Free template · Excel · Bookkeeping and reports
Free chart of accounts template for small business
A ready-made chart of accounts in four versions: service, retail, contractor and nonprofit. Every account has a number, a type, a plain description and, for businesses, its US Schedule C and Canadian T2125 line.
Chart of accounts template
Excel workbook (.xlsx) · 22 KB · 6 sheets
| Number | Account name | Type | US tax line (Schedule C) | Canada tax line (T2125) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1000 | Checking (Chequing in Canada) | Bank | ||
| 1100 | Accounts receivable | Accounts receivable | ||
| 2200 | Sales tax payable (GST/HST, PST, QST, state) | Other current liability | ||
| 4000 | Service income | Income | Line 1 | 8000 |
| 6000 | Advertising and marketing | Expense | Line 8 | 8521 |
| 6400 | Legal and accounting fees | Expense | Line 17 | 8860 |
| 6550 | Rent | Expense | Line 20b | 8910 |
What it is
A chart of accounts is the list of categories your bookkeeping uses: bank accounts, what customers owe you, loans, owner's equity, each kind of income, and each kind of expense. Every transaction lands in one of them, and your profit and loss and balance sheet are built from them.
Getting the list right at the start saves hours later. This template gives you a sensible starting list for four kinds of small business, numbered in the usual ranges, so you can trim and rename rather than start from a blank page.
Who it's for
- New businesses setting up their books for the first time
- Owners tidying an account list that has grown messy
- Bookkeepers who want a clean starting point to hand a client
What's in the file
| Sheet | What it holds |
|---|---|
| Service business | About 40 accounts for consultants, agencies, studios and other service firms. |
| Retail | Adds inventory, gift cards, layaway, returns, freight in, shrinkage and point-of-sale costs. |
| Contractor | Adds retainage, job materials, subcontractors, direct labor, equipment rental, vehicles and equipment loans. |
| Nonprofit | Net assets with and without donor restrictions, donations, grants, program fees and expenses tagged by function (program, management and general, fundraising). |
| Account types | The 15 standard account types, each with its normal balance and the report it appears on. The Type column on every chart picks from this list. |
| Instructions | How to adapt the chart, and notes on the tax lines. |
How to use it
- Pick the tab closest to your business.
- Delete accounts you will never use. Fewer, clearer accounts give better reports.
- Rename accounts to match how you talk about your business. Keep the numbers in their ranges: 1000s assets, 2000s liabilities, 3000s equity, 4000s income, 5000s cost of goods sold, 6000s expenses.
- Add your own accounts in the shaded rows at the bottom and pick each one's Type from the drop-down.
- Add one bank account per real bank account and one credit card account per card, so each can be reconciled.
- Show the list to your accountant before you start recording transactions.
Tip: The tax-line columns are a guide for sole proprietors: Schedule C (Form 1040) in the US and form T2125 in Canada. Corporations, partnerships and nonprofits file different returns.
Pale yellow cells are for your entries; white cells calculate. Nothing is locked, so you can rename lines, add rows inside a section, or change the layout. Each file has an Instructions sheet with these steps.
Download chart of accounts template (.xlsx)
Sources
Figures as of October 2026.
- IRS: About Schedule C (Form 1040), Profit or Loss from Business
- CRA: Guide T4002, Self-employed Business, Professional, Commission, Farming, and Fishing Income
Questions
How many accounts should a small business have?
Usually 30 to 60. Enough that your profit and loss tells you something useful, few enough that you never wonder which account to use. You can add detail later; merging accounts that already hold history is harder.
Why are accounts numbered?
Numbers keep the list in a sensible order (assets, liabilities, equity, income, costs, expenses) whatever the names are, and leave gaps to add accounts in the right place. The ranges in this template are the ones most small-business software uses.
What is cost of goods sold?
The direct cost of what you sold: the products themselves, materials and subcontractors on jobs, and direct labor. It sits between income and expenses so you can see your gross profit.
Are the tax lines right for my business?
They're the usual mapping for a sole proprietor, taken from the Schedule C and T2125 line descriptions, and they're a starting point. Some choices depend on your situation (card fees and contractors, for example), so confirm with your accountant.
Do I need separate accounts for GST/HST, PST and QST?
It helps. Each is filed on its own return (GST/HST with the CRA, QST with Revenu Québec, PST with the province), so separate payable accounts make each return easy to fill in.
Related
- How to set up a chart of accounts
- T2125 business income guide
- Cash vs accrual accounting
- Owner draws vs contributions
- All free templates
General information, not tax, legal or accounting advice. Check with your accountant before relying on a template for a tax return.
AcboBooks
When the spreadsheet stops being enough
Every new AcboBooks company file starts with a numbered chart of accounts in the same ranges as this template, and the Canadian edition uses Canadian names such as Chequing and GST/HST Payable.
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