Get started

When you first open the Accounting app, the accounting dashboard (Accounting ‣ Dashboard) welcomes you with a step-by-step onboarding banner that helps you get started. The banner is displayed as long as no entry has been recorded in the journals, and until you close it.

The settings visible in the onboarding banner can still be modified later by going to Accounting ‣ Configuration ‣ Settings.

Note

  • Odoo automatically installs the appropriate Fiscal Localization Package for your company, according to the country selected at the creation of the database. This way, the right accounts, reports, and taxes are ready-to-go. Click here for more information about Fiscal Localization Packages.

  • The full accounting features described in this documentation (journals, ledgers, financial reports, assets, budgets, lock dates, etc.) are provided by the Odoo 18 Accounting Community (om_account_accountant) and eYssen Accountant (eyssen_accountant) modules. When they are installed, the app is displayed as Accounting instead of Invoicing.

Accounting onboarding banner

The step-by-step Accounting onboarding banner is composed of three steps:

screenshot: accounting-get-started-onboarding-banner
menu
Accounting ‣ Dashboard
shows
Accounting dashboard of a new database with the onboarding banner and its three steps: "Set Company Data", "Set Periods", "Review Chart of Accounts".
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The onboarding banner (red frame).
data
New demo company "YourCompany HU" without any journal entry.
module
account
notes
English UI, light theme, 1440px width, crop to the banner.

  1. Company Data

  2. Accounting Periods

  3. Chart of Accounts

Company Data

Add your company’s details, such as the name, address, logo, website, phone number, email address, and Tax ID or VAT number. These details are then displayed on your documents, such as invoices.

Note

You can also change the company’s details by going to Settings ‣ General Settings, scrolling down to the Companies section, and Update Info.

Accounting Periods

Define the Opening Date of your accounting and the Fiscal Year End (last day and month of the fiscal year), which are used to generate reports automatically.

By default, the fiscal year ends on the 31st of December, as this is the most common use.

Note

You can also change the end of the fiscal year by going to Accounting ‣ Configuration ‣ Settings, in the Fiscal Year part of the Fiscal Periods section (Last Day field).

Fiscal years

If a fiscal year is longer or shorter than one calendar year (e.g., the first year of a company), enable Fiscal Years in the Fiscal Periods section of the settings, then go to Accounting ‣ Configuration ‣ Fiscal Year and create the fiscal year with its Start Date and End Date. The reports use these dates to compute the fiscal year’s results.

screenshot: accounting-get-started-fiscal-periods-settings
menu
Accounting ‣ Configuration ‣ Settings
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"Fiscal Periods" section with the "Fiscal Year" block ("Last Day": December 31) and the "Fiscal Years" option enabled with its "Fiscal Years" link button.
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The "Fiscal Periods" section (red frame).
data
Demo company "YourCompany HU".
module
account, om_fiscal_year
notes
English UI, light theme, 1440px width, crop to the section.

Note

This feature is provided by the Odoo 18 Fiscal Year & Lock Date (om_fiscal_year) module, which also adds the Accounting ‣ Accounting ‣ Lock Dates menu.

Chart of Accounts

With this step, you can add accounts to your Chart of Accounts and indicate their initial opening balances (Opening Debit and Opening Credit columns).

Basic settings are displayed on this page to help you review your Chart of Accounts. To access all the settings of an account, open the account line.

screenshot: accounting-get-started-setup-chart-of-accounts
menu
Accounting ‣ Dashboard ‣ onboarding banner ‣ Review Chart of Accounts
shows
Editable list of accounts with the Code, Account Name, Type, Allow Reconciliation, Opening Debit and Opening Credit columns; a few opening balances filled in.
highlight
The "Opening Debit" and "Opening Credit" columns (red frame).
data
Demo company "YourCompany HU" with the Hungarian chart of accounts.
module
account
notes
English UI, light theme, 1440px width.

Note

Click here for more information on how to configure your Chart of Accounts.

Other initial settings

Bank Account

To add a bank account, go to Accounting ‣ Configuration ‣ Add a Bank Account and fill out the form:

  • Account Number: your bank account number (IBAN in Europe).

  • Bank: select or create the bank institution.

  • Bank Identifier Code: the bank’s BIC or SWIFT code.

  • Journal: this field is displayed if you have an existing bank journal that is not linked yet to a bank account. If so, select the journal you want to use to record the financial transactions linked to this bank account. Leave it empty to create a new bank journal.

Note

Click here for more information about bank accounts and the import or synchronization of bank statements.

Taxes

Go to Accounting ‣ Configuration ‣ Taxes to create new taxes, (de)activate, or modify existing taxes. Depending on the localization package installed on your database, taxes required for your country are already configured.

Note

Click here for more information about taxes.

Documents Layout

To customize the default invoice layout, go to Settings ‣ General Settings, scroll down to the Companies section, and click Configure Document Layout.

Tip

Add your bank account number and a link to your General Terms & Conditions in the footer. This way, your contacts can find the full content of your GT&C online without having to print them on the invoices you issue.

Create Invoice

Create your first invoice from Accounting ‣ Customers ‣ Invoices. See Customer invoices for more information.

Online Payments

To let your customers pay their invoices online, go to Accounting ‣ Configuration ‣ Online Payments ‣ Payment Providers and enable the desired providers.

See also