How to add a bank or credit card account in AcboBooks

In this lesson you will

Add a bank account with the balance from your last statement
Add a business credit card account
Know which account type to choose and why it matters

Before you start

A tour of the home screen

The Chart of Accounts with a new Money Market bank account and a Business Visa credit card account

Open the Chart of Accounts

Step 1: Go to Company → Chart of Accounts

The Chart of Accounts lists every account in the books with its type and balance. The sample company already has a Checking and a Savings account and one credit card account.

+ New Account opens the form for a new account.
The Type column. Checking and Savings are Bank accounts.
A Credit Card account holds what you owe on a card.

Chart of Accounts with callouts on the New Account button, a Bank account type and a Credit Card account type

Add a bank account

Step 2: Fill in the new account

Click + New Account. Choose the type first, then give the account a number and a name you will recognize, such as the bank and the last digits of the account. Bright Ideas Studio is adding a money market account it already had when it started its books.

Account type: choose Bank for checking, savings and money market accounts.
Number is optional but keeps the list in order. Bank accounts usually start with 1, and each number can belong to one account only.
Account name is what you will see in every list.
Opening balance (optional): the balance on your last statement before you started using AcboBooks.
As of: the date of that balance, usually the statement date.

New Account form filled in for a Money Market bank account with an opening balance of 8,000.00 — Account type Bank, number 1030, name Money Market, opening balance 8,000.00.

Tip: The opening balance is posted against Opening Balance Equity. Use it only for money that was already in the account when you started your books. Money you move in later is a transfer, not an opening balance.

Step 3: Save it

Click Save Account. The account appears in the Chart of Accounts and in every bank list in the app, so you can now import its transactions, write checks from it and reconcile it.

Tip: If the number you typed already belongs to another account, AcboBooks names that account and asks you to pick another number. Accounts that AcboBooks adds for you, such as Petty Cash or Bad Debt, take their usual number, or the next free one if you already use it.

Add a credit card account

Step 4: Choose the Credit Card type

Click + New Account again and choose Credit Card. A credit card account is a liability: its balance is what you owe the card company. For a new card, leave the opening balance empty.

Account type: Credit Card.
Account name: the card's name, here Business Visa.
Opening balance (optional): if the card already had a balance when you started your books, enter what you owed on that date.

New Account form filled in for a Business Visa credit card account

Step 5: Check the list

Click Save Account. Both new accounts are now in the Chart of Accounts with their type and balance.

The new Money Market bank account with its opening balance.
The new Business Visa credit card account.

Chart of Accounts showing the Money Market and Business Visa accounts — The new accounts sit in number order with the others.

Canadian edition: In the Canadian edition the sample bank account is called Chequing, and the menus say Write Cheques and Print Cheques. Setting up accounts works the same way.

Recap

You can add a bank account with an opening balance from your last statement.
You can add a business credit card account.
You know that the account type decides where the account shows up in the app.

Saved in this browser only. No account needed.

Questions

Should I add my personal accounts?

No. Keep only business accounts in the company file. If you pay a business cost from a personal card, record it as money the owner put in, or ask your accountant how they want it handled.

What if I get the opening balance wrong?

Use Edit in the Chart of Accounts to fix the name or number. For the amount, delete the opening balance entry in Activities → Transactions and post the right amount with a journal entry against Opening Balance Equity, or ask your accountant to do it.

Can I track a foreign-currency bank account?

Yes. The New Account form has a Currency field for a foreign-currency account. Leave it on Home currency for ordinary accounts.

Screenshots from AcboBooks 0.2.2 with the built-in sample company. Updated October 25, 2026. Your screens may differ slightly with another version or window size.

Set up bank and credit card accounts