A journal entry records a transaction that no invoice, bill or payment covers, such as depreciation, a provision, a transfer between accounts or a correction. Each entry is filed in a journal. Every company starts with a General journal, and you can add your own to keep different kinds of entries apart.
Add a journal (optional)
- Go to Accounting → Journals.
- Click + New Journal.
- Enter the Journal Name and a Description. Both are required.
- Leave Is Active? at Yes.
- Click Create Journal.
Create the entry
- Go to Accounting → Journals and click + New Journal Entry.
- Leave Journal No blank to have it numbered for you (JOU001, JOU002 and so on), or type your own number.
- Set the Date. It defaults to today.
- Choose the journal in Select Journal.
- Optionally choose a project in Select Projects.
- On the first line, enter a description, choose the Account, and type the amount under Debits or Credits.
- A line is either a debit or a credit, not both. You can also tag a vendor or client in Vendor/ Clients and add a Contact Number.
- Fill in the second line the same way.
- Click Add another item for more lines. An entry needs at least two lines.
- Check the totals under the lines.
- Total Debits must equal Total Credits, so that Difference is zero.
- Optionally add Notes, such as bank transfer details.
- Click Create Journal Entry.
Create Journal Entry stays disabled until the entry balances. To keep an unfinished entry, click Save as Draft instead. A draft can be saved before it balances.
Status and currency
The Status panel on the right sets what happens to the entry:
- Posted — the default. The entry posts to the ledgers of the accounts on its lines and shows in your reports.
- Draft and Pending — saved, but nothing posts to your books yet.
- Cancelled — kept for the record, with nothing on your books.
For an entry in another currency, choose it under Currency. The Exchange Rate to rupees is filled in for the entry's date, and you can change it.
Tips
- To check what an entry posted, open the account from Accounting → Chart of Accounts and click the Journals chip on its ledger.
- Opening balances of a past financial year are read-only. To correct one, post an adjustment journal dated in that year.
Related articles
Was this article helpful?
Related Articles
Editing, cancelling or deleting a journal entry
Change a journal entry, move it between Posted, Draft, Pending and Cancelled, or delete it. SmartLedger reverses posted lines instead of erasing them.
Creating a matching rule
Tell SmartLedger how to handle bank lines it sees every month, such as bank charges or rent, so they're booked to the right ledger automatically.
Creating a purchase invoice from a SmartUpload
Upload a vendor's bill, let SmartLedger read it, check the details and approve it to create the purchase invoice and post it to your books.
Viewing an account's general ledger
See every entry posted to one account in date order, with opening, running and closing balances, and open the invoice or journal behind each entry.