Run several businesses in one account

Say you run a design studio and a small online shop, and you also track your household money. Pennyweight keeps all three in one account: one ledger for each business and one for home. Each ledger keeps its own accounts and transactions, so every business gets its own reports. For how ledgers work, see workspaces and ledgers.

How to do it

1. Create a ledger for each business. Ask your AI to create a business ledger with a name, such as "Studio" or "Shop". Your household can stay in the default ledger, called "Personal". See create a ledger.
2. Put each business's accounts in its ledger. Every account belongs to one ledger. When you ask your AI to add a manual account, name the ledger it goes in. See add a manual account.
3. Connect each business's bank into its ledger. Ask your AI for a bank link for that ledger, and the connect page files the bank there. In the web app, you can instead select the ledger, then use Connect with Plaid in Settings → Accounts in the same tab. See connect a US bank.
4. Tell your AI which business you're working on. Your AI works in one ledger at a time. Ask it to switch to a ledger by name, and questions about transactions that don't name a ledger use that one. See choose which ledger your AI works in.
5. Ask about each business by name. Name the ledger in your question to get its spending, income or cash flow without switching. To compare businesses, ask for each ledger by name. For one combined total, ask for spending across the ledgers you name, or for a cash flow across all your ledgers. See get any report by asking your AI and income vs expenses over time.
6. Set up rules in each ledger. A rule belongs to one ledger, so a vendor both businesses use needs a rule in each. See create a rule.

What you'll see

For the first prompt, your AI reports each ledger on its own, with Household's spending next to Studio's. Each currency is shown separately. A household euro account, for example, shows its euro spending apart from the dollar figures.

For the second, your AI confirms it's now working in Studio, then shows Studio's money in, money out and net for last month. Later questions about transactions that don't name a ledger also cover Studio, until you switch again.

For the third, your AI gives one set of category totals for both ledgers, in your display currency. Rent, for example, adds Household's rent and Studio's rent into one figure.

Good to know

• Some views cover every ledger. Net worth includes all your ledgers except demo ledgers. Your list of accounts does too, unless you name a ledger. While a demo ledger is the one your AI is working in, both cover only that demo. See check your net worth.
• Each ledger has its own subscription. One free trial covers all your ledgers. After it, each ledger needs its own subscription. See plans and pricing.
• What your AI remembers stays in its ledger. Notes you give your AI about one business don't apply to another. See what your AI remembers.
• Transactions can't move between ledgers. If something lands in the wrong business, see move a transaction to a different ledger.
• A ledger's currency is permanent. Pick it when you create the ledger. Stored amounts keep their own currency. Totals that combine ledgers, such as net worth or a cash flow across all ledgers, are converted to your display currency at daily exchange rates. See accounts and totals in more than one currency.
• The active ledger belongs to each AI connection. Switching ledgers in one AI doesn't change another AI or the web app.