Accounting Software Modules

Accounting software is typically composed of various modules, different sections dealing with particular areas of accounting. Among the most common are:

Accounts payable—where the company enters its bills and pays money it owes
Accounts receivable—where the company enters money received
Billing—where the company produces invoices to clients/customers
Collections—where the company tracks attempts to collect overdue bills (sometimes part of accounts receivable)
Expense—where employee business-related expenses are entered
General ledger—the company's "books"
Inquiries—where the company looks up information on screen without any edits or additions
Payroll—where the company tracks salary, wages, and related taxes
Reports—where the company prints out data
Timesheet—where professionals (such as attorneys and consultants) record time worked so that it can be billed to clients

(Different vendors will use different names for these modules)