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Default Account Mapping

Default Account Mapping controls which account in your Chart of Accounts MyBooks posts to automatically for certain system functions — for example, which account receives the automatic entry when tax is calculated, or when inventory is adjusted. This keeps your books accurate without you having to pick an account by hand on every transaction.

Why It Matters​

Many entries in MyBooks are generated automatically rather than typed in directly — tax postings, cost of goods sold on a sale, inventory adjustments, opening balance entries, and more. For the system to know exactly which account each of these should land in, every business has a set of system accounts, each mapped to one account in your Chart of Accounts (see Application Settings).

You'll normally never need to touch this — MyBooks sets sensible defaults automatically. You would only change a mapping if, for example, you want tax expense to post to a specific account you created, or you're consolidating similar accounts and need MyBooks's automatic postings to follow.

System Accounts You Can Map​

Go to Settings and open Default Accounts to see the full list. Depending on your setup, this can include:

  • Default Sales / Revenue
  • Accounts Payable
  • Accounts Receivable
  • Cash
  • Default Purchase
  • Tax Deducted at Source
  • Shipping Charges
  • Cost of Goods Sold
  • Stock Adjustment
  • Tax Expense
  • Tax Payable
  • Inventory Adjustment
  • Retained Earnings
  • Opening Balance Adjustment
  • Opening Balance Equity

Only system accounts that exist for your business are shown — if a function doesn't apply to you, it won't appear in the list.

Changing a Mapping​

⚠️ Advanced setting — use with caution. Changing a default account affects all transactions, past and future, since ledger entries are generated dynamically from these mappings. An incorrect assignment will cause reporting discrepancies and data integrity issues. Only change these if you are certain of the impact.

  1. Go to Settings > Default Accounts.
  2. Find the system function you want to remap (its current account is shown alongside it).
  3. Click the edit (pencil) icon on that row.
  4. From the Change To dropdown, choose a replacement account. Only accounts of the same account type and category as the current one are offered, to keep the mapping valid.
  5. Click Save to confirm, or Cancel to back out without changes.