What is the general ledger?
Published
The general ledger is the record of accounts arranged account by account: each account in the chart gets a page collecting all its movements in date order with a running balance. It builds automatically from posting journal entries - each entry distributing its sides onto its accounts' pages.
An account page as read
Al-Waha's receivables account (excerpt):
| Date | Description | Ref | Debit | Credit | Balance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 Apr | Opening balance | - | 74,300 | ||
| 20 Jun | Invoice RYD-2026-00042 | JE-388 | 34,500 | 108,800 | |
| 27 Jun | Receipt, partial payment | RV-121 | 20,000 | 88,800 | |
| ... | ... | ... | ... | ... | ... |
| 30 Jun | Closing balance | 96,750 |
Every line points to its entry and document - this is the audit trail's middle layer: report ← ledger ← entry ← document.
Its place in the machinery
Journal entries (by time) ← posting → General ledger (by account) ↓ balances Trial balance ↓ classify & close Financial statements
In modern systems "posting" is instant and invisible - but you use the ledger every time you click a report figure to expand it: the detailed account statement is the ledger page.
Frequently asked questions
General ledger vs subsidiary ledger?
The general ledger holds "receivables" in total (96,750); the subsidiary breaks it customer by customer, its sum necessarily equalling the general figure - any divergence is a fault chased immediately.
When do I actually open the ledger?
Whenever you ask "how did this balance become this number?" - an odd bank balance, a swollen supplier, an expense that jumped: its page tells the story line by line.