Gym Fitness Bookkeeping Chart of Accounts

Every business requires a chart of accounts. Wait, WHAT IS A chart of accounts!? As a business owner, a gym/fitness owner you get out of bed and don’t think accounting. But, I do and I am here to help. As the owner, you don’t need to know it all, but you do need to know the basics and how to read financial statements if you want to grow your business. Just like your own fitness clients, some want to get results and others want in depth knowledge in what to eat and which exercises improve a certain muscle. Be the owner that wants to improve and learn what each account affects. I am planning on making some 101 brochure’s to help you in the path of accounting. Check back often to learn more on the basics specifically for gym’s and fitness centers.

Let’s jump in.

Chart of Accounts

The chart of accounts is a list/categories used to record all your business entries. Each industry has a slight difference chart of accounts but they all have the main accounting categories. The main categories are Assets, Liabilities, Owners Equity, Revenue, and Expenses. Once you get the basics you can always add more when you want to hone into a certain muscle, I mean account.

Now, lets dig in a little deeper and see how each chart of accounts is built. After all, everything is structured to be easily understood by all. In accounting we always have two financial reports that shows us the picture of our business. The first report is the Balance Sheet and this shows us a snapshot of three categories; Assets, Liabilities, and Owners Equity. The second report is the Income Statement (AKA Profit/Loss Statement) which is a recap of 2 categories; Income and Expenses.

Balance Sheet Accounts  

– Assets
– Liabilities
– Owner’s Equity

Income Statement Accounts

– Revenues
– Expenses
– Misc Income & Expenses

(Check out the posts about the Balance Sheet and Income Statement for more info there).

Remember to keep your chart of accounts simple and add to it as you grow. You want it to be easily understood by you. You can always add more accounts if you notice discrepancies where you want to focus on the big picture of the account. The accounts are an easy way for an owner to see changes. Monthly reports help see the totals, but detail reports help you see the fine lines in an account.

Here is a Chart of Account I use for Gym Fitness Businesses on a Cash Basis Method.

Balance Sheet: Asset Accounts

100****  Checking Account (* are the last 4 digits of the account number)
110****   Savings Account (* are the last 4 digits of the account number)
160      Prepaid Insurance
175      Buildings (if you own your building)
176      Accumulated Depreciation – Buildings
180      Equipment (Fitness Equipment)
181      Accumulated Depreciation – Equipment

Balance Sheet: Liability Accounts

210      Wages Payable
220      Interest Payable
230      Unearned Training Revenue
240      Mortgage Payable (if you own your building)

Balance Sheet: Owner’s Equity Accounts

300      Capital Deposits – Owner X
310      Capital Withdraws – Owner X
320      Retained Earnings (Summary of Profit/Loss)

Income Statement: Revenue Accounts

400      Gym Membership Monthly Training Sales
405      Gym Nutrition Sales
406      Gym Merchandise Sales

Income Statement: Expense Accounts

500     Cost of Merchandise Sold (Generic)
501 Direct Coach Labor
505     Cost of Nutrition Purchase
506     Cost of Gym Merchandise Sold
601      Advertising
602      Bad Debts
603      Bank Charges
604      Charitable Contributions
605      Dues & Subscriptions
606      Gym Supplies/Equipment
607       Insurance
608      Janitorial & Cleaning
609      Lease Expense
610       Legal Expense
611        Licenses & Permits
620      Meals & Entertainment – (Generic/Unsure)
621      Meals & Entertainment – 100% Deductible
622      Meals & Entertainment – 50% Deductible
630      Office Expense
640      Payroll Expense – Coaches
643      Payroll Expense – Admin
644      Payroll Expense – Owner’s Pay
650      Payroll Tax Expense
660      Rent
661       Repairs & Maintenance
665      Training & Education
667      Travel
670      Utilities (I include gas, water, electricity, phone, internet, cable)
800     Amortization
805      Depreciation

Income Statement – Other/Misc Income & Expense

850      Interest Income
860      Interest Expense

Use this chart of accounts to get your gym fitness cash basis bookkeeping started.

The 5 Main Account Types

You started your business. Now it’s time to categorize. Wait. What! I need to categorize! Yes you do. But luckily accounting has made it easy (or tried to make it easy) and created 5 main account types. Okay, maybe not that lucky, the accounts can be a little confusing. It’s okay, we are going to break them down to help all business owners learn the basics.

The 5 main accounts are:

  • Assets
  • Liabilities
  • Equity
  • Revenue (AKA Income)
  • Expenses

Remember the 5 main categories as they are the basis to reading financial reports. Each transaction performed by a business must be reported in one of the 5 main categories.

Small Business Tip: Create an Invoice for Sales or Services

Weather it’s your first year or tenth year in business, always use a professional invoice. This single step is crucial in getting paid for the work you performed and keeping track of what is owed. Every Invoice Should Include
  • Your Business Name
  • Contact Information
  • Client’s Name
  • Invoice Number
  • Issue Date
  • Due Date
  • Line item description with amount
  • Accepted forms of payment
Make Invoices Efficient Create a template to increase speed and cohesiveness. You can also use  an automatic invoice generator. This way you don’t have to print, file, and mail invoices. Some software allow you to even email invoices to your customers.