Working with the Chart of Accounts

Setting Up the Chart of Accounts

Overview

The Chart of Accounts (CoA) is the foundation of your accounting system in CustomBooks™. It contains all the General Ledger (GL) accounts used to record financial transactions and generate financial reports. Properly setting up your Chart of Accounts ensures accurate bookkeeping, meaningful financial reporting, and efficient transaction processing.

CustomBooks™ provides several options for creating and configuring your Chart of Accounts, allowing you to start with a predefined structure or create a customized setup that meets your business requirements.

Before You Begin

Before setting up your Chart of Accounts, consider the following:
  1. The type of business you operate.
  2. The financial reports you need to generate.
  3. Any industry-specific accounting requirements.
  4. Whether you are migrating from another accounting system.
  5. The level of detail you want to track in your financial records.
A well-designed Chart of Accounts should be detailed enough to support reporting needs while remaining easy to maintain.

Chart of Accounts Setup Options

The Chart of Accounts can be configured during the initial Setup Wizard process or modified later as your business requirements change. During account setup, CustomBooks™ guides users through selecting or importing a Chart of Accounts structure.

CustomBooks™ offers multiple ways to establish your Chart of Accounts.

Option 1: Use a Default Chart of Accounts

CustomBooks™ provides predefined Chart of Accounts templates that are automatically tailored based on the company information entered during setup. These templates contain commonly used accounts and account structures suitable for many businesses.

This option is recommended for:
  1. New businesses
  2. Companies with standard accounting requirements
  3. Users who want to begin processing transactions quickly

Option 2: Import an Existing Chart of Accounts

If you are migrating from another accounting system, you can import your existing Chart of Accounts into CustomBooks™. This allows you to preserve your current account structure and minimize setup time.

Importing is ideal for:
  1. Existing businesses transitioning to CustomBooks™
  2. Organizations with established accounting structures
  3. Companies requiring consistency with prior financial reporting

Option 3: Copy a Chart of Accounts from Another Company

If you manage multiple companies with similar accounting requirements, you can copy a Chart of Accounts from an existing CustomBooks™ company. This helps maintain consistency across entities and reduces setup effort.

Option 4: Create a Custom Chart of Accounts

You may build your Chart of Accounts manually by creating accounts that match your specific operational and reporting needs. This option provides maximum flexibility and control over account organization.

Creating an Account

To create a new account in the Chart of Accounts:
  1. Navigate to Accounting → Chart of Accounts.
    1. Alternatively, navigate to List → Chart of Accounts.
  2. Click Create → New Account.



  3. Enter a Name for the new account.
  4. Choose an Account Type.
  5. Enter an Account Code or leave this field blank to have the system assign a code for you (The system will use standard account type numbering when assigning a number).
  6. Select or choose an Account Group (optional). See this article to learn more about Account Group.
  7. Select a Parent Account (optional).
    1. A parent account in the Chart of Accounts is a high-level account that groups related subaccounts under it. It acts as a category or summary account, providing an organized structure for financial reporting.
  8. If this account will be tracking transactions related to 1099 filings, choose the appropriate 1099 Category from the drop-down list.
  9. Select a Tax Line (optional). 
    1. A tax line is a designation used to associate specific accounts with tax reporting categories. It ensures that transactions recorded in those accounts are correctly mapped to tax forms when generating financial reports for tax purposes.
  10. Click Save and Close to finish.


To import the Chart of Accounts, go to this ARTICLE to learn more.
You may also add your own custom fields to an account in the chart of accounts. To learn more, read the article about Custom Fields.

Exporting the Charts of Accounts

The Chart of Accounts can be exported by clicking the Export list button on the Chart of Accounts list view command bar.

The exported chart of accounts includes the following:
  1. Account Type
  2. Account Code
  3. The parent (if applicable)
  4. Account Name
  5. Is Group
  6. Account Group
  7. The Balance
  8. And any other columns that are currently added on the list
You may uncheck those columns that you do not need on the exported file.



Inactivating a G/L Account

As your business grows and changes, some General Ledger (G/L) accounts may no longer be needed. Instead of deleting these accounts, you can mark them as inactive to prevent future use while preserving historical records.

When a G/L account is inactive, it remains in the system for historical and reporting purposes, but it will no longer appear in account selection lists. Inactive accounts can also be hidden from the Chart of Accounts list to help keep your account structure organized.


Before You Begin:

A G/L account must have a zero balance before it can be marked as inactive. If you attempt to inactivate an account that still has a balance, the system will not allow the account to be inactivated directly.

Instead, a wizard will open to help you transfer the outstanding balance to another G/L account. Once the balance has been moved and the account balance is zero, the account can be marked as inactive.

Note: Certain system-required accounts cannot be inactivated. If you attempt to deactivate one of these accounts, the system will display an error message.

To Make a G/L Account Inactive:
  1. Open the Chart of Accounts list.
  2. Double-click the G/L account you want to inactivate.
  3. Slide the Make Inactive toggle bar.
  4. Click Save and Close.


To Inactivate Multiple G/L Accounts:

You can also mark multiple accounts as inactive at the same time.

  1. Open the Chart of Accounts list.
  2. Highlight one or more accounts.
    • Press Ctrl (Windows) or Cmd (Mac) while selecting multiple accounts.
  3. Right-click the selected accounts.
  4. Select Edit > Make Inactive.

Deleting a G/L Account

If a G/L account was created by mistake or is no longer needed, you may be able to delete it from the Chart of Accounts. However, deletion is only allowed under certain conditions to protect the integrity of your financial data.

Unlike inactivating an account, deleting a G/L account permanently removes it from the Chart of Accounts. For this reason, it is generally recommended to inactivate accounts that have been used rather than delete them.

Before You Begin:

A G/L account can only be deleted if it meets the following requirements:

  • The account has no balance.
  • The account has no transaction history.
  • The account is not linked to any active records, templates, or system settings.
  • The account is not a system-required account.

If the account contains historical transactions or has a balance, you should inactivate the account instead of deleting it.

Note: Certain system-required accounts cannot be deleted such as Vendor Payment, Accounts Payable, or Accounts Receivable. An error message will be displayed if you attempt to delete one of these accounts.

To Delete a G/L Account:
  1. Open the Chart of Accounts list.
  2. Locate the G/L account you want to delete.
  3. Double-click the account to open its details.
  4. Verify that the account has no balance and no transaction history.
  5. Go to More Actions → Select Delete.
  6. Confirm the deletion when prompted.

Alternatively, you may right-click the account you want to delete from the CoA list view, then delete.


To Delete Multiple G/L Accounts:
  1. Open the Chart of Accounts list.
  2. Highlight one or more accounts.
    • Press Ctrl (Windows) or Cmd (Mac) while selecting multiple accounts.
  3. Right-click the selected accounts.
  4. Select Edit > Delete.
  5. Confirm the deletion.

For a quick overview of the process and guided steps on creating, inactivating, and deleting accounts, please watch the video below.



Tips and Tricks

  1. If an account that was just entered doesn't appear in the list, click the Refresh button (#1) to refresh the screen.
  2. You may run and view a General Ledger Report showing transactions by clicking the Show button → General Ledger (#2).
  3. Search for an account using the Search box in the upper right corner (#3).


    Need help applying this to your business?

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