Designing the chart of accounts
You will be able to: Start from Zeyto's standard chart and add only what the client needs; Choose account roots, groups and codes sensibly; Avoid the common chart-of-accounts mistakes.
- Read not done yet
- Self-check: not taken not done yet
- Lesson complete not done yet
Zeyto starts every company with a standard chart of accounts, marked System. You add your own ledgers and groups beside it. A ledger takes postings; a group is a folder that cannot be posted to. Five roots organise everything: Asset, Liability and Equity appear on the Balance Sheet; Income and Expense appear on the Profit & Loss.
What to know before you touch it
- Codes of System accounts are locked. Zeyto suggests the next code for a new account as the highest number plus 10.
- There is no delete. Set Active to Inactive, and the account stays on old entries but refuses new postings.
- Account Type tells documents how to find a ledger. Set it only when needed; for example, opening stock needs a ledger of type Opening Balance (3900 in the standard chart).
- Customers and suppliers are parties on receivable and payable control accounts such as 1200 Trade Receivables. They are not individual ledgers.
- A ledger's Currency is information only; it does not convert or restrict postings.
A design conversation with the accountant
| Question | Why it matters | Usual answer on Zeyto |
|---|---|---|
| What reports does management read? | Chart depth should match reporting | Add groups and ledgers for what is reported; do not mirror the old chart line by line |
| Do we track profit by branch, job or project? | Use dimensions rather than extra ledgers | Cost Center, Job Center and Project Center can be switched on in Settings, Document Entry |
| How many bank and cash accounts? | One ledger per real account | One ledger for each bank account and each cash box |
| Which expenses need their own ledger? | Taxes, bank charges, fuel, rent | Create ledgers under suitable groups |
| Where do VAT balances sit? | Tax codes link to VAT ledgers | Use the codes' Output and Input accounts; do not post by hand |
Load new accounts from a spreadsheet through the Import Center's Chart of Accounts card. Its columns include Root (ASSET, LIABILITY, EQUITY, INCOME or EXPENSE), Group (yes or no) and Parent. Put each group above its ledgers.
Practise in the demo
- Open Accounting, then Chart of Accounts in the demo. Find a group and a ledger and compare their Kind.
- Press + New Ledger without saving and read the fields offered, especially Root, Parent Group and Account Type.
- Open https://demo.zeyto.app/demo-app/ and sign in with the demo login. This is a public demo with sample data, so nothing you do there affects a real business.
Public demo company, sign in as admin / demoAdmin123. Data refreshes nightly.
- Start from the standard chart and add what reporting needs.
- There is no delete: use Inactive, and keep System account codes.
- Use dimensions and parties instead of one ledger per branch, project or customer.
Check yourself
3 questions on this lesson. Not timed, not the exam, and you can try again. Score 60% or more, and read the lesson, to complete it.