Chart of Accounts

What Is a Chart of Accounts?

A Chart of Accounts is the organized list of all financial accounts your church uses to track money. Think of it as the filing system for your finances -- every dollar that comes in or goes out is recorded in one of these accounts.

TimelyChurch follows standard nonprofit accounting conventions, grouping accounts into five types. Each account type has a standard number range to keep things organized.

Where to find it: Open Finances, then click the Accounting tab. In the accounting tab bar, open the Setup ▾ dropdown and choose Chart of Accounts. The Chart of Accounts is an Advanced (Full Accounting) feature -- it is hidden when your accounting is set to Simple (Checkbook) mode. To switch modes, go to Accounting > Setup ▾ > Settings (or the More ▾ dropdown in Simple mode) and choose Full Accounting under Accounting Mode.

Account Types

Assets (1000-1999) -- What Your Church Owns

Asset accounts track things of value: bank accounts, cash on hand, property, and equipment.

Common examples:

• 1000 -- Checking Account
• 1010 -- Savings Account
• 1020 -- Petty Cash
• 1500 -- Building & Property
• 1600 -- Equipment & Furniture

Liabilities (2000-2999) -- What Your Church Owes

Liability accounts track debts and obligations: unpaid bills, loans, credit card balances, and payroll taxes owed.

Common examples:

• 2000 -- Accounts Payable
• 2100 -- Payroll Liabilities
• 2200 -- Credit Card
• 2500 -- Mortgage/Loan Payable

Equity (3000-3999) -- Net Assets

Equity accounts represent the net worth of the church -- the difference between what you own and what you owe. For nonprofit organizations, these are often called "net assets."

Common examples:

• 3000 -- Unrestricted Net Assets
• 3100 -- Temporarily Restricted

Income (4000-4999) -- Money Coming In

Income accounts track all revenue sources.

Common examples:

• 4000 -- Tithes & Offerings
• 4100 -- Designated Gifts
• 4200 -- Fundraising Income
• 4300 -- Interest & Investment Income
• 4400 -- Facility Rental Income
• 4900 -- Other Income

Important: Account 4000 (Tithes & Offerings) is the default account used when donations are automatically posted from the Giving module. The system looks for the account numbered 4000 first; if you rename or renumber it (or it no longer exists), the system falls back to the first active income account it finds. For this reason, we recommend keeping a 4000-numbered income account in your Chart of Accounts.

Paid registration and merchandise forms can route their income to a different income account (for example, sending event-registration income to a 4200 Fundraising account instead of 4000). That routing is chosen on the form itself when you build it -- it does not change the default used for ordinary giving.

Expenses (5000-5999) -- Money Going Out

Expense accounts track all spending.

Common examples:

• 5000 -- Payroll & Benefits
• 5100 -- Building & Maintenance
• 5200 -- Utilities
• 5300 -- Office & Administrative
• 5400 -- Ministry Supplies
• 5500 -- Missions & Outreach
• 5600 -- Benevolence
• 5700 -- Insurance
• 5800 -- Professional Services
• 5900 -- Other Expenses

Loading the Default Template

If you are starting fresh, TimelyChurch provides a built-in Chart of Accounts template based on standard nonprofit accounting practices.

1. Open the Chart of Accounts page (Finances > Accounting tab > Setup ▾ > Chart of Accounts).
2. Click the Load Template button.
3. The system will create all the accounts listed above with their standard account numbers and descriptions.
4. Customize the accounts to fit your church's specific needs.

Note: The template can only be loaded when no accounts exist yet. If you have already created accounts manually, the button will not appear.

Creating a New Account

1. Open the Chart of Accounts page (Finances > Accounting tab > Setup ▾ > Chart of Accounts).
2. Click New Account.
3. Fill in the details:
   • Name -- A clear, descriptive name (e.g., "Main Checking Account").
   • Account Number -- Optional but recommended. Use the standard numbering convention (1000s for assets, 2000s for liabilities, etc.).
   • Account Type -- Select from Asset, Liability, Income, Expense, or Equity.
   • Fund -- Optionally link this account to a specific giving fund. The Fund dropdown is most useful on Asset, Income, and Expense accounts where fund-level reporting matters; it is also exposed on Liability and Equity accounts but used less frequently there.
   • Parent Account -- Optionally nest this account under another account of the same type (for sub-accounts).
   • Opening Date -- The date the account balance starts.
   • Opening Balance -- The starting balance for this account.
   • Description -- Optional notes about the account's purpose.
4. Click Save.

Sub-Accounts

You can create a hierarchy of accounts by assigning a parent account. For example:

• 1000 -- Checking Account (parent)
  • 1001 -- Operating Checking (sub-account)
  • 1002 -- Payroll Checking (sub-account)

To create a sub-account, select the parent account in the Parent Account dropdown when creating or editing an account.

Check Number Tracking

Check number tracking is available only on asset-type accounts (typically your checking accounts). You will not see this option on liability, equity, income, or expense accounts.

1. Edit the bank account (Asset type).
2. Enable Track Check Numbers.
3. Enter the Starting Check Number (e.g., 1001).

Once enabled, the system will automatically suggest the next check number when you record an expense transaction from that account. The number advances automatically after each use.

Linking Accounts to Funds

You can link an account to a specific giving fund. This is useful for tracking fund-specific balances in your Chart of Accounts. Select the fund from the Fund dropdown when creating or editing the account.

Editing an Account

1. Click the edit icon next to any account.
2. Update the fields as needed.
3. Click Save.

Note: Changing an account's type will affect how balances are calculated. Assets and expenses increase with debits; liabilities, income, and equity increase with credits.

Archiving an Account

If you no longer use an account but it has transaction history, archive it instead of deleting it.

1. Click the archive option on the account.
2. The account will be hidden from dropdowns and the active list.
3. All transaction history is preserved.

To view archived accounts, toggle the Show Archived option on the Chart of Accounts page. You can restore an archived account at any time.

Deleting an Account

You can only delete an account that has no transactions. If the account has transactions, you must archive it instead, or merge it into another account first.

Merging Accounts

If you have duplicate accounts or want to consolidate, you can merge one account into another.

1. Click the merge option on the source account (the one you want to remove).
2. Select the target account (the one that will keep the transactions).
3. Confirm the merge.

All transactions from the source account will be moved to the target account, the target account's balance will be recalculated, and the source account will be deleted. Both accounts must be the same type (you cannot merge an asset into an expense, for example).

How Balances Are Calculated

TimelyChurch automatically calculates account balances using this formula:

For Asset and Expense accounts: Balance = Opening Balance + Income + Transfers In - Expenses - Transfers Out

For Liability, Income, and Equity accounts: Balance = Opening Balance - Income - Transfers In + Expenses + Transfers Out

Balances are recalculated automatically whenever a transaction is created, updated, or deleted. You never need to manually adjust a balance.