How to use the general ledger template
- Name the account and, if you like, give it a number. Choose its normal balance: debit for assets and expenses, credit for liabilities, equity and revenue. Cash is the example.
- Enter the opening balance on the normal side. Then list each entry with a date, a reference, a description and either a debit or a credit. Two example entries are filled in.
- Set the title and the number of blank rows to leave at the end of the page for entries you add by hand.
- Check the running balance in the preview, then press Print or Download PDF. Tick Remember my entries in this browser to keep the entries for next time.
Debit $100, credit $40
On a Cash account with a debit normal balance and an opening balance of $0, a customer payment of $100 is a debit and the balance becomes $100.00 Dr. Supplies paid for $40 is a credit, and the balance becomes $60.00 Dr. The closing balance shown at the bottom is $60.00 Dr, with total debits of $100.00 and total credits of $40.00.
On a credit normal account such as Accounts Payable, an opening balance of $250.00 grows with credits and shrinks with debits. A credit of $100.10 gives $350.10 Cr, a debit of $40.05 gives $310.05 Cr and a credit of $12.35 gives $322.40 Cr. A debit of $400.00 then takes the account past zero to a $77.60 Dr balance, which is on the opposite side from normal, and the page says so.
Reading a ledger page
The general ledger holds one page for each account and lists every entry that touched it, with the balance after each line. Debit means the left side and credit the right side. For a debit normal account such as cash, debits add and credits subtract. For a credit normal account such as a loan, it is the other way round. The balance column marks each balance Dr or Cr, so a balance on the unusual side stands out.
The ledger is where the numbers from the books come together. After an entry is recorded in the journal, each line is posted to the ledger page of its account. Totals at the bottom show the debits, the credits and the closing balance, which is useful when you reconcile an account with a statement.
Using the page
The amounts are exact to the cent, and entries need one amount each, either a debit or a credit. A line with both is rejected so a mistake cannot slip by. Blank rows at the end let you add entries by hand on the printed page, and the page continues over several pages if you list many entries.
This is a template, not an accounting system, and the example entries are samples. Your accountant can say how your records should be kept. To plan accounts first, use the chart of accounts template, to create the entries use the journal entry generator, and for a small cash fund try the petty cash log. The profit and loss statement generator summarizes revenue and expense accounts.
Assumptions and limits
- Balances are simple arithmetic on the amounts you enter: opening balance plus or minus each line, depending on the normal side.
- A balance below zero is shown on the opposite side, marked Dr or Cr, not with a minus sign.
- Up to 80 entries fit, with up to 30 blank rows at the end.
- The example account, dates and amounts are samples to replace. The template does not check your entries against any accounting rule.
Frequently asked questions
What is a general ledger?
It is the set of account pages in which every transaction is posted, so you can see the activity and the balance of each account.
What do Dr and Cr mean?
Dr means debit and Cr means credit. In the balance column they show which side the balance is on.
How is the running balance calculated?
For a debit normal account, each debit adds and each credit subtracts. For a credit normal account, it is the reverse. The result after each line is shown.
Can I keep one ledger for several accounts?
This page is for one account at a time. Make a separate page for each account, using the account name to tell them apart.