Your first month

Overview (under More) shows five setup steps, each with Start until it is done and View after. Pantry marks a step complete from your books themselves, not from a checkbox.

The five steps

1. Set up the business. In People & settings, the owner records the legal name, entity type, state of organization, the month the fiscal year starts, the date the books start and the tax accounting method you declared with your accountant.
2. Chart of accounts and opening balances. In Books, start from the service-business chart or add your own accounts. Enter opening balances as a journal entry that someone else posts. If you are coming from QuickBooks Online, use the move-in kit instead.
3. Customers and vendors. In Sales & bills, add the people you invoice and the vendors you pay, with their payment terms.
4. Bank statements. In Bank, add each bank account with its opening statement balance, then import a statement and reconcile it. See Reconcile a bank statement.
5. First close. In Close, pass the checklist, finish the review tasks and lock the month. See Close the month.

Who does what

Most businesses have three people in Pantry: the owner, a bookkeeper who records the month, and an outside accountant who reviews and posts. Invite them from People & settings before you start step 2, so the second person who approves each entry is already there. People and roles lists what each role may do.

Needs attention

Beside the steps, Needs attention counts drafts to review or post, unmatched statement lines, agent proposals waiting and reopening requests. Each count opens the screen where you deal with it.