Glossary
What is a day book?
What a day book shows, why accountants check it every evening, and what one day of entries looks like for a small manufacturer.
Updated
In short
A day book lists every accounting entry for a day or date range in the order it was posted. SimpleERP has a day book report built from posted journals across every module, with CSV export.
A day book is the list of every accounting entry posted on a given day or in a date range, in the order it was recorded: sales, purchases, receipts, payments and journals together. Accountants read it to check the day's work, spot a missing or duplicate entry, and confirm that each entry went to the right account. In Tally it is the Day Book report.
Day book: a worked example
The day book for Lakshmi Steel Furnitures on 6 October 2026 shows five entries from four modules.
| Entry | Source | Party | Debit | Credit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| INV-2026-27-0412 | Sales invoice | Ravi Stores | ₹1,18,000 | ₹1,18,000 |
| RCPT-2026-27-0188 | Payment received | Sri Murugan Traders | ₹45,000 | ₹45,000 |
| BILL-2026-27-0097 | Purchase bill | Tamil Nadu Steels | ₹2,36,000 | ₹2,36,000 |
| EXP-2026-27-0064 | Expense | Shop rent, October | ₹12,000 | ₹12,000 |
| JE-2026-27-0031 | Manual journal | Loan interest | ₹7,000 | ₹7,000 |
FAQ
Questions, answered
What is the difference between a day book and a cash book?
A cash book shows only entries that move cash or bank. A day book shows every entry, including credit sales, purchase bills and journals that move no money. Use the day book to check the day's work and the cash register to check the till.
Is the day book the same as the journal?
They hold the same entries. The journal is the book of original entry, one transaction at a time; the day book is the report that lists them for a chosen date range in posting order. In SimpleERP the journals list and the day book read the same posted lines.
Where is the day book in SimpleERP?
Under Reports, in the finance group, next to the trial balance, general ledger and cash flow. Pick a date range, read the entries in posting order, open any row to see its document, and export to CSV for your accountant.
Why does my day book not show a draft invoice?
A draft has not posted, so it has written nothing to the books yet. The day book lists posted entries only. Post the invoice and it appears on its invoice date with its journal.
Related
Keep reading
Journal entry
A dated, balanced set of debit and credit lines with a reason.
Read moreLedger
The dated record of every debit and credit in one account, with the running balance after each entry.
Read moreMoving from Tally or Excel
Import masters, balances and open bills from Tally or Excel, checked first and undoable, then run both systems for a month.
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