Modular Custom Accounting

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With Banana Accounting, getting started is really easy because you just have to choose the template: when you open it, the accounting is already set up with what you need. Generally, it's enough to slightly adapt the chart of accounts to start entering the transactions right away. Balance sheet, income statement, and many other reports are instantly ready.

The creation of templates designed to meet different types of users is possible only because Banana Accounting is a modular financial management software. This means you can create customized accounting setups by combining components as needed, with a high level of detail.

This major difference from other ERPs on the market allows Banana Accounting, for example, to set up accounting using either the double-entry method or the income and expense method. You can include VAT management, multi-currency, etc.

Start from a predefined template

The predefined templates in Banana Accounting are created by our specialists and designed for specific uses. Banana Accounting includes a wide range of ready-to-use templates, developed for various fields and compliant with the regulations of different countries.
You can view and search the available templates:

You can start right away by choosing the template that best suits your needs: you can always adapt it by adding new features or removing those you don't need.

Double-entry or Income/Expense accounting

Like all professional accounting software, Banana Accounting is also based on the double-entry accounting system, which is the global standard and suitable for use in any context.

However, Banana Accounting also offers the option to use Income and Expense accounting, which is more intuitive for those without accounting knowledge. This method replaces the concepts of Debit and Credit with the more familiar terms of Income and Expenses. It is simply a more visual and easier approach, but the internal calculation engine remains the same, allowing you to generate professional reports and results similar to those of double-entry accounting.

Suitable for every need

In Banana Accounting, the data for each fiscal year of an activity is contained in a single file: you can manage an unlimited number of accounting files, each configured for different needs. This way, you can manage business accounting, personal finances, or act as a treasurer for your association. Or, if you're a professional, you can manage the accounts of several clients with a single subscription.

The modularity of Banana Accounting is the key element that makes it extremely easy to use, and that sets it apart from monolithic accounting software, designed only for large companies and packed with mandatory bundled features.

The modularity of the software results in its great flexibility, characterized primarily by the ability to adapt the chart of accounts and the grouping system. You can manage accounting for businesses, non-profit organizations, public entities, individuals, projects, etc.

The software can easily be adapted for use in different countries. When creating an accounting file, you can choose the language, the number of decimal places, and of course the currency.

Multiple application fields

Banana Accounting is a software similar to Excel, designed for individual use, where the user has maximum operational freedom. You can manage as many accounting files as you want, but it is not possible for multiple people to work simultaneously on the same file. Its use is therefore particularly suitable for situations where one or a few people manage the accounting. It is ideal for:

  • Managing cash book and monitoring cash and bank accounts

  • Small businesses and entrepreneurial activities

  • Associations and non-profit organizations

  • Individuals

  • Accounting training

Thanks to its modularity and flexibility, it also proves to be a very useful tool for:

  • Offshore accounting
    Management of entities in different jurisdictions, multi-currency and multi-file; allows for maintaining separate and secure accounting records, with customizable reports and no extra costs for each entity.

  • Forensic accounting
    Investigative analysis of records and transactions; allows you to import data, verify imbalances, and easily reconstruct flows, with the transparency of the spreadsheet format.

  • Real estate accounting
    Management of multiple properties and units; allows you to create separate accounts for each property and obtain immediate reports on profitability, expenses, and condominium statements.

  • Pension fund or financial entity accounting with securities
    Monitoring of investments and assets; allows you to manage multi-currency portfolios and value financial instruments with great flexibility.

  • Project accounting
    Allows project managers to collect transactions and prepare budgets, with more detail and greater control.

  • Cost and departmental accounting
    Allows department managers to collect transactions and prepare budgets with more detail and greater control. The data can then be consolidated into the central system.

  • Small distributed accounting systems integrated into a central system
    Branches, local associations, or remote offices; allows local accounts to be managed independently and then easily integrated into consolidated financial statements.

Available components

Banana Accounting offers various modular functions:

Different types of components

From a technical point of view, the ability to create customized accounting by choosing its elements is achieved through different technical approaches.
The standard and recommended approach is to start from a predefined template and eventually adapt it.
Of course, it is also possible to start from a completely empty accounting file, but this is rarely done.

Choosing the accounting application

When creating a new accounting file, the first step is to choose the accounting application, among:

  • Cash Manager (Cash Book with or without VAT)
  • Income / Expense Accounting (with or without VAT)
  • Double-entry Accounting (with or without VAT)
  • Double-entry Accounting with multi-currency (with or without VAT)

If instead you choose to start from an empty accounting file, you will need to specify:

  • The number of decimals for amounts in base and foreign currencies
  • The rounding method
  • The accounting language

This is a fundamental choice, because these settings cannot be changed later. If the settings of a template are not suitable, or if you want to switch to a different type of accounting, you can use the Tools menu > Convert file to new.

  • This command creates a new accounting file with the desired settings.
  • All data from the original file is transferred.
    However, caution is needed: for example, if you convert an accounting file with VAT to one without VAT, all VAT data will be deleted.

Customizing the chart of accounts

Banana Accounting allows you to customize the chart of accounts by adding numeric or text-based accounts.
Usually, you start from the existing structure and then add the necessary accounts and remove the unnecessary ones. This adjustment can be made at any time.

The Accounts table also includes groups, with a multi-level grouping system that allows you to create any type of balance sheet and income statement structure.

Templates specific to a country usually also include a predefined VAT Codes table, which can also be customized.

The Exchange Rates table can also be customized with the desired currencies.

Using predefined but hidden features

When accounting files are created, there are included features that are normally not visible.
You usually need to make the columns visible using the Data > Columns setup menu command, in order to enter the desired values.

  • Cost and profit centers
  • Segments
  • Notes, Exchange Rate Date columns
  • Linking to external documents
  • Customer and Supplier management – relevant accounts and groups need to be set in the chart of accounts.
  • Invoice printing – Allows printing invoices directly from transaction rows. You must first set up the group and customer accounts.

With the Columns setup command, you can view all the available columns in the table and add new ones to enter additional information.

Possibility to Add New Features

With the Tools > Add/Remove functionalities menu command, you can activate other features. These commands usually add columns or tables already configured for a specific purpose.

  • Address columns in the Accounts table
    To use accounts also for customers and suppliers, print invoices, or other purposes.
  • Budget table
    For managing financial planning.
  • Item, quantity, and price columns in transactions
    To manage quantities, useful for handling invoices and securities.
  • Items table
    To manage a list of items, useful when issuing invoices.
    Also used for integrated securities management.
  • Simple table
    Customizable, useful for managing notes, projects, or others.
  • Documents table
    Allows adding image files (e.g., for logos) or Javascript and CSS files used in extension development or invoice customization.

Extensions

Extensions (or Plug-ins) are Javascript programs that extend the functionality of Banana Accounting.

Extensions are often used together with other customizations. For example, the "Cash Report for ETS" extension requires the chart of accounts to be set with specific groupings. The "Donors" report requires specific cost centers to be used. The Securities Management extension requires the Items table to be present.

Extensions are divided into:

  • General extensions – For report creation and input of additional data.
  • Data import extensions for accounting – For example, to import bank CSV statements.
  • Invoice printing extensions – Scripts for printing invoices.

Extensions must first be installed:

  • Extensions available on the Banana Accounting website
    From the Extensions menu > Manage extensions command, you can view all the extensions already prepared for different uses.
    • Extensions usually must be installed manually.
    • Some extensions, however, are already linked to specific templates and are installed automatically when the file is opened.
    • Extensions are updated automatically when new versions are available.
  • Extensions developed directly
    • Embedded Extension – The Javascript code is saved within the Documents table.
    • Local Extensions – Stored locally.
    • Packaged Extensions – Packages that contain a set of features. Generally, the extensions available in the store are packages.