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Accounting for beginners

Getting to grips with accounting terminology and principles

Throughout our documentation, you may see unfamiliar terms and accounting-specific principles. While we try to keep things as simple as possible, some understanding of accounting will definitely help you out. We've collated a number of third-party resources that might help get you started below.

You can also refer to our new (work in progress) glossary for a quick rundown of terms we use in our docs.

  • Back to basics: key accounting terms in plain English

    FreeAgent

    FreeAgent's Chief Accountant, Emily Coltman FCA, gives you the plain English definitions for everyday accounting terms so you can confidently discuss your business finances.

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  • Accounting For Developers, Part I

    Modern Treasury

    In this first part of a two-part series, Modern Treasury walk through basic accounting principles for anyone building products that move and track money.

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  • Accounting For Developers, Part II

    Modern Treasury

    In this second part of a two-part series, Modern Treasury build a ledger for a Venmo clone by applying the accounting principles covered in Part I.

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  • Accounting for Computer Scientists

    Martin Kleppman

    Martin Kleppman explains basic principles of accounting using graphs, providing the background needed to understand the financial statements for a small company.

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