What is GL (General Ledger)?
The central accounting record that holds every financial transaction a company posts, organised by account.
Definition
The general ledger is the master repository of a company's financial data, where every transaction is ultimately recorded against accounts defined in the chart of accounts. It uses double-entry bookkeeping, so each entry has balanced debits and credits, and it produces the trial balance from which the income statement, balance sheet, and cash flow statement are built. Subledgers for areas like accounts payable, accounts receivable, and fixed assets summarise their activity and post totals into the GL. The general ledger is the single source of truth that auditors, controllers, and finance leaders rely on for reporting and compliance.
How GL Works in ERP
In an ERP, the general ledger module sits at the centre and receives postings automatically from operational subledgers such as billing, procurement, payroll, and inventory, eliminating manual re-keying. Each posting carries dimensions (department, project, location, entity) so the same transaction can be sliced many ways without separate accounts. The ERP enforces the chart of accounts, posting rules, and accounting periods, and locks closed periods to preserve the integrity of reported numbers.
ERP Vendors with Strong GL
Sage Intacct
Best-in-class cloud financials for services and nonprofits
Oracle NetSuite
The original cloud ERP — built for fast-growing companies
Oracle ERP Cloud
Enterprise cloud ERP with deep financials and analytics
Microsoft Dynamics 365
Modular ERP + CRM tightly integrated with Microsoft 365
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between the general ledger and a subledger?
A subledger holds the detailed transactions for one functional area, such as every individual customer invoice in accounts receivable. The general ledger holds the summarised control-account totals that those subledgers roll up into. The subledger answers "which customers owe us money," while the GL answers "what is total accounts receivable." In an ERP the two are reconciled automatically because subledger postings feed the GL in real time.
Can an ERP run multiple general ledgers?
Yes. Many ERP systems support multiple ledgers per legal entity, for example a primary GAAP ledger and a secondary ledger kept on a different accounting standard or fiscal calendar. This lets a company report under both local statutory rules and a group standard such as IFRS from the same transactions. The ERP keeps the ledgers synchronised so the same business event posts to each with the appropriate rules.