Chart of Accounts

Your Chart of Accounts is the master list of every financial "bucket" your business uses. Every dollar that flows in or out of include GO — a customer payment, a vendor bill, a payroll run — lands in one of these accounts. Think of it as the list of pockets on a filing cabinet full of money: Cash, Accounts Receivable, Labor Expense, Revenue, and so on.

include GO ships with a starter Chart of Accounts that covers most small businesses. You'll usually tweak it a bit during setup and then leave it alone — your accountant will care the most about what's on this list.

Where to Find the Chart of Accounts

From anywhere in include GO, click the Settings icon in the left sidebar (near the bottom). In the Settings sidebar that opens, under the Financial Setup section, click Chart of Accounts.

Navigation path: Dashboard → Settings → Financial Setup → Chart of Accounts

How the Starter Accounts Are Numbered

The default accounts follow standard accounting conventions, grouped by number range:

Number Range	What it covers	Account Type
10000–19999	Cash, receivables, inventory, fixed assets	Asset
20000–29999	Accounts payable, credit cards, loans, accrued liabilities	Liability
30000–39999	Owner's equity, retained earnings	Equity
40000–49999	Sales, service income, other revenue	Revenue
50000–59999	Cost of goods sold, job costs	Cost / Expense
60000–69999	Operating expenses, overhead	Expense

If you follow these ranges when adding new accounts, your financial reports stay organized and your accountant stays happy. Deviating from these ranges is fine but makes reporting messier.

The Chart of Accounts Page

The page shows a table of all your accounts. Like other settings pages in include GO, you add and edit accounts right in the table itself — click a cell, type or pick a value, save.

Chart of Accounts page

What you see on this screen

#	Element	What it does
1	Add button	The blue button in the top-right. Click to start adding a new account. A new empty row appears at the top of the table.
2	Include Archived checkbox	Off by default. Turn it on to also show accounts you've archived.
3	Account # column	The numeric identifier for the account, like `10000` for Cash or `40000` for Maintenance Revenue. Required when you create a new account. Must be unique.
4	Account Type column	The broad classification — Asset, Liability, Equity, Revenue, Expense, Income, Cost, or Other. Determines where the account appears on financial statements.
5	GL Category column	Links the account to a GL Category (like "Current Assets" or "Operating Expenses") for summary reporting. Optional but very useful.

There are several more columns: ID (auto), Account Name, Statement Type (Balance Sheet / Income Statement), Cost Category (used on project cost reports), Description, and Status (Active/Archived badge).

Adding a New Account

Click the Add button in the top-right. An empty new row slides in at the top of the table, with the cursor already placed in the first editable cell.

Adding a new account

What to fill in

Cell	Required?	What to enter
Account #	Yes	A whole number that's not already in use. Pick a number in the right range for the account's type (see the numbering guide above). Example: `10300` for a new checking account, `50500` for a new job-cost category.
Account Name	Yes	A short, clear name. Examples: Cash — Main Operating, Accounts Receivable, Labor Expense. Max 200 characters. This is what shows up on reports.
Account Type	No (but strongly recommended)	Pick from the dropdown: Asset, Liability, Equity, Revenue, Expense, Income, Cost, or Other. This is how the account is summarized on financial statements.
Statement Type	No	Pick Balance Sheet (for Asset, Liability, Equity accounts) or Income Statement (for Revenue, Expense, Cost, Income accounts). Leave blank if you're not sure — your accountant can set it later.
GL Category	No	Optional. Pick a category from the searchable dropdown (like "Current Assets" or "Cost of Goods Sold") to group this account on summary reports. See the GL Categories page.
Cost Category	No	For expense accounts that appear on project cost reports. Pick from: Labor, Material, Equipment, Subcontractor, or Other. Only applies to cost-type accounts — leave blank for everything else.
Description	No	Optional free text explaining what goes in this account. Useful when the name alone isn't enough to avoid confusion.

The ID and Status cells are filled in automatically. New accounts start as Active.

Saving or canceling

Press Enter from any cell to save. The row drops into the list.
Or click the green checkmark (✓) on the right side of the row.
Press Escape or click the red X to cancel.

If something's wrong: A red message appears above the table. Most common: Account Number is already in use (numbers must be unique). Pick a different number.

Editing an Account

Click any editable cell and type or pick a new value. The Save (green checkmark) and Cancel (red X) buttons appear on the right side of the row. Changes don't save until you click the checkmark or press Enter.

You can also right-click on a row and choose Edit from the menu.

Be careful when editing accounts with transaction history. Changing an account's Type or Account Number can shift where it shows up on reports, including historical ones. If in doubt, leave the existing account alone and add a new one instead.

Archiving and Activating

You can't delete an account that has transactions posted to it — that would break your financial history. Instead, archive accounts you no longer use. Archived accounts stop appearing in dropdowns (on invoices, purchase orders, journal entries, etc.) but all existing transactions stay intact.

Right-click any row to see the menu:

Action	When you'll see it	What it does
Add New Account	Always	Same as clicking the "Add" button above the table.
Edit	On active rows	Enables the row for editing.
Archive	On active rows	Hides the account from future dropdowns. A confirmation appears first.
Activate	On archived rows (after you turn on "Include Archived")	Restores the account to active.

How the Chart of Accounts Connects to Everything Else

This page is arguably the most important in the settings area. Accounts you create here show up all over the app:

Invoices & Payments — Every line on a customer invoice posts to a revenue account; every payment goes to a cash account.
Purchase Orders & Bills — Each line on a vendor bill goes to an expense or inventory account.
Payroll — Wages and taxes post to labor and payroll-liability accounts.
Journal Entries — Every manual debit/credit uses these accounts.
Budgets & Reports — Financial statements (Balance Sheet, Income Statement) roll up by Account Type and GL Category.
Project Costs — Job-cost reports group costs by the Cost Category you pick here (Labor, Material, Equipment, Subcontractor, Other).

Because every financial transaction needs to point at an account, missing or wrong accounts cause ripple effects across the whole system. Handle with care.

Who Can Edit This Page?

Anyone with the Settings View permission can see the Chart of Accounts page. Only users with the Settings Manage Chart of Accounts permission can add, edit, or archive accounts. By default this means Super Admin and Accountant roles.

This is one of the most powerful permissions in the system — granting it gives someone the ability to reshape your financial structure. Grant it sparingly.

Tips & Best Practices

Don't fix what isn't broken. The default accounts cover most businesses. Add new ones only when you have a real need, not because you feel like the list should be longer.
Follow the number ranges. Assets in the 1xxxx range, liabilities in 2xxxx, etc. This keeps reports sorted correctly and matches what every other accounting system does.
Assign a GL Category to every account. It makes summary reports (Balance Sheet, Income Statement) group cleanly without extra work.
Use Cost Category on expense accounts only. For Labor, Material, Equipment, Subcontractor, and "Other" expenses that get tracked on project cost reports.
Archive instead of deleting. An account with one transaction from 2019 still needs to exist so that 2019 report opens. Archive it instead.
Ask your accountant before restructuring. If you're tempted to renumber or merge accounts, loop your accountant in first — changes here affect tax filings and comparability with prior years.

Common Questions

What's the difference between Account Type and GL Category? Account Type is the broad bucket (Asset, Liability, etc.) that determines which financial statement the account appears on. GL Category is a finer grouping (Current Assets, Fixed Assets, COGS, etc.) for summary reports. You can have many accounts with the same Type that belong to different Categories.

Why can't I delete an account? If the account has any transactions, journal entries, or budget lines linked to it, deleting it would orphan those records. Archive it instead.

Do account numbers have to be 5 digits? No. The system accepts any whole number, as long as it's unique. Five digits is the convention used by the default accounts because it leaves room for expansion, but 4-digit or 6-digit numbers work too.

What's Cost Category for? Project cost reports group expenses by Cost Category (Labor vs Material vs Equipment, etc.). You only need to set it on expense or cost-of-goods-sold accounts that get charged to projects.

I accidentally archived an account. How do I get it back? Turn on Include Archived at the top of the page, right-click the archived row, and choose Activate.

Can I have two accounts with the same name? Yes, but don't. The system won't stop you, but reports showing two "Cash" accounts side by side is a recipe for confusion.

What if I need a new account type that isn't in the list? The eight account types cover all standard accounting (Asset, Liability, Equity, Revenue, Expense, Income, Cost, Other). If none fit, use "Other" — but usually, what you actually want is a more specific GL Category under an existing Type.

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