Account types

Add one cash at bank and in hand account for every account your company has at a bank or other financial institution.

Transactions related to the customers who owe you money, including invoices, payments, deposits of payments, refunds, and credit notes.

Assets that are likely to be converted to cash or used up within one year, such as petty cash, notes receivable due within a year, prepaid expenses, and security deposits.

Depreciable assets your company owns that aren't likely to be converted into cash within a year, such as equipment or furniture.

Any asset that is neither a current asset nor a tangible asset, such as long-term notes receivable.

Transactions related to money you owe, including bills, bill payments, and any credit you have with suppliers. See also current and non-current liability accounts.

Card purchases, bills, and payments.

Liabilities that are scheduled to be paid within one year, such as sales VAT, payroll taxes, accrued or deferred salaries, and short-term loans.

Liabilities such as loans or mortgages scheduled to be paid over periods longer than one year.

Owner's equity (which includes capital investments and drawings), Opening balance equity, and Retained earnings. QuickBooks automatically creates these last two accounts.

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, you record that you took money out of your current account, and also how you spent the money: utilities, office supplies, and so on.

To see what's "in" an income or expense account, do one of the following:

• In the navigation bar, click Reports. Then run a Profit & Loss report.
• On the Chart of Accounts, select the income or expense account and click Run report.

The amount "in" the account represents how much was assigned that account during a period of time.

The main source of money coming into your company.

Money received for something other than normal business operations, such as interest income.

Money that's leaving your company.

Money spent on something other than normal business operations, such as corporate taxes.

The cost of sales and materials held in stock and then sold.