Setting your opening balances in stub

Setting your opening balances in stub

Your business didn't start yesterday. Even if your stub account did.

Opening balances are how you bring your financial history into stub - so your books pick up right where they should, with nothing missing.

But before we get into the how, let's cover the what.

Opening balance: The amount sitting in each of your accounts on the day you start using stub. Think of it like a save point. You're telling stub: "Here's where everything stands right now." How much cash you have, what people owe you, what you owe others - all of it.

Trial balance: A list of every account in your business and its balance at a specific date. Debits on one side, credits on the other. The two sides need to add up to the same number. If they don't, something's gone wrong, somewhere. That's the whole point of it - it's a seesaw for your books.

You need a trial balance to set your opening balances in stub. It's the file you'll export out of your old accounting software and upload into stub. Don't have one? Keep reading - we'll sort you out.

Where you're coming from matters

The way you get your trial balance depends on your starting point. Pick your path:

Switching to stub from other accounting software

You've been using something else - Xero, QuickBooks, Sage, a spreadsheet that somehow held it all together. Here's how to bring that history into stub:

1. Pull a trial balance from your old software. Every accounting tool has one - look for it in your reports section. Run it for the date you want to cut over to stub. Export it as a CSV if you can.

2. Check your numbers. Make sure the report looks right before you leave your old system. Debits should equal credits. If they don't, fix it there first - it'll be easier.

3. Note who owes you and who you owe. You'll need a list of your outstanding customer invoices (accounts receivable) and supplier bills (accounts payable) with the amounts.

Got all that? Jump to Setting it up in stub below.

Coming to stub with no software

You've been running things off bank statements, invoices in a folder, and vibes. No judgement - plenty of great businesses start this way. You just need to build a trial balance from scratch. Here's how:

1. Pick your start date. This is the date your stub books will begin from. The start of your current financial year is usually the cleanest option.

2. Gather your numbers as at that date.

You'll need:
- Your bank account balances (check your statements)
- Any cash on hand
- Money your customers owe you (unpaid invoices you've sent)
- Money you owe your suppliers (unpaid bills you've received)
- Any loans or debt
- The value of any big assets (equipment, vehicles, etc.)
- Your equity - what you've put into the business

3. Create a trial balance: We've popped a downloadable CSV template in the opening balances section - three columns: account name, debit, and credit. Fill it in, make sure both sides balance, and you're good to go.

4. Save it in a CSV. Three columns: account name, debit, and credit. The two sides need to balance. If they don't, something's missing.

Got your trial balance ready? Let's go.

Setting it up in stub

You'll find opening balances in Settings → Finance → Opening Balances.

1. Upload your trial balance

Drop in your CSV - account name, debit, and credit. That's the whole thing. There's a template in there if you want to see what it should look like before you go rogue.

2. Map your categories

stub will try to find a date from your CSV. If it can't, it'll default to today.

Here's where it gets handy: we'll auto-match your accounts to the right categories. Most of them, anyway - you might need to nudge a few into place.

One thing: you can't create new accounts through opening balances. If something's missing, hop over to your Chart of Accounts and add it there first.

Everything needs to balance before you can move on. Debits = credits. No exceptions. (Maths doesn't do favourites.)

3. Add your customers

Who owes you money? Add them here with their opening balances. These are your accounts receivable - the "please pay me" pile. Get them in now so your invoicing picks up where it left off.

4. Add your suppliers

Other side of the coin. Add the suppliers you owe money to, and how much. These are your accounts payable - the "I'll get to it" pile. Same deal: get them in now so nothing slips through the cracks.

That's it. Your history is in stub and your books are ready to roll.

Now go do the thing.