Journal entry generator

What does this tool do?

You choose the transaction that happened in your business and enter its numbers, and the tool writes the full journal entry: the debit accounts (“Dr”) then the credit accounts (“Cr”), the total, and a short explanation of why the entry is made this way. Account names come from the chart of accounts in the Accountant Library, and each transaction is linked to its sample entry in sample journal entries where one exists, and to its terms in the glossary.

Total debits always equal total credits, because the tool calculates in halalas. The whole calculation happens inside your browser.

Available transactions

• Sales: cash sale with VAT, credit sale of goods with VAT, sales return, discount allowed for early payment, collection from a customer.
• Purchases: cash purchase of goods with VAT, credit purchase of goods with VAT, purchase return, payment to a supplier, expense with VAT.
• Cash and banks: depositing cash on hand in the bank, bank charges.
• Payroll: monthly salaries with GOSI, employee advance, payment of social insurance contributions.
• Fixed assets: purchase of a fixed asset, depreciation of a fixed asset, disposal of an asset at a gain or loss.
• Adjustments and provisions: prepaid expense and its amortisation, income received in advance, accrued expense, allowance for doubtful debts, bad debt write-off, stock count (shortage or surplus).
• Tax and Zakat: Zakat payable and its payment, withholding tax on a payment to a non-resident, payment of net VAT.

VAT is at the standard rate of 15%, withholding rates come from the table in the General Guide on Withholding Tax as in the withholding tax calculator, and the GOSI shares in the payroll entry come from the employee cost calculator itself.

How to use it

1. Choose the group (sales, purchases, payroll…) then the transaction.
2. Enter the amount and the other fields: VAT, the method of receipt or payment, the inventory system, and the cost if you want the cost entry.
3. The entry appears instantly in a “Dr … / Cr …” table with its total, followed by the explanation and links to the glossary and the sample entry.
4. Download the entry as PDF or Excel: the Excel file has an “Entry” sheet and a “Calculation steps” sheet where VAT and totals are calculated with formulas.

Example 1: a credit sale to a business customer

From the sample entries in the library: the company sold goods on credit for 20,000 SAR before VAT. The VAT is 20,000 × 15% = 3,000, and the customer owes the total of 23,000.

Revenue is recorded net before VAT, and VAT is a liability to ZATCA that falls due on the invoice date, not the collection date.

Example 2: closing VAT and paying the net amount

From the sample entries in the library: at the end of the period, output VAT was 48,000 SAR and input VAT 31,500, so the net due to ZATCA is 48,000 − 31,500 = 16,500. The tool writes two entries: closing both accounts into the settlement account, then the payment.

If input VAT exceeds output VAT, a debit balance remains in the settlement account to be carried forward or claimed as a refund, and there is no payment entry.

Perpetual vs periodic inventory: what changes in the entry?

Under the perpetual inventory system, inventory is recorded with every movement: a purchase increases the inventory account, and every sale comes with a second entry for the cost (Dr Cost of goods sold, Cr Inventory). A cash sale of 10,000 SAR before VAT with a cost of 6,800 gives two entries totalling 18,300:

Under the periodic inventory system, there is no cost entry with the sale (the entry totals 11,500 only), and a purchase is recorded in a “Purchases” account instead of inventory; the cost is then calculated at the end of the period from the physical count. A credit purchase of 40,000 SAR: under the perpetual system Dr Inventory - Main warehouse, under the periodic system Dr Purchases, with VAT of 6,000 and the supplier credited with 46,000 in both cases. The library's chart of accounts is built on the perpetual system, which is why it has no “Purchases” account. Read the full comparison in periodic vs perpetual inventory.

Before you post the entry

• Account names come from a sample chart for a trading business; use the matching accounts in your own chart of accounts (branch, bank and warehouse).
• “No VAT” is only for what is exempt or out of scope; the default is that a supply is subject to the standard rate.
• Some input VAT is not deductible, so it is added to the expense itself.
• The payroll entry is for one employee or a group with equal salaries; if salaries differ, enter each group separately.

Frequently asked questions

Content last reviewed: 2026-11-04