Statistical Journal Entry
Used for non-monetary data tracking such as headcount, square footage, and other metrics.
When to Use
| Use Case | Example |
|---|---|
| Headcount tracking | Employees per department |
| Space allocation | Square footage per location |
| Production metrics | Units produced |
| Allocation basis | Machine hours for overhead allocation |
| Environmental data | Carbon emissions tracking |
| Capacity planning | Available FTEs |
Key Characteristics
| Feature | Description |
|---|---|
| Single-sided | Does not need to balance |
| No GL impact | Does not affect financial statements |
| Statistical accounts | Uses special account type |
| Reporting only | Used for custom reports and allocations |
| Dimension tracking | Track by department, location, class |
Setting Up Statistical Accounts
Create Statistical Account
- Go to Lists > Accounting > Accounts > New
- Set Account Type: Statistical
- Name the account (e.g., "Headcount", "Square Footage")
- Save
Account Properties
| Property | Setting |
|---|---|
| Account Type | Statistical |
| Include Children | As needed |
| Restrict to Type | None (or specific) |
GL Example: Headcount Tracking
STATISTICAL JOURNAL ENTRY - HEADCOUNT
═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
Recording department headcount for Q4 2024:
┌────────────────────────────────┬────────────┬─────────────┐
│ Statistical Account │ Amount │ Department │
├────────────────────────────────┼────────────┼─────────────┤
│ Headcount │ 25 │ Sales │
│ Headcount │ 15 │ Marketing │
│ Headcount │ 40 │ Operations │
│ Headcount │ 10 │ Finance │
│ Headcount │ 5 │ HR │
├────────────────────────────────┼────────────┼─────────────┤
│ TOTAL │ 95 │ │
└────────────────────────────────┴────────────┴─────────────┘
Note: No debit/credit - just recording the value
Used for: Expense allocation based on headcount
GL Example: Square Footage
STATISTICAL JOURNAL ENTRY - SQUARE FOOTAGE
═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
Recording office space allocation:
┌────────────────────────────────┬────────────┬─────────────┐
│ Statistical Account │ Amount │ Department │
├────────────────────────────────┼────────────┼─────────────┤
│ Square Footage │ 5,000 │ Sales │
│ Square Footage │ 3,000 │ Marketing │
│ Square Footage │ 10,000 │ Operations │
│ Square Footage │ 1,500 │ Finance │
│ Square Footage │ 500 │ HR │
├────────────────────────────────┼────────────┼─────────────┤
│ TOTAL │ 20,000 │ │
└────────────────────────────────┴────────────┴─────────────┘
Used for: Rent allocation based on space used
Using Statistical Data for Allocations
Allocation Workflow
STATISTICAL DATA TO EXPENSE ALLOCATION
═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
Step 1: Record Statistical Data
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Statistical Journal Entry: Headcount by Department │
│ │
│ Sales: 25 Marketing: 15 Operations: 40 │
│ Finance: 10 HR: 5 Total: 95 │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
│
▼
Step 2: Calculate Allocation Percentages
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Sales: 25/95 = 26.3% │
│ Marketing: 15/95 = 15.8% │
│ Operations: 40/95 = 42.1% │
│ Finance: 10/95 = 10.5% │
│ HR: 5/95 = 5.3% │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
│
▼
Step 3: Allocate Shared Costs (e.g., $100,000 IT costs)
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Journal Entry: │
│ │
│ Dr. IT Expense - Sales $26,300 │
│ Dr. IT Expense - Marketing $15,800 │
│ Dr. IT Expense - Operations $42,100 │
│ Dr. IT Expense - Finance $10,500 │
│ Dr. IT Expense - HR $5,300 │
│ Cr. IT Expense - Shared $100,000 │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
Statistical vs Financial Accounts
| Feature | Statistical Account | Financial Account |
|---|---|---|
| Must balance | No | Yes |
| Affects GL | No | Yes |
| On financial statements | No | Yes |
| Used in formulas | Yes (custom reports) | Yes |
| Multi-line entry | Yes | Yes |
| Currency | No currency | Has currency |
Common Statistical Metrics
| Metric | Unit | Typical Use |
|---|---|---|
| Headcount | FTEs | HR cost allocation |
| Square Footage | Sq ft/m | Rent allocation |
| Machine Hours | Hours | Manufacturing overhead |
| Units Produced | Units | Per-unit cost analysis |
| Transactions | Count | Processing cost allocation |
| Revenue (statistical) | Amount | Revenue-based allocation |
Reporting with Statistical Data
Custom Report Setup
- Create Saved Search or Report
- Add Statistical account as criteria/results
- Use Formula fields to calculate ratios
- Combine with financial data as needed
Example Formula
Allocation % = Statistical Amount / Total Statistical Amount * 100
Best Practices
| Practice | Benefit |
|---|---|
| Update monthly/quarterly | Current allocation basis |
| Document methodology | Audit support |
| Use consistent dates | Period alignment |
| Create memorized entries | Consistency |
| Review before allocation | Accuracy |
Next Steps
- System-Generated Journals - Automatic journal entries
- Journal Entries Overview - All journal types