The list of each account a company owns is typically shown in the order the accounts appear in its financial statements. That means that balance sheet accounts, assets, liabilities, and shareholders’ equity are listed first, followed by accounts in the income statement — revenues and expenses.

How are accounts numbered?

Account numbers are often five or more digits in length with each digit representing a division of the company, the department, the type of account, etc. As you will see, the first digit might signify if the account is an asset, liability, etc. For example, if the first digit is a “1” it is an asset.

What is general ledger number?

The general ledger is an accounting document that provides a general overview of an organization’s financial transactions. An account, or general ledger (GL) code, is a number used to record business transactions in the general ledger.

Are accounts in the general ledger numbered by classification?

A general ledger account list contains the names and numbers of all the bookkeeping accounts necessary for classifying income and expenses. The Chart of Accounts ties in with the Accounting Equation so: the Assets are listed first. then the Liabilities.

Why are accounts coded or numbered?

Chart of accounts numbering involves setting up the structure of the accounts to be used, as well as assigning specific codes to the different general ledger accounts. The numbering system used is critical to the ways in which financial information is stored and manipulated.

What is the GL code?

A General Ledger Code (GL Code) is a string of alphanumeric characters assigned to each financial entry in an organization’s ledger. A GL Code can indicate basic information such as a debit or credit by location or provide highly specific details about an entry through a GL String.

Why do chart of accounts have numbers?

What are GL codes used for?