> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://harnesscalendar.com/docs/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Manage billing accounts

> Create or edit an account, and set who's on it and who gets billed.

An account is who you bill: students take the lessons, the account gets the invoice. See [Accounts and students](/docs/students/accounts-and-students) for the model.

## Create or edit an account

<Steps>
  <Step title="Open the accounts list">
    Go to **Finances → Accounts**, then click **New account**. To edit an existing one, open it from the list and choose **Edit**.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Name it (optional)">
    Give the account a **Name**, for example *Chen family*. You can leave it blank: a single-student account is named after the student automatically.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Add students">
    Use the **Students** picker to add one or more students. Adding a student suggests their primary contact as a billing recipient, so a typical account fills itself in.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Set billing recipients">
    Under **Billing recipients**, choose the contacts who should receive this account's invoices, adjusting the suggestions as needed.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Pick the billing cycle">
    **Billing cycle** decides how often this account's charges collect into an invoice: **Use studio default**, or its own **Daily**, **Weekly**, or **Monthly**. See [Automated billing](/docs/billing/automated-billing).
  </Step>

  <Step title="Save">
    Click **Save**. A new account opens straight to its page.
  </Step>
</Steps>

<Warning>
  Removing a student from an account drops any billing recipient that only that student backed. A recipient shared by another student on the account stays.
</Warning>

## Find an account

On **Finances → Accounts**, the tabs filter by standing:

* **All**: every account.
* **Owes**: accounts with an outstanding balance.
* **In credit**: accounts holding money they don't owe.

Search by account name to jump straight to one. Click any row to open its page.

## The account page

Open an account for its standing, its billing setup, and its history in one place:

* **Balance**: the account's current standing, labelled *Outstanding* or *In credit*. Its header carries the everyday actions: **Generate invoice**, **Record payment**, and **Issue refund** (which appears only when the account is in credit). Below the balance, the credit row reads *\$X available* or *No credit*. Click it to issue a credit or see its history.
* **Students**: everyone billed through this account.
* **Billing recipients**: the contacts who receive this account's invoices, with their email.
* **Billing**: the account's cycle (*Bills monthly · next ≈ …*) and its attached recurring charges. Attach one here; see [Set up recurring charges](/docs/billing/recurring-charges).

Alongside, the **Invoices** tab lists every invoice billed to this account, any status, and the **Transactions** tab is the account's full money record: every charge, payment, credit, and refund, filterable by student.

If the account has a problem worth your attention, a warning shows at the top: no billing recipient with an email, or an invoice that keeps failing to send.

## FAQ

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="What's the difference between Owes and In credit?">
    **Owes** means the account has an outstanding balance: money still due. **In credit** means it's holding money it doesn't owe, usually from an overpayment. You can return that with a [refund](/docs/billing/refunds).
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Do I have to create accounts?">
    No, every student gets one the moment you add them; see [Accounts and students](/docs/students/accounts-and-students).
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>