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Chart of Accounts
   
QuickBooks Chart of Accounts
[Source: Quickbooks Help Menu]
 

There are two main types of accounts in the QuickBooks Chart of Accounts:

  1. Balance sheet accounts

  2. Income and expense accounts.

Balance sheet accounts

QuickBooks provides ten types of balance sheet accounts to choose from as you create and add to your Chart of Accounts. The following table describes each type of balance sheet account and the transactions you can use it for.

 Use this account  To track
 Bank

 Current, savings and term deposits. Add one bank account for every account your company has at a bank including bank accounts in a foreign currency. (You can also use this type for petty cash.)
  Accounts receivable (A/R)

 Transactions related to the customers that owe you money including tax invoices, payments, deposits of payments, refunds and adjustment notes. Most companies have only one A/R account except when they deal in more than one currency. If your company deals with multiple currency denominations, you'll need an A/R account for each currency in which you deal.
 Other current asset
 Assets that are likely to be converted to cash or used up within one year, such as petty cash, promissory notes due within a year, prepaid expenses and security deposits.
  Fixed asset
 Depreciable assets your company owns that aren't likely to be converted into cash within a year, such as equipment or furniture.
 Other asset
 Any asset that is neither a current asset nor a fixed asset, such as long-term promissory notes.
 Accounts payable (A/P)

 Transactions related to money you owe including bills, bill payments and any credit you have with suppliers. If your company deals with multiple currency denominations, you'll need an A/P for each currency in which you deal. See also current and long-term liability accounts.
  Credit card
 Credit card purchases, bills and payments. You can have credit card accounts in multiple currencies.
  Current liability
 Liabilities that are scheduled to be paid within one year, such as tax, payroll taxes, accrued or deferred salaries and short-term loans.
  Long-term liability
 Liabilities such as loans or mortgages scheduled to be paid over periods longer than one year.
  Equity
 Owner's equity including capital investment, drawings and retained earnings.
  Income and expense accounts

Income and expense accounts track the sources of your income and the purpose of each expense. When you record transactions in one of your balance sheet accounts, you usually assign the amount of the transaction to one or more income or expense accounts. For example, not only do you record that you took money out of your cheque account, but you keep track of what you spent the money on such as utilities or office supplies.

QuickBooks does not display a balance for income and expense accounts in the Chart of Accounts. One way to see these balances is by choosing Company & Financial from the Reports menu and then choosing one of the profit and loss reports. You can also select the income or expense account in the Chart of Accounts and click QuickReport.

  Use this account  To track
 Income  The main source of money coming into your company.
 Other income  Money received for something other than normal business operations, such as interest income.
 Expense  Money that's leaving your company.
 Other expense  Money spent on something other than normal business operations, such as corporate taxes.
 Cost of Goods sold  The cost of goods and materials held in stock and then sold.
  QuickBooks sets up non-posting accounts for purchase orders, estimates and sales orders if you turn on those features.