Accounting
Point of sale
In one line: sell from the cashier screen — scan items, take payment, ring the sale — after opening a shift with a cash float that you close and reconcile at the end of the day.
Plan: Within the Accounting workspace — available from the Advanced plan and during the trial. See the Accounting overview.
Overview
Point of sale is two screens working together:
- The till — the selling screen itself: build a basket, take payment, ring the invoice.
- Till shifts — the back-office (supervisor) side: who opened a drawer, what it should hold, and which one came up short at close.
One rule governs both: the server computes the total and tax, not the cashier screen. What you see before payment is an estimate to sanity-check the basket; the final figures — net, tax, and gross — are what the server computes at recording, so they match the same invoice had it been issued from Sales.
The till
No sale without an open shift. If you haven't opened a shift, the screen asks you to open one from "Till shifts" first — selling with no shift means cash in a drawer the count knows nothing about.
Building the basket:
- Scan the barcode — the scan box leads the screen because it's the only control most sales ever touch. A scanner is a keyboard: it types the code, then presses Enter, and the item is selected automatically. Scan the next package straight away, no reach for the mouse.
- Or pick the item manually from the list, then enter the quantity and price, plus the warehouse if the item is stock-tracked.
- Press "Add" and the line joins the basket.
The basket shows each line with its name, quantity, price, and total, and a "Remove" button per line. The total shown beside a line is an estimate only — the final one is computed by the server at recording.
Taking payment:
In the Payment form you enter what's paid in cash and what's paid by card. The two must sum to the total the server computes. The "Tendered by customer" field is for computing change only — it's shown to you on screen, never sent, and never enters the books, because change is what you hand back by hand.
Press "Ring the sale," and a "Recorded" notice appears with the invoice number and its net, tax, and gross.
If recording is refused — e.g. "payments don't equal the total" — the basket stays as it is. Fix the field and try again; you won't rebuild the basket from scratch with a customer standing at the counter.
Recent sales: at the bottom of the screen is a list of this shift's sales, newest first. Press any sale to see its lines and payments — to answer "did that go through?" or "what did I charge her?" without going to a supervisor.
Till shifts
This is the supervisor's screen, not the cashier's: it shows the drawers — which is open, what it should hold, and which came up short — and closes a drawer a cashier walked away from.
Opening a shift: enter the terminal (till code), the float (opening cash in the drawer), and the date, then press "Open the shift."
Cash movements: open a shift from the list to see the expected — the cash the drawer should hold, which the server derives from the shift's own movements. Record a cash movement by choosing the direction (in/out), the reason, and the amount:
- Cash sale — cash coming in from a sale.
- Float top-up — adding cash to the drawer.
- Petty-cash payout — cash going out for a small expense.
- Drop to safe — moving cash from the drawer to the safe.
Closing a shift and reconciling the drawer: enter the counted cash actually in the drawer and the date, then press "Close the shift." The difference between counted and expected posts to the "Cash count variance" account.
The variance is a fact recorded, not an error hidden. The expected figure is shown before you count, and the close is never refused if counted doesn't match expected — the variance posts and the drawer closes. In the list the variance shows as exact, short, or over.
FAQ
Q: I press "Ring the sale" and it won't accept. A: Check that cash plus card equals the total the server computes. "Tendered by customer" doesn't count toward that — it's for change only. The basket stays saved, so fix the field and retry.
Q: Why does the basket total sometimes differ from the invoice? A: The basket figure is a per-line estimate; the final total and tax are computed by the server at recording so they match any other invoice for the same basket. The trusted number is the one shown after "Recorded."
Q: Do I enter the change I gave the customer? A: No. Enter Tendered by customer and the system computes and shows you the change, but it isn't recorded — change is cash leaving your hand, not an entry in the books.
Q: I closed the shift and the drawer doesn't match the expected. A: That's fine. Enter the count as it is; the close is accepted and the difference (short or over) posts to "Cash count variance." The goal is to record the truth, not force the drawer to balance.
Q: Why can't I sell? A: Usually there's no open shift. Open one from "Till shifts" with an opening float, then return to the till.
Quick reference
| Action | Path |
|---|---|
| Selling screen | Accounting workspace → Point of sale (the till) |
| Add an item | Scan the barcode, or pick the item → "Add" |
| Take payment | Cash + card = total → "Ring the sale" |
| Review a past sale | Press a sale in "Recent sales" |
| Open a shift | Till shifts → "Open the shift" (with a float) |
| Cash movement | Open the shift → "Record the movement" |
| Close and reconcile | Open the shift → enter the count → "Close the shift" |