Accounts

Accounts

You can keep track of your financial information by classifying your income and expenditure into various accounts.

You might need only a dozen accounts to keep track of your personal or small business finances. Larger businesses would use more accounts.

Account Types

In Accounts you use five basic account types (or natures) to track your financial information. The five account types are:

  • Asset
  • Liability
  • Equity
  • Revenue
  • Expense
Assets

The "Cash at Bank" account is an asset. Other assets include computers and motor vehicles.

Liabilities

Credit cards such as AMEX, MasterCard and Visa, and loans payable are examples of liability accounts.

Revenue

Revenue accounts include sales revenue, wages revenue, salary revenue, interest revenue and dividend revenue.

Equity

Your net financial position is represented by the net total of the equity account balances. The earnings accounts represent the surplus/deficit of income over expenses. You might also have an amount in the capital account. This is your contribution to your financial position.

Expenses

Bank charges, electricty, gas and stationary are examples of expense accounts.

If you are uncertain whether a new account is necessary you should create it. Your accountant will prefer more, rather than less, detailed records. Generally, transactions using the new account can be changed to use another account later provided that you have not closed the year containing the transaction you want to change.


Adding New Accounts

To create a new account click the account icon in any of the toolbars. Or, you can click the "Add Account" button at the bottom of the "Accounts" tab. The account window will appear.

Account Window

You will enter the following information for each new account:
  • Use account for receipts and payments - check the box if the account is a fund account (explanation below)
  • Nature - choose from Asset, Libility, Equity, Revenue or Expense
  • Number - enter an account number from 0001 to 9999
  • Name - enter an account name
  • Default Details - this information will appear in transactions involving this account
  • Opening balance - enter an amount if the acocunt has an openeing balance, for example, for a bank account

Fund Accounts

Fund Accounts are the accounts that appear in the popup buttons at the top of the Receipts and Payments journals. If you have a check account, make it a fund account. Then you can use Accounts to print checks on pre-printed check stationery. Make any account that you use to make payments from or deposit funds into a "Fund" account. This will include credit card accounts. You can determine which accounts are fund accounts by selecting the Accounts tab. The "Type" column displays whether an account is a fund account, a total account, or a normal account.

Accounts Tab

Editing Accounts

To edit an existing account highlight the account in the "Accounts" tab and then click the "Edit" button at the bottom of the window. Alternatively, you can edit an account by double-clicking on it. You will not be able to change the nature of an account if it has been used in any transactions.


Deleting Accounts

To delete an account highlight the account you want to delete in the "Accounts" tab and then click the "Delete" button at the bottom of the window. You will only be able to delete accounts that have not been used in any transactions.


Last Update - 1 August 2005

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