Set up your GL accounts

Prepare your account list.

Export the chart from your previous system, or start with the template below. Replace its three example accounts with your own. Save as UTF-8, comma-separated CSV; export Excel or LibreOffice files to CSV before importing.

The first five fields are required. Optional columns may be omitted or left blank. Columns can appear in any order; use the supported headers below and remove other columns.

Choose classifications explicitly; account numbers do not determine them. Spaces or underscores in headers are accepted, such as Account Number. There is no field-mapping screen. Use standard CSV quoting for descriptions containing commas or quotation marks. Each file may contain up to 10,000 accounts and be no larger than 5 MB.

The full import reference also lists database-style header aliases and numeric classification values for existing LedgerSL exports.

Preview, correct, then import.

1. Open GL account setup

   Sign in as an administrator and save or cancel any unfinished edits. Check the active company, open Company > Company Setup Wizard, and continue to Step 4: GL Accounts.

2. Choose the CSV

   Select Import GL Accounts from CSV, then Choose CSV. The window also offers Save CSV Template.

3. Review every row

   Check the account numbers, names, classifications, parents, and Status column. An exclamation mark identifies an error; select that row to read the full message below the grid. The preview cannot be edited.

4. Fix errors in the file

   Correct the CSV, save it, and use Choose CSV again. Import Accounts stays disabled until every row is valid. Duplicate account numbers in the file or the existing chart are rejected; existing accounts are never updated or overwritten.

5. Confirm the company and account count

   Choose Import Accounts and confirm. LedgerSL checks the chart again and saves the batch together. If an account cannot be inserted, that batch is rolled back. Closing the preview or cancelling confirmation saves nothing.

6. Finish the posting setup

   Use Review / Edit Accounts to inspect the saved chart, then Configure Posting Accounts to choose the accounts used by automatic posting.

Using parent accounts.

A parent must be a top-level account with the same Type as its child. It may already exist or appear anywhere in the same CSV, including after the child. A parent cannot be the account itself or another child account. An active child cannot sit under a suspended parent, and an existing account with journal activity cannot become a parent.

Starting with an empty chart?

At Step 4, choose Load Starter Chart of Accounts to preview 36 common accounts. Review and confirm before they are added. This option is available only when the current chart is empty.

The starter chart is an editable starting point. All accounts begin active, with no parent links, notes, balances, or automatic posting assignments. Review the names and classifications for your business, then configure posting accounts.