger Setup, Dimensions, Currencies, journal templates and batches.
In this manual
- Chart of accounts: G/L accounts, totals, balances, accounting periods and closing the year.
- Journals: the general journal, its lines, batches and posting.
- Posting setup and VAT: how posting groups choose accounts, and how VAT is worked out.
- Account schedules and budgets: financial statements set up as data, G/L budgets, and the ledger’s reports.
Dimensions, which tag every G/L entry with a department or channel, are in Basics: Dimensions.