Enter Starting Conversion Balances in Xero
How to set your conversion date and enter opening account balances to start Xero with accurate financial data.
Conversion balances are the opening balances of your accounts in Xero — they represent your financial position the day before you started using Xero. Getting these right is essential for accurate reporting.
1. Navigate to Conversion Balances
Click Accounting and select Advanced, then click Conversion balances.
2. Set Your Conversion Date
The conversion date is the date you began processing all transactions in Xero. For cleaner reporting, choose the start of a tax period.
Set the month and year using the fields provided, then click Save.
3. Enter Account Balances
Use your company's trial balance from your previous accounting system as your source of truth.
- Bank accounts — verify balances against your online bank statements. Enter positive balances in the debit column and overdrawn accounts in the credit column.
- Accounts receivable — enter the total value of unpaid invoices as at your conversion date.
- Accounts payable — enter the total value of unpaid bills as at your conversion date.
- Other accounts — click Show all accounts to see every account. Enter remaining balances from your trial balance.
4. Check the Balance
When all balances are entered, verify that total debits equal total credits. Click Remove zero balances to declutter the view and focus only on accounts with amounts.
Click Save when confirmed.
5. Verify Against Previous Software
Run a trial balance or balance sheet report in Xero and compare it to your previous system. Once they agree, you're ready to lock the conversion date.
6. Lock the Conversion Date
Return to Conversion balances, scroll to the bottom, and enable the option to lock balances. This prevents anyone from entering transactions before your conversion date.
Note: You need the Advisor user role to lock and unlock dates.
Invite Users to Xero
How to add new users to your Xero organisation and assign the appropriate access roles.