A general ledger collects the movements of each account on its own page, so you know the account balance after every transaction. This general ledger template gives you an account sheet in running-balance form, the same account as a T-account, and a ledger for several accounts that totals their balances for the trial balance. The example is the cash box of a trading business in Saudi Arabia for September.
New balance = previous balance + debit − credit. The cash box in the example opened at SAR 5,000.00, took in SAR 10,285.00 and paid out SAR 8,140.00, so it closes at SAR 7,145.00 debit.
How to use the general ledger template
- On Running balance, enter the opening balance on the first line with the entry number "Opening", then each movement with its date, entry number, description and amount.
- Watch the balance and its side after every line, and any line shaded red: two amounts on one line, or a repeated entry number.
- Open T-account, add the account name and number, and the account appears in two sides with their totals; download it as a PDF to print.
- For several accounts, post their entries on Ledger for several accounts to get all balances on one sheet.
The Excel file keeps the balance formula on every row, so next month's movements go under the last line and the running balance stays right.
What goes in each column
| Column | What to enter |
|---|---|
| Date and entry no. | From the journal, so you can trace any ledger line back to its entry. |
| Description | A short note on the transaction: "Cash sales", "Deposited at the bank". |
| Debit and credit | The amount on the side it took in the journal entry, never on both sides. |
| Balance and side | Calculated: positive is debit, negative is credit. |
What is a general ledger
The general ledger is the book every journal entry is posted to: each account in the chart of accounts gets a page that gathers its debit and credit movements. The journal answers "what happened on this day?"; the ledger answers "what is this account's balance now?".
Example: a cash sale of SAR 2,000 is one journal entry with two lines (Cash box debit, Sales credit). In the ledger it shows on two pages: a debit on the Cash box account and a credit on the Sales account.
General ledger format and columns
The ledger comes in two formats. The running-balance format is a table with date, entry number, description, debit, credit and balance, so the balance shows after every movement. The T-account splits the page into two sides, debit and credit, and at period end the account is balanced by writing the difference on the smaller side so both totals agree. The cash box has total debits of 15,285.00 and credits of 8,140.00, so "Balance c/d" of 7,145.00 goes on the credit side and each side totals 15,285.00.
Next to the general ledger, businesses keep subsidiary ledgers: a page per customer and a page per supplier. The customer subsidiary ledger balances add up to the Customers balance in the general ledger.
Posting from the journal to the ledger
- Take the journal entry one line at a time.
- Open the page of the account on that line and write the date, entry number and description.
- Put the amount on the same side it has in the entry.
- Work out the new balance and mark the journal line as posted.
Pick the Customers example: invoices of SAR 11,500.00 and SAR 6,900.00 on the debit side and a collection of SAR 8,000.00 on the credit side leave a SAR 10,400.00 debit balance. On the Suppliers account, which normally carries a credit balance, the balance opens at 14,000.00 credit, an invoice of 9,200.00 adds to it and a payment of 12,000.00 reduces it, leaving SAR 11,200.00 credit.
From the ledger to the trial balance and financial statements
At period end each ledger account is balanced and its balance carried to the trial balance: debit balances to the debit column, credit balances to the credit column. The Account balances sheet on the ledger tab does this with SUMIF; in the example six accounts give total debit balances of SAR 63,910.00, equal to the credit balances. Once the trial balance agrees, revenue and expense balances go to the income statement, and assets, liabilities and equity to the balance sheet.
Common mistakes
- Posting an entry twice. Try the double-posting example: entry JV-107 appears twice, so the balance rises to 10,595.00 instead of 7,145.00 and both lines are shaded.
- Reversing the side of an entry, so a collection lands on the debit side of Customers instead of the credit side.
- Forgetting the opening balance, so the page starts at zero and never matches the real balance.
- Writing a movement straight into the ledger without a journal entry, which leaves nothing to review.
Regulatory and accounting notes
The Saudi Commercial Books Law requires traders to keep the books their business calls for and to retain them for a period set by the law; check the current text with the Ministry of Commerce. The examples leave out VAT to keep the explanation simple; in practice VAT is posted to its own account.
When ledger pages multiply and posting takes longer
Microtec accounting software is an ERP system for businesses in Saudi Arabia that brings sales, purchasing, inventory, finance and HR into one place.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between a journal and a general ledger?
The journal records entries in the order they happen, each with two or more sides. The general ledger gathers what belongs to each account from those entries on its own page, giving its balance. An entry goes into the journal first and is then posted to the ledger.
Can I keep a general ledger in Excel?
Yes, for a small business with few movements: one sheet per account with a running-balance formula, as in this file. As accounts grow, linking sheets and preventing double postings by hand becomes hard.
What is a subsidiary ledger?
A ledger that breaks a control account in the general ledger into sub-accounts, such as a page per customer under Customers. Its balances must add up to the control account balance.
How do I correct a wrong posting in the ledger?
Do not cross out or delete the line. Record a correcting entry in the journal that reverses the mistake and post it to the same accounts, so both the error and its correction stay visible to the auditor.
When should I stop keeping the ledger by hand?
When entries run into dozens a month, when you need customer and supplier balances every day, or when posting errors keep throwing the trial balance off; at that point accounting software fits better, because entries are recorded from the source document and posted from it.