
HLEDGER(1)                   hledger User Manuals                   HLEDGER(1)

NAME
       hledger  -  a  robust, friendly plain text accounting app (command line
       version).

SYNOPSIS
       hledger
       or
       hledger COMMAND [OPTS] [ARGS]
DESCRIPTION
       hledger is a robust, user-friendly, cross-platform set of programs  for
       tracking  money,  time,  or any other commodity, using double-entry ac-
       counting and a simple, editable file format.  hledger  is  inspired  by
       and  largely  compatible  with  ledger(1), and largely interconvertible
       with beancount(1).

       This manual is for hledger's command line interface,  version  1.51.99.
       It also describes the common options, file formats and concepts used by
       all  hledger  programs.  It might accidentally teach you some bookkeep-
       ing/accounting as well!  You don't need to know everything in  here  to
       use  hledger productively, but when you have a question about function-
       ality, this doc should answer it.  It is detailed, so do skip ahead  or
       skim when needed.  You can read it on hledger.org, or as an info manual
       or  man  page  on your system.  You can also open a built-in copy, at a
       point of interest, by running
       hledger --man [CMD], hledger --info [CMD] or hledger help [TOPIC].

       (And for shorter help, try hledger --tldr [CMD].)

       The main function of the hledger CLI is to read plain  text  files  de-
       scribing financial transactions, crunch the numbers, and print a useful
       report  on  the  terminal (or save it as HTML, CSV, JSON or SQL).  Many
       reports are available, as subcommands.  hledger will also detect  other
       hledger-* executables as extra subcommands.

       hledger usually reads from (and appends to) a journal file specified by
       the     LEDGER_FILE     environment     variable     (defaulting     to
       $HOME/.hledger.journal); or you can specify files with -f options.   It
       can  also  read timeclock files, timedot files, or any CSV/SSV/TSV file
       with a date field.

       Here is a small journal file describing one transaction:

              2015-10-16 bought food
                expenses:food          $10
                assets:cash

       Transactions are dated movements of money (etc.)  between two  or  more
       accounts:  bank accounts, your wallet, revenue/expense categories, peo-
       ple, etc.  You can choose any account names you wish, using : to  indi-
       cate  subaccounts.   There  must be at least two spaces between account
       name and amount.  Positive amounts are inflow to that account  (debit),
       negatives  are  outflow  from it (credit).  (Some reports show revenue,
       liability and equity account balances as negative numbers as a  result;
       this is normal.)

       hledger's add command can help you add transactions, or you can install
       other data entry UIs like hledger-web or hledger-iadd.  For more exten-
       sive/efficient  changes,  use a text editor: Emacs + ledger-mode, VIM +
       vim-ledger, or VS Code + hledger-vscode  are  some  good  choices  (see
       https://hledger.org/editors.html).

       To  get  started,  run hledger add and follow the prompts, or save some
       entries like the above in  $HOME/.hledger.journal,  then  try  commands
       like:

              $ hledger print -x
              $ hledger aregister assets
              $ hledger balance
              $ hledger balancesheet
              $ hledger incomestatement

       Run  hledger  to  list  the commands.  See also the "Starting a journal
       file" and "Setting opening balances" sections in PART 5: COMMON TASKS.

PART 1: USER INTERFACE
Input
       hledger reads one or more data files, each time you run  it.   You  can
       specify a file with -f, like so

              $ hledger -f FILE [-f FILE2 ...] print

       Files  are  most  often  in hledger's journal format, with the .journal
       file extension (.hledger or .j also work); these files describe  trans-
       actions, like an accounting general journal.

       When  no  file is specified, hledger looks for .hledger.journal in your
       home directory.

       But most people prefer to keep financial files in a  dedicated  folder,
       perhaps  with  version control.  Also, starting a new journal file each
       year is common (it's not required, but helps keep things fast  and  or-
       ganised).  So we usually configure a different journal file, by setting
       the   LEDGER_FILE   environment   variable,  to  something  like  ~/fi-
       nance/2023.journal.  For more about how to do that on your system,  see
       Common tasks > Setting LEDGER_FILE.

   Text encoding
       hledger  expects  non-ascii  input  to be decodable with the system lo-
       cale's text encoding.  (For CSV/SSV/TSV files, this can  be  overridden
       by the encoding CSV rule.)

       So,  trying to read non-ascii files which have the wrong text encoding,
       or when no system locale is configured, will fail.  To fix  this,  con-
       figure  your  system  locale appropriately, and/or convert the files to
       your system's text encoding (using iconv  on  unix,  or  powershell  or
       notepad on Windows).  See Install: Text encoding for more tips.

       hledger's output will use the system locale's encoding.

       hledger's docs and example files mostly use UTF-8 encoding.

   Data formats
       Usually  the data file is in hledger's journal format, but it can be in
       any of the supported file formats, which currently are:

       Reader:         Reads:                              Automatically used  for
                                                           files with extensions:
       -----------------------------------------------------------------------------
       journal         hledger  journal  files  and some   .journal  .j   .hledger
                       Ledger journals, for transactions   .ledger
       timeclock       timeclock files, for precise time   .timeclock
                       logging
       timedot         timedot  files,  for  approximate   .timedot
                       time logging
       csv             Comma- or  other  delimiter-sepa-   .csv
                       rated values, for data import
       ssv             Semicolon separated values          .ssv
       tsv             Tab separated values                .tsv
       rules           CSV/SSV/TSV/other  separated val-   .rules
                       ues, alternate way

       These formats are described in more detail below.

       hledger detects the format automatically based on the  file  extensions
       shown  above.   If  it  can't  recognise the file extension, it assumes
       journal format.  So for non-journal files,  it's  important  to  use  a
       recognised file extension, so as to either read successfully or to show
       relevant error messages.

       You  can also force a specific reader/format by prefixing the file path
       with the format and a colon.  Eg, to read a .dat  file  containing  tab
       separated values:

              $ hledger -f tsv:/some/file.dat stats

   Standard input
       The file name - means standard input:

              $ cat FILE | hledger -f- print

       If  reading non-journal data in this way, you'll need to write the for-
       mat as a prefix, like timeclock: here:

              $ echo 'i 2009/13/1 08:00:00' | hledger print -f timeclock:-

   Multiple files
       You can specify multiple -f options, to read multiple files as one  big
       journal.  When doing this, note that certain features (described below)
       will be affected:

       o Balance  assertions will not see the effect of transactions in previ-
         ous files.  (Usually this doesn't matter as each file  will  set  the
         corresponding opening balances.)

       o Some directives will not affect previous or subsequent files.

       If  needed,  you  can  work  around these by using a single parent file
       which includes the others, or concatenating the files into one, eg: cat
       a.journal b.journal | hledger -f- CMD.

   Strict mode
       hledger checks input files for valid data.  By default, the most impor-
       tant errors are detected, while  still  accepting  easy  journal  files
       without a lot of declarations:

       o Are the input files parseable, with valid syntax ?

       o Are all transactions balanced ?

       o Do all balance assertions pass ?

       With the -s/--strict flag, additional checks are performed:

       o Are  all  accounts  posted  to,  declared with an account directive ?
         (Account error checking)

       o Are all commodities declared with a commodity directive ?  (Commodity
         error checking)

       o Are all commodity conversions declared explicitly ?

       You can use the check command to  run  individual  checks  -  the  ones
       listed above and some more.

Commands
       hledger  provides various subcommands for getting things done.  Most of
       these commands do not change the journal file; they just  read  it  and
       output  a report.  A few commands assist with adding data and file man-
       agement.  Some often-used  commands  are  add,  print,  register,  bal-
       ancesheet and incomestatement.

       To  show a summary of commands, run hledger with no arguments.  You can
       see the same commands summary at the start of PART 4: COMMANDS below.

       To use a particular command, run hledger CMD [CMDOPTS] [CMDARGS],

       o CMD is the full command name, or its standard abbreviation  shown  in
         the commands list, or any unambiguous prefix of the name.

       o CMDOPTS  are  command-specific options, if any.  Command-specific op-
         tions must be written after the command name.  Eg: hledger print -x.

       o CMDARGS are additional  arguments  to  the  command,  if  any.   Most
         hledger  commands accept arguments representing a query, to limit the
         data in some way.  Eg: hledger reg assets:checking.

       To list a command's options, arguments, and documentation in the termi-
       nal, run hledger CMD -h.  Eg: hledger bal -h.

   Add-on commands
       In addition to the built-in commands, you can install add-on  commands,
       which  will  also appear in hledger's commands list.  Some of these can
       be installed as separate packages; others can  be  found  in  hledger's
       bin/ directory, documented at https://hledger.org/scripts.html.

       Add-on  commands  are  programs  or scripts in your shell's PATH, whose
       name starts with "hledger-" and ends with no extension or a  recognised
       extension  (".bat",  ".com",  ".exe",  ".hs",  ".js",  ".lhs",  ".lua",
       ".php", ".pl", ".py", ".rb", ".rkt", or ".sh"), and (on unix  and  mac)
       which has executable permission for the current user.

       You can run add-on commands directly: hledger-ui --watch.

       Or  you  can  run them with hledger, like built-in commands: hledger ui
       --watch.  In this case hledger's config file will be used, so  you  can
       set  custom  options  for the addon there.  (Before hledger 1.50, an --
       argument was needed before addon options, but not any more.)

Options
       Run hledger -h to see general command line help.  Options can be  writ-
       ten  either  before  or after the command name.  These options are spe-
       cific to the hledger CLI:

              Flags:
                   --conf=CONFFILE        Use extra options defined in this config file. If
                                          not specified, searches upward and in XDG config
                                          dir for hledger.conf (or .hledger.conf in $HOME).
                -n --no-conf              ignore any config file

       And the following general options are common to most hledger commands:

              General input/data transformation flags:
                -f --file=[FMT:]FILE      Read data from FILE, or from stdin if FILE is -,
                                          inferring format from extension or a FMT: prefix.
                                          Can be specified more than once. If not specified,
                                          reads from $LEDGER_FILE or $HOME/.hledger.journal.
                   --rules=RULESFILE      Use rules defined in this rules file for
                                          converting subsequent CSV/SSV/TSV files. If not
                                          specified, uses FILE.csv.rules for each FILE.csv.
                   --alias=A=B|/RGX/=RPL  transform account names from A to B, or by
                                          replacing regular expression matches
                   --auto                 generate extra postings by applying auto posting
                                          rules ("=") to all transactions
                   --forecast[=PERIOD]    Generate extra transactions from periodic rules
                                          ("~"), from after the latest ordinary transaction
                                          until 6 months from now. Or, during the specified
                                          PERIOD (the equals is required). Auto posting rules
                                          will also be applied to these transactions. In
                                          hledger-ui, also make future-dated transactions
                                          visible at startup.
                -I --ignore-assertions    don't check balance assertions by default
                   --txn-balancing=...    how to check that transactions are balanced:
                                          'old':   use global display precision
                                          'exact': use transaction precision (default)
                   --infer-costs          infer conversion equity postings from costs
                   --infer-equity         infer costs from conversion equity postings
                   --infer-market-prices  infer market prices from costs
                   --pivot=TAGNAME        use a different field or tag as account names
                -s --strict               do extra error checks (and override -I)
                   --verbose-tags         add tags indicating generated/modified data

              General output/reporting flags (supported by some commands):
                -b --begin=DATE           include postings/transactions on/after this date
                -e --end=DATE             include postings/transactions before this date
                                          (with a report interval, will be adjusted to
                                          following subperiod end)
                -D --daily                multiperiod report with 1 day interval
                -W --weekly               multiperiod report with 1 week interval
                -M --monthly              multiperiod report with 1 month interval
                -Q --quarterly            multiperiod report with 1 quarter interval
                -Y --yearly               multiperiod report with 1 year interval
                -p --period=PERIODEXP     set begin date, end date, and/or report interval,
                                          with more flexibility
                   --today=DATE           override today's date (affects relative dates)
                   --date2                match/use secondary dates instead (deprecated)
                -U --unmarked             include only unmarked postings/transactions
                -P --pending              include only pending postings/transactions
                -C --cleared              include only cleared postings/transactions
                                          (-U/-P/-C can be combined)
                -R --real                 include only non-virtual postings
                -E --empty                Show zero items, which are normally hidden.
                                          In hledger-ui & hledger-web, do the opposite.
                   --depth=DEPTHEXP       if a number (or -NUM): show only top NUM levels
                                          of accounts. If REGEXP=NUM, only apply limiting to
                                          accounts matching the regular expression.
                -B --cost                 show amounts converted to their cost/sale amount
                -V --market               Show amounts converted to their value at period
                                          end(s) in their default valuation commodity.
                                          Equivalent to --value=end.
                -X --exchange=COMM        Show amounts converted to their value at period
                                          end(s) in the specified commodity.
                                          Equivalent to --value=end,COMM.
                   --value=WHEN[,COMM]    show amounts converted to their value on the
                                          specified date(s) in their default valuation
                                          commodity or a specified commodity. WHEN can be:
                                          'then':     value on transaction dates
                                          'end':      value at period end(s)
                                          'now':      value today
                                          YYYY-MM-DD: value on given date
                -c --commodity-style=S    Override a commodity's display style.
                                          Eg: -c '.' or -c '1.000,00 EUR'
                   --pretty[=YN]          Use box-drawing characters in text output? Can be
                                          'y'/'yes' or 'n'/'no'.
                                          If YN is specified, the equals is required.

              General help flags:
                -h --help                 show command line help
                   --tldr                 show command examples with tldr
                   --info                 show the manual with info
                   --man                  show the manual with man
                   --version              show version information
                   --debug=[1-9]          show this much debug output (default: 1)
                   --pager=YN             use a pager when needed ? y/yes (default) or n/no
                   --color=YNA --colour   use ANSI color ? y/yes, n/no, or auto (default)

       Usually hledger accepts any unambiguous flag prefix, eg you  can  write
       --tl instead of --tldr or --dry instead of --dry-run.

       You  can  combine  short  flags  which don't take arguments, eg you can
       write -MAST instead of -M -A -S -T.  Flags requiring an argument  can't
       be combined in this way (-If FILE won't work).

       If  the  same  option appears more than once in a command line, usually
       the last (right-most) wins.  Similarly, if mutually exclusive flags are
       used together, the right-most wins.  (When flags  are  mutually  exclu-
       sive, they'll usually have a group prefix in --help.)

       With  most commands, arguments are interpreted as a hledger query which
       filter the data.  Some queries can be expressed either with options  or
       with arguments.

       Below are more tips for using the command line interface - feel free to
       skip these until you need them.

   Special characters
       In  commands you type at the command line, certain characters have spe-
       cial meaning and sometimes need to be "escaped" or "quoted", by prefix-
       ing backslashes or enclosing in quotes.

       If you are able to minimise the use of special characters in your data,
       you won't have to deal with this as much.  For example, you  could  use
       hyphen  -  or  underscore _ instead of spaces in account names, and you
       could use the USD currency code instead of the  $  currency  symbol  in
       amounts.

       But  if  you prefer to use spaced account names and $, it's fine.  Just
       be aware of this topic so you can check this doc when  needed.   (These
       examples  are  mostly  tested  on  unix;  some details might need to be
       adapted if you're on Windows.)

   Escaping shell special characters
       These are some characters which may have special meaning to your  shell
       (the program which interprets command lines):

       o SPACE, <, >, (, ), |, \, %

       o $ if followed by a word character

       So  for  example,  to  match  an  account  name containing spaces, like
       "credit card", don't write:

              $ hledger register credit card

       Instead, enclose the name in single quotes:

              $ hledger register 'credit card'

       On unix or in Windows powershell, if you use double quotes  your  shell
       will  silently treat $ as variable interpolation.  So you should proba-
       bly avoid double quotes, unless  you  want  that  behaviour,  eg  in  a
       script:

              $ hledger register "assets:$SOMEACCT"

       But in an older Windows CMD.EXE window, you must use double quotes:

              C:\Users\Me> hledger register "credit card"

       On  unix  or in Windows powershell, as an alternative to quotes you can
       write a backslash before each special character:

              $ hledger register credit\ card

       Finally, since hledger's query arguments are regular  expressions  (de-
       scribed  below),  you could also fill that gap with . which matches any
       character:

              $ hledger register credit.card

   Escaping regular expression special characters
       Some characters also have special meaning in regular expressions, which
       hledger's arguments often are.  Those include:

       o ., ^, $, [, ], (, ), |, \

       To escape one of these, write \ before it.  But note this is  in  addi-
       tion  to the shell escaping above.  So for characters which are special
       to both shell and regular expressions, like \ and $, you will sometimes
       need two levels of escaping.

       For example, a balance report that uses a cur: query restricting it  to
       just the $ currency, should be written like this:

              $ hledger balance cur:\\$

       Explanation:

       1. Add  a backslash \ before the dollar sign $ to protect it from regu-
          lar expressions (so it will be matched  literally  with  no  special
          meaning).

       2. Add  another backslash before that backslash, to protect it from the
          shell (so the shell won't consume it).

       3. $ doesn't need to be protected from the shell in this case,  because
          it's  not  followed by a word character; but it would be harmless to
          do so.

       But here's another way to write that, which tends  to  be  easier:  add
       backslashes  to  escape  from  regular  expressions,  then enclose with
       quotes to escape from the shell:

              $ hledger balance cur:'\$'

   Escaping in other situations
       hledger options and arguments are sometimes used in places  other  than
       the  command line, where the escaping/quoting rules are different.  For
       example, backslash-quoting may not be available.  Here's a quick refer-
       ence:

       In unix shell       Use single quotes and/or backslash (or double quotes
                           for variable interpolation)
       In Windows power-   Use single quotes (or double quotes for variable in-
       shell               terpolation)
       In Windows cmd      Use double quotes
       In   hledger-ui's   Use single or double quotes
       filter prompt
       In  hledger-web's   Use single or double quotes
       search form
       In  an   argument   Don't  use  spaces, don't shell-escape, do regex-es-
       file                cape, write one argument/option per line
       In a config file    Use single or double quotes, and enclose  the  whole
                           argument ('desc:a b' not desc:'a b')
       In    ghci   (the   Use double quotes, and enclose the whole argument
       Haskell REPL)

   Unicode characters
       hledger is expected to handle non-ascii characters correctly:

       o they should be parsed correctly in input files  and  on  the  command
         line,  by all hledger tools (add, iadd, hledger-web's search/add/edit
         forms, etc.)

       o they  should  be  displayed  correctly  by  all  hledger  tools,  and
         on-screen alignment should be preserved.

       This requires a well-configured environment.  Here are some tips:

       o A  system  locale must be configured, which can decode the characters
         being used.  This is essential - see Text encoding and Install:  Text
         encoding.

       o Your  terminal  software  (eg  Terminal.app, iTerm, CMD.exe, xterm..)
         must support unicode.  On Windows, you may need to use Windows Termi-
         nal.

       o The terminal must be using a font which includes the required unicode
         glyphs.

       o The terminal should be configured to display wide characters as  dou-
         ble width (for report alignment).

       o On  Windows, for best results you should run hledger in the same kind
         of environment in which it was built.  Eg hledger built in the  stan-
         dard  CMD.EXE  environment  (like  the binaries on our download page)
         might show display problems when run in a cygwin  or  msys  terminal,
         and vice versa.  (See eg #961).

   Regular expressions
       A  regular  expression  (regexp) is a small piece of text where certain
       characters (like ., ^, $, +, *, (), |, [], \)  have  special  meanings,
       forming  a  tiny  language for matching text precisely - very useful in
       hledger and elsewhere.  To learn all about them, visit  regular-expres-
       sions.info.

       hledger  supports  regexps whenever you are entering a pattern to match
       something, eg in  query  arguments,  account  aliases,  CSV  if  rules,
       hledger-web's search form, hledger-ui's / search, etc.  You may need to
       wrap  them in quotes, especially at the command line (see Special char-
       acters above).  Here are some examples:

       Account name queries (quoted for command line use):

              Regular expression:  Matches:
              -------------------  ------------------------------------------------------------
              bank                 assets:bank, assets:bank:savings, expenses:art:banksy, ...
              :bank                assets:bank:savings, expenses:art:banksy
              :bank:               assets:bank:savings
              '^bank'              none of those ( ^ matches beginning of text )
              'bank$'              assets:bank   ( $ matches end of text )
              'big \$ bank'        big $ bank    ( \ disables following character's special meaning )
              '\bbank\b'           assets:bank, assets:bank:savings  ( \b matches word boundaries )
              '(sav|check)ing'     saving or checking  ( (|) matches either alternative )
              'saving|checking'    saving or checking  ( outer parentheses are not needed )
              'savings?'           saving or savings   ( ? matches 0 or 1 of the preceding thing )
              'my +bank'           my bank, my  bank, ... ( + matches 1 or more of the preceding thing )
              'my *bank'           mybank, my bank, my  bank, ... ( * matches 0 or more of the preceding thing )
              'b.nk'               bank, bonk, b nk, ... ( . matches any character )

       Some other queries:

              desc:'amazon|amzn|audible'  Amazon transactions
              cur:EUR              amounts with commodity symbol containing EUR
              cur:'\$'             amounts with commodity symbol containing $
              cur:'^\$$'           only $ amounts, not eg AU$ or CA$
              cur:....?            amounts with 4-or-more-character symbols
              tag:.=202[1-3]       things with any tag whose value contains 2021, 2022 or 2023

       Account name aliases: accept . instead of : as account separator:

              alias /\./=:         replaces all periods in account names with colons

       Show multiple top-level accounts combined as one:

              --alias='/^[^:]+/=combined'  ( [^:] matches any character other than : )

       Show accounts with the second-level part removed:

              --alias '/^([^:]+):[^:]+/ = \1'
                                   match a top-level account and a second-level account
                                   and replace those with just the top-level account
                                   ( \1 in the replacement text means "whatever was matched
                                   by the first parenthesised part of the regexp"

       CSV rules: match CSV records containing dining-related MCC codes:

              if \?MCC581[124]

       Match CSV records with a specific amount around the end/start of month:

              if %amount \b3\.99
              &  %date   (29|30|31|01|02|03)$

   hledger's regular expressions
       hledger's regular expressions come from  the  regex-tdfa  library.   If
       they're  not doing what you expect, it's important to know exactly what
       they support:

       1. they are case insensitive

       2. they are infix matching (they do not need to match the entire  thing
          being matched)

       3. they are POSIX ERE (extended regular expressions)

       4. they also support GNU word boundaries (\b, \B, \<, \>)

       5. backreferences  are supported when doing text replacement in account
          aliases or CSV rules, where backreferences can be used  in  the  re-
          placement string to reference capturing groups in the search regexp.
          Otherwise, if you write \1, it will match the digit 1.

       6. they  do  not  support mode modifiers ((?s)), character classes (\w,
          \d), or anything else not mentioned above.

       7. they may not (I'm guessing not) properly  support  right-to-left  or
          bidirectional text.

       Some things to note:

       o In  the  alias directive and --alias option, regular expressions must
         be enclosed in forward  slashes  (/REGEX/).   Elsewhere  in  hledger,
         these are not required.

       o In  queries,  to match a regular expression metacharacter like $ as a
         literal character, prepend a backslash.  Eg  to  search  for  amounts
         with the dollar sign in hledger-web, write cur:\$.

       o On  the command line, some metacharacters like $ have a special mean-
         ing to the shell and so must be escaped at least once more.  See Spe-
         cial characters.

   Argument files
       You can save a set of command line options and arguments in a file, and
       then use them by writing @FILE.args as a hledger command argument.  The
       .args file extension is conventional, but not required.  In an argument
       file,

       o Each line can contain one argument, flag, or option.

       o Blank lines or lines beginning with # are ignored.

       o An option's flag and value should be joined by =.

       o An option value or an argument may contain spaces.  Don't use  single
         or double quotes.

       o And  generally,  use  one  less level of quoting/escaping than at the
         command line.  Eg cur:\$, not cur:\\$ as on the command line.

       For example:

              # cash.args

              assets:cash
              assets:charles schwab:sweep
              cur:\$
              -c=$1.

              $ hledger bal @cash.args

   Config files
       With hledger 1.40+, you can save extra command line options  and  argu-
       ments  in  a more featureful hledger config file.  Here's a small exam-
       ple:

              # General options are listed first, and used with hledger commands that support them.
              --pretty

              # Options following a `[COMMAND]` heading are used with that hledger command only.
              [print]
              --explicit --infer-costs

       To use a config file, specify it with the --conf option.   Its  options
       will  be inserted near the start of your command line, so you can over-
       ride them with command line options if needed.

       Or, you can set up an automatic config file that is used  whenever  you
       run  hledger,  by  creating  hledger.conf  in  the current directory or
       above, or .hledger.conf in your home  directory  (~/.hledger.conf),  or
       hledger.conf     in     your     XDG    config    directory    (~/.con-
       fig/hledger/hledger.conf).

       Here   is   another   example   config   you    could    start    with:
       https://github.com/simonmichael/hledger/blob/master/hledger.conf.sample

       You  can put not only options, but also arguments in a config file.  If
       the first word in a config file's top (general) section does not  begin
       with  a  dash (eg: print), it is treated as the command argument (over-
       riding any argument on the command line).

       On unix machines, you can add a shebang line at the  top  of  a  config
       file,  set executable permission on the file, and use it like a script.
       Eg (the -S is needed on some operating systems):

              #!/usr/bin/env -S hledger --conf

       You can ignore config files by adding the -n/--no-conf flag to the com-
       mand line.  This is useful when using hledger in scripts, or when trou-
       bleshooting.  When both --conf and  --no-conf  options  are  used,  the
       right-most wins.

       To  inspect  the  processing of config files, use --debug or --debug=8.
       Or, run the setup command, which will display any active config  files.
       (setup is not affected by config files itself, unlike other commands.)

       Warning!

       There  aren't  many  hledger  features that need a warning, but this is
       one!

       Automatic config files, while convenient, also make hledger  less  pre-
       dictable  and dependable.  It's easy to make a config file that changes
       a report's behaviour, or  breaks  your  hledger-using  scripts/applica-
       tions, in ways that will surprise you later.

       If you don't want this,

       1. Just don't create a hledger.conf file on your machine.

       2. Also  be  alert  to  downloaded  directories  which  may  contain  a
          hledger.conf file.

       3. Also if you are sharing scripts or  examples  or  support,  consider
          that others may have a hledger.conf file.

       Conversely, once you decide to use this feature, try to remember:

       1. Whenever  a  hledger command does not work as expected, try it again
          with -n (--no-conf) to see if a config file was to blame.

       2. Whenever you call hledger from a script, consider whether that  call
          should use -n or not.

       3. Be  conservative about what you put in your config file; try to con-
          sider the effect on all your reports.

       4. To troubleshoot the effect of config  files,  run  with  --debug  or
          --debug 8.

       The config file feature was added in hledger 1.40.

   Shell completions
       If  you  use  the  bash  or  zsh shells, you can optionally set up con-
       text-sensitive autocompletion for hledger command lines.  Try  pressing
       hledger<SPACE><TAB><TAB>  (should list all hledger commands) or hledger
       reg acct:<TAB><TAB> (should list your  top-level  account  names).   If
       completions  aren't  working,  or for more details, see Install > Shell
       completions.

Output
   Output destination
       hledger commands send their output to the terminal by default.  You can
       of course redirect this, eg into a file, using standard shell syntax:

              $ hledger print > foo.txt

       Some commands (print, register, stats, the balance commands) also  pro-
       vide  the  -o/--output-file  option,  which does the same thing without
       needing the shell.  Eg:

              $ hledger print -o foo.txt
              $ hledger print -o -        # write to stdout (the default)

   Output format
       Some commands offer other kinds of output, not just text on the  termi-
       nal.  Here are those commands and the formats currently supported:

       command                 txt     html     csv/tsv     fods     beancount      sql     json
       --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
       aregister               Y       Y        Y           Y                               Y
       balance                 Y       Y        Y           Y                               Y
       balancesheet            Y       Y        Y           Y                               Y
       balancesheetequity      Y       Y        Y           Y                               Y
       cashflow                Y       Y        Y           Y                               Y
       incomestatement         Y       Y        Y           Y                               Y
       print                   Y       Y        Y           Y        Y              Y       Y
       register                Y       Y        Y           Y                               Y

       You  can  also  see  which output formats a command supports by running
       hledger CMD -h and looking for the -O/--output-format=FMT option,

       You can select the output format by using that option:

              $ hledger print -O csv    # print CSV to standard output

       or by  choosing  a  suitable  filename  extension  with  the  -o/--out-
       put-file=FILE.FMT option:

              $ hledger balancesheet -o foo.csv    # write CSV to foo.csv

       The -O option can be combined with -o to override the file extension if
       needed:

              $ hledger balancesheet -o foo.txt -O csv    # write CSV to foo.txt

       Here are some notes about the various output formats.

   Text output
       This is the default: human readable, plain text report output, suitable
       for viewing with a monospace font in a terminal.  If your data contains
       unicode or wide characters, you'll need a terminal and font that render
       those correctly.  (This can be challenging on MS Windows.)

       Some  reports  (register,  aregister) will normally use the full window
       width.  If this isn't working or you want to override it, you  can  use
       the -w/--width option.

       Balance  reports (balance, balancesheet, incomestatement...)  use what-
       ever width they need.  Multi-period multi-currency reports can often be
       wider than the window.  Besides using a pager, helpful  techniques  for
       this  situation  include  --layout=bare,  -X  COMM,  cur:, --transpose,
       --tree, --depth, --drop, switching to html output, etc.

   Box-drawing characters
       hledger draws simple table borders by default, to minimise the risk  of
       display  problems  caused by a terminal/font not supporting box-drawing
       characters.

       But your terminal and font probably do support them,  so  we  recommend
       using  the --pretty flag to show prettier tables in the terminal.  This
       is a good flag to add to your hledger config file.

   Colour
       hledger tries to automatically detect ANSI colour and text styling sup-
       port and use it when appropriate.  (Currently, it is used rather  mini-
       mally:  some reports show negative numbers in red, and help output uses
       bold text for emphasis.)

       You can override this by setting the NO_COLOR environment  variable  to
       disable  it,  or  by using the --color/--colour option, perhaps in your
       config file, with a y/yes or n/no value to force it on or off.

   Paging
       In unix-like environments, when displaying large output (in any  output
       format) in the terminal, hledger tries to use a pager when appropriate.
       (You  can disable this with the --pager=no option, perhaps in your con-
       fig file.)

       The pager shows one page of text at a time, and lets you scroll  around
       to  see more.  While it is active, usually SPACE shows the next page, h
       shows help, and q quits.  The home/end/page up/page  down/cursor  keys,
       and mouse scrolling, may also work.

       hledger will use the pager specified by the PAGER environment variable,
       otherwise  less  if  available, otherwise more if available.  (With one
       exception: hledger help -p TOPIC will always use less, so that  it  can
       scroll to the topic.)

       The  pager  is  expected  to  display  hledger's  ANSI  colour and text
       styling.  If you see junk characters, you might need to configure  your
       pager  to  handle ANSI codes.  Or you could disable colour as described
       above.

       If you are using the less pager, hledger automatically appends a number
       of options to the LESS variable to enable ANSI colour and a  number  of
       other   conveniences.   (At  the  time  of  writing:  --chop-long-lines
       --hilite-unread       --ignore-case       --no-init       --quit-at-eof
       --quit-if-one-screen            --RAW-CONTROL-CHARS           --shift=8
       --squeeze-blank-lines --use-backslash ).  If these don't work well, you
       can set your preferred options in the HLEDGER_LESS variable, which will
       be used instead.

   HTML output
       HTML output can be styled by an optional hledger.css file in  the  same
       directory.

       HTML  output  will  be  a  HTML fragment, not a complete HTML document.
       Like other hledger output, for non-ascii characters  it  will  use  the
       system locale's text encoding (see Text encoding).

   CSV / TSV output
       In  CSV or TSV output, digit group marks (such as thousands separators)
       are disabled automatically.

   FODS output
       FODS is the OpenDocument Spreadsheet format as plain XML,  as  accepted
       by  LibreOffice  and OpenOffice.  If you use their spreadsheet applica-
       tions, this is better than CSV because it works across locales (decimal
       point vs.  decimal comma, character encoding stored in XML header, thus
       no problems with umlauts), it supports fixed header rows  and  columns,
       cell  types  (string  vs.   number vs.  date), separation of number and
       currency (currency is displayed but the cell type is still a number ac-
       cessible for computation), styles (bold), borders.  Btw.  you can still
       extract CSV from FODS/ODS  using  various  utilities  like  libreoffice
       --headless or ods2csv.

   Beancount output
       This  is  Beancount's  journal format.  You can use this to export your
       hledger data to Beancount, eg to use the Fava web app.

       hledger will try to adjust your data to suit Beancount,  automatically.
       Be  cautious  and  check  the  conversion until you are confident it is
       good.  If you plan to export to Beancount often, you may want to follow
       its conventions, for a cleaner conversion:

       o use Beancount-friendly account names

       o use currency codes instead of currency symbols

       o use cost notation instead of equity conversion postings

       o avoid virtual postings, balance assignments, and secondary dates.

       There is one big adjustment you must handle  yourself:  for  Beancount,
       the  top  level  account names must be Assets, Liabilities, Equity, In-
       come, and/or Expenses.  You can use account aliases to rewrite your ac-
       count names temporarily, if needed, as in  this  hledger2beancount.conf
       config file.

       2024-12-20: Some more things not yet handled for you:

       o P  directives  are  not converted automatically - convert those your-
         self.

       o Balance assignments are  not  converted  (Beancount  doesn't  support
         them) - replace those with explicit amounts.

   Beancount account names
       Aside  from the top-level names, hledger will adjust your account names
       to make valid Beancount account names, by capitalising each  part,  re-
       placing  spaces  with  -,  replacing  other unsupported characters with
       C<HEXBYTES>, prepending A to account name parts which don't begin  with
       a  letter  or  digit, and appending :A to account names which have only
       one part.

   Beancount commodity names
       hledger will adjust your commodity names to make valid  Beancount  com-
       modity/currency names, which must be 2-24 uppercase letters, digits, or
       ',  ., _, -, beginning with a letter and ending with a letter or digit.
       hledger will convert known currency symbols to ISO 4217 currency codes,
       capitalise letters, replace spaces with -,  replace  other  unsupported
       characters with C<HEXBYTES>, and prepend or append C if needed.

   Beancount virtual postings
       Beancount doesn't allow virtual postings; if you have any, they will be
       omitted from beancount output.

   Beancount metadata
       hledger  tags  will be converted to Beancount metadata (except for tags
       whose name begins with _).  Metadata names will be adjusted to be Bean-
       count-compatible: beginning with a lowercase letter, at least two char-
       acters long, and with unsupported characters encoded.  Metadata  values
       will use Beancount's string type.

       In  hledger,  objects can have the same tag repeated with multiple val-
       ues.   Eg  an  assets:cash  account  might  have  both  type:Asset  and
       type:Cash  tags.   For  Beancount these will be combined into one, with
       the values combined, comma separated.  Eg: type: "Asset, Cash".

   Beancount costs
       Beancount doesn't allow redundant  costs  and  conversion  postings  as
       hledger  does.   If you have any of these, the conversion postings will
       be omitted.  Currently we support at most one cost +  conversion  post-
       ings group per transaction.

   Beancount operating currency
       Declaring  an  operating  currency  (or several) improves Beancount and
       Fava reports.  Currently hledger will declare  each  currency  used  in
       cost  amounts  as an operating currency.  If needed, replace these with
       your own declaration, like

              option "operating_currency" "USD"

   SQL output
       SQL output is expected to work at least with SQLite,  MySQL  and  Post-
       gres.

       The  SQL  statements are expected to be executed in the empty database.
       If you already have tables created via SQL output of hledger, you would
       probably want to either clear data from these (via delete  or  truncate
       SQL  statements) or drop the tables completely before import; otherwise
       your postings would be duplicated.

       For SQLite, it is more useful if you modify the generated id  field  to
       be a PRIMARY KEY.  Eg:

              $ hledger print -O sql | sed 's/id serial/id INTEGER PRIMARY KEY AUTOINCREMENT NOT NULL/g' | ...

       This is not yet much used; feedback is welcome.

   JSON output
       Our  JSON is rather large and verbose, since it is a faithful represen-
       tation of hledger's internal data types.  To understand its  structure,
       read    the   Haskell   type   definitions,   which   are   mostly   in
       https://github.com/simonmichael/hledger/blob/mas-
       ter/hledger-lib/Hledger/Data/Types.hs.  hledger-web's OpenAPI  specifi-
       cation may also be relevant.

       hledger  stores  numbers  with  sometimes up to 255 significant digits.
       This is too many digits for most JSON consumers, so in JSON  output  we
       round numbers to at most 10 decimal places.  (We don't limit the number
       of  integer  digits.)  If you find this causing problems, please let us
       know.  Related: #1195

       This is not yet much used; feedback is welcome.

   Commodity styles
       When displaying amounts, hledger infers a standard  display  style  for
       each commodity/currency, as described below in Commodity display style.

       If needed, this can be overridden by a -c/--commodity-style option (ex-
       cept for cost amounts and amounts displayed by the print command, which
       are  always  displayed with all decimal digits).  For example, the fol-
       lowing will force dollar amounts to be displayed as shown:

              $ hledger print -c '$1.000,0'

       This option can be repeated to set the display style for multiple  com-
       modities/currencies.  Its argument is as described in the commodity di-
       rective.   Note that omitting the commodity symbol will set the display
       style for just the no-symbol commodity, not all commodities.

       In some cases hledger will adjust number formatting  to  improve  their
       parseability (such as adding trailing decimal marks when needed).

   Debug output
       We intend hledger to be relatively easy to troubleshoot, introspect and
       develop.   You  can  add --debug[=N] to any hledger command line to see
       additional debug output.  N ranges from 1 (least output,  the  default)
       to  9  (maximum output).  Typically you would start with 1 and increase
       until you are seeing enough.  Debug output goes to stderr, and  is  not
       affected by -o/--output-file (unless you redirect stderr to stdout, eg:
       2>&1).   It  will be interleaved with normal output, which can help re-
       veal when parts of the code are evaluated.  To capture debug output  in
       a log file instead, you can usually redirect stderr, eg:

              hledger bal --debug=3 2>hledger.log

       (This option doesn't work in a config file yet.)

Environment
       These environment variables affect hledger:

       HLEDGER_LESS  If  less  is your pager, this variable specifies the less
       options hledger should use.  (Otherwise,  LESS  +  custom  options  are
       used.)

       LEDGER_FILE  The default journal file, to be used when no -f/--file op-
       tion is provided.  For example,  it  could  be  ~/finance/main.journal.
       This  can  also  be  a  glob  pattern, eg ./2???.journal.  (If the glob
       matches multiple files, only the alphanumerically first one  is  used.)
       If  LEDGER_FILE points to a non-existent file, an error will be raised.
       If the value is the empty string, it is ignored.

       If LEDGER_FILE is not set and -f is not provided, the  default  journal
       file  is  $HOME/.hledger.journal  (or  if a home directory can't be de-
       tected, ./.hledger.journal).

       See also Common tasks > Setting LEDGER_FILE.

       NO_COLOR If this environment variable exists (with any value, including
       empty), hledger will not use ANSI color codes in terminal  output,  un-
       less overridden by an explicit --color=y or --colour=y option.

PART 2: DATA FORMATS
Journal
       hledger's usual data source is a plain text file containing journal en-
       tries  in hledger journal format.  If you're looking for a quick refer-
       ence, jump ahead to the journal cheatsheet (or use the  table  of  con-
       tents at https://hledger.org/hledger.html).

       This  file represents an accounting General Journal.  The .journal file
       extension is most often used, though not strictly required.  The  jour-
       nal  file  contains  a number of transaction entries, each describing a
       transfer of money (or any commodity) between  two  or  more  named  ac-
       counts, in a simple format readable by both hledger and humans.

       hledger's  journal  format  is compatible with most of Ledger's journal
       format, but not all of it.  The differences and interoperation tips are
       described at hledger and Ledger.  With some care, and by  avoiding  in-
       compatible  features,  you  can  keep  your hledger journal readable by
       Ledger and vice versa.  This can useful eg for comparing the  behaviour
       of one app against the other.

       You can use hledger without learning any more about this file; just use
       the add or web or import commands to create and update it.

       Many users, though, edit the journal file with a text editor, and track
       changes with a version control system such as git.  Editor add-ons such
       as  ledger-mode  or  hledger-mode  for  Emacs,  vim-ledger for Vim, and
       hledger-vscode for Visual Studio Code, make this easier, adding colour,
       formatting, tab  completion,  and  useful  commands.   See  Editors  at
       hledger.org for the full list.

       A hledger journal file can contain three kinds of thing: comment lines,
       transactions,  and/or  directives (including periodic transaction rules
       and auto posting rules).  Understanding the journal  file  format  will
       also  give  you a good understanding of hledger's data model.  Here's a
       quick cheatsheet/overview, followed by detailed  descriptions  of  each
       part.

   Journal cheatsheet
              # Here is the main syntax of hledger's journal format
              # (omitting extra Ledger compatibility syntax).

              ###############################################################################

              # 1. These are comment lines, for notes or temporarily disabling things.
              ; They begin with # or ;

              comment
              Or, lines can be enclosed within "comment" / "end comment".
              This is a block of
              commented lines.
              end comment

              # Some journal entries can have semicolon comments at end of line  ; like this
              # Some of them require 2 or more spaces before the semicolon.

              ###############################################################################

              # 2. Directives customise processing or output in some way.
              # You don't need any directives to get started.
              # But they can add more error checking, or change how things are displayed.
              # They begin with a word, letter, or symbol.
              # They are most often placed at the top, before transactions.

              account assets             ; Declare valid account names and display order.
              account assets:savings     ; A subaccount. This one represents a bank account.
              account assets:checking    ; Another. Note, 2+ spaces after the account name.
              account assets:receivable  ; Accounting type is inferred from english names,
              account passifs            ; or declared with a "type" tag, type:L
              account expenses           ; type:X
                                         ; A follow-on comment line, indented.
              account expenses:rent      ; Expense and revenue categories are also accounts.
                                         ; Subaccounts inherit their parent's type.

              commodity $0.00         ; Declare valid commodities and their display styles.
              commodity 1.000,00 EUR

              decimal-mark .          ; The decimal mark used in this file (if ambiguous).

              payee Whole Foods       ; Declare a valid payee name.

              tag trip                ; Declare a valid tag name.

              P 2024-03-01 AAPL $179  ; Declare a market price for AAPL in $ on this date.

              include other.journal   ; Include another journal file here.

              # Declare a recurring "periodic transaction", for budget/forecast reports
              ~ monthly  set budget goals  ; <- Note, 2+ spaces before the description.
                  (expenses:rent)      $1000
                  (expenses:food)       $500

              # Declare an auto posting rule, to modify existing transactions in reports
              = revenues:consulting
                  liabilities:tax:2024:us          *0.25  ; Add a tax liability & expense
                  expenses:tax:2024:us            *-0.25  ; for 25% of the revenue.

              ###############################################################################

              # 3. Transactions are what it's all about.
              # They are dated events, usually movements of money between 2 or more accounts.
              # They begin with a numeric date.
              # Here is their basic shape:
              #
              # DATE DESCRIPTION    ; The transaction's date and optional description.
              #   ACCOUNT1  AMOUNT  ; A posting of an amount to/from this account, indented.
              #   ACCOUNT2  AMOUNT  ; A second posting, balancing the first.
              #   ...               ; More if needed. Amounts must sum to zero.
              #                     ; Note, 2+ spaces between account names and amounts.

              2024-01-01 opening balances         ; At the start, declare pre-existing balances this way.
                  assets:savings          $10000  ; Account names can be anything. lower case is easy to type.
                  assets:checking          $1000  ; assets, liabilities, equity, revenues, expenses are common.
                  liabilities:credit card  $-500  ; liabilities, equity, revenues balances are usually negative.
                  equity:start                    ; One amount can be left blank. $-10500 is inferred here.
                                                  ; Some of these accounts we didn't declare above,
                                                  ; so -s/--strict would complain.

              2024-01-03 ! (12345) pay rent
                  ; Additional transaction comment lines, indented.
                  ; There can be a ! or * after the date meaning "pending" or "cleared".
                  ; There can be a parenthesised (code) after the date/status.
                                                  ; Amounts' sign shows direction of flow.
                  assets:checking          $-500  ; Minus means removed from this account (credit).
                  expenses:rent             $500  ; Plus means added to this account (debit).

              ; Keeping transactions in date order is optional (but helps error checking).

              2024-01-02 Gringott's Bank | withdrawal  ; Description can be PAYEE | NOTE
                  assets:bank:gold       -10 gold
                  assets:pouch            10 gold

              2024-01-02 shopping
                  expenses:clothing        1 gold
                  expenses:wands           5 gold
                  assets:pouch            -6 gold

              2024-01-02 receive gift
                  revenues:gifts          -3 "Chocolate Frogs"  ; Complex commodity symbols
                  assets:pouch             3 "Chocolate Frogs"  ; must be in double quotes.

              2024-01-15 buy some shares, in two lots                 ; Cost can be noted.
                  assets:investments:2024-01-15     2.0 AAAA @ $1.50  ; @  means per-unit cost
                  assets:investments:2024-01-15-02  3.0 AAAA @@ $4    ; @@ means total cost
                                    ; ^ Per-lot subaccounts are sometimes useful.
                  assets:checking                 $-7

              2024-01-15 assert some account balances on this date
                  ; Balances can be asserted in any transaction, with =, for extra error checking.
                  ; Assertion txns like this one can be made with hledger close --assert --show-costs
                  ;
                  assets:savings                    $0                   = $10000
                  assets:checking                   $0                   =   $493
                  assets:bank:gold                   0 gold              =    -10 gold
                  assets:pouch                       0 gold              =      4 gold
                  assets:pouch                       0 "Chocolate Frogs" =      3 "Chocolate Frogs"
                  assets:investments:2024-01-15      0.0 AAAA            =      2.0 AAAA @  $1.50
                  assets:investments:2024-01-15-02   0.0 AAAA            =      3.0 AAAA @@ $4
                  liabilities:credit card           $0                   =  $-500

              2024-02-01 note some event, or a transaction not yet fully entered, on this date
                  ; Postings are not required.

              # Consistent YYYY-MM-DD date format is recommended,
              # but you can use . or / and omit leading zeros if you prefer.
              2024.01.01
              2024/1/1

   Comments
       Lines in the journal will be ignored if they begin with a hash (#) or a
       semicolon  (;).  (See also Other syntax.)  hledger will also ignore re-
       gions beginning with a comment line and ending with an end comment line
       (or file end).  Here's a suggestion for choosing between them:

       o # for top-level notes

       o ; for commenting out things temporarily

       o comment for quickly commenting large regions (remember it's there, or
         you might get confused)

       Eg:

              # a comment line
              ; another commentline
              comment
              A multi-line comment block,
              continuing until "end comment" directive
              or the end of the current file.
              end comment

       Some hledger entries can have same-line comments attached to them, from
       ; (semicolon) to end of line.  See Transaction comments,  Posting  com-
       ments, and Account comments below.

   Transactions
       Transactions  are the main unit of information in a journal file.  They
       represent events, typically a movement of some quantity of  commodities
       between two or more named accounts.

       Each  transaction is recorded as a journal entry, beginning with a sim-
       ple date in column 0.  This can be followed by any of the following op-
       tional fields, separated by spaces:

       o a status character (empty, !, or *)

       o a code (any short number or text, enclosed in parentheses)

       o a description (any remaining text until end of line or a semicolon)

       o a comment (any remaining text following  a  semicolon  until  end  of
         line, and any following indented lines beginning with a semicolon)

       o 0 or more indented posting lines, describing what was transferred and
         the  accounts  involved (indented comment lines are also allowed, but
         not blank lines or non-indented lines).

       Here's a simple journal file containing one transaction:

              2008/01/01 income
                assets:bank:checking   $1
                income:salary         $-1

   Dates
   Simple dates
       Dates in the journal  file  use  simple  dates  format:  YYYY-MM-DD  or
       YYYY/MM/DD or YYYY.MM.DD, with leading zeros optional.  The year may be
       omitted,  in  which case it will be inferred from the context: the cur-
       rent transaction, the default year set with a Y directive, or the  cur-
       rent  date  when  the  command  is  run.   Some  examples:  2010-01-31,
       2010/01/31, 2010.1.31, 1/31.

       (The UI also accepts simple dates, as well as the more  flexible  smart
       dates documented in the hledger manual.)

   Posting dates
       You  can  give  individual  postings a different date from their parent
       transaction, by adding a posting comment containing a tag  (see  below)
       like  ; date:DATE.  (There's also a Ledger-compatible syntax, ; [DATE],
       which can be convenient.)

       This is probably the best way to control posting dates  precisely.   Eg
       in  this  example the expense should appear in May reports, and the de-
       duction from checking should be reported on 6/1 for easy bank reconcil-
       iation:

              2015/5/30
                  expenses:food     $10  ; food purchased on saturday 5/30
                  assets:checking        ; bank cleared it on monday, date:6/1

              $ hledger -f t.j register food
              2015-05-30                      expenses:food                  $10           $10

              $ hledger -f t.j register checking
              2015-06-01                      assets:checking               $-10          $-10

       DATE should be a simple date; if the year is not specified it will  use
       the year of the transaction's date.
       The  date: tag must have a valid simple date value if it is present, eg
       a date: tag with no value is not allowed.

   Status
       Transactions (or individual postings within a transaction) can  have  a
       status  mark,  which  is  a single character before the transaction de-
       scription (or posting account name), separated from it by a space,  in-
       dicating one of three statuses:

       mark     status
       ------------------
                unmarked
       !        pending
       *        cleared

       When  reporting,  you  can  filter  by  status  with the -U/--unmarked,
       -P/--pending, and -C/--cleared flags (and you can combine these, eg -UP
       to match all except cleared things).  Or you can use the status:,  sta-
       tus:!, and status:* queries, or the U, P, C keys in hledger-ui.

       (Note: in Ledger the "unmarked" state is called "uncleared"; in hledger
       we renamed it to "unmarked" for semantic clarity.)

       Status  marks  are optional, but can be helpful eg for reconciling with
       real-world accounts.  Some editor modes provide highlighting and short-
       cuts for working with status.  Eg in Emacs ledger-mode, you can  toggle
       transaction status with C-c C-e, or posting status with C-c C-c.

       What  "uncleared", "pending", and "cleared" actually mean is up to you.
       Here's one suggestion:

       status       meaning
       --------------------------------------------------------------------------
       uncleared    recorded but not yet reconciled; needs review
       pending      tentatively reconciled (if needed, eg during a big reconcil-
                    iation)
       cleared      complete, reconciled as far as possible, and considered cor-
                    rect

       With this scheme, you would use -PC to see the current balance at  your
       bank, -U to see things which will probably hit your bank soon (like un-
       cashed  checks),  and no flags to see the most up-to-date state of your
       finances.

   Code
       After the status mark, but before the description, you  can  optionally
       write  a  transaction  "code", enclosed in parentheses.  This is a good
       place to record a check number, or some other important transaction  id
       or reference number.

   Description
       After  the  date,  status mark and/or code fields, the rest of the line
       (or until a comment is begun with ;) is the transaction's  description.
       Here you can describe the transaction (called the "narration" in tradi-
       tional  bookkeeping),  or you can record a payee/payer name, or you can
       leave it empty.

       Transaction descriptions show up in print output and  in  register  re-
       ports, and can be listed with the descriptions command.

       You  can query by description with desc:DESCREGEX, or pivot on descrip-
       tion with --pivot desc.

   Payee and note
       Sometimes people want a dedicated payee/payer field that can be queried
       and checked more strictly.  If you want that, you can write a |  (pipe)
       character  in the description.  This divides it into a "payee" field on
       the left, and a "note" field on the right.  (Either can be empty.)

       You can query these  with  payee:PAYEEREGEX  and  note:NOTEREGEX,  list
       their  values  with the payees and notes commands, or pivot on payee or
       note.

       Note: in transactions with no | character, description, payee, and note
       all have the same value.  Once a | is added, they become distinct.  (If
       you'd like to change this behaviour, please  propose  it  on  the  mail
       list.)

       If you want more strict error checking, you can declare the valid payee
       names  with payee directives, and then enforce these with hledger check
       payees.  (Note: because of the above, for this you'll  need  to  ensure
       every  transaction  description  contains a | and therefore a checkable
       payee name, even if it's empty.)

   Transaction comments
       Text following ;, after a transaction description, and/or  on  indented
       lines  immediately  below it, form comments for that transaction.  They
       are reproduced by print but otherwise ignored, except they may  contain
       tags, which are not ignored.

              2012-01-01 something  ; a transaction comment
                  ; a second line of transaction comment
                  expenses   1
                  assets

   Postings
       A  posting  is an addition of some amount to, or removal of some amount
       from, an account.  Each posting line begins with at least one space  or
       tab (2 or 4 spaces is common), followed by:

       o (optional) a status character (empty, !, or *), followed by a space

       o (required)  an  account  name  (any text, optionally including single
         spaces.  If anything follows the account name on the same  line,  the
         account name must be ended by two or more spaces.)

       o (optional) an amount

       o (optional)  a  same-line  posting comment, beginning with a semicolon
         (;).

       If the amount is positive, it is being added to the account;  if  nega-
       tive, it is being removed from the account.

       The  posting  amounts  in a transaction must sum up to zero, indicating
       that the inflows and outflows are  equal.   We  call  this  a  balanced
       transaction.   (You can read more about the details of transaction bal-
       ancing below.)

       If no amount is written, it will be calculated automatically  from  the
       other  postings  in  the transaction, so as to balance the transaction.
       In other words, in any transaction you can leave one posting amountless
       to save typing.

   Debits and credits
       The traditional accounting concepts of debit and credit of course exist
       in hledger, but we represent them with numeric sign.  Positive and neg-
       ative posting amounts represent debits and credits respectively.

       You don't need to remember that, but if you would  like  to  -  eg  for
       helping  newcomers or for talking with your accountant - here's a handy
       mnemonic:

       debit  / plus  / left  / short  words
       credit / minus / right / longer words

   Account names
       Accounts are the main way of categorising things  in  hledger.   As  in
       Double  Entry Bookkeeping, they can represent real world accounts (such
       as a bank account), or more abstract categories such as "money spent on
       food" or "money borrowed from Frank".

       Account names are flexible.  They may be capitalised or not;  they  may
       contain  letters, numbers, punctuation, symbols, or single spaces; they
       may be in any language.

       Typically we use the five  traditional  accounting  categories  as  the
       starting point for account names.  In english they are:

       assets, liabilities, equity, revenues, expenses

       These  will  be discussed more in Account types below.  In hledger docs
       you may see them referred to as A, L, E, R, X for short.

   Two space delimiter
       Note the two or more spaces delimiter that's sometimes  required  after
       account  names.    hledger's  account names, inherited from Ledger, are
       very permissive; they may contain pretty much any kind of text, includ-
       ing single spaces and semicolons.  Because of this, they must be termi-
       nated by two or more spaces if there is anything following them on  the
       same line.  For example, if an amount, balance assignment, or same-line
       comment  follows  an account name, they must be preceded by two or more
       spaces, else they would be considered part of the account name:

              bad:     assets:accounts receivable $10        ; <- too close!
              good:    assets:accounts receivable  $10

              bad:     assets:accounts receivable =$1000     ; <- too close!
              good:    assets:accounts receivable  =$1000

              bad:     assets:accounts receivable ; comment.   <- too close!
              good:    assets:accounts receivable  ; comment

       This two-space delimiter appears in a few places in  hledger,  such  as
       after  account  names in postings or account directives; also after the
       period expression in periodic transaction rules.  When you are starting
       out, expect it to catch you out at least  once.   It's  annoying  some-
       times,  but it lets us use expressive account names while still keeping
       the syntax light.

   Account hierarchy
       For more precise reporting, we usually divide accounts  into  more  de-
       tailed  subaccounts, subsubaccounts, and so on, by writing a full colon
       between account name parts.  For example, instead of writing assets and
       expenses, we might write assets:bank:checking and expenses:food.   From
       these names hledger will infer this hierarchy of five accounts:

              assets
              assets:bank
              assets:bank:checking
              expenses
              expenses:food

       Or as an outline:

              assets
               bank
                checking
              expenses
               food

       hledger reports can summarise the account tree to any depth, so you can
       make  your  subcategories  as detailed as you like.  But don't go over-
       board, especially when getting started; simpler categories can be  less
       work.

   Other account name features
       Enclosing  the  account  name  in  parentheses  or  brackets, like (ex-
       penses:food), enables a non-standard bookkeeping feature: virtual post-
       ings.

       Account names can be rewritten and restructured, temporarily or  perma-
       nently, by account aliases.

   Amounts
       After the account name, there is usually an amount.  (Remember: between
       account name and amount, there must be two or more spaces.)

       hledger's  amount  format is flexible, supporting several international
       formats.  Here are some examples.  Amounts have a  number  (the  "quan-
       tity"):

              1

       ..and usually a currency symbol or commodity name (more on this below),
       to  the  left  or  right  of the quantity, with or without a separating
       space:

              $1
              4000 AAPL
              3 "green apples"

       Amounts can be preceded by a minus sign (or a plus sign, though plus is
       the default), The sign can be written before or after a left-side  com-
       modity symbol:

              -$1
              $-1

       One  or more spaces between the sign and the number are acceptable when
       parsing (but they won't be displayed in output):

              + $1
              $-      1

       Scientific E notation is allowed:

              1E-6
              EUR 1E3

   Decimal marks
       A decimal mark can be written as a period or a comma:

              1.23
              1,23

       Both of these are common in international number formats, so hledger is
       not biased towards one or the other.   Because  hledger  also  supports
       digit  group  marks (eg thousands separators), this means that a number
       like 1,000 or 1.000 containing just one period or comma  is  ambiguous.
       In  such  cases,  hledger  by default assumes it is a decimal mark, and
       will parse both of those as 1.

       To help hledger parse such ambiguous numbers more  accurately,  if  you
       use  digit group marks, we recommend declaring the decimal mark explic-
       itly.  The best way is to add a decimal-mark directive at  the  top  of
       each data file, like this:

              decimal-mark .

       Or  you  can  declare  it  per commodity with commodity directives, de-
       scribed below.

       hledger also accepts numbers like 10. with no digits after the  decimal
       mark  (and will sometimes display numbers that way to disambiguate them
       - see Trailing decimal marks).

   Digit group marks
       In the integer part of the amount quantity (left of the decimal  mark),
       groups  of digits can optionally be separated by a digit group mark - a
       comma or period (whichever is not used as decimal  mark),  or  a  space
       (several  Unicode  space  variants,  like  no-break space, are also ac-
       cepted).   So these are all valid amounts in a journal file:

                   $1,000,000.00
                EUR 2.000.000,00
              INR 9,99,99,999.00
                    1 000 000.00   ; <- ordinary space
                    1 000 000.00   ; <- no-break space

   Commodity
       Amounts in hledger have both a "quantity", which is  a  signed  decimal
       number, and a "commodity", which is a currency symbol, stock ticker, or
       any word or phrase describing something you are tracking.

       If the commodity name contains non-letters (spaces, numbers, or punctu-
       ation),  you must always write it inside double quotes ("green apples",
       "ABC123").

       If you write just a bare number, that too will have a  commodity,  with
       name ""; we call that the "no-symbol commodity".

       Actually,  hledger  combines  these  single-commodity amounts into more
       powerful multi-commodity amounts, which are what it works with most  of
       the  time.   A multi-commodity amount could be, eg: 1 USD, 2 EUR, 3.456
       TSLA.  In practice,  you  will  only  see  multi-commodity  amounts  in
       hledger's output; you can't write them directly in the journal file.

       By default, the format of amounts in the journal influences how hledger
       displays  them in output.  This is explained in Commodity display style
       below.

   Costs
       After a posting amount, you can note its cost (when buying) or  selling
       price  (when  selling)  in another commodity, by writing either @ UNIT-
       PRICE or @@ TOTALPRICE after it.  This indicates a conversion  transac-
       tion, where one commodity is exchanged for another.

       (You  might  also  see this called "transaction price" in hledger docs,
       discussions, or code; that term was directionally neutral and  reminded
       that  it  is a price specific to a transaction, but we now just call it
       "cost", with the understanding that the transaction could be a purchase
       or a sale.)

       Costs are usually written explicitly with @ or @@, but can also be  in-
       ferred automatically for simple multi-commodity transactions.  Note, if
       costs  are  inferred,  the  order of postings is significant; the first
       posting will have a cost attached, in the commodity of the second.

       As an example, here are several ways to record purchases of  a  foreign
       currency  in  hledger, using the cost notation either explicitly or im-
       plicitly:

       1. Write the price per unit, as @ UNITPRICE after the amount:

                  2009/1/1
                    assets:euros     100 @ $1.35  ; one hundred euros purchased at $1.35 each
                    assets:dollars                 ; balancing amount is -$135.00

       2. Write the total price, as @@ TOTALPRICE after the amount:

                  2009/1/1
                    assets:euros     100 @@ $135  ; one hundred euros purchased at $135 for the lot
                    assets:dollars

       3. Specify amounts for all postings, using exactly two commodities, and
          let hledger infer the price that balances the transaction.  Note the
          effect of posting order: the price is added to first posting, making
          it 100 @@ $135, as in example 2:

                  2009/1/1
                    assets:euros     100          ; one hundred euros purchased
                    assets:dollars  $-135          ; for $135

       Amounts can be converted to cost at report  time  using  the  -B/--cost
       flag; this is discussed more in the Cost reporting section.

       Note  that  the  cost normally should be a positive amount, though it's
       not required to be.  This can be a little confusing, see discussion  at
       --infer-market-prices: market prices from transactions.

   Balance assertions
       hledger  supports  Ledger-style  balance  assertions  in journal files.
       These look like, for example, = EXPECTEDBALANCE following  a  posting's
       amount.   Eg  here  we assert the expected dollar balance in accounts a
       and b after each posting:

              2013/1/1
                a   $1 =  $1
                b      = $-1

              2013/1/2
                a   $1 =  $2
                b  $-1 = $-2

       After reading a journal file, hledger will check all balance assertions
       and report an error if any of them fail.  Balance assertions  can  pro-
       tect  you  from, eg, inadvertently disrupting reconciled balances while
       cleaning up old entries.  You can disable  them  temporarily  with  the
       -I/--ignore-assertions flag, which can be useful for troubleshooting or
       for  reading Ledger files.  (Note: this flag currently does not disable
       balance assignments, described below).

   Assertions and ordering
       hledger calculates and checks an account's balance assertions  in  date
       order (and when there are multiple assertions on the same day, in parse
       order).   Note  this  is different from Ledger, which checks assertions
       always in parse order, ignoring dates.

       This means in hledger you can freely reorder transactions, postings, or
       files, and balance assertions will usually keep working.  The exception
       is when you reorder multiple postings on the same day, to the same  ac-
       count, which have balance assertions; those will likely need updating.

   Assertions and multiple files
       If an account has transactions appearing in multiple files, balance as-
       sertions can still work - but only if those files are part of a hierar-
       chy made by include directives.

       If  the  same  files  are  specified with two -f options on the command
       line, the assertions in the second will not see the balances  from  the
       first.

       To  work  around  this, arrange your files in a hierarchy with include.
       Or, you could concatenate the files temporarily, and process them  like
       one big file.

       Why  does  it work this way ?  It might be related to hledger's goal of
       stable predictable reports.  File hierarchy is considered  "permanent",
       part of your data, while the order of command line options/arguments is
       not.   We don't want transient changes to be able to change the meaning
       of the data.  Eg it would be frustrating if tomorrow all  your  balance
       assertions  broke because you wrote command line arguments in a differ-
       ent order.  (Discussion welcome.)

   Assertions and costs
       Balance assertions ignore costs, and should normally be written without
       one:

              2019/1/1
                (a)     $1 @ 1 = $1

       We do allow costs to be written in balance assertion amounts,  however,
       and  print  shows  them,  but  they  don't affect whether the assertion
       passes or fails.  This is for backward compatibility  (hledger's  close
       command  used  to  generate balance assertions with costs), and because
       balance assignments do use costs (see below).

   Assertions and commodities
       The balance assertions described so far are "single  commodity  balance
       assertions": they assert and check the balance in one commodity, ignor-
       ing  any  others  that  may be present.  This is how balance assertions
       work in Ledger also.

       If an account contains multiple commodities, you can assert their  bal-
       ances  by  writing  multiple  postings with balance assertions, one for
       each commodity:

              2013/1/1
                usd   $-1
                eur   -1
                both

              2013/1/2
                both    0 = $1
                both    0 = 1

       In hledger you can make a stronger "sole commodity  balance  assertion"
       by  writing  two  equals signs (== EXPECTEDBALANCE).  This also asserts
       that there are no other commodities in the account besides the asserted
       one (or at least, that their current balance is zero):

              2013/1/1
                usd   $-1  == $-1  ; these sole commodity assertions succeed
                eur   -1  == -1
                both      ;==  $1  ; this one would fail because 'both' contains $ and

       It's less easy to make a "sole commodities balance assertion" (note the
       plural) - ie, asserting that an account contains two or more  specified
       commodities and no others.  It can be done by

       1. isolating each commodity in a subaccount, and asserting those

       2. and  also  asserting  there are no commodities in the parent account
          itself:

          2013/1/1
            usd       $-1
            eur       -1
            both        0 == 0   ; nothing up my sleeve
            both:usd   $1 == $1  ; a dollar here
            both:eur   1 == 1  ; a euro there

   Assertions and subaccounts
       All of the balance assertions above (both = and ==) are "subaccount-ex-
       clusive balance assertions"; they ignore any  balances  that  exist  in
       deeper subaccounts.

       In  hledger  you  can make "subaccount-inclusive balance assertions" by
       adding a star after the equals (=* or ==*):

              2019/1/1
                equity:start
                assets:checking  $10
                assets:savings   $10
                assets            $0 ==* $20  ; assets + subaccounts contains $20 and nothing else

   Assertions and status
       Balance assertions always consider postings of all statuses  (unmarked,
       pending,  or  cleared);  they  are  not affected by the -U/--unmarked /
       -P/--pending / -C/--cleared flags or the status: query.

   Assertions and virtual postings
       Balance assertions always consider both real and virtual postings; they
       are not affected by the --real/-R flag or real: query.

   Assertions and auto postings
       Balance assertions are affected by the  --auto  flag,  which  generates
       auto postings, which can alter account balances.  Because auto postings
       are optional in hledger, accounts affected by them effectively have two
       balances.   But  balance  assertions  can only test one or the other of
       these.  So to avoid making fragile assertions, either:

       o assert the balance calculated with --auto, and always use --auto with
         that file

       o or assert the balance calculated without --auto, and never use --auto
         with that file

       o or avoid balance assertions on accounts affected by auto postings (or
         avoid auto postings entirely).

   Assertions and precision
       Balance assertions compare the exactly calculated  amounts,  which  are
       not  always  what  is  shown  by reports.  Eg a commodity directive may
       limit the display precision, but this will not  affect  balance  asser-
       tions.  Balance assertion failure messages show exact amounts.

   Assertions and hledger add
       Balance  assertions  can  be included in the amounts given in add.  All
       types of assertions are supported, and assertions can be used as  in  a
       normal journal file.

       All  transactions,  not just those that have an explicit assertion, are
       validated against the existing assertions in the journal.   This  means
       it  is possible for an added transaction to fail even if its assertions
       are correct as of the transaction date.

       If this assertion checking is not desired, then it can be disabled with
       -I.

       However, balance assignments are currently not supported.

   Posting comments
       Text following ;, at the end of a  posting  line,  and/or  on  indented
       lines  immediately  below it, form comments for that posting.  They are
       reproduced by print but otherwise  ignored,  except  they  may  contain
       tags, which are not ignored.

              2012-01-01
                  expenses   1  ; a comment for posting 1
                  assets
                  ; a comment for posting 2
                  ; a second comment line for posting 2

   Transaction balancing
       How exactly does hledger decide when a transaction is balanced ?  Espe-
       cially  when  it  involves costs, which often are not exact, because of
       repeating decimals, or imperfect data from financial institutions ?  In
       each commodity, hledger sums the transaction's posting  amounts,  after
       converting  any  with  costs;  then it checks if that sum is zero, when
       rounded to a suitable number of decimal digits - which we call the bal-
       ancing precision.

       Since version 1.50, hledger infers balancing precision in each transac-
       tion from  the  amounts  in  that  transaction's  journal  entry  (like
       Ledger).   Ie,  when  checking  the balance of commodity A, it uses the
       highest decimal precision seen for A in the  journal  entry  (excluding
       cost amounts).  This makes transaction balancing robust; any imbalances
       must  be  visibly accounted for in the journal entry, display precision
       can be freely increased with -c,  and  compatibility  with  Ledger  and
       Beancount journals is good.

       Note that hledger versions before 1.50 worked differently: they allowed
       display  precision  to  override  the balancing precision.  This masked
       small imbalances and caused fragility (see issue #2402).  As a  result,
       some journal entries (or CSV rules) that worked with hledger <1.50, are
       now  rejected  with an "unbalanced transaction" error.  If you hit this
       problem, it's easy to fix:

       o You can restore the old behaviour, by adding  --txn-balancing=old  to
         the  command or to your ~/.hledger.conf file.  This lets you keep us-
         ing old journals unchanged, though without the above benefits.

       o Or you can fix the problem entries (recommended).   There  are  three
         ways, use whichever seems best:

         1. make cost amounts more precise (add more/better decimal digits)

         2. or  make non-cost amounts less precise (remove unnecessary decimal
            digits that are raising the precision)

         3. or add a posting to absorb the imbalance (eg  "expenses:rounding".
            Remember  that  one posting may omit the amount; that's convenient
            here.)

   Tags
       Tags are a way to add extra labels  or  data  fields  to  transactions,
       postings,  or  accounts,  which  you can match with a tag: query in re-
       ports.  (See queries below.)

       Tags are a single word or hyphenated word, immediately  followed  by  a
       full  colon,  written within a comment.  (Yes, storing data in comments
       is slightly weird.)  Here's a transaction with a tag:

              2025-01-01 groceries        ; some-tag:
                  assets:checking
                  expenses:food       $1

       A tag can have a value, a single line of text written after the  colon.
       Tag values can't contain newlines.:

              2025-01-01 groceries        ; tag1: this is tag1's value

       Multiple tags can be separated by comma.  Tag values can't contain com-
       mas.:

              2025-01-01 groceries        ; tag1:value 1, tag2:value 2, comment text

       A tag can have multiple values:

              2025-01-01 groceries        ; tag1:value 1, tag1:value 2

       You  can  write  each tag on its own line of you prefer (but they still
       can't contain commas):

              2025-01-01 groceries
                  ; tag1: value 1
                  ; tag2: value 2

       Tags can be attached to individual postings, rather  than  the  overall
       transaction:

              2025-01-01 rent
                  assets:checking
                  expenses:rent       $1000  ; postingtag:

       Tags can be attached to accounts, in their account directive:

              account assets:checking    ; acct-number: 123-45-6789

   Tag propagation
       In addition to what they are attached to, tags also affect related data
       in a few ways, allowing more powerful queries:

       1. Accounts -> postings.  Postings inherit tags from their account.

       2. Transactions -> postings.  Postings inherit tags from their transac-
          tion.

       3. Postings  ->  transactions.   Transactions  also acquire the tags of
          their postings.

       So when you use a tag: query to match  whole  transactions,  individual
       postings, or accounts, it's good to understand how tags behave.  Here's
       an example showing all three kinds of propagation:

              account assets:checking
              account expenses:food           ; atag:

              2025-01-01 groceries            ; ttag:
                  assets:checking             ; p1tag:
                  expenses:food           $1  ; p2tag:

       data part       has tags         explanation
       -----------------------------------------------------------------------------
       assets:check-                    no tags attached
       ing account
       expenses:food   atag             atag: in comment
       account
       assets:check-   p1tag, ttag      p1tag:   in  comment,  ttag  acquired  from
       ing posting                      transaction
       expenses:food   p2tag,   atag,   p2tag:  in comment, atag from account, ttag
       posting         ttag             from transaction
       groceries       ttag,   p1tag,   ttag: in comment, p1tag from first posting,
       transaction     p2tag, atag      p2tag and atag from second posting

   Displaying tags
       You can use the tags command to list tag names or values.

       The print command also shows tags.

       You  can use --pivot to display tag values in other reports, in various
       ways (eg appended to account names, like pseudo subaccounts).

   When to use tags ?
       Tags provide more dimensions of categorisation, complementing  accounts
       and  transaction descriptions.  When to use each of these is somewhat a
       matter of taste.  Accounts have the most built-in  support,  and  regex
       queries  on  descriptions are also quite powerful.  So you may not need
       tags at all.  But if you want to  track  multiple  cross-cutting  cate-
       gories,  they  can  be a good fit.  For example, you could tag trip-re-
       lated transactions with trip: YEAR:PLACE, without disturbing your usual
       account categories.

   Tag names
       What is allowed in a tag name ?  Most non-whitespace characters.  Eg  :
       is a valid tag.

       For  extra error checking, you can declare valid tag names with the tag
       directive, and then enforce these with the  check  command.   But  note
       that  tags  are  detected quite loosely at present, sometimes where you
       didn't intend them.  Eg a comment like ;  see  https://foo.com  adds  a
       https tag.

       There are several tag names which have special significance to hledger.
       They are explained elsewhere, but here's a quick reference:

               type                   -- declares an account's type
               date                   -- overrides a posting's date
               date2                  -- overrides a posting's secondary date
               assert                 -- appears on txns generated by close --assert
               retain                 -- appears on txns generated by close --retain
               start                  -- appears on txns generated by close --migrate/--close/--open/--assign
               t                      -- appears on postings generated from timedot letters

               generated-transaction  -- appears on txns generated by a periodic rule
               modified-transaction   -- appears on txns which have had auto postings added
               generated-posting      -- appears on generated postings
               cost-posting           -- appears on postings which have (or could have) a cost,
                                         and which have equivalent conversion postings in the transaction
               conversion-posting     -- appears on postings which are to a V/Conversion account
                                         and which have an equivalent cost posting in the transaction

       The second group above (generated-transaction, etc.)  are normally hid-
       den,  with a _ prefix added.  This means print doesn't show them by de-
       fault; but you can still use them in queries.  You can add  the  --ver-
       bose-tags  flag  to  make  them  visible, which can be useful for trou-
       bleshooting.

   Directives
       Besides transactions, there is something else you can put in a  journal
       file:  directives.   These  are declarations, beginning with a keyword,
       that modify hledger's behaviour.  Some directives can  have  more  spe-
       cific  subdirectives,  indented  below  them.  hledger's directives are
       similar to Ledger's in many cases, but there are also many differences.
       Directives are not required, but can be useful.  Here are the main  di-
       rectives:

       purpose                                    directive
       --------------------------------------------------------------------------
       READING DATA:
       Rewrite account names                      alias
       Comment out sections of the file           comment
       Declare  file's  decimal  mark,  to help   decimal-mark
       parse amounts accurately
       Include other data files                   include
       GENERATING DATA:
       Generate recurring transactions or  bud-   ~
       get goals
       Generate   extra  postings  on  existing   =
       transactions
       CHECKING FOR ERRORS:
       Define valid entities  to  provide  more   account, commodity, payee, tag
       error checking
       REPORTING:
       Declare accounts' type and display order   account
       Declare commodity display styles           commodity
       Declare market prices                      P

   Directives and multiple files
       Directives  vary in their scope, ie which journal entries and which in-
       put files they affect.  Most often, a directive will affect the follow-
       ing entries and included files if any, until the  end  of  the  current
       file - and no further.  You might find this inconvenient!  For example,
       alias  directives do not affect parent or sibling files.  But there are
       usually workarounds; for example, put alias directives in your top-most
       file, before including other files.

       The restriction, though it may be annoying  at  first,  is  in  a  good
       cause; it allows reports to be stable and deterministic, independent of
       the  order  of input.  Without it, reports could show different numbers
       depending on the order of -f options, or the positions of  include  di-
       rectives in your files.

   Directive effects
       Here  are  all  hledger's directives, with their effects and scope sum-
       marised - nine main directives, plus  four  others  which  we  consider
       non-essential:

       di-        what it does                                                       ends
       rec-                                                                          at
       tive                                                                          file
                                                                                     end?
       --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
       ac-        Declares  an account, for checking all entries in all files; and   N
       count      its display order and type.  Subdirectives: any text, ignored.
       alias      Rewrites account names, in following entries until end  of  cur-   Y
                  rent file or end aliases.  Command line equivalent: --alias
       com-       Ignores  part  of the journal file, until end of current file or   Y
       ment       end comment.
       com-       Declares up to four things: 1.  a commodity symbol, for checking   N,N,Y,Y
       mod-       all amounts in all files 2.  the display style for  all  amounts
       ity        of  this  commodity  3.  the decimal mark for parsing amounts of
                  this commodity, in the rest of this file and  its  children,  if
                  there  is no decimal-mark directive 4.  the precision to use for
                  balanced-transaction checking in this commodity,  in  this  file
                  and  its  children.    Takes  precedence over D.  Subdirectives:
                  format (ignored).  Command line equivalent: -c/--commodity-style
       deci-      Declares the decimal mark, for parsing amounts of  all  commodi-   Y
       mal-mark   ties in following entries until next decimal-mark or end of cur-
                  rent  file.  Included files can override.  Takes precedence over
                  commodity and D.
       include    Includes entries and directives from another file,  as  if  they   N
                  were   written   inline.   Command  line  alternative:  multiple
                  -f/--file
       payee      Declares a payee name, for checking all entries in all files.      N
       P          Declares the market price of a commodity on some date, for value   N
                  reports.
       ~          Declares a  periodic  transaction  rule  that  generates  future   N
       (tilde)    transactions  with  --forecast  and  budget  goals  with balance
                  --budget.
       Other
       syntax:
       apply      Prepends a common parent account to all account names,  in  fol-   Y
       account    lowing entries until end of current file or end apply account.
       D          Sets  a  default  commodity to use for no-symbol amounts;and, if   Y,Y,N,N
                  there is no commodity directive for this commodity: its  decimal
                  mark, balancing precision, and display style, as above.
       Y          Sets  a default year to use for any yearless dates, in following   Y
                  entries until end of current file.
       =          Declares an auto posting rule that generates extra  postings  on   partly
       (equals)   matched  transactions with --auto, in current, parent, and child
                  files (but not sibling files, see #1212).
       Other      Other directives from Ledger's file format are accepted but  ig-
       Ledger     nored.
       direc-
       tives

   account directive
       account directives can be used to declare accounts (ie, the places that
       amounts  are transferred from and to).  Though not required, these dec-
       larations can provide several benefits:

       o They can document your intended chart of accounts, providing a refer-
         ence.

       o They can store additional account information as comments, or as tags
         which can be used to filter or pivot reports.

       o They can restrict which accounts may be posted to by transactions, eg
         in strict mode, which helps prevent errors.

       o They influence account display order in reports, allowing  non-alpha-
         betic sorting (eg Revenues to appear above Expenses).

       o They  can  help  hledger know your accounts' types (asset, liability,
         equity, revenue, expense), enabling reports like balancesheet and in-
         comestatement.

       o They help with account name completion (in hledger add,  hledger-web,
         hledger-iadd, ledger-mode, etc.)

       They  are  written  as the word account followed by a hledger-style ac-
       count name.  Eg:

              account assets:bank:checking

       Ledger-style indented subdirectives are also accepted, but ignored:

              account assets:bank:checking
                format subdirective  ; currently ignored

   Account comments
       Text following two or more spaces and ; at the end of an account direc-
       tive line, and/or following ; on indented lines immediately  below  it,
       form  comments for that account.  They are ignored except they may con-
       tain tags, which are not ignored.

       The two-space requirement for same-line account comments is  because  ;
       is allowed in account names.

              account assets:bank:checking    ; same-line comment, at least 2 spaces before the semicolon
                ; next-line comment
                ; some tags - type:A, acctnum:12345

   Account error checking
       By  default,  accounts  need  not be declared; they come into existence
       when a posting references them.   This  is  convenient,  but  it  means
       hledger  can't warn you when you mis-spell an account name in the jour-
       nal.  Usually you'll find that error later, as an extra account in bal-
       ance reports, or an incorrect balance when reconciling.

       In strict mode, enabled with the -s/--strict  flag,  or  when  you  run
       hledger check accounts, hledger will report an error if any transaction
       uses  an  account  name that has not been declared by an account direc-
       tive.  Some notes:

       o The declaration is case-sensitive; transactions must use the  correct
         account name capitalisation.

       o The  account  directive's scope is "whole file and below" (see direc-
         tives).  This means it affects all of the current file, and any files
         it includes, but not parent or sibling files.  The  position  of  ac-
         count  directives  within the file does not matter, though it's usual
         to put them at the top.

       o Accounts can only be declared in journal files, but will  affect  in-
         cluded files of all types.

       o It's  currently  not  possible  to declare "all possible subaccounts"
         with a wildcard; every account posted to must be declared.

       o If you use the --infer-equity flag, you will also  need  declarations
         for the account names it generates.

   Account display order
       Account directives also cause hledger to display accounts in a particu-
       lar  order, not just alphabetically.  Eg, here is a conventional order-
       ing for the top-level accounts:

              account assets
              account liabilities
              account equity
              account revenues
              account expenses

       Now hledger displays them in that order:

              $ hledger accounts
              assets
              liabilities
              equity
              revenues
              expenses

       If there are undeclared accounts, those will be displayed last, in  al-
       phabetical order.

       Sorting is done within each group of sibling accounts, at each level of
       the  account  tree.  Eg, a declaration like account parent:child influ-
       ences child's position among its siblings.

       Note, it does not affect parent's position; for that, you need  an  ac-
       count parent declaration.

       Sibling  accounts  are always displayed together; hledger won't display
       x:y in between a:b and a:c.

       An account directive both declares an account as a valid  posting  tar-
       get,  and  declares  its display order; you can't easily do one without
       the other.

   Account types
       hledger knows that in accounting there are three main account types:

       Asset       A   things you own
       Liability   L   things you owe
       Equity      E   owner's investment,
                       balances  the   two
                       above

       and two more representing changes in these:

       Revenue   R   inflows (also known
                     as Income)
       Expense   X   outflows

       hledger also uses a couple of subtypes:

       Cash         C   liquid assets
       Conversion   V   commodity   conver-
                        sions equity

       As a convenience, hledger will detect these  types  automatically  from
       english  account  names.  But it's better to declare them explicitly by
       adding a type: tag in the account directives.  The tag's value  can  be
       any of the types or one-letter abbreviations above.

       Here  is  a typical set of account type declarations.  Subaccounts will
       inherit their parent's type, or can override it:

              account assets             ; type: A
              account liabilities        ; type: L
              account equity             ; type: E
              account revenues           ; type: R
              account expenses           ; type: X

              account assets:bank        ; type: C
              account assets:cash        ; type: C

              account equity:conversion  ; type: V

       This enables the easy balancesheet,  balancesheetequity,  cashflow  and
       incomestatement reports, and querying by type:.

       Tips:

       o You can list accounts and their types, for troubleshooting:

                $ hledger accounts --types [ACCTPAT] [type:TYPECODES] [-DEPTH] [--locations]

       o It's  a  good  idea  to declare at least one account for each account
         type.  Having some types declared and some inferred can disrupt  cer-
         tain reports.

       o The  rules for inferring types from account names are as follows (us-
         ing Regular expressions).
       If they don't work for you, just ignore them  and  declare  your  types
       with type: tags.

                If account's name contains this case insensitive regular expression | its type is
                --------------------------------------------------------------------|-------------
                ^assets?(:.+)?:(cash|bank|che(ck|que?)(ing)?|savings?|current)(:|$) | Cash
                ^assets?(:|$)                                                       | Asset
                ^(debts?|liabilit(y|ies))(:|$)                                      | Liability
                ^equity:(trad(e|ing)|conversion)s?(:|$)                             | Conversion
                ^equity(:|$)                                                        | Equity
                ^(income|revenue)s?(:|$)                                            | Revenue
                ^expenses?(:|$)                                                     | Expense

       o As mentioned above, subaccounts will inherit a type from their parent
         account.  To be precise, an account's type is decided by the first of
         these that exists:

         1. A type: declaration for this account.

         2. A  type:  declaration  in the parent accounts above it, preferring
            the nearest.

         3. An account type inferred from this account's name.

         4. An account type inferred from a parent account's name,  preferring
            the nearest parent.

         5. Otherwise, it will have no type.

       o Account aliases can disrupt account types.

   alias directive
       You can define account alias rules which rewrite your account names, or
       parts of them, before generating reports.  This can be useful for:

       o expanding shorthand account names to their full form, allowing easier
         data entry and a less verbose journal

       o adapting old journals to your current chart of accounts

       o experimenting with new account organisations, like a new hierarchy

       o combining two accounts into one, eg to see their sum or difference on
         one line

       o customising reports

       Account aliases also rewrite account names in account directives.  They
       do   not  affect  account  names  being  entered  via  hledger  add  or
       hledger-web.

       Account aliases are very powerful.  They are generally easy to use cor-
       rectly, but you can also generate invalid account names with them; more
       on this below.

       See also Rewrite account names.

   Basic aliases
       To set an account alias, use the alias directive in your journal  file.
       This  affects all subsequent journal entries in the current file or its
       included files (but note: not sibling or  parent  files).   The  spaces
       around the = are optional:

              alias OLD = NEW

       Or, you can use the --alias 'OLD=NEW' option on the command line.  This
       affects all entries.  It's useful for trying out aliases interactively.

       OLD  and  NEW  are case sensitive full account names.  hledger will re-
       place any occurrence of the old account name with the new one.   Subac-
       counts are also affected.  Eg:

              alias checking = assets:bank:wells fargo:checking
              ; rewrites "checking" to "assets:bank:wells fargo:checking", or "checking:a" to "assets:bank:wells fargo:checking:a"

   Regex aliases
       There  is  also a more powerful variant that uses a regular expression,
       indicated by wrapping the pattern in forward  slashes.   (This  is  the
       only  place where hledger requires forward slashes around a regular ex-
       pression.)

       Eg:

              alias /REGEX/ = REPLACEMENT

       or:

              $ hledger --alias '/REGEX/=REPLACEMENT' ...

       Any part of an account name matched by REGEX will be  replaced  by  RE-
       PLACEMENT.  REGEX is case-insensitive as usual.

       If  you  need  to match a forward slash, escape it with a backslash, eg
       /\/=:.

       If REGEX contains parenthesised match groups, these can  be  referenced
       by the usual backslash and number in REPLACEMENT:

              alias /^(.+):bank:([^:]+):(.*)/ = \1:\2 \3
              ; rewrites "assets:bank:wells fargo:checking" to  "assets:wells fargo checking"

       REPLACEMENT continues to the end of line (or on command line, to end of
       option argument), so it can contain trailing whitespace.

   Combining aliases
       You  can  define  as many aliases as you like, using journal directives
       and/or command line options.

       Recursive aliases - where an account name is rewritten  by  one  alias,
       then  by  another  alias, and so on - are allowed.  Each alias sees the
       effect of previously applied aliases.

       In such cases it can be important to understand which aliases  will  be
       applied  and  in  which order.  For (each account name in) each journal
       entry, we apply:

       1. alias directives preceding the journal entry, most  recently  parsed
          first (ie, reading upward from the journal entry, bottom to top)

       2. --alias  options,  in  the  order  they appeared on the command line
          (left to right).

       In other words, for (an account name in) a given journal entry:

       o the nearest alias declaration before/above the entry is applied first

       o the next alias before/above that will be be applied next, and so on

       o aliases defined after/below the entry do not affect it.

       This gives nearby aliases precedence over distant ones, and helps  pro-
       vide  semantic stability - aliases will keep working the same way inde-
       pendent of which files are being read and in which order.

       In case of trouble, adding --debug=6 to  the  command  line  will  show
       which aliases are being applied when.

   Aliases and multiple files
       As  explained at Directives and multiple files, alias directives do not
       affect parent or sibling files.  Eg in this command,

              hledger -f a.aliases -f b.journal

       account aliases defined in a.aliases will not  affect  b.journal.   In-
       cluding the aliases doesn't work either:

              include a.aliases

              2023-01-01  ; not affected by a.aliases
                foo  1
                bar

       This means that account aliases should usually be declared at the start
       of your top-most file, like this:

              alias foo=Foo
              alias bar=Bar

              2023-01-01  ; affected by aliases above
                foo  1
                bar

              include c.journal  ; also affected

   end aliases directive
       You can clear (forget) all currently defined aliases (seen in the jour-
       nal so far, or defined on the command line) with this directive:

              end aliases

   Aliases can generate bad account names
       Be  aware  that  account  aliases  can produce malformed account names,
       which could cause confusing reports or invalid print output.  For exam-
       ple, you could erase all account names:

              2021-01-01
                a:aa     1
                b

              $ hledger print --alias '/.*/='
              2021-01-01
                                 1

       The above print output is not a valid journal.  Or you could insert  an
       illegal  double space, causing print output that would give a different
       journal when reparsed:

              2021-01-01
                old    1
                other

              $ hledger print --alias old="new  USD" | hledger -f- print
              2021-01-01
                  new             USD 1
                  other

   Aliases and account types
       If an account with a type declaration (see Declaring accounts > Account
       types) is renamed by an alias, normally the account type remains in ef-
       fect.

       However, renaming in a way that reshapes the account tree (eg  renaming
       parent  accounts  but  not their children, or vice versa) could prevent
       child accounts from inheriting the account type of their parents.

       Secondly, if an account's type is being inferred from its name,  renam-
       ing it by an alias could prevent or alter that.

       If  you  are  using account aliases and the type: query is not matching
       accounts as you expect, try troubleshooting with the accounts  command,
       eg something like:

              $ hledger accounts --types -1 --alias assets=bassetts

   commodity directive
       The commodity directive performs several functions:

       1. It  declares which commodity symbols may be used in the journal, en-
          abling useful error checking with strict mode or the check  command.
          See Commodity error checking below.

       2. It  declares  how all amounts in this commodity should be displayed,
          eg how many decimals to show.  See Commodity display style above.

       3. (If no decimal-mark directive is in effect:)  It  sets  the  decimal
          mark  to  expect (period or comma) when parsing amounts in this com-
          modity, in this file and files it includes, from the directive until
          end of current file.  See Decimal marks above.

       4. It declares the precision with which this commodity's amounts should
          be compared when checking for  balanced  transactions,  anywhere  in
          this file and files it includes, until end of current file.

       Declaring  commodities  solves several common parsing/display problems,
       so we recommend it.

       Note that effects 3 and 4 above end at the end of the directive's file,
       and will not affect sibling or parent files.  So if you are relying  on
       them  (especially  4)  and using multiple files, placing your commodity
       directives in a top-level parent file might  be  important.   Or,  keep
       your  decimal marks unambiguous and your entries well balanced and pre-
       cise.

       Omitting the commodity symbol will set the display style for  just  the
       no-symbol commodity, not all commodities.

       Commodity  styles can be overridden by the -c/--commodity-style command
       line option.

       (Related: #793)

   Commodity directive syntax
       A commodity directive is normally the word commodity followed by a sam-
       ple amount (and optionally a comment).  Only the  amount's  symbol  and
       the number's format is significant.  Eg:

              commodity $1000.00
              commodity 1.000,00 EUR
              commodity 1 000 000.0000   ; the no-symbol commodity

       Commodities do not have tags (tags in the comment will be ignored).

       A  commodity  directive's sample amount must always include a period or
       comma decimal mark (this rule  helps  disambiguate  decimal  marks  and
       digit  group  marks).   If  you  don't want to show any decimal digits,
       write the decimal mark at the end:

              commodity 1000. AAAA       ; show AAAA with no decimals

       Commodity symbols containing spaces, numbers, or  punctuation  must  be
       enclosed in double quotes, as usual:

              commodity 1.0000 "AAAA 2023"

       Commodity  directives normally include a sample amount, but can declare
       only a symbol (ie, just function 1 above):

              commodity $
              commodity INR
              commodity "AAAA 2023"
              commodity ""               ; the no-symbol commodity

       Commodity directives may also be written with an indented format subdi-
       rective, as in Ledger.  The symbol is repeated and must be the same  in
       both places.  Other subdirectives are currently ignored:

              ; display indian rupees with currency name on the left,
              ; thousands, lakhs and crores comma-separated,
              ; period as decimal point, and two decimal places.
              commodity INR
                format INR 1,00,00,000.00
                an unsupported subdirective  ; ignored by hledger

   Commodity error checking
       In  strict  mode  (-s/--strict) (or when you run hledger check commodi-
       ties), hledger will report an error if an undeclared  commodity  symbol
       is  used.  (With one exception: zero amounts are always allowed to have
       no commodity symbol.)  It works like account error checking  (described
       above).

   decimal-mark directive
       You can use a decimal-mark directive - usually one per file, at the top
       of the file - to declare which character represents a decimal mark when
       parsing amounts in this file.  It can look like

              decimal-mark .

       or

              decimal-mark ,

       This  prevents  any  ambiguity  when parsing numbers in the file, so we
       recommend it, especially if the file contains  digit  group  marks  (eg
       thousands separators).

   include directive
       You  can  pull in the content of additional files by writing an include
       directive, like this:

              include SOMEFILE

       This has the same effect as if SOMEFILE's content was inlined  at  this
       point.   (With  any include directives in SOMEFILE processed similarly,
       recursively.)

       Only journal files can include other files.  They can include  journal,
       timeclock or timedot files, but not CSV files.

       If  the  file path begins with a tilde, that means your home directory:
       include ~/main.journal.

       If  it  begins  with  a  slash,  it  is  an  absolute   path:   include
       /home/user/main.journal.   Otherwise  it  is  relative to the including
       file's folder: include ../finances/main.journal.

       Also, the path may have a file type prefix to  force  a  specific  file
       format,  overriding  the  file  extension(s) (as described in Data for-
       mats): include timedot:notes/2023.md.

       The path may contain glob patterns to match multiple files.   hledger's
       globs  are  similar  to zsh's: ? to match any character; [a-z] to match
       any character in a range; * to  match  zero  or  more  characters  that
       aren't  a path separator (like /); ** to match zero or more subdirecto-
       ries and/or zero or more characters at the start of a file  name;  etc.
       For convenience, include always excludes the current file.  So, you can
       do

       o include  *.journal  to include all other journal files in the current
         directory (excluding dot files)

       o include **.journal to include all other journal files in this  direc-
         tory and below (excluding dot files and top-level dot directories)

       o include timelogs/2???.timedot to include all timedot files named like
         a year number.

       Note  *  and  ** usually won't match dot files or dot directories, with
       one exception: ** does search non-top-level dot directories.   If  this
       causes  problems,  make  your glob pattern more specific (eg **.journal
       instead of **).

       If you are using many, or deeply nested, include files, and have an er-
       ror that's hard to pinpoint: a good troubleshooting command is  hledger
       files --debug=6 (or 7).

   P directive
       The P directive declares a market price, which is a conversion rate be-
       tween  two commodities on a certain date.  This allows value reports to
       convert amounts of one commodity to their value in another, on or after
       that date.  These prices are often  obtained  from  a  stock  exchange,
       cryptocurrency exchange, the or foreign exchange market.

       The format is:

              P DATE COMMODITY1SYMBOL COMMODITY2AMOUNT

       DATE  is a simple date, COMMODITY1SYMBOL is the symbol of the commodity
       being priced, and COMMODITY2AMOUNT is the amount (symbol and  quantity)
       of commodity 2 that one unit of commodity 1 is worth on this date.  Ex-
       amples:

              # one euro was worth $1.35 from 2009-01-01 onward:
              P 2009-01-01  $1.35

              # and $1.40 from 2010-01-01 onward:
              P 2010-01-01  $1.40

       The  -V,  -X  and  --value flags use these market prices to show amount
       values in another commodity.  See Value reporting.

   payee directive
       payee PAYEE NAME

       This directive can be used to declare a limited set of payees which may
       appear in transaction descriptions.  The "payees" check will report  an
       error  if any transaction refers to a payee that has not been declared.
       Eg:

              payee Whole Foods    ; a comment

       Payees do not have tags (tags in the comment will be ignored).

       To declare the empty payee name, use "".

              payee ""

       Ledger-style indented subdirectives, if any, are currently ignored.

   tag directive
       tag TAGNAME

       This directive can be used to declare a limited set of  tag  names  al-
       lowed in tags.  TAGNAME should be a valid tag name (no spaces).  Eg:

              tag  item-id

       Any indented subdirectives are currently ignored.

       The  "tags"  check  will  report an error if any undeclared tag name is
       used.  It is quite easy to accidentally create a tag through normal use
       of colons in comments; if you want to prevent this, you can declare and
       check your tags .

   Periodic transactions
       The ~ directive declares a "periodic rule"  which  generates  temporary
       extra transactions, usually recurring at some interval, when hledger is
       run with the --forecast flag.  These "forecast transactions" are useful
       for  forecasting  future activity.  They exist only for the duration of
       the report, and only when --forecast is used; they are not saved in the
       journal file by hledger.

       Periodic rules also have a second use: with the --budget flag they  set
       budget goals for budgeting.

       Periodic  rules  can  be  a little tricky, so before you use them, read
       this whole section, or at least the following tips:

       1. Two spaces accidentally added or omitted will cause  you  trouble  -
          read about this below.

       2. For  troubleshooting,  show  the generated transactions with hledger
          print  --forecast  tag:generated  or  hledger  register   --forecast
          tag:generated.

       3. Forecasted  transactions  will  begin  only after the last non-fore-
          casted transaction's date.

       4. Forecasted transactions will end 6 months from  today,  by  default.
          See below for the exact start/end rules.

       5. period  expressions  can  be  tricky.  Their documentation needs im-
          provement, but is worth studying.

       6. Some period expressions with a repeating interval must  begin  on  a
          natural  boundary  of  that  interval.  Eg in weekly from DATE, DATE
          must be a monday.  ~ weekly from 2019/10/1 (a tuesday) will give  an
          error.

       7. Other period expressions with an interval are automatically expanded
          to  cover a whole number of that interval.  (This is done to improve
          reports, but it also affects periodic transactions.  Yes, it's a bit
          inconsistent with the above.)  Eg:  ~ every 10th day of  month  from
          2023/01,  which  is  equivalent  to   ~ every 10th day of month from
          2023/01/01, will be adjusted to start on 2019/12/10.

   Periodic rule syntax
       A periodic transaction rule looks like a normal journal entry, with the
       date replaced by a tilde (~) followed by a period expression (mnemonic:
       ~ looks like a recurring sine wave.):

              # every first of month
              ~ monthly
                  expenses:rent          $2000
                  assets:bank:checking

              # every 15th of month in 2023's first quarter:
              ~ monthly from 2023-04-15 to 2023-06-16
                  expenses:utilities          $400
                  assets:bank:checking

       The period expression is the same syntax used for specifying  multi-pe-
       riod  reports, just interpreted differently; there, it specifies report
       periods; here it specifies recurrence dates (the periods' start dates).

   Periodic rules and relative dates
       Partial or relative dates (like 12/31, 25, tomorrow,  last  week,  next
       quarter)  are  usually not recommended in periodic rules, since the re-
       sults will change as time passes.  If used, they  will  be  interpreted
       relative to, in order of preference:

       1. the first day of the default year specified by a recent Y directive

       2. or the date specified with --today

       3. or the date on which you are running the report.

       They  will  not  be affected at all by report period or forecast period
       dates.

   Two spaces between period expression and description!
       If the period expression is  followed  by  a  transaction  description,
       these must be separated by two or more spaces.  This helps hledger know
       where the period expression ends, so that descriptions can not acciden-
       tally alter their meaning, as in this example:

              ; 2 or more spaces needed here, so the period is not understood as "every 2 months in 2023"
              ;               ||
              ;               vv
              ~ every 2 months  in 2023, we will review
                  assets:bank:checking   $1500
                  income:acme inc

       So,

       o Do  write two spaces between your period expression and your transac-
         tion description, if any.

       o Don't accidentally write two spaces in the middle of your period  ex-
         pression.

   Auto postings
       The = directive declares an "auto posting rule", which adds extra post-
       ings  to  existing  transactions.   (Remember, postings are the account
       name & amount lines below a transaction's date & description.)

       In the journal, an auto posting rule looks quite  like  a  transaction,
       but  instead of date and description it has = (mnemonic: "match") and a
       query, like this:

              = QUERY
                  ACCOUNT    AMOUNT
                  ...

       Queries are just like command line queries; an account  name  substring
       is  most  common.   Query terms containing spaces should be enclosed in
       single or double quotes.

       Each = rule works like this: when hledger is run with the --auto  flag,
       wherever  the  QUERY matches a posting in the journal, the rule's post-
       ings are added to that transaction, immediately below the matched post-
       ing.  Note these generated postings are temporary,  existing  only  for
       the  duration of the report, and only when --auto is used; they are not
       saved in the journal file by hledger.

       The postings can contain the special string %account which will be  ex-
       panded to the account name of the matched account.

       Generated postings' amounts can depend on the matched posting's amount.
       So  auto  postings  can  be  useful for, eg, adding tax postings with a
       standard percentage.  AMOUNT can be:

       o a number with no commodity symbol, like  2.   The  matched  posting's
         commodity symbol will be added to this.

       o a  normal amount with a commodity symbol, like $2.  This will be used
         as-is.

       o an asterisk followed by a number, like *2.  This  will  multiply  the
         matched posting's amount (and total price, if any) by the number.

       o an  asterisk  followed  by an amount with commodity symbol, like *$2.
         This multiplies and also replaces the commodity symbol with this  new
         one.

       Some examples:

              ; every time I buy food, schedule a dollar donation
              = expenses:food
                  (liabilities:charity)   $-1

              ; when I buy a gift, also deduct that amount from a budget envelope subaccount
              = expenses:gifts
                  assets:checking:gifts  *-1
                  assets:checking         *1

              2017/12/1
                expenses:food    $10
                assets:checking

              2017/12/14
                expenses:gifts   $20
                assets:checking

              $ hledger print --auto
              2017-12-01
                  expenses:food              $10
                  assets:checking
                  (liabilities:charity)      $-1

              2017-12-14
                  expenses:gifts             $20
                  assets:checking
                  assets:checking:gifts     -$20
                  assets:checking            $20

       Note that depending fully on generated data such as this has some draw-
       backs  -  it's less portable, less future-proof, less auditable by oth-
       ers, and less robust (eg your balance assertions will depend on whether
       you use or don't use --auto).  An alternative is to use  auto  postings
       in "one time" fashion - use them to help build a complex journal entry,
       view  it  with hledger print --auto, and then copy that output into the
       journal file to make it permanent.

   Auto postings and multiple files
       An auto posting rule can affect any transaction in the current file, or
       in any parent file or child file.  Note, currently it will  not  affect
       sibling files (when multiple -f/--file are used - see #1212).

   Auto postings and dates
       A  posting  date (or secondary date) in the matched posting, or (taking
       precedence) a posting date in the auto posting rule itself,  will  also
       be used in the generated posting.

   Auto postings and transaction balancing / inferred amounts / balance asser-
       tions
       Currently, auto postings are added:

       o after  missing amounts are inferred, and transactions are checked for
         balancedness,

       o but before balance assertions are checked.

       Note this means that journal entries must be balanced both  before  and
       after auto postings are added.  This changed in hledger 1.12+; see #893
       for background.

       This  also means that you cannot have more than one auto-posting with a
       missing amount applied to a given transaction, as it will be unable  to
       infer amounts.

   Auto posting tags
       Automated postings will have some extra tags:

       o generated-posting:= QUERY - shows this was generated by an auto post-
         ing rule, and the query

       o _generated-posting:=  QUERY  - a hidden tag, which does not appear in
         hledger's output.  This can be used to match postings generated "just
         now", rather than generated in the past and saved to the journal.

       Also, any transaction that has been changed by auto posting rules  will
       have these tags added:

       o modified: - this transaction was modified

       o _modified: - a hidden tag not appearing in the comment; this transac-
         tion was modified "just now".

   Auto postings on forecast transactions only
       Tip:  you can can make auto postings that will apply to forecast trans-
       actions but not recorded transactions, by adding  tag:_generated-trans-
       action  to their QUERY.  This can be useful when generating new journal
       entries to be saved in the journal.

   Other syntax
       hledger journal format supports quite a few other features,  mainly  to
       make  interoperating  with or converting from Ledger easier.  Note some
       of the features below are powerful and can be useful in special  cases,
       but  in general, features in this section are considered less important
       or even not recommended for most users.   Downsides  are  mentioned  to
       help you decide if you want to use them.

   Balance assignments
       Ledger-style  balance  assignments  are also supported.  These are like
       balance assertions, but with no posting amount on the left side of  the
       equals  sign;  instead  it is calculated automatically so as to satisfy
       the assertion.  This can be a convenience during data  entry,  eg  when
       setting opening balances:

              ; starting a new journal, set asset account balances
              2016/1/1 opening balances
                assets:checking            = $409.32
                assets:savings             = $735.24
                assets:cash                 = $42
                equity:opening balances

       or when adjusting a balance to reality:

              ; no cash left; update balance, record any untracked spending as a generic expense
              2016/1/15
                assets:cash    = $0
                expenses:misc

       The calculated amount depends on the account's balance in the commodity
       at  that  point  (which depends on the previously-dated postings of the
       commodity to that account since the last balance assertion  or  assign-
       ment).

       Downsides:  using balance assignments makes your journal less explicit;
       to know the exact amount posted, you have to run hledger or do the cal-
       culations yourself, instead of just reading it.  Also  balance  assign-
       ments' forcing of balances can hide errors.  These things make your fi-
       nancial  data less portable, less future-proof, and less trustworthy in
       an audit.

   Balance assignments and costs
       A cost in a balance assignment will cause the calculated amount to have
       that cost attached:

              2019/1/1
                (a)             = $1 @ 2

              $ hledger print --explicit
              2019-01-01
                  (a)         $1 @ 2 = $1 @ 2

   Balance assignments and multiple files
       Balance assignments handle  multiple  files  like  balance  assertions.
       They  see balance from other files previously included from the current
       file, but not from previous sibling or parent files.

   Bracketed posting dates
       For setting posting dates and secondary posting dates, Ledger's  brack-
       eted date syntax is also supported: [DATE], [DATE=DATE2] or [=DATE2] in
       posting  comments.   hledger will attempt to parse any square-bracketed
       sequence of the 0123456789/-.= characters in this way.  With this  syn-
       tax,  DATE  infers  its  year from the transaction and DATE2 infers its
       year from DATE.

       Downsides:  another  syntax  to   learn,   redundant   with   hledger's
       date:/date2: tags, and confusingly similar to Ledger's lot date syntax.

   D directive
       D AMOUNT

       This  directive sets a default commodity, to be used for any subsequent
       commodityless amounts (ie, plain numbers) seen while parsing the  jour-
       nal.   This  effect lasts until the next D directive, or the end of the
       current file.

       For compatibility/historical reasons, D also acts like a commodity  di-
       rective  (setting  the commodity's decimal mark for parsing and display
       style for output).  So its argument is not just a commodity symbol, but
       a full amount demonstrating the style.  The amount must include a deci-
       mal mark (either period or comma).  Eg:

              ; commodity-less amounts should be treated as dollars
              ; (and displayed with the dollar sign on the left, thousands separators and two decimal places)
              D $1,000.00

              1/1
                a     5  ; <- commodity-less amount, parsed as $5 and displayed as $5.00
                b

       Interactions with other directives:

       For setting a commodity's display  style,  a  commodity  directive  has
       highest priority, then a D directive.

       For  detecting  a commodity's decimal mark during parsing, decimal-mark
       has highest priority, then commodity, then D.

       For checking commodity symbols with the check command, a commodity  di-
       rective is required (hledger check commodities ignores D directives).

       Downsides:  omitting  commodity  symbols makes your financial data less
       explicit, less portable, and less trustworthy in an audit.  It is  usu-
       ally  an unsustainable shortcut; sooner or later you will want to track
       multiple commodities.  D is overloaded with  functions  redundant  with
       commodity and decimal-mark.  And it works differently from Ledger's D.

   apply account directive
       This  directive  sets a default parent account, which will be prepended
       to all accounts in following entries, until an end apply account direc-
       tive or end of current file.  Eg:

              apply account home

              2010/1/1
                  food    $10
                  cash

              end apply account

       is equivalent to:

              2010/01/01
                  home:food           $10
                  home:cash          $-10

       account directives are also affected, and so is any included content.

       Account names entered via hledger add or hledger-web are not affected.

       Account aliases, if any,  are  applied  after  the  parent  account  is
       prepended.

       Downsides:  this  can  make  your  financial  data  less explicit, less
       portable, and less trustworthy in an audit.

   Y directive
       Y YEAR

       or (deprecated backward-compatible forms):

       year YEAR apply year YEAR

       The space is optional.  This sets a default year to be used for  subse-
       quent dates which don't specify a year.  Eg:

              Y2009  ; set default year to 2009

              12/15  ; equivalent to 2009/12/15
                expenses  1
                assets

              year 2010  ; change default year to 2010

              2009/1/30  ; specifies the year, not affected
                expenses  1
                assets

              1/31   ; equivalent to 2010/1/31
                expenses  1
                assets

       Downsides: omitting the year (from primary transaction dates, at least)
       makes your financial data less explicit, less portable, and less trust-
       worthy  in  an  audit.   Such dates can get separated from their corre-
       sponding Y directive, eg when evaluating a region  of  the  journal  in
       your  editor.  A missing Y directive makes reports dependent on today's
       date.

   Secondary dates
       A secondary date is written after the primary date, following an equals
       sign: DATE1=DATE2.  If the year is omitted, the primary date's year  is
       assumed.  When running reports, the primary (left side) date is used by
       default, but with the --date2 flag (--aux-date or--effective also work,
       for  Ledger  users),  the  secondary (right side) date will be used in-
       stead.

       The meaning of secondary dates is up to you.  Eg it could  be  "primary
       is  the bank's clearing date, secondary is the date the transaction was
       initiated, if different".

       In practice, this feature usually adds confusion:

       o You have to remember the primary and secondary  dates'  meaning,  and
         follow that consistently.

       o It  splits  your bookkeeping into two modes, and you have to remember
         which mode is appropriate for a given report.

       o Usually your balance assertions will work  with  only  one  of  these
         modes.

       o It  makes  your  financial  data more complicated, less portable, and
         less clear in an audit.

       o It interacts with every feature, creating an ongoing cost for  imple-
         mentors.

       o It distracts new users and supporters.

       o Posting dates are simpler and work better.

       So secondary dates are officially deprecated in hledger, remaining only
       as  a  Ledger  compatibility  aid; we recommend using posting dates in-
       stead.

   Star comments
       Lines beginning with * (star/asterisk) are also  comment  lines.   This
       feature allows Emacs users to insert org headings in their journal, al-
       lowing them to fold/unfold/navigate it like an outline when viewed with
       org mode.

       Downsides:  another, unconventional comment syntax to learn.  Decreases
       your journal's portability.  And switching to Emacs org mode  just  for
       folding/unfolding  meant  losing  the benefits of ledger mode; nowadays
       you can add outshine mode to ledger mode to get folding without  losing
       ledger mode's features.

   Valuation expressions
       Ledger  allows  a  valuation  function or value to be written in double
       parentheses after an amount.  hledger ignores these.

   Virtual postings
       A posting with parentheses around the account name, like (some:account)
       10, is called an unbalanced virtual posting.   These  postings  do  not
       participate  in  transaction balancing.  (And if you write them without
       an amount, a zero amount is always inferred.)  These  can  occasionally
       be  convenient for special circumstances, but they violate double entry
       bookkeeping and make your data less portable  across  applications,  so
       many people avoid using them at all.

       A  posting  with  brackets  around the account name ([some:account]) is
       called a balanced virtual posting.  The balanced virtual postings in  a
       transaction must add up to zero, just like ordinary postings, but sepa-
       rately  from  them.  These are not part of double entry bookkeeping ei-
       ther, but they are at least balanced.  An example:

              2022-01-01 buy food with cash, update budget envelope subaccounts, & something else
                assets:cash                    $-10  ; <- these balance each other
                expenses:food                    $7  ; <-
                expenses:food                    $3  ; <-
                [assets:checking:budget:food]  $-10  ;   <- and these balance each other
                [assets:checking:available]     $10  ;   <-
                (something:else)                 $5  ;     <- this is not required to balance

       Ordinary postings, whose account names are  neither  parenthesised  nor
       bracketed,  are called real postings.  You can exclude virtual postings
       from reports with the -R/--real flag or a real:1 query.

   Other Ledger directives
       These other Ledger directives are currently accepted but ignored.  This
       allows hledger to read more Ledger files, but be aware  that  hledger's
       reports may differ from Ledger's if you use these.

              apply fixed COMM AMT
              apply tag   TAG
              assert      EXPR
              bucket / A  ACCT
              capture     ACCT REGEX
              check       EXPR
              define      VAR=EXPR
              end apply fixed
              end apply tag
              end apply year
              end tag
              eval / expr EXPR
              python
                PYTHONCODE
              tag         NAME
              value       EXPR
              --command-line-flags

       See  also https://hledger.org/ledger.html for a detailed hledger/Ledger
       syntax comparison.

   Other cost/lot notations
       A slight digression for Ledger and Beancount users.

       Ledger has a number of cost/lot-related notations:

       o @ UNITCOST and @@ TOTALCOST

         o expresses a conversion rate, as in hledger

         o when buying, also creates a lot that can  be  selected  at  selling
           time

       o (@) UNITCOST and (@@) TOTALCOST (virtual cost)

         o like  the  above,  but also means "this cost was exceptional, don't
           use it when inferring market prices".

       o {=UNITCOST} and {{=TOTALCOST}} (fixed price)

         o when buying, means "this cost is also the fixed value, don't let it
           fluctuate in value reports"

       o {UNITCOST} and {{TOTALCOST}} (lot price)

         o can be used identically to @ UNITCOST and @@ TOTALCOST,  also  cre-
           ates a lot

         o when  selling,  combined with @ ..., selects an existing lot by its
           cost basis.  Does not check if that lot is present.

       o [YYYY/MM/DD] (lot date)

         o when buying, attaches this acquisition date to the lot

         o when selling, selects a lot by its acquisition date

       o (SOME TEXT) (lot note)

         o when buying, attaches this note to the lot

         o when selling, selects a lot by its note

       Currently, hledger

       o accepts any or all of the above in any order after the posting amount

       o supports @ and @@

       o treats (@) and (@@) as synonyms for @ and @@

       o and ignores the rest.  (This can break transaction balancing.)

       Beancount has simpler notation and different behaviour:

       o @ UNITCOST and @@ TOTALCOST

         o expresses a cost without creating a lot, as in hledger

         o when buying (acquiring) or selling (disposing of) a lot,  and  com-
           bined  with  {...}: is not used except to document the cost/selling
           price

       o {UNITCOST} and {{TOTALCOST}}

         o when buying, expresses the cost for transaction balancing, and also
           creates a lot with this cost basis attached

         o when selling,

           o selects a lot by its cost basis

           o raises an error if that lot is not present or can not be selected
             unambiguously (depending on booking method configured)

           o expresses the selling price for transaction balancing

       o {},  {YYYY-MM-DD},   {"LABEL"},   {UNITCOST,   "LABEL"},   {UNITCOST,
         YYYY-MM-DD, "LABEL"}

         o when  selling,  other  combinations  of  date/cost/label,  like the
           above, are accepted for selecting the lot.

       Currently, hledger

       o supports @ and @@

       o accepts the {UNITCOST}/{{TOTALCOST}} notation, but ignores it

       o and rejects the rest.

CSV
       hledger can read transactions from CSV (comma-separated values)  files.
       More  precisely,  it  can read DSV (delimiter-separated values), from a
       file  or  standard  input.   Comma-separated,  semicolon-separated  and
       tab-separated  are the most common variants, and hledger will recognise
       these three automatically based on a .csv, .ssv or .tsv file  name  ex-
       tension or a csv:, ssv: or tsv: file path prefix.

       (To learn about producing CSV or TSV output, see Output format.)

       Each  CSV  file  must be described by a corresponding rules file.  This
       contains rules describing the CSV data  (header  line,  fields  layout,
       date  format  etc.), how to construct hledger transactions from it, and
       how to categorise transactions based on description  or  other  attrib-
       utes.

       By  default,  hledger  expects this rules file to be named like the CSV
       file, with an extra .rules extension added, in the same directory.   Eg
       when  asked to read foo/FILE.csv, hledger looks for foo/FILE.csv.rules.
       You can specify a different rules file with the --rules option.

       At minimum, the rules file must identify the date  and  amount  fields,
       and  often  it also specifies the date format and how many header lines
       there are.  Here's a simple CSV file and a rules file for it:

              Date, Description, Id, Amount
              12/11/2019, Foo, 123, 10.23

              # basic.csv.rules
              skip         1
              fields       date, description, , amount
              date-format  %d/%m/%Y

              $ hledger print -f basic.csv
              2019-11-12 Foo
                  expenses:unknown           10.23
                  income:unknown            -10.23

       There's an introductory Tutorial: Import CSV data on  hledger.org,  and
       more   CSV   rules   examples   below,   and  a  larger  collection  at
       https://github.com/simonmichael/hledger/tree/master/examples/csv.

   CSV rules cheatsheet
       The following kinds of rule can appear in the rules file, in any order.
       (Blank lines and lines beginning with # or ; or * are ignored.)

       source                     optionally declare which  file  to  read  data
                                  from
       archive                    optionally enable an archive of imported files
       encoding                   optionally  declare  which  text  encoding the
                                  data has
       separator                  declare the field separator, instead of  rely-
                                  ing on file extension
       decimal-mark               declare  the decimal mark used in CSV amounts,
                                  when ambiguous
       date-format                declare how to parse CSV dates/date-times
       timezone                   declare  the  time  zone  of   ambiguous   CSV
                                  date-times
       newest-first               improve  txn  order  when:  there are multiple
                                  records, newest first, all with the same date
       intra-day-reversed         improve txn order when: same-day txns  are  in
                                  opposite order to the overall file
       skip                       (at top level) skip header line(s) at start of
                                  file
       fields list                name  CSV  fields  for easy reference, and op-
                                  tionally assign their values to hledger fields
       Field assignment           assign a CSV value or interpolated text  value
                                  to a hledger field
       if block                   conditionally assign values to hledger fields,
                                  or skip a record or end (skip rest of file)
       if table                   conditionally assign values to hledger fields,
                                  using compact syntax
       skip                       (inside an if rule) skip current record(s)
       end                        (inside an if rule) skip all remaining records
       balance-type               select  which  type  of balance assertions/as-
                                  signments to generate
       include                    inline another CSV rules file

       Working with CSV tips can be found below, including How CSV  rules  are
       evaluated.

   source
       If  you  tell  hledger to read a csv file with -f foo.csv, it will look
       for rules in foo.csv.rules.  Or, you can tell  it  to  read  the  rules
       file,  with  -f  foo.csv.rules,  and  it  will look for data in foo.csv
       (since 1.30).  These are mostly equivalent, but the second method  pro-
       vides  some  extra  features.   For  one, the data file can be missing,
       without causing an error; it is just considered empty.

       For more flexibility, add a source rule, which lets you specify a  dif-
       ferent data file:

              source ./Checking1.csv

       If  the file does not exist, it is just considered empty, without rais-
       ing an error.

       If you specify just a file name with no path, hledger will look for  it
       in the ~/Downloads folder:

              source Checking1.csv

       You can use a glob pattern, to avoid specifying the file name exactly:

              source Checking1*.csv

       This  has  another  benefit:  if  the  pattern  matches multiple files,
       hledger will read the newest (most recently modified) one.  This avoids
       problems if you have downloaded a file multiple times without  cleaning
       up.

       All  this enables a convenient workflow where can you just download CSV
       files, then run hledger import rules/*.

       See also "Working with CSV > Reading files specified by rule".

   Data cleaning / data generating commands
       After source's file pattern, you can write | (pipe) and a data cleaning
       command (or command pipeline).  If hledger's CSV rules  aren't  enough,
       you  can  pre-process  the downloaded data here with a shell command or
       script, to make it more suitable for conversion.  The command  will  be
       executed  by  your  default  shell, in the directory of the rules file,
       will receive the data file's content as standard input, and should out-
       put zero or more lines of character-separated-values, suitable for con-
       version by the CSV rules.

       Examples:

              source ./paypal.json | paypalcsv
              source data/simplefin.json | simplefincsv - 'chase.*card'
              source OfxDownload*.csv | grep -vE '^(([^,]*,){6}[^,]*|)$' | sort -t, -n +2
              source History_for_Account_Z20144832*.csv   # | grep -E '^([^,]*,){12}[^,]*$' | sed -E -e 's/^ //' -e 's/\.([0-9]),/.\10,/g' -e 's/,([0-9]+),/,\1.00,/g'

       Or, after source you can write | and a data generating command (with no
       file pattern before the |).  This command receives no input, and should
       output zero or more lines of character-separated values,  suitable  for
       conversion by the CSV rules.

       Examples:

              source | paypaljson | paypalcsv
              source | paypalcsv data/paypal.json
              source | simplefinjson >data/simplefin.json && simplefincsv data/simplefin.json 'chase.*card'
              source | simplefincsv data/simplefin.json 'unify.*checking'

       (paypal* and simplefin* scripts are in bin/)

       Whenever  hledger  runs one of these commands, it will echo the command
       on stderr.  If the command produces error output,  but  exits  success-
       fully, hledger will show the error output as a warning.  If the command
       fails,  hledger  will  fail and show the error output in the error mes-
       sage.

       Added in 1.50; experimental.

   archive
       With archive added to a rules file, the  import  command  will  archive
       each  successfully  processed  data  file  or  data command output in a
       nearby data/ directory.  The archive file name will  be  based  on  the
       rules  file and the data file's modification date and extension (or for
       a data-generating command, the current date and the ".csv"  extension).
       The original data file, if any, will be removed.

       Also,  in  this  mode import will prefer the oldest file matched by the
       source rule's glob pattern, not the newest.  (So if there are  multiple
       downloads, they will be imported and archived oldest first.)

       Archiving  is  optional,  but it can be useful for troubleshooting your
       CSV rules, regenerating entries with improved rules, checking for vari-
       ations in your bank's CSV, etc.

       Added in 1.50; experimental.

   encoding
              encoding ENCODING

       hledger normally expects non-ascii text to be using the system locale's
       text encoding.  If you need to read CSV files which have some other en-
       coding, you can do it by adding encoding ENCODING to  your  CSV  rules.
       Eg: encoding iso-8859-1.

       The following encodings are supported:

       ascii,  utf-8,  utf-16,  utf-32,  iso-8859-1,  iso-8859-2,  iso-8859-3,
       iso-8859-4, iso-8859-5, iso-8859-6, iso-8859-7, iso-8859-8, iso-8859-9,
       iso-8859-10,  iso-8859-11,   iso-8859-13,   iso-8859-14,   iso-8859-15,
       iso-8859-16,  cp1250,  cp1251,  cp1252, cp1253, cp1254, cp1255, cp1256,
       cp1257,  cp1258,  koi8-r,  koi8-u,  gb18030,   macintosh,   jis-x-0201,
       jis-x-0208,  iso-2022-jp, shift-jis, cp437, cp737, cp775, cp850, cp852,
       cp855, cp857, cp860, cp861, cp862, cp863, cp864, cp865,  cp866,  cp869,
       cp874, cp932.

       Added in 1.42.

   separator
       You  can  use the separator rule to read other kinds of character-sepa-
       rated data.  The argument is any single  separator  character,  or  the
       words  tab or space (case insensitive).  Eg, for comma-separated values
       (CSV):

              separator ,

       or for semicolon-separated values (SSV):

              separator ;

       or for tab-separated values (TSV):

              separator TAB

       If the input file has a .csv, .ssv or .tsv file extension (or  a  csv:,
       ssv:, tsv: prefix), the appropriate separator will be inferred automat-
       ically, and you won't need this rule.

   skip
              skip N

       The  word  skip  followed  by  a number (or no number, meaning 1) tells
       hledger to ignore this many non-empty lines at the start of  the  input
       data.   You'll  need this whenever your CSV data contains header lines.
       Note, empty and blank lines are skipped  automatically,  so  you  don't
       need to count those.

       skip  has  a second meaning: it can be used inside if blocks (described
       below), to skip one or more records whenever  the  condition  is  true.
       Records skipped in this way are ignored, except they are still required
       to be valid CSV.

   date-format
              date-format DATEFMT

       This  is  a  helper for the date (and date2) fields.  If your CSV dates
       are not formatted like YYYY-MM-DD,  YYYY/MM/DD  or  YYYY.MM.DD,  you'll
       need  to  add  a date-format rule describing them with a strptime-style
       date   parsing   pattern   -   see    https://hackage.haskell.org/pack-
       age/time/docs/Data-Time-Format.html#v:formatTime.    The  pattern  must
       parse the CSV date value completely.  Some examples:

              # MM/DD/YY
              date-format %m/%d/%y

              # D/M/YYYY
              # The - makes leading zeros optional.
              date-format %-d/%-m/%Y

              # YYYY-Mmm-DD
              date-format %Y-%h-%d

              # M/D/YYYY HH:MM AM some other junk
              # Note the time and junk must be fully parsed, though only the date is used.
              date-format %-m/%-d/%Y %l:%M %p some other junk

       Note currently there is no locale awareness for  things  like  %b,  and
       setting LC_TIME won't help.

   timezone
              timezone TIMEZONE

       When  CSV  contains  date-times  that  are implicitly in some time zone
       other than yours, but containing no explicit time zone information, you
       can use this rule to declare the CSV's native time  zone,  which  helps
       prevent off-by-one dates.

       When  the  CSV  date-times  do contain time zone information, you don't
       need this rule; instead, use %Z in date-format (or %z,  %EZ,  %Ez;  see
       the formatTime link above).

       In either of these cases, hledger will do a time-zone-aware conversion,
       localising the CSV date-times to your current system time zone.  If you
       prefer to localise to some other time zone, eg for reproducibility, you
       can  (on unix at least) set the output timezone with the TZ environment
       variable, eg:

              $ TZ=-1000 hledger print -f foo.csv  # or TZ=-1000 hledger import foo.csv

       timezone currently does not understand timezone  names,  except  "UTC",
       "GMT",  "EST", "EDT", "CST", "CDT", "MST", "MDT", "PST", or "PDT".  For
       others, use numeric format: +HHMM or -HHMM.

   newest-first
       hledger tries to ensure that the generated transactions will be ordered
       chronologically,  including  same-day  transactions.   Usually  it  can
       auto-detect  how the CSV records are ordered.  But if it encounters CSV
       where all records are on the same date, it assumes that the records are
       oldest first.  If in fact the CSV's records are normally newest  first,
       like:

              2022-10-01, txn 3...
              2022-10-01, txn 2...
              2022-10-01, txn 1...

       you can add the newest-first rule to help hledger generate the transac-
       tions in correct order.

              # same-day CSV records are newest first
              newest-first

   intra-day-reversed
       If  CSV records within a single day are ordered opposite to the overall
       record order, you can add the intra-day-reversed rule  to  improve  the
       order  of journal entries.  Eg, here the overall record order is newest
       first, but same-day records are oldest first:

              2022-10-02, txn 3...
              2022-10-02, txn 4...
              2022-10-01, txn 1...
              2022-10-01, txn 2...

              # transactions within each day are reversed with respect to the overall date order
              intra-day-reversed

   decimal-mark
              decimal-mark .

       or:

              decimal-mark ,

       hledger automatically accepts either period or comma as a decimal  mark
       when  parsing  numbers (cf Amounts).  However if any numbers in the CSV
       contain digit group marks,  such  as  thousand-separating  commas,  you
       should  declare  the  decimal  mark explicitly with this rule, to avoid
       misparsed numbers.

   CSV fields and hledger fields
       This can be confusing, so let's start with an overview:

       o CSV fields are provided by your data file.  They are named  by  their
         position  in the CSV record, starting with 1.  You can also give them
         a readable name.

       o hledger fields are predefined; date, description, account1,  amount1,
         account2  are  some  of them.  They correspond to parts of a transac-
         tion's journal entry, mostly.

       o The CSV fields and hledger fields are the only fields you'll be work-
         ing with; you can't define new fields, or variables as in a  program-
         ming  language.   (But  you could add extra CSV fields to the data in
         preprocessing, before running the rules.)

       o For each CSV record, you'll assign values  to  one  or  more  of  the
         hledger fields to build up a transaction (journal entry).  Values can
         be static text, CSV field values from the current record, or a combi-
         nation of these.

       o For  simple  cases,  you can give a CSV field the same name as one of
         the hledger fields, then its value will be automatically assigned  to
         that hledger field.

       o CSV fields can only be read, not written to.  They'll be on the right
         hand side, with a % prefix.  Eg

         o testing a CSV field's value: if %CSVFIELD ...

         o interpolating its value: HLEDGERFIELD %CSVFIELD

       o hledger  fields  can only be written to, not read.  They'll be on the
         left hand side (or in a fields list), with no prefix.  Eg

         o setting the transaction's description to a value: description VALUE

         o setting the transaction's description to  the  second  CSV  field's
           value:
         fields date, description, amount

   fields list
              fields FIELDNAME1, FIELDNAME2, ...

       A fields list (the word fields followed by comma-separated field names)
       is optional, but convenient.  It does two things:

       1. It  names  the  CSV field in each column.  This can be convenient if
          you are referencing them in other rules, so you can  say  %SomeField
          instead of remembering %13.

       2. Whenever  you  use one of the special hledger field names (described
          below), it assigns the CSV value in this position  to  that  hledger
          field.   This  is  the quickest way to populate hledger's fields and
          build a transaction.

       Here's an example that says "use the 1st, 2nd and  4th  fields  as  the
       transaction's  date,  description  and amount; name the last two fields
       for later reference; and ignore the others":

              fields date, description, , amount, , , somefield, anotherfield

       In a fields list, the separator is always comma; it is unrelated to the
       CSV file's separator.  Also:

       o There must be least two items in the list (at least one comma).

       o Field names may not contain spaces.  Spaces before/after field  names
         are optional.

       o Field names may contain _ (underscore) or - (hyphen).

       o Fields  you  don't  care  about can be given a dummy name or an empty
         name.

       If the CSV contains column headings, it's convenient to use  these  for
       your  field  names,  suitably  modified (eg lower-cased with spaces re-
       placed by underscores).

       Sometimes you may want to alter a CSV field name to avoid assigning  to
       a  hledger field with the same name.  Eg you could call the CSV's "bal-
       ance" field balance_ to avoid directly setting hledger's balance  field
       (and generating a balance assertion).

   Field assignment
              HLEDGERFIELD FIELDVALUE

       Field  assignments  are  the  more flexible way to assign CSV values to
       hledger fields.  They can be used instead of or in addition to a fields
       list (see above).

       To assign a value to a hledger field, write the field name (any of  the
       standard  hledger  field/pseudo-field  names,  defined below), a space,
       followed by a text value on the same line.  This text value may  inter-
       polate  CSV  fields, referenced either by their 1-based position in the
       CSV record (%N) or by the name they  were  given  in  the  fields  list
       (%CSVFIELD), and regular expression match groups (\N).

       Some examples:

              # set the amount to the 4th CSV field, with " USD" appended
              amount %4 USD

              # combine three fields to make a comment, containing note: and date: tags
              comment note: %somefield - %anotherfield, date: %1

       Tips:

       o Interpolation  strips outer whitespace (so a CSV value like " 1 " be-
         comes 1 when interpolated) (#1051).

       o Interpolations always refer to a CSV field - you can't interpolate  a
         hledger field.  (See Referencing other fields below).

   Field names
       Note  the  two  kinds  of  field names mentioned here, and used only in
       hledger CSV rules files:

       1. CSV field names (CSVFIELD in these docs): you  can  optionally  name
          the  CSV columns for easy reference (since hledger doesn't yet auto-
          matically recognise column headings in a CSV file), by writing arbi-
          trary names in a fields list, eg:

                  fields When, What, Some_Id, Net, Total, Foo, Bar

       2. Special hledger field names (HLEDGERFIELD in these docs):  you  must
          set  at least some of these to generate the hledger transaction from
          a CSV record, by writing them as the left hand side of a  field  as-
          signment, eg:

                  date        %When
                  code        %Some_Id
                  description %What
                  comment     %Foo %Bar
                  amount1     $ %Total

           or directly in a fields list:

                  fields date, description, code, , amount1, Foo, Bar
                  currency $
                  comment  %Foo %Bar

       Here  are  all the special hledger field names available, and what hap-
       pens when you assign values to them:

   date field
       Assigning to date sets the transaction date.

   date2 field
       date2 sets the transaction's secondary date, if any.

   status field
       status sets the transaction's status, if any.

   code field
       code sets the transaction's code, if any.

   description field
       description sets the transaction's description, if any.

   comment field
       comment sets the transaction's comment, if any.

       commentN, where N is a number, sets the Nth posting's comment.

       You can assign multi-line comments by writing literal \n in  the  code.
       A comment starting with \n will begin on a new line.

       Comments can contain tags, as usual.

       Posting comments can also contain a posting date.  A secondary date, or
       a year-less date, will be ignored.

   account field
       Assigning to accountN, where N is 1 to 99, sets the account name of the
       Nth posting, and causes that posting to be generated.

       Most  often  there are two postings, so you'll want to set account1 and
       account2.  Typically account1 is associated with the CSV file,  and  is
       set  once  with  a top-level assignment, while account2 is set based on
       each transaction's description, in conditional rules.

       If a posting's account name is left unset but its amount  is  set  (see
       below),  a default account name will be chosen (like "expenses:unknown"
       or "income:unknown").

   amount field
       There are several ways to set posting amounts from CSV, useful in  dif-
       ferent situations.

       1. amount  is  the  oldest  and  simplest.   Assigning to this sets the
          amount of the first and second postings.  In the second posting, the
          amount will be negated; also, if it has a cost attached, it will  be
          converted to cost.

       2. amount-in  and amount-out work exactly like the above, but should be
          used when the CSV  has  two  amount  fields  (such  as  "Debit"  and
          "Credit",  or  "Inflow"  and  "Outflow").   Whichever  field  has  a
          non-zero value will be used as the amount of the  first  and  second
          postings.  Here are some tips to avoid confusion:

           o It's  not "amount-in for posting 1 and amount-out for posting 2",
             it is "extract a single amount from the amount-in  or  amount-out
             field, and use that for posting 1 and (negated) for posting 2".

           o Don't  use both amount and amount-in/amount-out in the same rules
             file; choose based on whether the amount is in a single CSV field
             or spread across two fields.

           o In each record, at most one of the two CSV fields should  contain
             a  non-zero  amount; the other field must contain a zero or noth-
             ing.

           o hledger assumes both CSV fields contain unsigned numbers, and  it
             automatically negates the amount-out values.

           o If  the data doesn't fit these requirements, you'll probably need
             an if rule (see below).

       3. amountN (where N is a number from 1 to 99) sets the amount of only a
          single posting: the Nth posting in the transaction.  You'll  usually
          need  at  least two such assignments to make a balanced transaction.
          You can also generate more than two postings, to represent more com-
          plex transactions.  The posting numbers don't have  to  be  consecu-
          tive;  with if rules, higher posting numbers can be useful to ensure
          a certain order of postings.

       4. amountN-in and amountN-out work exactly like the above,  but  should
          be  used  when  the CSV has two amount fields.  This is analogous to
          amount-in and amount-out, and those tips also apply here.

       5. Remember that a fields list can also do assignments.  So in a fields
          list if you name a CSV field "amount", that counts as  assigning  to
          amount.   (If  you  don't  want  that, call it something else in the
          fields list, like "amount_".)

       6. The above don't handle every situation; if you need  more  flexibil-
          ity, use an if rule to set amounts conditionally.  See "Working with
          CSV  > Setting amounts" below for more on this and on amount-setting
          generally.

   currency field
       currency sets a currency symbol,  to  be  prepended  to  all  postings'
       amounts.   You  can  use this if the CSV amounts do not have a currency
       symbol, eg if it is in a separate column.

       currencyN prepends a currency symbol to just the Nth posting's amount.

   balance field
       balanceN sets a balance assertion amount (or if the posting  amount  is
       left empty, a balance assignment) on posting N.

       balance is a compatibility spelling for hledger <1.17; it is equivalent
       to balance1.

       You  can  adjust the type of assertion/assignment with the balance-type
       rule (see below).

       See the Working with CSV tips below for more about setting amounts  and
       currency.

   if block
       Rules  can  be  applied conditionally, depending on patterns in the CSV
       data.  This allows flexibility; in particular, it is how you can  cate-
       gorise  transactions,  selecting  an  appropriate account name based on
       their description (for example).  There are two ways  to  write  condi-
       tional  rules:  "if blocks", described here, and "if tables", described
       below.

       An if block is the word if and one or more "matcher"  expressions  (can
       be a word or phrase), one per line, starting either on the same or next
       line; followed by one or more indented rules.  Eg,

              if MATCHER
               RULE

       or

              if
              MATCHER
              MATCHER
              MATCHER
               RULE
               RULE

       If  any of the matchers succeeds, all of the indented rules will be ap-
       plied.  They are usually field assignments, but the  following  special
       rules may also be used within an if block:

       o skip  -  skips the matched CSV record (generating no transaction from
         it)

       o end - skips the rest of the current CSV file.

       Some examples:

              # if the record contains "groceries", set account2 to "expenses:groceries"
              if groceries
               account2 expenses:groceries

              # if the record contains any of these phrases, set account2 and a transaction comment as shown
              if
              monthly service fee
              atm transaction fee
              banking thru software
               account2 expenses:business:banking
               comment  XXX deductible ? check it

              # if an empty record is seen (assuming five fields), ignore the rest of the CSV file
              if ,,,,
               end

   Matchers
       There are two kinds of matcher:

       1. A whole record matcher is simplest: it is just a  word,  single-line
          text  fragment,  or other regular expression, which hledger will try
          to match case-insensitively anywhere within the CSV record.
       Eg: whole foods.

       2. A field matcher has a percent-prefixed CSV field number or name  be-
          fore the pattern.
       Eg: %3 whole foods or %description whole foods.
       hledger will try to match the pattern just within the named CSV field.

       When using these, there's two things to be aware of:

       1. Whole  record matchers don't see the exact original record; they see
          a reconstruction of it, in which  values  are  comma-separated,  and
          quotes  enclosing values and whitespace outside those quotes are re-
          moved.
       Eg when reading an SSV record like: 2023-01-01 ; "Acme, Inc. " ;  1,000
       the whole record matcher sees instead: 2023-01-01,Acme, Inc. ,1,000

       2. Field matchers expect either a CSV field number, or a CSV field name
          declared with fields.  (Don't use a hledger field name here,  unless
          it  is  also a CSV field name.)  A non-CSV field name will cause the
          matcher to match against "" (the empty string), and does  not  raise
          an  error,  allowing easier reuse of common rules with different CSV
          files.

       You can also prefix a matcher with ! (and optional space) to negate it.
       Eg ! whole foods, ! %3 whole  foods,  !%description  whole  foods  will
       match if "whole foods" is NOT present.  Added in 1.32.

       The  pattern  is, as usual in hledger, a POSIX extended regular expres-
       sion that also supports GNU word boundaries (\b, \B, \<, \>) and  noth-
       ing  else.   For  more details and tips, see Regular expressions in CSV
       rules below.

   Multiple matchers
       When an if block has multiple matchers, each on its own line,

       o By default they are OR'd (any of them can match).

       o Matcher lines beginning with & (or &&, since 1.42)  are  AND'ed  with
         the matcher above (all in the AND'ed group must match).

       o Matcher  lines  beginning  with & ! (since 1.41, or && !, since 1.42)
         are first negated and then AND'ed with the matcher above.

       You can also combine multiple matchers one the same line  separated  by
       && (AND) or && ! (AND NOT).  Eg %description amazon && %date 2025-01-01
       will  match  only  when the description field contains "amazon" and the
       date field contains "2025-01-01".  Added in 1.42.

   Match groups
       Added in 1.32

       Matchers can define match groups: parenthesised portions of the regular
       expression which are available  for  reference  in  field  assignments.
       Groups are enclosed in regular parentheses (( and )) and can be nested.
       Each  group is available in field assignments using the token \N, where
       N is an index into the match groups for this  conditional  block  (e.g.
       \1, \2, etc.).

       Example:  Warp  credit  card  payment  postings to the beginning of the
       billing period (Month start), to match how they are presented in state-
       ments, using posting dates:

              if %date (....-..)-..
                comment2 date:\1-01

       Another example: Read the expense account from the CSV field, but throw
       away a prefix:

              if %account1 liabilities:family:(expenses:.*)
                  account1 \1

   if table
       "if tables" are an alternative to if  blocks;  they  can  express  many
       matchers  and  field assignments in a more compact tabular format, like
       this:

              if,HLEDGERFIELD1,HLEDGERFIELD2,...
              MATCHERA,VALUE1,VALUE2,...
              MATCHERB && MATCHERC,VALUE1,VALUE2,...  (*since 1.42*)
              ; Comment line that explains MATCHERD
              MATCHERD,VALUE1,VALUE2,...
              <empty line>

       The first character after if is taken to be this if table's field sepa-
       rator.  It is unrelated to the separator used  in  the  CSV  file.   It
       should be a non-alphanumeric character like , or | that does not appear
       anywhere  else  in  the  table (it should not be used in field names or
       matchers or values, and it cannot be escaped with a backslash).

       Each line must contain the same number of separators; empty values  are
       allowed.   Whitespace  can be used in the matcher lines for readability
       (but not in the if line, currently).  You can use the comment lines  in
       the  table body.  The table must be terminated by an empty line (or end
       of file).

       An if table like the above is interpreted as follows: try  all  of  the
       lines with matchers; whenever a line with matchers succeeds, assign all
       of the values on that line to the corresponding hledger fields; If mul-
       tiple  lines  match,  later  lines will override fields assigned by the
       earlier ones - just like the sequence of if blocks would behave.

       If table presented above is equivalent to this sequence of if blocks:

              if MATCHERA
                HLEDGERFIELD1 VALUE1
                HLEDGERFIELD2 VALUE2
                ...

              if MATCHERB && MATCHERC
                HLEDGERFIELD1 VALUE1
                HLEDGERFIELD2 VALUE2
                ...

              ; Comment line which explains MATCHERD
              if MATCHERD
                HLEDGERFIELD1 VALUE1
                HLEDGERFIELD2 VALUE2
                ...

       Example:

              if,account2,comment
              atm transaction fee,expenses:business:banking,deductible? check it
              %description groceries,expenses:groceries,
              ;; Comment line that desribes why this particular date is special
              2023/01/12.*Plumbing LLC,expenses:house:upkeep,emergency plumbing call-out

   balance-type
       Balance assertions generated by assigning to balanceN are of the simple
       = type by default, which is  a  single-commodity,  subaccount-excluding
       assertion.  You may find the subaccount-including variants more useful,
       eg  if  you  have  created some virtual subaccounts of checking to help
       with budgeting.  You can select a different type of assertion with  the
       balance-type rule:

              # balance assertions will consider all commodities and all subaccounts
              balance-type ==*

       Here are the balance assertion types for quick reference:

              =    single commodity, exclude subaccounts
              =*   single commodity, include subaccounts
              ==   multi commodity,  exclude subaccounts
              ==*  multi commodity,  include subaccounts

   include
              include RULESFILE

       This  includes  the  contents  of another CSV rules file at this point.
       RULESFILE is an absolute file path or a path relative  to  the  current
       file's  directory.  This can be useful for sharing common rules between
       several rules files, eg:

              # someaccount.csv.rules

              ## someaccount-specific rules
              fields   date,description,amount
              account1 assets:someaccount
              account2 expenses:misc

              ## common rules
              include categorisation.rules

   Working with CSV
       Some tips:

   Rapid feedback
       It's a good idea to get rapid feedback  while  creating/troubleshooting
       CSV rules.  Here's a good way, using entr from eradman.com/entrproject:

              $ ls foo.csv* | entr bash -c 'echo ----; hledger -f foo.csv print desc:SOMEDESC'

       A  desc:  query (eg) is used to select just one, or a few, transactions
       of interest.  "bash -c" is used to run multiple  commands,  so  we  can
       echo  a  separator  each  time the command re-runs, making it easier to
       read the output.

   Valid CSV
       Note that hledger will only accept valid CSV conforming  to  RFC  4180,
       and equivalent SSV and TSV formats (like RFC 4180 but with semicolon or
       tab as separators).  This means, eg:

       o Values may be enclosed in double quotes, or not.  Enclosing in single
         quotes is not allowed.  (Eg 'A','B' is rejected.)

       o When  values are enclosed in double quotes, spaces outside the quotes
         are not allowed.  (Eg "A", "B" is rejected.)

       o When values are not enclosed in quotes, they may not  contain  double
         quotes.  (Eg A"A, B is rejected.)

       If  your  CSV/SSV/TSV is not valid in this sense, you'll need to trans-
       form it before reading with hledger.  Try using sed, or a more  permis-
       sive CSV parser like python's csv lib.

   File Extension
       To  help  hledger  choose  the CSV file reader and show the right error
       messages (and choose the right field separator character  by  default),
       it's  best  if  CSV/SSV/TSV  files  are named with a .csv, .ssv or .tsv
       filename extension.  (More about this at Data formats.)

       When reading files with the "wrong" extension, you can ensure  the  CSV
       reader  (and  the  default  field separator) by prefixing the file path
       with csv:, ssv: or tsv:: Eg:

              $ hledger -f ssv:foo.dat print

       You can also override the default field separator with a separator rule
       if needed.

   Reading CSV from standard input
       You'll need the file format prefix when reading CSV  from  stdin  also,
       since hledger assumes journal format by default.  Eg:

              $ cat foo.dat | hledger -f ssv:- print

   Reading multiple CSV files
       If  you  use  multiple  -f  options to read multiple CSV files at once,
       hledger will look for a correspondingly-named rules file for  each  CSV
       file.   But  if  you specify a rules file with --rules, that rules file
       will be used for all the CSV files.

   Reading files specified by rule
       Instead of specifying a CSV file in the command line, you can specify a
       rules file, as in hledger -f foo.csv.rules CMD.  By default  this  will
       read  data from foo.csv in the same directory, but you can add a source
       rule to specify a different data file,  perhaps  located  in  your  web
       browser's download directory.

       This feature was added in hledger 1.30, so you won't see it in most CSV
       rules  examples.   But it helps remove some of the busywork of managing
       CSV downloads.  Most of your financial institutions's default CSV file-
       names are different and can be recognised by a glob  pattern.   So  you
       can  put  a  rule like source Checking1*.csv in foo-checking.csv.rules,
       and then periodically follow a workflow like:

       1. Download CSV from Foo's website, using your browser's defaults

       2. Run hledger import foo-checking.csv.rules to import any new transac-
          tions

       After import, you can: discard the CSV, or leave it where it is  for  a
       while,  or  move it into your archives, as you prefer.  If you do noth-
       ing, next time your browser will save something  like  Checking1-2.csv,
       and  hledger will use that because of the * wild card and because it is
       the most recent.

   Valid transactions
       After reading a CSV file, hledger post-processes and validates the gen-
       erated journal entries as it would for a journal file - balancing them,
       applying balance assignments, and canonicalising  amount  styles.   Any
       errors  at this stage will be reported in the usual way, displaying the
       problem entry.

       There is one exception: balance assertions, if you have generated them,
       will not be checked, since normally these will work only when  the  CSV
       data  is part of the main journal.  If you do need to check balance as-
       sertions generated from CSV right away, pipe into another hledger:

              $ hledger -f file.csv print | hledger -f- print

   Deduplicating, importing
       When you download a CSV file periodically, eg to get your  latest  bank
       transactions,  the  new  file  may overlap with the old one, containing
       some of the same records.

       The import command will (a) detect the new transactions, and (b) append
       just those transactions to your main journal.  It is idempotent, so you
       don't have to remember how many times you ran it or with which  version
       of  the CSV.  (It keeps state in a hidden .latest.FILE.csv file.)  This
       is the easiest way to import CSV data.  Eg:

              # download the latest CSV files, then run this command.
              # Note, no -f flags needed here.
              $ hledger import *.csv [--dry]

       This method works for most CSV files.  (Where  records  have  a  stable
       chronological order, and new records appear only at the new end.)

       A  number of other tools and workflows, hledger-specific and otherwise,
       exist for converting, deduplicating, classifying and managing CSV data.
       See:

       o https://hledger.org/cookbook.html#setups-and-workflows

       o https://plaintextaccounting.org -> data import/conversion

   Regular expressions in CSV rules
       Regular expressions in if conditions (AKA matchers) are POSIX  extended
       regular expressions, that also support GNU word boundaries (\b, \B, \<,
       \>), and nothing else.  (For more detail, see Regular expressions.)

       Here are some examples that might be useful in CSV rules:

       o Is field "foo" truly empty ?  if %foo ^$

       o Is it empty or containing only whitespace ?  if %foo ^ *$

       o Is it non-empty ?  if %foo .

       o Does it contain non-whitespace ?  if %foo [^ ]

       Testing  the value of numeric fields is a little harder.  You can't use
       hledger queries like amt:0 or amt:>10 in CSV rules.  But you can  often
       achieve the same thing with a regular expression.

       Note  the  content  and  layout of number fields in CSV varies, and can
       change over time (eg if you switch data providers).  So numeric regexps
       are always somewhat specific to your particular CSV data;  and  it's  a
       good idea to make them defensive and robust if you can.

       Here are some examples:

       o Does foo contain a non-zero number ?  if %foo [1-9]

       o Is it negative ?  if %foo -

       o Is it non-negative ?  if ! %foo -

       o Is  it  >= 10 ?  if %foo [1-9][0-9]+\. (assuming a decimal period and
         no leading zeros)

       o Is it >= 10 and < 20 ?  if %foo \b1[0-9]\.

   Setting amounts
       Continuing from amount field above, here are more tips for  amount-set-
       ting:

       1. If the amount is in a single CSV field:
           a. If its sign indicates direction of flow:
           Assign  it  to amountN, to set the Nth posting's amount.  N is usu-
           ally 1 or 2 but can go up to 99.

           b. If another field indicates direction of flow:
           Use one or more conditional rules to  set  the  appropriate  amount
           sign.  Eg:

                  # assume a withdrawal unless Type contains "deposit":
                  amount1  -%Amount
                  if %Type deposit
                    amount1  %Amount

       2. If  the amount is in two CSV fields (such as Debit and Credit, or In
          and Out):
           a. If both fields are unsigned:
           Assign one field  to  amountN-in  and  the  other  to  amountN-out.
           hledger  will  automatically  negate  the "out" field, and will use
           whichever field value is non-zero as posting N's amount.

           b. If either field is signed:
           You will probably need to override hledger's sign for  one  or  the
           other field, as in the following example:

                  # Negate the -out value, but only if it is not empty:
                  fields date, description, amount1-in, amount1-out
                  if %amount1-out [1-9]
                   amount1-out -%amount1-out

           c. If  both  fields  can  contain  a non-zero value (or both can be
              empty):
           The  -in/-out  rules   normally   choose   the   value   which   is
           non-zero/non-empty.   Some  value pairs can be ambiguous, such as 1
           and none.  For such cases, use conditional rules to help select the
           amount.  Eg, to handle the above you could select  the  value  con-
           taining non-zero digits:

                  fields date, description, in, out
                  if %in [1-9]
                   amount1 %in
                  if %out [1-9]
                   amount1 %out

       3. If you want posting 2's amount converted to cost:
       Use the unnumbered amount (or amount-in and amount-out) syntax.

       4. If the CSV has only balance amounts, not transaction amounts:
       Assign  to  balanceN,  to  set a balance assignment on the Nth posting,
       causing the posting's amount to be calculated  automatically.   balance
       with no number is equivalent to balance1.  In this situation hledger is
       more likely to guess the wrong default account name, so you may need to
       set that explicitly.

   Amount signs
       There is some special handling making it easier to parse and to reverse
       amount signs.  (This only works for whole amounts, not for cost amounts
       such as COST in amount1  AMT @ COST):

       o If an amount value begins with a plus sign:
       that will be removed: +AMT becomes AMT

       o If an amount value is parenthesised:
       it will be de-parenthesised and sign-flipped: (AMT) becomes -AMT

       o If  an  amount value has two minus signs (or two sets of parentheses,
         or a minus sign and parentheses):
       they cancel out and will be removed: --AMT or -(AMT) becomes AMT

       o If an amount value contains just a sign (or just a set  of  parenthe-
         ses):
       that  is removed, making it an empty value.  "+" or "-" or "()" becomes
       "".

       It's not possible (without preprocessing the CSV) to set an  amount  to
       its absolute value, ie discard its sign.

   Setting currency/commodity
       If  the  currency/commodity  symbol  is  included  in  the CSV's amount
       field(s):

              2023-01-01,foo,$123.00

       you don't have to do anything special for the commodity symbol, it will
       be assigned as part of the amount.  Eg:

              fields date,description,amount

              2023-01-01 foo
                  expenses:unknown         $123.00
                  income:unknown          $-123.00

       If the currency is provided as a separate CSV field:

              2023-01-01,foo,USD,123.00

       You can assign that to the currency pseudo-field, which has the special
       effect of prepending itself to every amount in the transaction (on  the
       left, with no separating space):

              fields date,description,currency,amount

              2023-01-01 foo
                  expenses:unknown       USD123.00
                  income:unknown        USD-123.00

       Or,  you  can  use a field assignment to construct the amount yourself,
       with more control.  Eg to put the symbol on the right, and separated by
       a space:

              fields date,description,cur,amt
              amount %amt %cur

              2023-01-01 foo
                  expenses:unknown        123.00 USD
                  income:unknown         -123.00 USD

       Note we used a temporary field name (cur) that is not currency  -  that
       would trigger the prepending effect, which we don't want here.

   Amount decimal places
       When  you  are  reading  CSV  data,  eg  with a command like hledger -f
       foo.csv print, hledger will infer each  commodity's  decimal  precision
       (and  other  commodity  display styles) from the amounts - much as when
       reading a journal file without commodity directives (see the link).

       Note, the commodity styles are not inferred from  the  numbers  in  the
       original CSV data; rather, they are inferred from the amounts generated
       by the CSV rules.

       When you are importing CSV data with the import command, eg hledger im-
       port  foo.csv,  there's  another step: import tries to make the new en-
       tries conform to the journal's existing styles.  So for each  commodity
       - let's say it's EUR - import will choose:

       1. the style declared for EUR by a commodity directive in the journal

       2. otherwise, the style inferred from EUR amounts in the journal

       3. otherwise,  the style inferred from EUR amounts generated by the CSV
          rules.

       TLDR: if import is not generating the precisions or  styles  you  want,
       add a commodity directive to specify them.

   Referencing other fields
       In  field assignments, you can interpolate only CSV fields, not hledger
       fields.  In the example below, there's both a CSV field and  a  hledger
       field  named  amount1, but %amount1 always means the CSV field, not the
       hledger field:

              # Name the third CSV field "amount1"
              fields date,description,amount1

              # Set hledger's amount1 to the CSV amount1 field followed by USD
              amount1 %amount1 USD

              # Set comment to the CSV amount1 (not the amount1 assigned above)
              comment %amount1

       Here, since there's no CSV amount1 field, %amount1 will produce a  lit-
       eral "amount1":

              fields date,description,csvamount
              amount1 %csvamount USD
              # Can't interpolate amount1 here
              comment %amount1

       When  there  are  multiple field assignments to the same hledger field,
       only the last one takes effect.  Here, comment's value will be be B, or
       C if "something" is matched, but never A:

              comment A
              comment B
              if something
               comment C

   How CSV rules are evaluated
       Here's how to think of CSV rules being evaluated.  If you get a confus-
       ing error while reading a CSV file, it may help to  try  to  understand
       which of these steps is failing:

       1. Any  included  rules  files  are  inlined, from top to bottom, depth
          first (scanning each included  file  for  further  includes,  recur-
          sively, before proceeding).

       2. Top  level  rules  (date-format, fields, newest-first, skip etc) are
          read, top to bottom.  "Top level rules" means non-conditional rules.
          If a rule occurs more than once,  the  last  one  wins;  except  for
          skip/end rules, where the first one wins.

       3. The  CSV file is read as text.  Any non-ascii characters will be de-
          coded using the text encoding specified by the encoding rule, other-
          wise the system locale's text encoding.

       4. Any top-level skip or end rule is  applied.   skip  [N]  immediately
          skips  the  current or next N CSV records; end immediately skips all
          remaining CSV records (not normally used at top level).

       5. Now any remaining CSV records are processed.  For each  CSV  record,
          in file order:

           o Is there a conditional skip/end rule that applies for this record
             ?  Search the if blocks, from top to bottom, for a succeeding one
             containing a skip or end rule.  If found, skip the specified num-
             ber of CSV records, then continue at 5.
           Otherwise...

           o Do  some  basic  validation on this CSV record (eg, check that it
             has at least two fields).

           o For each hledger field (date, description, account1, etc.):

             1. Get the field's assigned value, first searching top level  as-
                signments,  made  directly or by the fields rule, then assign-
                ments made inside succeeding if blocks.   If  there  are  more
                than one, the last one wins.

             2. Compute  the  field's actual value (as text), by interpolating
                any %CSVFIELD references within  the  assigned  value;  or  by
                choosing a default value if there was no assignment.

           o Generate  a  hledger  transaction  from the hledger field values,
             parsing them if needed (eg from text to an amount).

       This is all done by the CSV reader, one of several readers hledger  can
       use to read transactions from an input file.  When all input files have
       been  read  successfully,  their  transactions  are passed to whichever
       hledger command the user specified.

   Well factored rules
       Some things than can help reduce duplication and  complexity  in  rules
       files:

       o Extracting  common  rules  usable with multiple CSV files into a com-
         mon.rules, and adding include common.rules to each CSV's rules file.

       o Splitting if blocks into smaller if blocks, extracting the frequently
         used parts.

   CSV rules examples
   Bank of Ireland
       Here's a CSV with two amount fields (Debit and Credit), and  a  balance
       field,  which we can use to add balance assertions, which is not neces-
       sary but provides extra error checking:

              Date,Details,Debit,Credit,Balance
              07/12/2012,LODGMENT       529898,,10.0,131.21
              07/12/2012,PAYMENT,5,,126

              # bankofireland-checking.csv.rules

              # skip the header line
              skip

              # name the csv fields, and assign some of them as journal entry fields
              fields  date, description, amount-out, amount-in, balance

              # We generate balance assertions by assigning to "balance"
              # above, but you may sometimes need to remove these because:
              #
              # - the CSV balance differs from the true balance,
              #   by up to 0.0000000000005 in my experience
              #
              # - it is sometimes calculated based on non-chronological ordering,
              #   eg when multiple transactions clear on the same day

              # date is in UK/Ireland format
              date-format  %d/%m/%Y

              # set the currency
              currency  EUR

              # set the base account for all txns
              account1  assets:bank:boi:checking

              $ hledger -f bankofireland-checking.csv print
              2012-12-07 LODGMENT       529898
                  assets:bank:boi:checking         EUR10.0 = EUR131.2
                  income:unknown                  EUR-10.0

              2012-12-07 PAYMENT
                  assets:bank:boi:checking         EUR-5.0 = EUR126.0
                  expenses:unknown                  EUR5.0

       The balance assertions don't raise an error above, because we're  read-
       ing  directly  from  CSV, but they will be checked if these entries are
       imported into a journal file.

   Coinbase
       A simple example with some  CSV  from  Coinbase.   The  spot  price  is
       recorded  using  cost  notation.   The  legacy amount field name conve-
       niently sets amount 2 (posting 2's amount) to the total cost.

              # Timestamp,Transaction Type,Asset,Quantity Transacted,Spot Price Currency,Spot Price at Transaction,Subtotal,Total (inclusive of fees and/or spread),Fees and/or Spread,Notes
              # 2021-12-30T06:57:59Z,Receive,USDC,100,GBP,0.740000,"","","","Received 100.00 USDC from an external account"

              # coinbase.csv.rules
              skip         1
              fields       Timestamp,Transaction_Type,Asset,Quantity_Transacted,Spot_Price_Currency,Spot_Price_at_Transaction,Subtotal,Total,Fees_Spread,Notes
              date         %Timestamp
              date-format  %Y-%m-%dT%T%Z
              description  %Notes
              account1     assets:coinbase:cc
              amount       %Quantity_Transacted %Asset @ %Spot_Price_at_Transaction %Spot_Price_Currency

              $ hledger print -f coinbase.csv
              2021-12-30 Received 100.00 USDC from an external account
                  assets:coinbase:cc    100 USDC @ 0.740000 GBP
                  income:unknown                 -74.000000 GBP

   Amazon
       Here we convert amazon.com order history, and use an if block to gener-
       ate a third posting if there's a fee.  (In practice you'd probably  get
       this data from your bank instead, but it's an example.)

              "Date","Type","To/From","Name","Status","Amount","Fees","Transaction ID"
              "Jul 29, 2012","Payment","To","Foo.","Completed","$20.00","$0.00","16000000000000DGLNJPI1P9B8DKPVHL"
              "Jul 30, 2012","Payment","To","Adapteva, Inc.","Completed","$25.00","$1.00","17LA58JSKRD4HDGLNJPI1P9B8DKPVHL"

              # amazon-orders.csv.rules

              # skip one header line
              skip 1

              # name the csv fields, and assign the transaction's date, amount and code.
              # Avoided the "status" and "amount" hledger field names to prevent confusion.
              fields date, _, toorfrom, name, amzstatus, amzamount, fees, code

              # how to parse the date
              date-format %b %-d, %Y

              # combine two fields to make the description
              description %toorfrom %name

              # save the status as a tag
              comment     status:%amzstatus

              # set the base account for all transactions
              account1    assets:amazon
              # leave amount1 blank so it can balance the other(s).
              # I'm assuming amzamount excludes the fees, don't remember

              # set a generic account2
              account2    expenses:misc
              amount2     %amzamount
              # and maybe refine it further:
              #include categorisation.rules

              # add a third posting for fees, but only if they are non-zero.
              if %fees [1-9]
               account3    expenses:fees
               amount3     %fees

              $ hledger -f amazon-orders.csv print
              2012-07-29 (16000000000000DGLNJPI1P9B8DKPVHL) To Foo.  ; status:Completed
                  assets:amazon
                  expenses:misc          $20.00

              2012-07-30 (17LA58JSKRD4HDGLNJPI1P9B8DKPVHL) To Adapteva, Inc.  ; status:Completed
                  assets:amazon
                  expenses:misc          $25.00
                  expenses:fees           $1.00

   Paypal
       Here's  a  real-world rules file for (customised) Paypal CSV, with some
       Paypal-specific rules, and a second rules file included:

              "Date","Time","TimeZone","Name","Type","Status","Currency","Gross","Fee","Net","From Email Address","To Email Address","Transaction ID","Item Title","Item ID","Reference Txn ID","Receipt ID","Balance","Note"
              "10/01/2019","03:46:20","PDT","Calm Radio","Subscription Payment","Completed","USD","-6.99","0.00","-6.99","simon@joyful.com","memberships@calmradio.com","60P57143A8206782E","MONTHLY - $1 for the first 2 Months: Me - Order 99309. Item total: $1.00 USD first 2 months, then $6.99 / Month","","I-R8YLY094FJYR","","-6.99",""
              "10/01/2019","03:46:20","PDT","","Bank Deposit to PP Account ","Pending","USD","6.99","0.00","6.99","","simon@joyful.com","0TU1544T080463733","","","60P57143A8206782E","","0.00",""
              "10/01/2019","08:57:01","PDT","Patreon","PreApproved Payment Bill User Payment","Completed","USD","-7.00","0.00","-7.00","simon@joyful.com","support@patreon.com","2722394R5F586712G","Patreon* Membership","","B-0PG93074E7M86381M","","-7.00",""
              "10/01/2019","08:57:01","PDT","","Bank Deposit to PP Account ","Pending","USD","7.00","0.00","7.00","","simon@joyful.com","71854087RG994194F","Patreon* Membership","","2722394R5F586712G","","0.00",""
              "10/19/2019","03:02:12","PDT","Wikimedia Foundation, Inc.","Subscription Payment","Completed","USD","-2.00","0.00","-2.00","simon@joyful.com","tle@wikimedia.org","K9U43044RY432050M","Monthly donation to the Wikimedia Foundation","","I-R5C3YUS3285L","","-2.00",""
              "10/19/2019","03:02:12","PDT","","Bank Deposit to PP Account ","Pending","USD","2.00","0.00","2.00","","simon@joyful.com","3XJ107139A851061F","","","K9U43044RY432050M","","0.00",""
              "10/22/2019","05:07:06","PDT","Noble Benefactor","Subscription Payment","Completed","USD","10.00","-0.59","9.41","noble@bene.fac.tor","simon@joyful.com","6L8L1662YP1334033","Joyful Systems","","I-KC9VBGY2GWDB","","9.41",""

              # paypal-custom.csv.rules

              # Tips:
              # Export from Activity -> Statements -> Custom -> Activity download
              # Suggested transaction type: "Balance affecting"
              # Paypal's default fields in 2018 were:
              # "Date","Time","TimeZone","Name","Type","Status","Currency","Gross","Fee","Net","From Email Address","To Email Address","Transaction ID","Shipping Address","Address Status","Item Title","Item ID","Shipping and Handling Amount","Insurance Amount","Sales Tax","Option 1 Name","Option 1 Value","Option 2 Name","Option 2 Value","Reference Txn ID","Invoice Number","Custom Number","Quantity","Receipt ID","Balance","Address Line 1","Address Line 2/District/Neighborhood","Town/City","State/Province/Region/County/Territory/Prefecture/Republic","Zip/Postal Code","Country","Contact Phone Number","Subject","Note","Country Code","Balance Impact"
              # This rules file assumes the following more detailed fields, configured in "Customize report fields":
              # "Date","Time","TimeZone","Name","Type","Status","Currency","Gross","Fee","Net","From Email Address","To Email Address","Transaction ID","Item Title","Item ID","Reference Txn ID","Receipt ID","Balance","Note"

              fields date, time, timezone, description_, type, status_, currency, grossamount, feeamount, netamount, fromemail, toemail, code, itemtitle, itemid, referencetxnid, receiptid, balance, note

              skip  1

              date-format  %-m/%-d/%Y

              # ignore some paypal events
              if
              In Progress
              Temporary Hold
              Update to
               skip

              # add more fields to the description
              description %description_ %itemtitle

              # save some other fields as tags
              comment  itemid:%itemid, fromemail:%fromemail, toemail:%toemail, time:%time, type:%type, status:%status_

              # convert to short currency symbols
              if %currency USD
               currency $
              if %currency EUR
               currency E
              if %currency GBP
               currency P

              # generate postings

              # the first posting will be the money leaving/entering my paypal account
              # (negative means leaving my account, in all amount fields)
              account1 assets:online:paypal
              amount1  %netamount

              # the second posting will be money sent to/received from other party
              # (account2 is set below)
              amount2  -%grossamount

              # if there's a fee, add a third posting for the money taken by paypal.
              if %feeamount [1-9]
               account3 expenses:banking:paypal
               amount3  -%feeamount
               comment3 business:

              # choose an account for the second posting

              # override the default account names:
              # if the amount is positive, it's income (a debit)
              if %grossamount ^[^-]
               account2 income:unknown
              # if negative, it's an expense (a credit)
              if %grossamount ^-
               account2 expenses:unknown

              # apply common rules for setting account2 & other tweaks
              include common.rules

              # apply some overrides specific to this csv

              # Transfers from/to bank. These are usually marked Pending,
              # which can be disregarded in this case.
              if
              Bank Account
              Bank Deposit to PP Account
               description %type for %referencetxnid %itemtitle
               account2 assets:bank:wf:pchecking
               account1 assets:online:paypal

              # Currency conversions
              if Currency Conversion
               account2 equity:currency conversion

              # common.rules

              if
              darcs
              noble benefactor
               account2 revenues:foss donations:darcshub
               comment2 business:

              if
              Calm Radio
               account2 expenses:online:apps

              if
              electronic frontier foundation
              Patreon
              wikimedia
              Advent of Code
               account2 expenses:dues

              if Google
               account2 expenses:online:apps
               description google | music

              $ hledger -f paypal-custom.csv  print
              2019-10-01 (60P57143A8206782E) Calm Radio MONTHLY - $1 for the first 2 Months: Me - Order 99309. Item total: $1.00 USD first 2 months, then $6.99 / Month  ; itemid:, fromemail:simon@joyful.com, toemail:memberships@calmradio.com, time:03:46:20, type:Subscription Payment, status:Completed
                  assets:online:paypal          $-6.99 = $-6.99
                  expenses:online:apps           $6.99

              2019-10-01 (0TU1544T080463733) Bank Deposit to PP Account for 60P57143A8206782E  ; itemid:, fromemail:, toemail:simon@joyful.com, time:03:46:20, type:Bank Deposit to PP Account, status:Pending
                  assets:online:paypal               $6.99 = $0.00
                  assets:bank:wf:pchecking          $-6.99

              2019-10-01 (2722394R5F586712G) Patreon Patreon* Membership  ; itemid:, fromemail:simon@joyful.com, toemail:support@patreon.com, time:08:57:01, type:PreApproved Payment Bill User Payment, status:Completed
                  assets:online:paypal          $-7.00 = $-7.00
                  expenses:dues                  $7.00

              2019-10-01 (71854087RG994194F) Bank Deposit to PP Account for 2722394R5F586712G Patreon* Membership  ; itemid:, fromemail:, toemail:simon@joyful.com, time:08:57:01, type:Bank Deposit to PP Account, status:Pending
                  assets:online:paypal               $7.00 = $0.00
                  assets:bank:wf:pchecking          $-7.00

              2019-10-19 (K9U43044RY432050M) Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. Monthly donation to the Wikimedia Foundation  ; itemid:, fromemail:simon@joyful.com, toemail:tle@wikimedia.org, time:03:02:12, type:Subscription Payment, status:Completed
                  assets:online:paypal             $-2.00 = $-2.00
                  expenses:dues                     $2.00
                  expenses:banking:paypal      ; business:

              2019-10-19 (3XJ107139A851061F) Bank Deposit to PP Account for K9U43044RY432050M  ; itemid:, fromemail:, toemail:simon@joyful.com, time:03:02:12, type:Bank Deposit to PP Account, status:Pending
                  assets:online:paypal               $2.00 = $0.00
                  assets:bank:wf:pchecking          $-2.00

              2019-10-22 (6L8L1662YP1334033) Noble Benefactor Joyful Systems  ; itemid:, fromemail:noble@bene.fac.tor, toemail:simon@joyful.com, time:05:07:06, type:Subscription Payment, status:Completed
                  assets:online:paypal                       $9.41 = $9.41
                  revenues:foss donations:darcshub         $-10.00  ; business:
                  expenses:banking:paypal                    $0.59  ; business:

Timeclock
       hledger can read time logs in the  timeclock  time  logging  format  of
       timeclock.el.   As  with  Ledger,  hledger's timeclock format is a sub-
       set/variant of timeclock.el's.

       hledger's timeclock format was updated in hledger 1.43  and  1.50.   If
       your  old  time  logs  are  rejected,  you  should adapt them to modern
       hledger; for now, you can  restore  the  pre-1.43  behaviour  with  the
       --old-timeclock flag.

       Here the timeclock format in hledger 1.50+:

              # Comment lines like these, and blank lines, are ignored:
              # comment line
              ; comment line
              * comment line

              # Lines beginning with b, h, or capital O are also ignored, for compatibility:
              b SIMPLEDATE HH:MM[:SS][+-ZZZZ][ TEXT]
              h SIMPLEDATE HH:MM[:SS][+-ZZZZ][ TEXT]
              O SIMPLEDATE HH:MM[:SS][+-ZZZZ][ TEXT]

              # Lines beginning with i or o are are clock-in / clock-out entries:
              i SIMPLEDATE HH:MM[:SS][+-ZZZZ] ACCOUNT[  DESCRIPTION][;COMMENT]]
              o SIMPLEDATE HH:MM[:SS][+-ZZZZ][ ACCOUNT][;COMMENT]

       The  date  is  a hledger simple date (YYYY-MM-DD or similar).  The time
       parts must use two digits.   The  seconds  are  optional.   A  +  or  -
       four-digit  time  zone is accepted for compatibility, but currently ig-
       nored; times are always interpreted as a local time.

       In clock-in entries (i), the account name is required.   A  transaction
       description, separated from the account name by 2+ spaces, is optional.
       A  transaction  comment, beginning with ;, is also optional.  (Indented
       following comment lines are also allowed, as in journal format.)

       In clock-out entries (o) have no description, but can have a comment if
       you wish.  A clock-in and clock-out pair form a  "transaction"  posting
       some number of hours to an account - also known as a session.  Eg:

              i 2015/03/30 09:00:00 session1
              o 2015/03/30 10:00:00

              $ hledger -f a.timeclock print
              2015-03-30 * 09:00-10:00
                  (session1)           1.00h

       Clock-ins and clock-outs are matched by their account/session name.  If
       a  clock-out does not specify a name, the most recent unclosed clock-in
       is closed.  You can have multiple sessions active simultaneously.   En-
       tries  are  processed  in the order they are parsed.  Sessions spanning
       more than one day are automatically split at day boundaries.

       Eg, the following time log:

              i 2015/03/30 09:00:00 some account  optional description after 2 spaces ; optional comment, tags:
              o 2015/03/30 09:20:00
              i 2015/03/31 22:21:45 another:account
              o 2015/04/01 02:00:34
              i 2015/04/02 12:00:00 another:account  ; this demonstrates multple sessions being clocked in
              i 2015/04/02 13:00:00 some account
              o 2015/04/02 14:00:00
              o 2015/04/02 15:00:00 another:account

       generates these transactions:

              $ hledger -f t.timeclock print
              2015-03-30 * optional description after 2 spaces   ; optional comment, tags:
                  (some account)           0.33h

              2015-03-31 * 22:21-23:59
                  (another:account)           1.64h

              2015-04-01 * 00:00-02:00
                  (another:account)           2.01h

              2015-04-02 * 12:00-15:00  ; this demonstrates multiple sessions being clocked in
                  (another:account)           3.00h

              2015-04-02 * 13:00-14:00
                  (some account)           1.00h

       Here is a sample.timeclock to download and some queries to try:

              $ hledger -f sample.timeclock balance                               # current time balances
              $ hledger -f sample.timeclock register -p 2009/3                    # sessions in march 2009
              $ hledger -f sample.timeclock register -p weekly --depth 1 --empty  # time summary by week

       To generate time logs, ie to clock in and clock out, you could:

       o use these shell aliases at the command line:

                alias ti='echo i `date "+%Y-%m-%d %H:%M:%S"` $* >>$TIMELOG'
                alias to='echo o `date "+%Y-%m-%d %H:%M:%S"` >>$TIMELOG'

       o or Emacs's built-in timeclock.el, or the extended timeclock-x.el, and
         perhaps the extras in ledgerutils.el

       o or use the old ti and to scripts in the ledger 2.x repository.  These
         rely on a "timeclock" executable which I think is just the  ledger  2
         executable renamed.

Timedot
       timedot  format  is hledger's human-friendly time logging format.  Com-
       pared to timeclock format, it is more convenient  for  quick,  approxi-
       mate,  and  retroactive  time logging, and more human-readable (you can
       see at a glance where time was spent).  A quick example:

              2023-05-01
              hom:errands          .... ....  ; two hours; the space is ignored
              fos:hledger:timedot  ..         ; half an hour
              per:admin:finance               ; no time spent yet

       hledger reads this as a transaction on this day with three (unbalanced)
       postings, where each dot represents "0.25".  No commodity symbol is as-
       sumed, but we typically interpret it as hours.

              $ hledger -f a.timedot print   # .timedot file extension (or timedot: prefix) is required
              2023-05-01 *
                  (hom:errands)                    2.00  ; two hours
                  (fos:hledger:timedot)            0.50  ; half an hour
                  (per:admin:finance)                 0

       A timedot file contains a series of transactions (usually one per day).
       Each begins with a simple date (Y-M-D, Y/M/D, or Y.M.D), optionally  be
       followed on the same line by a transaction description, and/or a trans-
       action comment following a semicolon.

       After the date line are zero or more time postings, consisting of:

       o An  account  name  -  any  hledger-style account name, optionally in-
         dented.

       o Two or more spaces - required if there is an amount  (as  in  journal
         format).

       o A timedot amount, which can be

         o empty (representing zero)

         o a  number,  optionally  followed by a unit s, m, h, d, w, mo, or y,
           representing a precise number  of  seconds,  minutes,  hours,  days
           weeks, months or years (hours is assumed by default), which will be
           converted  to hours according to 60s = 1m, 60m = 1h, 24h = 1d, 7d =
           1w, 30d = 1mo, 365d = 1y.

         o one or more  dots  (period  characters),  each  representing  0.25.
           These  are  the  dots  in "timedot".  Spaces are ignored and can be
           used for grouping/alignment.

         o Added in 1.32 one or more letters.  These are like  dots  but  they
           also  generate  a  tag t: (short for "type") with the letter as its
           value, and a separate posting for each of the  values.   This  pro-
           vides  a  second  dimension  of categorisation, viewable in reports
           with --pivot t.

       o An optional comment following a semicolon  (a  hledger-style  posting
         comment).

       There  is some flexibility to help with keeping time log data and notes
       in the same file:

       o Blank lines and lines beginning with # or ; are ignored.

       o After the first date line, lines which do not contain a double  space
         are parsed as postings with zero amount.  (hledger's register reports
         will show these if you add -E).

       o Before  the first date line, lines beginning with * (eg org headings)
         are ignored.  And from the first date line  onward,  Emacs  org  mode
         heading prefixes at the start of lines (one or more *'s followed by a
         space)  will  be  ignored.  This means the time log can also be a org
         outline.

       Timedot files don't support directives like journal files.  So a common
       pattern is to have a main journal file (eg time.journal) that  contains
       any  needed  directives,  and  then  includes the timedot file (include
       time.timedot).

   Timedot examples
       Numbers:

              2016/2/3
              inc:client1   4
              fos:hledger   3h
              biz:research  60m

       Dots:

              # on this day, 6h was spent on client work, 1.5h on haskell FOSS work, etc.
              2016/2/1
              inc:client1   .... .... .... .... .... ....
              fos:haskell   .... ..
              biz:research  .

              2016/2/2
              inc:client1   .... ....
              biz:research  .

              $ hledger -f a.timedot print date:2016/2/2
              2016-02-02 *
                  (inc:client1)          2.00

              2016-02-02 *
                  (biz:research)          0.25

              $ hledger -f a.timedot bal --daily --tree
              Balance changes in 2016-02-01-2016-02-03:

                          ||  2016-02-01d  2016-02-02d  2016-02-03d
              ============++========================================
               biz        ||         0.25         0.25         1.00
                 research ||         0.25         0.25         1.00
               fos        ||         1.50            0         3.00
                 haskell  ||         1.50            0            0
                 hledger  ||            0            0         3.00
               inc        ||         6.00         2.00         4.00
                 client1  ||         6.00         2.00         4.00
              ------------++----------------------------------------
                          ||         7.75         2.25         8.00

       Letters:

              # Activity types:
              #  c cleanup/catchup/repair
              #  e enhancement
              #  s support
              #  l learning/research

              2023-11-01
              work:adm  ccecces

              $ hledger -f a.timedot print
              2023-11-01
                  (work:adm)  1     ; t:c
                  (work:adm)  0.5   ; t:e
                  (work:adm)  0.25  ; t:s

              $ hledger -f a.timedot bal
                              1.75  work:adm
              --------------------
                              1.75

              $ hledger -f a.timedot bal --pivot t
                              1.00  c
                              0.50  e
                              0.25  s
              --------------------
                              1.75

       Org:

              * 2023 Work Diary
              ** Q1
              *** 2023-02-29
              **** DONE
              0700 yoga
              **** UNPLANNED
              **** BEGUN
              hom:chores
               cleaning  ...
               water plants
                outdoor - one full watering can
                indoor - light watering
              **** TODO
              adm:planning: trip
              *** LATER

       Using . as account name separator:

              2016/2/4
              fos.hledger.timedot  4h
              fos.ledger           ..

              $ hledger -f a.timedot --alias '/\./=:' bal -t
                              4.50  fos
                              4.00    hledger:timedot
                              0.50    ledger
              --------------------
                              4.50

PART 3: REPORTING CONCEPTS
Time periods
   Report start & end date
       Most hledger reports will by default show the full time  period  repre-
       sented  by  the  journal.   The  report start date will be the earliest
       transaction or posting date, and the report end date will be the latest
       transaction, posting, or market price date.

       Often you will want to see a shorter period, such as the current month.
       You can specify a start and/or end date with the -b/--begin,  -e/--end,
       or  -p/--period  options,  or  a date: query argument, described below.
       All of these accept the smart date syntax, also described below.

       End dates are exclusive; specify the day after the last day you want to
       see in the report.

       When dates are specified by multiple options, the last (right-most) op-
       tion wins.  And when date: queries and date options are  combined,  the
       report period will be their intersection.

       Examples:

       -b 2016/3/17
              beginning on St.  Patrick's day 2016

       -e 12/1
              ending at the start of December 1st in the current year

       -p 'this month'
              during the current month

       -p thismonth
              same as above, spaces are optional

       -b 2023
              beginning on the first day of 2023

       date:2023.. or date:2023-
              same as above

       -b 2024 -e 2025 -p '2000 to 2030' date:2020-01 date:2020 :
       during January 2020 (the smallest common period, with the -p overriding
       -b and -e)

   Smart dates
       In  hledger's user interfaces (though not in the journal file), you can
       optionally use "smart date" syntax.  Smart dates can  be  written  with
       english  words,  can  be relative, and can have parts omitted.  Missing
       parts are inferred as 1, when needed.  Smart dates can  be  interpreted
       as dates or periods depending on the context.

       Examples:

       2004-01-01, 2004/10/1, 2004.9.1, 20240504, 2024Q1 :
       Exact  dates.   The year must have at least four digits, the month must
       be 1-12, the day must be 1-31, the separator can be -  or  /  or  .  or
       nothing.   The q can be upper or lower case and the quarter number must
       be 1-4.

       2004-10
              start of month

       2004q3 start of third quarter of 2004

       q3     start of third quarter of current year

       2004   start of year

       10/1 or oct or october
              October 1st in current year

       21     21st day in current month

       yesterday, today, tomorrow
              -1, 0, 1 days from today

       last/this/next day/week/month/quarter/year
              -1, 0, 1 periods from the current period

       in n days/weeks/months/quarters/years
              n periods from the current period

       n days/weeks/months/quarters/years ahead
              n periods from the current period

       n days/weeks/months/quarters/years ago
              -n periods from the current period

       20181201
              8 digit YYYYMMDD with valid year month and day

       201812 6 digit YYYYMM with valid year and month

       Dates with no separators are allowed but might give surprising  results
       if mistyped:

       o 20181301 (YYYYMMDD with an invalid month) is parsed as an eight-digit
         year

       o 20181232 (YYYYMMDD with an invalid day) gives a parse error

       o 201801012  (a  valid  YYYYMMDD followed by additional digits) gives a
         parse error

       The meaning of relative dates depends on today's date.  If you need  to
       test  or reproduce old reports, you can use the --today option to over-
       ride that.  (Except for periodic transaction rules, which are  not  af-
       fected by --today.)

   Report intervals
       A  report interval can be specified so that reports like register, bal-
       ance or activity become multi-period, showing each subperiod as a sepa-
       rate row or column.

       The following standard  intervals  can  be  enabled  with  command-line
       flags:

       o -D/--daily

       o -W/--weekly

       o -M/--monthly

       o -Q/--quarterly

       o -Y/--yearly

       More  complex  intervals  can be specified using -p/--period, described
       below.

   Date adjustments
   Start date adjustment
       If you let hledger infer a report's start date, it will adjust the date
       to the previous natural boundary of the report interval, for convenient
       periodic reports.  (If you don't want that, specify a start date.)

       For example, if the journal's first transaction is on january 10th,

       o hledger register (no report interval) will start the report on  janu-
         ary 10th.

       o hledger  register  --monthly  will  start  the report on the previous
         month boundary, january 1st.

       o hledger register --monthly --begin 1/5 will start the report on janu-
         ary 5th [1].

       Also if you are generating transactions or budget goals  with  periodic
       transaction  rules,  their  start date may be adjusted in a similar way
       (in certain situations).

   End date adjustment
       A report's end date is always adjusted to include a whole number of in-
       tervals, so that the last subperiod has the same length as the others.

       For example, if the journal's last transaction is on february 20th,

       o hledger register will end the report on february 20th.

       o hledger register --monthly will end the report at the end  of  febru-
         ary.

       o hledger register --monthly --end 2/14 also will end the report at the
         end of february (overriding the requested end date).

       o hledger register --monthly --begin 1/5 --end 2/14 will end the report
         on march 4th [1].

       [1] Since hledger 1.29.

   Period headings
       With  non-standard  subperiods,  hledger will show "STARTDATE..ENDDATE"
       headings.  With standard subperiods (ie, starting on a natural interval
       boundary), you'll see more compact headings, which are usually  prefer-
       able.  (Though month names will be in english, currently.)

       So  if  you  are specifying a start date and you want compact headings:
       choose a start of year for yearly reports, a start of quarter for quar-
       terly reports, a start of month for monthly reports,  etc.   (Remember,
       you  can  write eg -b 2024 or 1/1 as a shortcut for a start of year, or
       2024-04 or 202404 or Apr for a start of month or quarter.)

       For weekly reports, choose a date that's a Monday.  (You can  try  dif-
       ferent  dates until you see the short headings, or write eg -b '3 weeks
       ago'.)

   Period expressions
       The -p/--period option specifies a period expression, which is  a  com-
       pact way of expressing a start date, end date, and/or report interval.

       Here's  a  period  expression with a start and end date (specifying the
       first quarter of 2009):

       -p "from 2009/1/1 to 2009/4/1"

       Several keywords like "from" and "to" are  supported  for  readability;
       these  are  optional.   "to"  can  also be written as ".." or "-".  The
       spaces are also optional, as long as you don't run two dates  together.
       So the following are equivalent to the above:

       -p "2009/1/1 2009/4/1"
       -p2009/1/1to2009/4/1
       -p2009/1/1..2009/4/1

       Dates  are  smart dates, so if the current year is 2009, these are also
       equivalent to the above:

       -p "1/1 4/1"
       -p "jan-apr"
       -p "this year to 4/1"

       If you specify only one date, the missing start or end date will be the
       earliest or latest transaction date in the journal:

       -p "from 2009/1/1"   everything  after  january
                            1, 2009
       -p "since 2009/1"    the  same, since is a syn-
                            onym
       -p "from 2009"       the same
       -p "to 2009"         everything before  january
                            1, 2009

       You can also specify a period by writing a single partial or full date:

       -p "2009"        the year 2009; equivalent to "2009/1/1 to 2010/1/1"
       -p "2009/1"      the  month  of january 2009; equivalent to "2009/1/1 to
                        2009/2/1"
       -p "2009/1/1"    the first day  of  2009;  equivalent  to  "2009/1/1  to
                        2009/1/2"

       or by using the "Q" quarter-year syntax (case insensitive):

       -p "2009Q1"       first  quarter  of  2009,  equivalent  to  "2009/1/1 to
                         2009/4/1"
       -p "q4"           fourth quarter of the current year

   Period expressions with a report interval
       A period expression can also begin with a  report  interval,  separated
       from the start/end dates (if any) by a space or the word in:

       -p "weekly from 2009/1/1 to 2009/4/1"
       -p "monthly in 2008"
       -p "quarterly"

   More complex report intervals
       Some more complex intervals can be specified within period expressions,
       such as:

       o biweekly (every two weeks)

       o fortnightly

       o bimonthly (every two months)

       o every day|week|month|quarter|year

       o every N days|weeks|months|quarters|years

       Weekly on a custom day:

       o every  Nth  day of week (th, nd, rd, or st are all accepted after the
         number)

       o every WEEKDAYNAME (full or three-letter english  weekday  name,  case
         insensitive)

       Monthly on a custom day:

       o every  Nth  day [of month] (31st day will be adjusted to each month's
         last day)

       o every Nth WEEKDAYNAME [of month]

       Yearly on a custom month and day:

       o every MM/DD [of year] (month number and day of month number)

       o every MONTHNAME DDth [of year] (full or  three-letter  english  month
         name, case insensitive, and day of month number)

       o every DDth MONTHNAME [of year] (equivalent to the above)

       Examples:

       -p "bimonthly from 2008"
       -p "every 2 weeks"
       -p  "every  5  months  from
       2009/03"
       -p "every 2nd day of week"    periods will go from Tue to Tue
       -p "every Tue"                same
       -p "every 15th day"           period boundaries will be on 15th  of  each
                                     month
       -p "every 2nd Monday"         period  boundaries will be on second Monday
                                     of each month
       -p "every 11/05"              yearly periods with boundaries  on  5th  of
                                     November
       -p "every 5th November"       same
       -p "every Nov 5th"            same

       Show  historical balances at end of the 15th day of each month (N is an
       end date, exclusive as always):

              $ hledger balance -H -p "every 16th day"

       Group postings from the start of wednesday  to  end  of  the  following
       tuesday (N is both (inclusive) start date and (exclusive) end date):

              $ hledger register checking -p "every 3rd day of week"

   Multiple weekday intervals
       This special form is also supported:

       o every WEEKDAYNAME,WEEKDAYNAME,... (full or three-letter english week-
         day names, case insensitive)

       Also,  weekday and weekendday are shorthand for mon,tue,wed,thu,fri and
       sat,sun.

       This is mainly intended for use with --forecast, to  generate  periodic
       transactions on arbitrary days of the week.  It may be less useful with
       -p, since it divides each week into subperiods of unequal length, which
       is unusual.  (Related: #1632)

       Examples:

       -p          "every   dates  will  be  Mon,  Wed,  Fri;  periods  will  be
       mon,wed,fri"         Mon-Tue, Wed-Thu, Fri-Sun
       -p "every weekday"   dates  will be Mon, Tue, Wed, Thu, Fri; periods will
                            be Mon, Tue, Wed, Thu, Fri-Sun
       -p "every weekend-   dates will be Sat, Sun; periods will be Sat, Sun-Fri
       day"

Depth
       With the --depth NUM option (short form, usually preferred: -NUM),  re-
       ports  will  show  accounts  only to the specified depth, hiding deeper
       subaccounts.  Use this when you want a summary with less detail.   This
       flag  has  the same effect as a depth: query argument.  So all of these
       are equivalent: depth:2, --depth=2, -2.

       You can also provide custom depths for specific accounts, by  providing
       a  REGEX=NUM  argument  instead of just NUM (since 1.41).  For example,
       --depth assets=2 (or depth:assets=2) will  collapse  accounts  matching
       the  regular  expression  "assets"  to depth 2.  So assets:bank:savings
       would be collapsed to  assets:bank,  but  liabilities:bank:credit  card
       would not be affected.

       If  REGEX  contains  spaces  or other special characters, enclose it in
       quotes in the usual way.  Eg: --depth 'credit card=2'

   Combining depth options
       If a command line contains multiple general depth options, the last one
       wins.  (Useful for overriding a depth specified by scripts.)

       Or a command may contain a combination of general and custom depth  op-
       tions.   In  this case, the most specifically (deepest) matching option
       wins.  Some examples:

       o --depth assets=3 --depth expenses=2 --depth 1 would collapse accounts
         containing "assets" to depth 3,  accounts  containing  "expenses"  to
         depth 2, and all other accounts to depth 1.

       o --depth assets=1 --depth savings=2 would collapse assets:bank:savings
         to  depth  2 (not depth 1; because "savings" matches a deeper part of
         the account name than "assets").

       Note currently, to override a custom  depth  option  --depth  REGEX=NUM
       with a later option, the later option must use the same REGEX.

Queries
       Many  hledger  commands  accept  query  arguments, which restrict their
       scope and let you report on a precise subset of your  data.   Here's  a
       quick overview of hledger's queries:

       o By  default,  a  query argument is treated as a case-insensitive sub-
         string pattern for matching account names.  Eg:

         dining groceries
         car:fuel
       o Patterns containing spaces or other special characters  must  be  en-
         closed in single or double quotes:

         'personal care'
       o Patterns  are  actually  regular  expressions,  so you can add regexp
         metacharacters for more precision (or you may need  to  backslash-es-
         cape certain characters; see "Regular expressions" above):

         '^expenses\b'
         'food$'
         'fuel|repair'
         'accounts (payable|receivable)'
       o To  match  something other than the account name, you can add a query
         type prefix, such as:

         date:202312-
         status:
         desc:amazon
         cur:USD
         cur:\\$
         amt:'>0'
         acct:groceries (but acct: is the default, so we usually don't  bother
         writing it)
       o To negate a query, add a not: prefix:

         not:status:'*'
         not:desc:'opening|closing'
         not:cur:USD
       o Multiple  query terms can be combined, as space-separated queries Eg:
         hledger print  date:2022  desc:amazon  desc:amzn  (show  transactions
         dated in 2022 whose description contains "amazon" or "amzn").
       o Or   more   flexibly   as   boolean   queries.    Eg:  hledger  print
         expr:'date:2022 and (desc:amazon or desc:amzn) and not date:202210'
       All hledger commands use the same query language,  but  different  com-
       mands  may interpret the query in different ways.  We haven't described
       the commands yet (that's coming in PART 4: COMMANDS below)  but  here's
       the gist of it:

       o Transaction-oriented  commands  (print, aregister, close, import, de-
         scriptions..)  try to match transactions (including the transaction's
         postings).

       o Posting-oriented commands (register, balance, balancesheet,  incomes-
         tatement, accounts..)  try to match postings.  Postings inherit their
         transaction's attributes for querying purposes, so transaction fields
         like date or description can still be referenced in a posting query.

       o A few commands match in more specific ways.  (Eg aregister, which has
         a special first argument.)

   Query types
       Here are the query types available:

   acct: query
       acct:REGEX, or just REGEX
       Match  account  names  containing this case insensitive regular expres-
       sion.
       This is the default query type, so we usually don't bother writing  the
       "acct:" prefix.

   amt: query
       amt:N, amt:'<N', amt:'<=N', amt:'>N', amt:'>=N'
       Match  postings  with a single-commodity amount equal to, less than, or
       greater than N. (Postings with multi-commodity amounts are  not  tested
       and   will   always  match.)   amt:  needs  quotes  to  hide  the  less
       than/greater than sign from the command line shell.

       The comparison has two modes: if N is preceded by a + or - sign (or  is
       0),  the two signed numbers are compared.  Otherwise, the absolute mag-
       nitudes are compared, ignoring sign.

       Keep in mind that amt: matches posting amounts, not account balances.

   code: query
       code:REGEX
       Match by transaction code (eg check number).

   cur: query
       cur:REGEX
       Match  postings  or  transactions  including  any  amounts  whose  cur-
       rency/commodity  symbol  is  fully  matched  by  REGEX.   (Contrary  to
       hledger's  usual  infix  matching.   To  do   infix   matching,   write
       .*REGEX.*.)  Note, to match special characters which are regex-signifi-
       cant,  you  need  to  escape them with \.  And for characters which are
       significant to your shell you will usually need one more level  of  es-
       caping.  Eg to match the dollar sign: cur:\\$ or cur:'\$'

   desc: query
       desc:REGEX
       Match transaction descriptions.

   date: query
       date:PERIODEXPR
       Match  dates  (or  with  the  --date2 flag, secondary dates) within the
       specified period.  PERIODEXPR is a period expression with no report in-
       terval.  Examples:
       date:2016, date:thismonth, date:2/1-2/15, date:2021-07-27..nextquarter.

   date2: query
       date2:PERIODEXPR
       If you use secondary dates: this matches  secondary  dates  within  the
       specified period.  It is not affected by the --date2 flag.

   depth: query
       depth:[REGEXP=]N
       Match  (or  display,  depending  on  command) accounts at or above this
       depth, optionally only for accounts matching a provided regular expres-
       sion.  See Depth for detailed rules.

   note: query
       note:REGEX
       Match transaction notes (the part of the description right of |, or the
       whole description if there's no |).

   payee: query
       payee:REGEX
       Match transaction payee/payer names (the part of the  description  left
       of |, or the whole description if there's no |).

   real: query
       real:, real:0
       Match real or virtual postings respectively.

   status: query
       status:, status:!, status:*
       Match unmarked, pending, or cleared transactions respectively.

   type: query
       type:TYPECODES
       Match  by account type (see Declaring accounts > Account types).  TYPE-
       CODES is one or more of the single-letter account type  codes  ALERXCV,
       case insensitive.  Note type:A and type:E will also match their respec-
       tive  subtypes  C  (Cash) and V (Conversion).  Certain kinds of account
       alias can disrupt account types, see Rewriting accounts >  Aliases  and
       account types.

   tag: query
       tag:NAMEREGEX[=VALREGEX]
       Match by tag name, and optionally also by tag value.  Note:

       o Both  regular  expressions do infix matching.  If you need a complete
         match, use ^ and $.
       Eg: tag:'^fullname$', tag:'^fullname$=^fullvalue$

       o To match values, ignoring names, do tag:.=VALREGEX

       o Accounts also inherit the tags of their parent accounts.

       o Postings also inherit the tags of their account and their transaction
         .

       o Transactions also acquire the tags of their postings.

   Negative queries
   not: query
       not:QUERY
       You can prepend not: to a query to negate the match.
       Eg: not:equity, not:desc:apple
       (Also, a trick: not:not:... can sometimes solve query  problems  conve-
       niently.)

   Space-separated queries
       When  given  multiple space-separated query terms, most commands select
       things which match:

       o any of the description terms AND

       o any of the account terms AND

       o any of the status terms AND

       o all the other terms.

       The print command is a little different, showing transactions which:

       o match any of the description terms AND

       o have any postings matching any of the positive account terms AND

       o have no postings matching any of the negative account terms AND

       o match all the other terms.

   Boolean queries
       You can write more complicated "boolean" query expressions, enclosed in
       quotes and prefixed with expr:.  These can combine subqueries with NOT,
       AND, OR operators (case insensitive),  and  parentheses  for  grouping.
       Eg, to show transactions involving both cash and expense accounts:

              hledger print expr:'cash AND expenses'

       The  prefix  and  enclosing quotes are required, so don't write hledger
       print cash AND expenses.  That would be a space-separated query showing
       transactions involving accounts with any of "cash",  "and",  "expenses"
       in their names.

       You  can write space-separated queries inside a boolean query, and they
       will combine as described above, but it might  be  confusing  and  best
       avoided.   Eg these are equivalent, showing transactions involving cash
       or expenses accounts:

              hledger print expr:'cash expenses'
              hledger print cash expenses

       There is a restriction with date: queries: they may not be used  inside
       OR expressions.

       Actually,  there  are  three  types of boolean query: expr: for general
       use, and any: and all: variants which can be useful with print.

   expr: query
       expr:'QUERYEXPR'
       For example, expr:'date:lastmonth AND NOT (food OR rent)' means  "match
       things  which  are dated in the last month and do not have food or rent
       in the account name".

       When using expr: with transaction-oriented commands like  print,  post-
       ing-oriented  query  terms  like acct: and amt: are considered to match
       the transaction if they match any of its postings.
       So, hledger print expr:'cash and amt:>0' means "show transactions  with
       (at least one posting involving a cash account) and (at least one post-
       ing with a positive amount)".

   any: query
       any:'QUERYEXPR'
       Like  expr:,  but  when  used  with  transaction-oriented commands like
       print, it matches the transaction only if a posting can be  matched  by
       all of QUERYEXPR.
       So,  hledger print any:'cash and amt:>0' means "show transactions where
       at least one posting posts a positive amount to a cash account".

   all: query
       all:'QUERYEXPR'
       Like expr:, but  when  used  with  transaction-oriented  commands  like
       print,  it  matches the transaction only if all postings are matched by
       all of QUERYEXPR (and there is at least one posting).
       So, hledger print all:'cash and amt:0' means "show  transactions  where
       all postings involve a cash account and have a zero amount".
       Or, hledger print all:'cash or checking' means "show transactions which
       touch only cash and/or checking accounts".

   Queries and command options
       Some  queries can also be expressed as command-line options: depth:2 is
       equivalent to --depth 2, date:2023 is equivalent to -p 2023, etc.  When
       you mix command options and query arguments,  generally  the  resulting
       query is their intersection.

   Queries and account aliases
       When  account  names  are  rewritten  with --alias or alias, acct: will
       match either the old or the new account name.

   Queries and valuation
       When amounts are converted to other commodities in cost  or  value  re-
       ports,  cur: and amt: match the old commodity symbol and the old amount
       quantity, not the new ones.  (Except in hledger 1.22, #1625.)

Pivoting
       Normally, hledger groups amounts and displays their totals  by  account
       (name).   With  --pivot  PIVOTEXPR,  some  other  field's  (or multiple
       fields') value is used as a synthetic account name,  causing  different
       grouping and display.  PIVOTEXPR can be

       o any  of  these standard transaction or posting fields (their value is
         substituted): status, code, desc, payee, note, acct,  comm/cur,  amt,
         cost

       o or a tag name

       o or any combination of these, colon-separated.

       Some special cases:

       o Colons appearing in PIVOTEXPR or in a pivoted tag value will generate
         account hierarchy.

       o When pivoting a posting that has multiple values for a tag, the tag's
         first value will be used as the pivoted value.

       o When  a  posting  has  multiple  commodities,  the  pivoted  value of
         "comm"/"cur" will be "".  Also when an unrecognised tag name or field
         is provided, its pivoted value will be "".  (If this causes confusing
         output, consider excluding those postings from the report.)

       Examples:

              2016/02/16 Yearly Dues Payment
                  assets:bank account                 2 EUR
                  income:dues                        -2 EUR  ; member: John Doe, kind: Lifetime

       Normal balance report showing account names:

              $ hledger balance
                             2 EUR  assets:bank account
                            -2 EUR  income:dues
              --------------------
                                 0

       Pivoted balance report, using member: tag values instead:

              $ hledger balance --pivot member
                             2 EUR
                            -2 EUR  John Doe
              --------------------
                                 0

       One way to show only amounts with a member: value (using a query):

              $ hledger balance --pivot member tag:member=.
                            -2 EUR  John Doe
              --------------------
                            -2 EUR

       Another way (the acct:  query  matches  against  the  pivoted  "account
       name"):

              $ hledger balance --pivot member acct:.
                            -2 EUR  John Doe
              --------------------
                            -2 EUR

       Hierarchical reports can be generated with multiple pivot values:

              $ hledger balance Income:Dues --pivot kind:member
                            -2 EUR  Lifetime:John Doe
              --------------------
                            -2 EUR

Generating data
       hledger  can enrich the data provided to it, or generate new data, in a
       number of ways.  Mostly, this is done only if you request it:

       o Missing amounts or missing costs in transactions are  inferred  auto-
         matically when possible.

       o The  --infer-equity  flag  infers  missing conversion equity postings
         from @/@@ costs.

       o The --infer-costs flag infers missing costs  from  conversion  equity
         postings.

       o The --infer-market-prices flag infers P price directives from costs.

       o The  --auto  flag adds extra postings to transactions matched by auto
         posting rules.

       o The --forecast option generates transactions from  periodic  transac-
         tion rules.

       o The  balance --budget report infers budget goals from periodic trans-
         action rules.

       o Commands like close, rewrite, and hledger-interest generate  transac-
         tions or postings.

       o CSV  data  is  converted  to  transactions by applying CSV conversion
         rules..  etc.

       Such generated data is temporary, existing only at  report  time.   You
       can  convert it to permanent recorded data by, eg, capturing the output
       of hledger print and saving it in your journal file.   This  can  some-
       times be useful as a data entry aid.

       If  you  are  curious what data is being generated and why, run hledger
       print -x --verbose-tags.   -x/--explicit  shows  inferred  amounts  and
       --verbose-tags  adds  tags  like  generated-transaction  (from periodic
       rules) and generated-posting, modified (from auto posting rules).  Sim-
       ilar hidden tags (with an underscore prefix) are always present,  also,
       so  you  can  always match such data with queries like tag:generated or
       tag:modified.

Forecasting
       Forecasting, or speculative future reporting, can be useful  for  esti-
       mating future balances, or for exploring different future scenarios.

       The simplest and most flexible way to do it with hledger is to manually
       record a bunch of future-dated transactions.  You could keep these in a
       separate  future.journal and include that with -f only when you want to
       see them.

   --forecast
       There is another way: with the --forecast option, hledger can  generate
       temporary  "forecast transactions" for reporting purposes, according to
       periodic transaction rules defined in the journal.  Each rule can  gen-
       erate  multiple recurring transactions, so by changing one rule you can
       change many forecasted transactions.

       Forecast transactions usually start after  ordinary  transactions  end.
       By default, they begin after your latest-dated ordinary transaction, or
       today,  whichever  is  later, and they end six months from today.  (The
       exact rules are a little more complicated, and are given below.)

       This is the "forecast period", which need not be the same as the report
       period.  You can override it - eg to forecast farther into the  future,
       or to force forecast transactions to overlap your ordinary transactions
       -  by  giving  the --forecast option a period expression argument, like
       --forecast=..2099 or --forecast=2023-02-15...  Note that the =  is  re-
       quired.

   Inspecting forecast transactions
       print  is  the best command for inspecting and troubleshooting forecast
       transactions.  Eg:

              ~ monthly from 2022-12-20    rent
                  assets:bank:checking
                  expenses:rent           $1000

              $ hledger print --forecast --today=2023/4/21
              2023-05-20 rent
                  ; generated-transaction: ~ monthly from 2022-12-20
                  assets:bank:checking
                  expenses:rent                  $1000

              2023-06-20 rent
                  ; generated-transaction: ~ monthly from 2022-12-20
                  assets:bank:checking
                  expenses:rent                  $1000

              2023-07-20 rent
                  ; generated-transaction: ~ monthly from 2022-12-20
                  assets:bank:checking
                  expenses:rent                  $1000

              2023-08-20 rent
                  ; generated-transaction: ~ monthly from 2022-12-20
                  assets:bank:checking
                  expenses:rent                  $1000

              2023-09-20 rent
                  ; generated-transaction: ~ monthly from 2022-12-20
                  assets:bank:checking
                  expenses:rent                  $1000

       Here there are no ordinary transactions, so the forecasted transactions
       begin on the first occurrence after today's date.  (You won't  normally
       use --today; it's just to make these examples reproducible.)

   Forecast reports
       Forecast transactions affect all reports, as you would expect.  Eg:

              $ hledger areg rent --forecast --today=2023/4/21
              Transactions in expenses:rent and subaccounts:
              2023-05-20 rent                 as:ba:checking               $1000         $1000
              2023-06-20 rent                 as:ba:checking               $1000         $2000
              2023-07-20 rent                 as:ba:checking               $1000         $3000
              2023-08-20 rent                 as:ba:checking               $1000         $4000
              2023-09-20 rent                 as:ba:checking               $1000         $5000

              $ hledger bal -M expenses --forecast --today=2023/4/21
              Balance changes in 2023-05-01..2023-09-30:

                             ||   May    Jun    Jul    Aug    Sep
              ===============++===================================
               expenses:rent || $1000  $1000  $1000  $1000  $1000
              ---------------++-----------------------------------
                             || $1000  $1000  $1000  $1000  $1000

   Forecast tags
       Forecast  transactions generated by --forecast have a hidden tag, _gen-
       erated-transaction.  So if you ever need  to  match  forecast  transac-
       tions, you could use tag:_generated-transaction (or just tag:generated)
       in a query.

       For  troubleshooting, you can add the --verbose-tags flag.  Then, visi-
       ble generated-transaction tags will be added also, so you can view them
       with the print command.  Their value indicates which periodic rule  was
       responsible.

   Forecast period, in detail
       Forecast start/end dates are chosen so as to do something useful by de-
       fault  in  almost  all situations, while also being flexible.  Here are
       (with luck) the exact rules, to help with troubleshooting:

       The forecast period starts on:

       o the later of

         o the start date in the periodic transaction rule

         o the start date in --forecast's argument

       o otherwise (if those are not available): the later of

         o the report start date specified with -b/-p/date:

         o the day after the latest ordinary transaction in the journal

       o otherwise (if none of these are available): today.

       The forecast period ends on:

       o the earlier of

         o the end date in the periodic transaction rule

         o the end date in --forecast's argument

       o otherwise: the report end date specified with -e/-p/date:

       o otherwise: 180 days (~6 months) from today.

   Forecast troubleshooting
       When --forecast is not doing what you expect, one of these tips  should
       help:

       o Remember to use the --forecast option.

       o Remember to have at least one periodic transaction rule in your jour-
         nal.

       o Test with print --forecast.

       o Check  for  typos or too-restrictive start/end dates in your periodic
         transaction rule.

       o Leave at least 2 spaces between the rule's period expression and  de-
         scription fields.

       o Check  for  future-dated ordinary transactions suppressing forecasted
         transactions.

       o Try setting explicit report start and/or end dates with -b, -e, -p or
         date:

       o Try adding the -E flag to encourage  display  of  empty  periods/zero
         transactions.

       o Try  setting  explicit  forecast  start and/or end dates with --fore-
         cast=START..END

       o Consult Forecast period, in detail, above.

       o Check inside the engine: add --debug=2 (eg).

Budgeting
       With the balance command's --budget report, each  periodic  transaction
       rule  generates recurring budget goals in specified accounts, and goals
       and actual performance can be compared.  See the balance command's  doc
       below.

       You  can  generate  budget  goals and forecast transactions at the same
       time, from the same or different periodic  transaction  rules:  hledger
       bal -M --budget --forecast ...

       See also: Budgeting and Forecasting.

Amount formatting
   Commodity display style
       For the amounts in each commodity, hledger chooses a consistent display
       style  (symbol placement, decimal mark and digit group marks, number of
       decimal digits) to use in most reports.  This is inferred as follows:

       First, if there's a D directive declaring  a  default  commodity,  that
       commodity  symbol and amount format is applied to all no-symbol amounts
       in the journal.

       Then each commodity's display style is determined  from  its  commodity
       directive.   We  recommend  always declaring commodities with commodity
       directives, since they help ensure consistent display styles and preci-
       sions, and bring other benefits such as error  checking  for  commodity
       symbols.  Here's an example:

              # Set display styles (and decimal marks, for parsing, if there is no decimal-mark directive)
              # for the $, EUR, INR and no-symbol commodities:
              commodity $1,000.00
              commodity EUR 1.000,00
              commodity INR 9,99,99,999.00
              commodity 1 000 000.9455

       But  for  convenience, if a commodity directive is not present, hledger
       infers a commodity's display styles from its amounts as they are  writ-
       ten  in  the  journal  (excluding  cost amounts and amounts in periodic
       transaction rules or auto posting rules).  It uses

       o the symbol placement and decimal mark of the first amount seen

       o the digit group marks of the first amount with digit group marks

       o and the maximum number of decimal digits seen across all amounts.

       And as fallback if no applicable amounts are found, it would use a  de-
       fault style, like $1000.00 (symbol on the left with no space, period as
       decimal mark, and two decimal digits).

       Finally, commodity styles can be overridden by the -c/--commodity-style
       command line option.

   Rounding
       Amounts are stored internally as decimal numbers with up to 255 decimal
       places.   They  are displayed with their original journal precisions by
       print and print-like reports, and rounded to  their  display  precision
       (the number of decimal digits specified by the commodity display style)
       by  other  reports.   When rounding, hledger uses banker's rounding (it
       rounds to the nearest even digit).  So eg 0.5 displayed with zero deci-
       mal digits appears as "0".

   Trailing decimal marks
       If you're wondering why your print report sometimes shows trailing dec-
       imal marks, with no decimal digits; it does this when  showing  amounts
       that have digit group marks but no decimal digits, to disambiguate them
       and allow them to be re-parsed reliably (see Decimal marks).  Eg:

              commodity $1,000.00

              2023-01-02
                  (a)      $1000

              $ hledger print
              2023-01-02
                  (a)        $1,000.

       If this is a problem (eg when exporting to Ledger), you can avoid it by
       disabling  digit group marks, eg with -c/--commodity (for each affected
       commodity):

              $ hledger print -c '$1000.00'
              2023-01-02
                  (a)          $1000

       or by forcing print to always show decimal digits, with --round:

              $ hledger print -c '$1,000.00' --round=soft
              2023-01-02
                  (a)      $1,000.00

   Amount parseability
       More generally, hledger output falls into three rough categories, which
       format amounts a little bit differently to suit different consumers:

       1.  "hledger-readable output" - should be readable by hledger  (and  by
       humans)

       o This  is  produced  by reports that show full journal entries: print,
         import, close, rewrite etc.

       o It shows amounts with their original journal  precisions,  which  may
         not be consistent from one amount to the next.

       o It  adds a trailing decimal mark when needed to avoid showing ambigu-
         ous amounts.

       o It can be parsed reliably (by hledger and ledger2beancount at  least,
         but perhaps not by Ledger..)

       2.  "human-readable output" - usually for humans

       o This is produced by all other reports.

       o It shows amounts with standard display precisions, which will be con-
         sistent within each commodity.

       o It shows ambiguous amounts unmodified.

       o It  can be parsed reliably in the context of a known report (when you
         know decimals are consistently not being shown, you can assume a sin-
         gle mark is a digit group mark).

       3.  "machine-readable output" - usually for other software

       o This is produced by all reports when an output format like csv,  tsv,
         json, or sql is selected.

       o It shows amounts as 1 or 2 do, but without digit group marks.

       o It can be parsed reliably (if needed, the decimal mark can be changed
         with -c/--commodity-style).

Cost reporting
       In some transactions - for example a currency conversion, or a purchase
       or  sale  of  stock - one commodity is exchanged for another.  In these
       transactions there is a conversion rate, also  called  the  cost  (when
       buying)  or selling price (when selling).  (In hledger docs we just say
       "cost" generically for convenience.)  With the -B/--cost flag,  hledger
       can show amounts "at cost", converted to the cost's commodity.

   Recording costs
       We'll  explore  several ways of recording transactions involving costs.
       These are also summarised at hledger Cookbook > Cost notation.

       Costs can be recorded explicitly in the journal, using the  @  UNITCOST
       or @@ TOTALCOST notation described in Journal > Costs:

       Variant 1

              2022-01-01
                assets:dollars    $-135
                assets:euros       100 @ $1.35   ; $1.35 per euro (unit cost)

       Variant 2

              2022-01-01
                assets:dollars    $-135
                assets:euros       100 @@ $135   ; $135 total cost

       Typically,  writing  the unit cost (variant 1) is preferable; it can be
       more effort, requiring more attention to decimal digits; but it reveals
       the per-unit cost basis, and makes stock sales easier.

       Costs can also be left implicit, and hledger will infer the  cost  that
       is consistent with a balanced transaction:

       Variant 3

              2022-01-01
                assets:dollars    $-135
                assets:euros       100

       Here,  hledger  will  attach a @@ 100 cost to the first amount (you can
       see it with hledger print -x).  This form looks convenient,  but  there
       are downsides:

       o It  sacrifices some error checking.  For example, if you accidentally
         wrote 10 instead of 100, hledger would not be able to detect the mis-
         take.

       o It is sensitive to the order of postings - if they were  reversed,  a
         different entry would be inferred and reports would be different.

       o The per-unit cost basis is not easy to read.

       So  generally this kind of entry is not recommended.  You can make sure
       you have none of these by using -s (strict mode), or by running hledger
       check balanced.

   Reporting at cost
       Now when you add the -B/--cost flag to reports ("B"  is  from  Ledger's
       -B/--basis/--cost  flag),  any  amounts  which have been annotated with
       costs will be converted to their cost's commodity (in the  report  out-
       put).  Ie they will be displayed "at cost" or "at sale price".

       Some things to note:

       o Costs  are  attached to specific posting amounts in specific transac-
         tions, and once recorded they do not  change.   This  contrasts  with
         market prices, which are ambient and fluctuating.

       o Conversion  to  cost  is  performed before conversion to market value
         (described below).

   Equity conversion postings
       There is a problem with the entries above - they are  not  conventional
       Double  Entry  Bookkeeping (DEB) notation, and because of the "magical"
       transformation of one commodity into another, they cause  an  imbalance
       in the Accounting Equation.  This shows up as a non-zero grand total in
       balance reports like hledger bse.

       For  most hledger users, this doesn't matter in practice and can safely
       be ignored !  But if you'd like to learn more, keep reading.

       Conventional DEB uses an extra pair of equity postings to  balance  the
       transaction.  Of course you can do this in hledger as well:

       Variant 4

              2022-01-01
                  assets:dollars      $-135
                  assets:euros         100
                  equity:conversion    $135
                  equity:conversion   -100

       Now  the  transaction  is perfectly balanced according to standard DEB,
       and hledger bse's total will not be disrupted.

       And, hledger can still infer the cost for cost reporting, but it's  not
       done by default - you must add the --infer-costs flag like so:

              $ hledger print --infer-costs
              2022-01-01 one hundred euros purchased at $1.35 each
                  assets:dollars       $-135 @@ 100
                  assets:euros                  100
                  equity:conversion             $135
                  equity:conversion            -100

              $ hledger bal --infer-costs -B
                             -100  assets:dollars
                              100  assets:euros
              --------------------
                                 0

       Here are some downsides of this kind of entry:

       o The per-unit cost basis is not easy to read.

       o Instead of -B you must remember to type -B --infer-costs.

       o --infer-costs  works  only  where  hledger  can  identify the two eq-
         uity:conversion postings and match them up with  the  two  non-equity
         postings.   So  writing  the journal entry in a particular format be-
         comes more important.  More on this below.

   Inferring equity conversion postings
       Can we go in the other direction ?  Yes, if you have transactions writ-
       ten with the @/@@ cost notation, hledger can infer the  missing  equity
       postings, if you add the --infer-equity flag.  Eg:

              2022-01-01
                assets:dollars  -$135
                assets:euros     100 @ $1.35

              $ hledger print --infer-equity
              2022-01-01
                  assets:dollars                    $-135
                  assets:euros               100 @ $1.35
                  equity:conversion:$-:           -100
                  equity:conversion:$-:$         $135.00

       The  equity  account  names  will be "equity:conversion:A-B:A" and "eq-
       uity:conversion:A-B:B" where A is the  alphabetically  first  commodity
       symbol.  You can customise the "equity:conversion" part by declaring an
       account with the V/Conversion account type.

       Note  you will need to add account declarations for these to your jour-
       nal, if you use check accounts or check --strict.

   Combining costs and equity conversion postings
       Finally, you can use both the @/@@ cost notation and equity postings at
       the same time.  This in theory gives the best of all worlds -  preserv-
       ing  the  accounting  equation,  revealing the per-unit cost basis, and
       providing more flexibility in how you write the entry:

       Variant 5

              2022-01-01 one hundred euros purchased at $1.35 each
                  assets:dollars      $-135
                  equity:conversion    $135
                  equity:conversion   -100
                  assets:euros         100 @ $1.35

       All the other variants above can (usually) be rewritten to  this  final
       form with:

              $ hledger print -x --infer-costs --infer-equity

       Downsides:

       o The  precise  format of the journal entry becomes more important.  If
         hledger can't detect and match up the cost and  equity  postings,  it
         will give a transaction balancing error.

       o The add command does not yet accept this kind of entry (#2056).

       o This is the most verbose form.

   Requirements for detecting equity conversion postings
       --infer-costs  has  certain  requirements (unlike --infer-equity, which
       always works).  It will infer costs only in transactions with:

       o Two non-equity postings, in different commodities.   Their  order  is
         significant: the cost will be added to the first of them.

       o Two  postings  to  equity  conversion  accounts, next to one another,
         which balance the two non-equity postings.  This balancing is checked
         to the same precision (number of decimal places) used in the  conver-
         sion posting's amount.  Equity conversion accounts are:

         o any accounts declared with account type V/Conversion, or their sub-
           accounts

         o otherwise,  accounts  named equity:conversion, equity:trade, or eq-
           uity:trading, or their subaccounts.

       And multiple such four-posting  groups  can  coexist  within  a  single
       transaction.   When  --infer-costs  fails,  it does not infer a cost in
       that transaction, and does not raise an  error  (ie,  it  infers  costs
       where it can).

       Reading  variant  5 journal entries, combining cost notation and equity
       postings, has all the same requirements.  When reading  such  an  entry
       fails, hledger raises an "unbalanced transaction" error.

   Infer cost and equity by default ?
       Should  --infer-costs  and  --infer-equity be enabled by default ?  Try
       using them always, eg with a shell alias:

              alias h="hledger --infer-equity --infer-costs"

       and let us know what problems you find.

Value reporting
       hledger can also show amounts "at  market  value",  converted  to  some
       other  commodity using the market price or conversion rate on a certain
       date.

       This is controlled by the  --value=TYPE[,COMMODITY]  option.   We  also
       provide  simpler  -V and -X COMMODITY aliases for this, which are often
       sufficient.  The market prices are declared with a special P directive,
       and/or they can be inferred from the costs recorded in transactions, by
       using the --infer-market-prices flag.

   -X: Value in specified commodity
       The -X COMM (or --exchange=COMM) option converts amounts to their  mar-
       ket value in the specified commodity, using the market prices in effect
       on the valuation date(s), if any.  (More on these in a minute.)

       Use this when you want to (eg) show everything in your base currency as
       far  as  possible.   (Commodities  for  which no conversion rate can be
       found, will not be converted.)

       COMM should be the full commodity symbol or name.   Remember  to  quote
       special shell characters, if needed.  Some examples:

       o -X

       o -X$ (nothing after $, no quoting needed)

       o -X CNY (the space after -X is optional)

       o -X 'red apples'

       o -X 'r&r'

   -V: Value in default commodity(s)
       The -V/--market flag is a variant of -X where you don't have to specify
       COMM.  Instead it tries to guess a default valuation commodity for each
       original  commodity, based on the market prices in effect on the valua-
       tion date(s).

       -V can often be a convenient shortcut for -X MYCURRENCY,  but  not  al-
       ways; depending on your data it could guess multiple valuation commodi-
       ties.   Usually you want to convert to a single commodity, so it's bet-
       ter to use -X, unless you're sure -V is doing what you want.

   Valuation date
       Market prices can change from day to day.  hledger will use the  prices
       on  a particular valuation date (or on more than one date).  By default
       hledger uses "end" dates for valuation.  More specifically:

       o For single period reports (including normal print  and  register  re-
         ports):

         o If an explicit report end date is specified, that is used.

         o Otherwise  the  latest  transaction  date or non-future P directive
           date is used.

       o For multiperiod reports, each period is valued on its last day.

       This can be customised with the --value option described  below,  which
       can select either "then", "end", "now", or "custom" dates.

   Finding market price
       To  convert  a  commodity A to its market value in another commodity B,
       hledger looks for a suitable market price (exchange rate)  as  follows,
       in this order of preference:

       1. A  declared market price or inferred market price: A's latest market
          price in B on or before the valuation date as declared by a P direc-
          tive, or (with the --infer-market-prices flag) inferred from costs.

       2. A reverse market price: the inverse of a declared or inferred market
          price from B to A.

       3. A forward chain of market prices: a synthetic price formed  by  com-
          bining the shortest chain of "forward" (only 1 above) market prices,
          leading from A to B.

       4. Any  chain of market prices: a chain of any market prices, including
          both forward and reverse prices (1 and 2 above), leading from  A  to
          B.

       There  is  a  limit  to  the  length  of these price chains; if hledger
       reaches that length without finding a complete chain or exhausting  all
       possibilities,  it  will  give  up (with a "gave up" message visible in
       --debug=2 output).  That limit is currently 1000.

       Amounts for which no suitable market price can be found, are  not  con-
       verted.

   --infer-market-prices: market prices from transactions
       Normally, market value in hledger is fully controlled by, and requires,
       P directives in your journal.  Since adding and updating those can be a
       chore,  and  since  transactions  usually take place at close to market
       value, why not use the recorded costs as additional market  prices  (as
       Ledger  does)  ?   Adding  the  --infer-market-prices flag to -V, -X or
       --value enables this.

       So for example, hledger bs -V  --infer-market-prices  will  get  market
       prices  both from P directives and from transactions.  If both occur on
       the same day, the P directive takes precedence.

       There is a downside: value reports can sometimes be affected in confus-
       ing/undesired ways by your journal entries.  If this  happens  to  you,
       read  all  of  this  Value  reporting section carefully, and try adding
       --debug or --debug=2 to troubleshoot.

       --infer-market-prices can infer market prices from:

       o multicommodity transactions with explicit prices (@/@@)

       o multicommodity transactions with implicit prices (no @, two  commodi-
         ties,  unbalanced).   (With  these,  the  order  of postings matters.
         hledger print -x can be useful for troubleshooting.)

       o multicommodity transactions with equity postings, if cost is inferred
         with --infer-costs.

       There is a limitation (bug) currently: when a  valuation  commodity  is
       not  specified,  prices inferred with --infer-market-prices do not help
       select a default valuation commodity, as P prices would.  So conversion
       might not happen because no valuation commodity was detected (--debug=2
       will show this).  To be safe, specify the valuation commmodity, eg:

       o -X EUR --infer-market-prices, not -V --infer-market-prices

       o --value=then,EUR --infer-market-prices, not --value=then --infer-mar-
         ket-prices

       Signed costs and market prices can be confusing.  For  reference,  here
       is  the current behaviour, since hledger 1.25.  (If you think it should
       work differently, see #1870.)

              2022-01-01 Positive Unit prices
                  a        A 1
                  b        B -1 @ A 1

              2022-01-01 Positive Total prices
                  a        A 1
                  b        B -1 @@ A 1


              2022-01-02 Negative unit prices
                  a        A 1
                  b        B 1 @ A -1

              2022-01-02 Negative total prices
                  a        A 1
                  b        B 1 @@ A -1


              2022-01-03 Double Negative unit prices
                  a        A -1
                  b        B -1 @ A -1

              2022-01-03 Double Negative total prices
                  a        A -1
                  b        B -1 @@ A -1

       All of the transactions above are considered balanced (and on each day,
       the two transactions are considered equivalent).  Here are  the  market
       prices inferred for B:

              $ hledger -f- --infer-market-prices prices
              P 2022-01-01 B A 1
              P 2022-01-01 B A 1.0
              P 2022-01-02 B A -1
              P 2022-01-02 B A -1.0
              P 2022-01-03 B A -1
              P 2022-01-03 B A -1.0

   Valuation commodity
       When you specify a valuation commodity (-X COMM or --value TYPE,COMM):
       hledger  will convert all amounts to COMM, wherever it can find a suit-
       able market price (including by reversing or chaining prices).

       When you leave the  valuation  commodity  unspecified  (-V  or  --value
       TYPE):
       For  each  commodity  A, hledger picks a default valuation commodity as
       follows, in this order of preference:

       1. The price commodity from the latest P-declared market price for A on
          or before valuation date.

       2. The price commodity from the latest P-declared market price for A on
          any date.  (Allows conversion to proceed  when  there  are  inferred
          prices before the valuation date.)

       3. If  there are no P directives at all (any commodity or date) and the
          --infer-market-prices flag is used: the  price  commodity  from  the
          latest transaction-inferred price for A on or before valuation date.

       This means:

       o If  you  have  P directives, they determine which commodities -V will
         convert, and to what.

       o If you have no P directives, and use the --infer-market-prices  flag,
         costs determine it.

       Amounts  for  which  no  valuation  commodity can be found are not con-
       verted.

   --value: Flexible valuation
       -V and -X are special cases of the more general --value option:

               --value=TYPE[,COMM]  TYPE is then, end, now or YYYY-MM-DD.
                                    COMM is an optional commodity symbol.
                                    Shows amounts converted to:
                                    - default valuation commodity (or COMM) using market prices at posting dates
                                    - default valuation commodity (or COMM) using market prices at period end(s)
                                    - default valuation commodity (or COMM) using current market prices
                                    - default valuation commodity (or COMM) using market prices at some date

       The TYPE part selects cost or value and valuation date:

       --value=then
              Convert amounts to their value in the default valuation  commod-
              ity, using market prices on each posting's date.

       --value=end
              Convert  amounts to their value in the default valuation commod-
              ity, using market prices on the last day of  the  report  period
              (or  if  unspecified, the journal's end date); or in multiperiod
              reports, market prices on the last day of each subperiod.

       --value=now
              Convert amounts to their value in the default valuation  commod-
              ity  using  current  market  prices (as of when report is gener-
              ated).

       --value=YYYY-MM-DD
              Convert amounts to their value in the default valuation  commod-
              ity using market prices on this date.

       To select a different valuation commodity, add the optional ,COMM part:
       a  comma,  then  the  target  commodity's symbol.  Eg: --value=now,EUR.
       hledger will do its best to convert amounts to this commodity, deducing
       market prices as described above.

   Valuation examples
       Here are some quick examples of -V:

              ; one euro is worth this many dollars from nov 1
              P 2016/11/01  $1.10

              ; purchase some euros on nov 3
              2016/11/3
                  assets:euros        100
                  assets:checking

              ; the euro is worth fewer dollars by dec 21
              P 2016/12/21  $1.03

       How many euros do I have ?

              $ hledger -f t.j bal -N euros
                              100  assets:euros

       What are they worth at end of nov 3 ?

              $ hledger -f t.j bal -N euros -V -e 2016/11/4
                           $110.00  assets:euros

       What are they worth after 2016/12/21 ?  (no report end date  specified,
       defaults to today)

              $ hledger -f t.j bal -N euros -V
                           $103.00  assets:euros

       Here  are  some  examples  showing  the effect of --value, as seen with
       print:

              P 2000-01-01 A  1 B
              P 2000-02-01 A  2 B
              P 2000-03-01 A  3 B
              P 2000-04-01 A  4 B

              2000-01-01
                (a)      1 A @ 5 B

              2000-02-01
                (a)      1 A @ 6 B

              2000-03-01
                (a)      1 A @ 7 B

       Show the cost of each posting:

              $ hledger -f- print --cost
              2000-01-01
                  (a)             5 B

              2000-02-01
                  (a)             6 B

              2000-03-01
                  (a)             7 B

       Show the value as of the last day of the report period (2000-02-29):

              $ hledger -f- print --value=end date:2000/01-2000/03
              2000-01-01
                  (a)             2 B

              2000-02-01
                  (a)             2 B

       With no report period specified, the latest transaction date  or  price
       date is used as valuation date (2000-04-01):

              $ hledger -f- print --value=end
              2000-01-01
                  (a)             3 B

              2000-02-01
                  (a)             3 B

              2000-03-01
                  (a)             3 B

       The value today is the same (the 2000-04-01 price is still in effect):

              $ hledger -f- print --value=now
              2000-01-01
                  (a)             4 B

              2000-02-01
                  (a)             4 B

              2000-03-01
                  (a)             4 B

       Show the value on 2000/01/15:

              $ hledger -f- print --value=2000-01-15
              2000-01-01
                  (a)             1 B

              2000-02-01
                  (a)             1 B

              2000-03-01
                  (a)             1 B

   Interaction of valuation and queries
       When  matching  postings based on queries in the presence of valuation,
       the following happens:

       1. The query is separated into two parts:

           1. the currency (cur:) or amount (amt:).

           2. all other parts.

       2. The postings are matched to the currency and amount queries based on
          pre-valued amounts.

       3. Valuation is applied to the postings.

       4. The postings are matched to the other parts of the  query  based  on
          post-valued amounts.

       Related: #1625

   Effect of valuation on reports
       Here  is  a reference for how valuation is supposed to affect each part
       of hledger's reports.  It may be useful when troubleshooting.   If  you
       find problems, please report them, ideally with a reproducible example.
       Related: #329, #1083.

       First, a quick glossary:

       cost   calculated using price(s) recorded in the transaction(s).

       value  market  value  using available market price declarations, or the
              unchanged amount if no conversion rate can be found.

       report start
              the first day of the report period specified with -b  or  -p  or
              date:, otherwise today.

       report or journal start
              the  first  day  of the report period specified with -b or -p or
              date:, otherwise the earliest transaction date in  the  journal,
              otherwise today.

       report end
              the  last  day  of  the report period specified with -e or -p or
              date:, otherwise today.

       report or journal end
              the last day of the report period specified with  -e  or  -p  or
              date:,  otherwise  the  latest  transaction date in the journal,
              otherwise today.

       report interval
              a flag (-D/-W/-M/-Q/-Y) or period expression that activates  the
              report's multi-period mode (whether showing one or many subperi-
              ods).

       Report      -B, --cost     -V, -X         --value=then         --value=end    --value=DATE,
       type                                                                          --value=now
       --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
       print
       posting     cost           value at re-   value at  posting    value at re-   value      at
       amounts                    port  end or   date                 port      or   DATE/today
                                  today                               journal end
       balance     unchanged      unchanged      unchanged            unchanged      unchanged
       asser-
       tions/as-
       signments

       register
       starting    cost           value at re-   valued   at   day    value at re-   value      at
       balance                    port      or   each   historical    port      or   DATE/today
       (-H)                       journal end    posting was made     journal end
       starting    cost           value at day   valued   at   day    value at day   value      at
       balance                    before   re-   each   historical    before   re-   DATE/today
       (-H) with                  port      or   posting was made     port      or
       report                     journal                             journal
       interval                   start                               start
       posting     cost           value at re-   value at  posting    value at re-   value      at
       amounts                    port      or   date                 port      or   DATE/today
                                  journal end                         journal end
       summary     summarised     value at pe-   sum  of  postings    value at pe-   value      at
       posting     cost           riod ends      in interval, val-    riod ends      DATE/today
       amounts                                   ued  at  interval
       with  re-                                 start
       port  in-
       terval
       running     sum/average    sum/average    sum/average    of    sum/average    sum/average
       total/av-   of displayed   of displayed   displayed values     of displayed   of  displayed
       erage       values         values                              values         values

       balance
       (bs, bse,
       cf, is)
       balance     sums      of   value at re-   value at  posting    value at re-   value      at
       changes     costs          port  end or   date                 port      or   DATE/today of
                                  today     of                        journal  end   sums of post-
                                  sums      of                        of  sums  of   ings
                                  postings                            postings
       budget      like balance   like balance   like      balance    like    bal-   like  balance
       amounts     changes        changes        changes              ances          changes
       (--bud-
       get)
       grand to-   sum of  dis-   sum of  dis-   sum of  displayed    sum  of dis-   sum  of  dis-
       tal         played  val-   played  val-   valued               played  val-   played values
                   ues            ues                                 ues

       balance
       (bs, bse,
       cf,   is)
       with  re-
       port  in-
       terval
       starting    sums      of   value at re-   sums of values of    value at re-   sums of post-
       balances    costs     of   port   start   postings   before    port   start   ings   before
       (-H)        postings be-   of  sums  of   report  start  at    of  sums  of   report start
                   fore  report   all postings   respective  post-    all postings
                   start          before   re-   ing dates            before   re-
                                  port start                          port start
       balance     sums      of   same      as   sums of values of    balance        value      at
       changes     costs     of   --value=end    postings  in  pe-    change    in   DATE/today of
       (bal, is,   postings  in                  riod  at  respec-    each period,   sums of post-
       bs          period                        tive      posting    valued    at   ings
       --change,                                 dates                period ends
       cf
       --change)
       end  bal-   sums      of   same      as   sums of values of    period   end   value      at
       ances       costs     of   --value=end    postings from be-    balances,      DATE/today of
       (bal  -H,   postings                      fore period start    valued    at   sums of post-
       is   --H,   from  before                  to period end  at    period ends    ings
       bs, cf)     report start                  respective  post-
                   to    period                  ing dates
                   end
       budget      like balance   like balance   like      balance    like    bal-   like  balance
       amounts     changes/end    changes/end    changes/end  bal-    ances          changes/end
       (--bud-     balances       balances       ances                               balances
       get)
       row   to-   sums,  aver-   sums,  aver-   sums, averages of    sums,  aver-   sums,   aver-
       tals, row   ages of dis-   ages of dis-   displayed values     ages of dis-   ages  of dis-
       averages    played  val-   played  val-                        played  val-   played values
       (-T, -A)    ues            ues                                 ues
       column      sums of dis-   sums of dis-   sums of displayed    sums of dis-   sums  of dis-
       totals      played  val-   played  val-   values               played  val-   played values
                   ues            ues                                 ues
       grand to-   sum, average   sum, average   sum,  average  of    sum, average   sum,  average
       tal,        of    column   of    column   column totals        of    column   of column to-
       grand av-   totals         totals                              totals         tals
       erage


       --cumulative is omitted to save space, it works like -H but with a zero
       starting balance.

PART 4: COMMANDS
       Here are hledger's standard subcommands.  You can list these by running
       hledger.  If you have installed more add-on commands, they also will be
       listed.

       In  the  following  command  docs,  each command's specific options are
       shown.  Most commands also support the general options described above,
       though some of them might have no effect.  (Usually if there's a sensi-
       ble way for a general option to affect a command, it  will.)   You  can
       list all of a command's options by running hledger CMD -h.

       Help commands

       o commands - show the hledger commands list (default)

       o demo - show small hledger demos in the terminal

       o help - show the hledger manual with info, man, or pager

       User interface commands

       o repl - run commands from an interactive prompt

       o run - run commands from a script

       o ui - (if installed) run hledger's terminal UI

       o web - (if installed) run hledger's web UI

       Data entry commands

       o add - add transactions using terminal prompts

       o import - add new transactions from other files, eg CSV files

       Basic report commands

       o accounts - show account names

       o codes - show transaction codes

       o commodities - show commodity/currency symbols

       o descriptions - show transaction descriptions

       o files - show input file paths

       o notes - show note parts of transaction descriptions

       o payees - show payee parts of transaction descriptions

       o prices - show market prices

       o stats - show journal statistics

       o tags - show tag names

       Standard report commands

       o print - show transactions or export journal data

       o aregister (areg) - show transactions in a particular account

       o register  (reg) - show postings in one or more accounts & running to-
         tal

       o balancesheet (bs) - show assets, liabilities and net worth

       o balancesheetequity (bse) - show assets, liabilities and equity

       o cashflow (cf) - show changes in liquid assets

       o incomestatement (is) - show revenues and expenses

       Advanced report commands

       o balance (bal) - show balance changes, end balances, budgets, gains..

       o roi - show return on investments

       Chart commands

       o activity - show bar charts of posting counts per period

       Data generation commands

       o close - generate balance-zeroing/restoring transactions

       o rewrite - generate auto postings, like print --auto

       Maintenance commands

       o check - check for various kinds of error in the data

       o diff - compare account transactions in two journal files

       o setup - check and show the status of the hledger installation

       o test - run self tests

       Next, these commands are described in detail.

Help commands
   commands
       Show the hledger commands list.

              Flags:
                   --builtin             show only builtin commands, not addons

   demo
       Play demos of hledger usage in the terminal, if asciinema is installed.

              Flags:
                -s --speed=SPEED         playback speed (1 is original speed, .5 is half, 2
                                         is double, etc (default: 2))

       Run this command with no argument to list the demos.  To play  a  demo,
       write its number or a prefix or substring of its title.  Tips:

       Make your terminal window large enough to see the demo clearly.

       Use  the  -s/--speed SPEED option to set your preferred playback speed,
       eg -s4 to play at 4x original speed or -s.5 to play at half speed.  The
       default speed is 2x.

       During playback, several keys are available: SPACE to pause/unpause,  .
       to step forward (while paused), CTRL-c quit.

       Examples:

              $ hledger demo               # list available demos
              $ hledger demo 1             # play the first demo at default speed (2x)
              $ hledger demo install -s4   # play the "install" demo at 4x speed

       This command is experimental: there aren't many useful demos yet.

   help
       Show  the hledger user manual with info, man, or a pager.  With a (case
       insensitive) TOPIC argument, try to open it at that section heading.

              Flags:
                -i                       show the manual with info
                -m                       show the manual with man
                -p                       show the manual with $PAGER or less
                                         (less is always used if TOPIC is specified)

       This command shows the hledger manual built in  to  your  hledger  exe-
       cutable.   It can be useful when offline, or when you prefer the termi-
       nal to a web browser, or when the appropriate hledger manual or viewers
       are not installed properly on your system.

       By default it chooses the best viewer found in $PATH,  trying  in  this
       order:  info,  man,  $PAGER, less, more, stdout.  (If a TOPIC is speci-
       fied, $PAGER and more are not tried.)  You can force the use  of  info,
       man,  or  a  pager  with  the -i, -m, or -p flags.  If no viewer can be
       found, or if running non-interactively, it just prints  the  manual  to
       stdout.

       When  using  info, TOPIC can match either the full heading or a prefix.
       If your info --version is < 6, you'll need to upgrade it, eg with 'brew
       install texinfo' on mac.

       When using man or less, TOPIC must match the full heading.  For a  pre-
       fix match, you can write 'TOPIC.*'.

       Examples

              $ hledger help -h                 # show the help command's usage
              $ hledger help                    # show the manual with info, man or $PAGER
              $ hledger help 'time periods'     # show the manual's "Time periods" topic
              $ hledger help 'time periods' -m  # use man, even if info is installed

User interface commands
   repl
       Start  an  interactive  prompt, where you can run any of hledger's com-
       mands.  Data files are parsed just once, so the commands run faster.

              Flags:
              no command-specific flags

       This command is experimental and could change in the future.

       hledger repl starts a read-eval-print loop (REPL) where you  can  enter
       commands  interactively.   As with the run command, each input file (or
       each input file/input options combination) is parsed just once, so com-
       mands will run more quickly than if you ran them  individually  at  the
       command line.

       Also like run, the input file(s) specified for the repl command will be
       the  default input for all interactive commands.  You can override this
       temporarily by specifying an -f option  in  particular  commands.   But
       note  that commands will not see any changes made to input files (eg by
       add) until you exit and restart the REPL.

       The command syntax is the same as with run:

       o enter one hledger command at a time, without the usual hledger  first
         word

       o empty lines and comment text from # to end of line are ignored

       o use single or double quotes to quote arguments when needed

       o type exit or quit or control-D to exit the REPL.

       While  it  is running, the REPL remembers your command history, and you
       can navigate in the usual ways:

       o Keypad or Emacs navigation keys to edit the current command line

       o UP/DOWN or control-P/control-N to step back/forward through history

       o control-R to search for a past command

       o TAB to complete file paths.

       Generally repl command lines should feel much like the  normal  hledger
       CLI,  but  you  may find differences.  repl is a little stricter; eg it
       requires full command names or official abbreviations (as seen  in  the
       commands list).

       The commands and help commands, and the command help flags (CMD --tldr,
       CMD -h/--help, CMD --info, CMD --man), can be useful.

       You can type control-C to cancel a long-running command (but only once;
       typing it a second time will exit the REPL).

       And  in  most  shells you can type control-Z to temporarily exit to the
       shell (and then fg to return to the REPL).

   Examples
       Start the REPL and enter some commands:

              $ hledger repl
              Enter hledger commands. To exit, enter 'quit' or 'exit', or send EOF.
              % stats
              Main file           : .../2025.journal
              ...
              % stats -f 2024/2024.journal
              Main file           : .../2024.journal
              ...
              % stats
              Main file           : .../2025.journal
              ...

       or:

              $ hledger repl -f some.journal
              Enter hledger commands. To exit, enter 'quit' or 'exit', or send EOF.
              % bs
              ...
              % print -b 'last week'
              ...
              % bs -f other.journal
              ...

   run
       Run a sequence of hledger commands, provided as files or  command  line
       arguments.   Data  files  are  parsed  just  once,  so the commands run
       faster.

              Flags:
              no command-specific flags

       This command is experimental and could change in the future.

       You can use run in three ways:

       o hledger run -- CMD1 -- CMD2 -- CMD3 - read commands from the  command
         line, separated by --

       o hledger  run SCRIPTFILE1 SCRIPTFILE2 - read commands from one or more
         files

       o cat SCRIPTFILE1 | hledger run - read commands from standard input.

       run first loads the input file(s) specified by LEDGER_FILE or by -f op-
       tions, in the usual way.  Then it runs each command in turn, each using
       the same input data.  But if you want a particular command to use  dif-
       ferent  input,  you can specify an -f option within that command.  This
       will override (not add to) the default input, just for that command.

       Each input file (more precisely, each combination of input file and in-
       put options) is parsed only once.  This means that  commands  will  not
       see  any changes made to these files, until the next run.  But the com-
       mands will run more quickly than if run individually  (typically  about
       twice as fast).

       Command scripts, whether in a file or written on the command line, have
       a simple syntax:

       o each  line  may  contain  a single hledger command and its arguments,
         without the usual hledger first word

       o empty lines are ignored

       o text from # to end of line is a comment, and ignored

       o you can use single or double quotes to quote arguments  when  needed,
         as on the command line

       o these  extra  commands are available: echo TEXT prints some text, and
         exit or quit ends the run.

       On unix systems you can use #!/usr/bin/env hledger  run  in  the  first
       line  of a command file to make it a runnable script.  If that gives an
       error, use #!/usr/bin/env -S hledger run.

       It's ok to use the run command recursively within a command script.

       You may find some differences in behaviour between  run  command  lines
       and  normal hledger command lines.  run is a little stricter; eg it re-
       quires full command names or official abbreviations  (as  seen  in  the
       commands  list),  and command options must be written after the command
       name.

   Examples
       Run commands from the command line:

              hledger -f some.journal run -- balance assets --depth 2 -- balance liabilities -f /some/other.journal --depth 3 --transpose -- stats

       This would load some.journal, run balance assets --depth 2 on it,  then
       run  balance  liabilities --depth 3 --transpose on /some/other.journal,
       and finally run stats on some.journal

       Run commands from standard input:

              (echo "files"; echo "stats") | hledger -f some.journal run

       Run commands as a script:

              $ cat report
              #!/usr/bin/env -S hledger run -f some.journal

              echo "List of accounts in some.journal"
              accounts

              echo "Assets of some.journal"
              balance assets --depth 2

              echo "Liabilities from /some/other.journal"
              balance liabilities -f /some/other.journal --depth 3 --transpose

              echo "Commands from another.script, applied to another.journal"
              run -f another.journal another.script

              $ chmod +x report
              $ ./report
              List of accounts in some.journal
              ...

   ui
       Runs hledger-ui (if installed).

   web
       Runs hledger-web (if installed).

Data entry commands
   add
       Add new transactions to a journal file, with interactive prompting.

              Flags:
                   --no-new-accounts      don't allow creating new accounts

       Many hledger users edit their journals directly with a text editor,  or
       generate  them from CSV.  For more interactive data entry, there is the
       add command, which prompts interactively on the console for new  trans-
       actions,  and appends them to the main journal file (which should be in
       journal format).  Existing transactions are not changed.  This  is  one
       of  the  few hledger commands that writes to the journal file (see also
       import).

       To use it, just run hledger add and follow the prompts.  You can add as
       many transactions as you like; when you are finished, enter . or  press
       control-d or control-c to exit.

       Features:

       o add  tries to provide useful defaults, using the most similar (by de-
         scription) recent transaction (filtered by the query, if  any)  as  a
         template.

       o You can also set the initial defaults with command line arguments.

       o Readline-style edit keys can be used during data entry.

       o The  tab  key  will  auto-complete whenever possible - accounts, pay-
         ees/descriptions, dates (yesterday, today, tomorrow).  If  the  input
         area is empty, it will insert the default value.

       o A parenthesised transaction code may be entered following a date.

       o Comments and tags may be entered following a description or amount.

       o If you make a mistake, enter < at any prompt to go one step backward.

       o Input  prompts  are displayed in a different colour when the terminal
         supports it.

       Notes:

       o If you enter a number with no commodity symbol, and you have declared
         a default commodity with a D directive, you might expect add  to  add
         this  symbol for you.  It does not do this; we assume that if you are
         using a D directive you prefer not to see the  commodity  symbol  re-
         peated on amounts in the journal.

       o add  creates  entries in journal format; it won't work with timeclock
         or timedot files.

       Examples:

       o Record new transactions, saving to the default journal file:

         hledger add

       o Add transactions to 2024.journal, but also load 2023.journal for com-
         pletions:

         hledger add --file 2024.journal --file 2023.journal

       o Provide answers for the first four prompts:

         hledger add today 'best buy' expenses:supplies '$20'

       There is a detailed tutorial at https://hledger.org/add.html.

   add and balance assertions
       Since hledger 1.43, you can add a balance assertion by writing AMOUNT =
       BALANCE when asked for an amount.  Eg 100 = 500.

       Also, each time you enter a new amount, hledger re-checks  all  balance
       assertions  in  the journal and rejects the new amount if it would make
       any of them fail.  You can run add with -I/--ignore-assertions to  dis-
       able balance assertion checking.

   add and balance assignments
       Since  hledger 1.51, you can add a balance assignment by writing = BAL-
       ANCE (or ==, =* etc) when asked for an amount.  The missing amount will
       be calculated automatically.

       add normally won't let you add a new posting  which  is  dated  earlier
       than  an existing balance assignment.  (Because when add runs, existing
       balance assignments have  already  been  calculated  and  converted  to
       amounts and balance assertions.)  You can allow it by disabling balance
       assertion checking with -I.

   import
       Import  new  transactions from one or more data files to the main jour-
       nal.

              Flags:
                   --catchup              just mark all transactions as already imported
                   --dry-run              just show the transactions to be imported

       This command detects new transactions in one or more data files  speci-
       fied as arguments, and appends them to the main journal.

       You  can  import  from  any  input  file  format  hledger supports, but
       CSV/SSV/TSV files, downloaded from financial institutions, are the most
       common import source.

       The import destination is the default journal file, or  another  speci-
       fied  in the usual way with $LEDGER_FILE or -f/--file.  It should be in
       journal format.

       Examples:

              $ hledger import bank1-checking.csv bank1-savings.csv

              $ hledger import *.csv

   Import dry run
       It's useful to preview the import by running first with  --dry-run,  to
       sanity check the range of dates being imported, and to check the effect
       of your conversion rules if converting from CSV.  Eg:

              $ hledger import bank.csv --dry-run

       The dry run output is valid journal format, so hledger can re-parse it.
       If  the output is large, you could show just the uncategorised transac-
       tions like so:

              $ hledger import --dry-run bank.csv | hledger -f- -I print unknown

       You could also run this repeatedly to see the effect of edits  to  your
       conversion rules:

              $ watchexec -- "hledger import --dry-run bank.csv | hledger -f- -I print unknown"

       Once  the conversion and dates look good enough to import to your jour-
       nal, perhaps with some manual fixups to follow, you would do the actual
       import:

              $ hledger import bank.csv

   Overlap detection
       Reading CSV files is built in to hledger, and not specific  to  import;
       so   you   could  also  import  by  doing  hledger  -f  bank.csv  print
       >>$LEDGER_FILE.

       But import is easier and provides some advantages.   The  main  one  is
       that  it avoids re-importing transactions it has seen on previous runs.
       This means you don't have to worry about overlapping data in successive
       downloads of your bank CSV; just download and import as  often  as  you
       like, and only the new transactions will be imported each time.

       We  don't  call this "deduplication", as it's generally not possible to
       reliably detect duplicates in bank CSV.  Instead, import remembers  the
       latest  date processed previously in each CSV file (saving it in a hid-
       den file), and skips any records prior to that date.  This  works  well
       for most real-world CSV, where:

       1. the data file name is stable (does not change) across imports

       2. the item dates are stable across imports

       3. the order of same-date items is stable across imports

       4. the newest items have the newest dates

       (Occasional  violations  of  2-4 are often harmless; you can reduce the
       chance of disruption by downloading and importing more often.)

       Overlap detection is automatic, and shouldn't  require  much  attention
       from  you,  except perhaps at first import (see below).  But here's how
       it works:

       o For each FILE being imported from:

         1. hledger reads a file named .latest.FILE file in  the  same  direc-
            tory,  if  any.   This file contains the latest record date previ-
            ously imported from  FILE,  in  YYYY-MM-DD  format.   If  multiple
            records  with  that  date were imported, the date is repeated on N
            lines.

         2. hledger reads records from FILE.  If a latest date  was  found  in
            step  1,  any records before that date, and the first N records on
            that date, are skipped.

       o After a successful import from all FILEs, without error  and  without
         --dry-run, hledger updates each FILE's .latest.FILE for next time.

       If this goes wrong, it's relatively easy to repair:

       o You'll   notice  it  before  import  when  you  preview  with  import
         --dry-run.

       o Or after import when you try to reconcile your hledger  account  bal-
         ances with your bank.

       o hledger  print -f FILE.csv will show all recently downloaded transac-
         tions.  Compare these with your journal.  Copy/paste if needed.

       o Update your conversion rules and print again, if needed.

       o You can manually update or remove the .latest  file,  or  use  import
         --catchup FILE.

       o Download  and  import more often, eg twice a week, at least while you
         are learning.  It's easier to review and troubleshoot when there  are
         fewer transactions.

   First import
       The  first  time  you import from a file, when no corresponding .latest
       file has been created yet, all of the records will be imported.

       But perhaps you have been entering the data manually, so you know  that
       all of these transactions are already recorded in the journal.  In this
       case  you  can  run  hledger import --catchup once.  This will create a
       .latest file containing the latest CSV record date,  so  that  none  of
       those records will be re-imported.

       Or,  if  you  know that some but not all of the transactions are in the
       journal, you can create the .latest file yourself.  Eg, let's  say  you
       previously  recorded foobank transactions up to 2024-10-31 in the jour-
       nal.  Then in the directory where you'll  be  saving  foobank.csv,  you
       would create a .latest.foobank.csv file containing

              2024-10-31

       Or  if  you had three foobank transactions recorded with that date, you
       would repeat the date that many times:

              2024-10-31
              2024-10-31
              2024-10-31

       Then hledger import foobank.csv [--dry-run] will import only the  newer
       records.

   Importing balance assignments
       Journal  entries added by import will have all posting amounts made ex-
       plicit (like print -x).

       This means that any balance assignments in the imported  entries  would
       need  to  be evaluated.  But this generally isn't possible, as the main
       file's account balances are not visible during import.  So try to avoid
       generating balance assignments with your CSV rules, or importing from a
       journal that contains balance assignments.   (Balance  assignments  are
       best avoided anyway.)

       But  if  you must use them, eg because your CSV includes only balances:
       you can import with print,  which  leaves  implicit  amounts  implicit.
       (print can also do overlap detection like import, with the --new flag):

              $ hledger print --new -f bank.csv >> $LEDGER_FILE

       (If  you  think  import  should preserve implicit balances, please test
       that and send a pull request.)

   Import and commodity styles
       Amounts in entries added by import will be formatted according  to  the
       journal's  canonical  commodity styles, as declared by commodity direc-
       tives or inferred from the journal's amounts.

       Related: CSV > Amount decimal places.

   Import archiving
       When importing from a CSV rules file (hledger import  bank.rules),  you
       can  use  the  archive  rule  to enable automatic archiving of the data
       file.  After a successful import, the data file (specified  by  source)
       will  be  moved  to  an  archive folder (data/, next to the rules file,
       auto-created), and renamed similar to the  rules  file,  with  a  date.
       This  can  be  useful for troubleshooting, detecting variations in your
       banks' CSV data, regenerating entries with improved rules, etc.

       The archive rule also causes import to handle source glob patterns dif-
       ferently: when there are multiple matched files, it will pick the  old-
       est, not the newest.

   Import special cases
   Deduplication
       Here are two kinds of "deduplication" which import does not handle (and
       should not, because these can happen legitimately in financial data):

       o Two  or more of the new CSV records are identical, and generate iden-
         tical new journal entries.

       o A new CSV record generates a journal entry identical  to  one(s)  al-
         ready in the journal.

   Varying file name
       If you have a download whose file name varies, you could rename it to a
       fixed  name  after  each  download.  Or you could use a CSV source rule
       with a suitable glob pattern, and import from the .rules file.

   Multiple versions
       Say you download bank.csv, import it, but forget to delete it from your
       downloads folder.  The next time you download it, your web browser will
       save it as (eg) bank (2).csv.  The source rule's glob patterns are  for
       just  this  situation:  instead  of specifying source bank.csv, specify
       source bank*.csv.  Then hledger -f bank.rules  CMD  or  hledger  import
       bank.rules  will  automatically  pick  the  newest  matched  file (bank
       (2).csv).

       Alternately, what if you download, but forget to import or delete, then
       download again ?  Now each of bank.csv and bank (2).csv  might  contain
       data  that's  not in the other, and not in your journal.  In this case,
       it's best to import each of them  in  turn,  oldest  first  (otherwise,
       overlap detection could cause new records to be skipped).  Enabling im-
       port  archiving  ensures this.  Then hledger import bank.rules; hledger
       import bank.rules will import and archive  first  bank.csv,  then  bank
       (2).csv.

Basic report commands
   accounts
       List the account names used or declared in the journal.

              Flags:
                -u --used                 list accounts used
                -d --declared             list accounts declared
                   --undeclared           list accounts used but not declared
                   --unused               list accounts declared but not used
                   --find                 list the first account matched by the first
                                          argument (a case-insensitive infix regexp)
                   --directives           show as account directives, for use in journals
                   --locations            also show where accounts were declared
                   --types                also show account types when known
                -l --flat                 list/tree mode: show accounts as a flat list
                                          (default)
                -t --tree                 list/tree mode: show accounts as a tree
                   --drop=N               flat mode: omit N leading account name parts

       This  command lists account names - all of them by default, or just the
       ones which have been used in transactions (-u/--used), or declared with
       account directives (-d/--declared), or used but not  declared  (--unde-
       clared),  or  declared  but  not used (--unused), or just the first one
       matched by a pattern (--find, returning a  non-zero  exit  code  if  it
       fails).

       You  can  add query arguments to select a subset of transactions or ac-
       counts.

       With --directives, it shows valid account  directives  which  could  be
       pasted  into a journal file.  This is useful together with --undeclared
       when updating your account declarations to satisfy  hledger  check  ac-
       counts.

       With  --locations,  it  also shows the file and line number of each ac-
       count's declaration, if any, and the account's overall declaration  or-
       der; these may be useful when troubleshooting account display order.

       With  --types,  it also shows each account's type, if it's known.  (See
       Declaring accounts > Account types.)

       It shows a flat list by default.  With --tree, it uses  indentation  to
       show  the account hierarchy.  In flat mode you can add --drop N to omit
       the  first  few  account  name  components.   Account  names   can   be
       depth-clipped with depth:N or --depth N or -N.

       Examples:

              $ hledger accounts
              assets:bank:checking
              assets:bank:saving
              assets:cash
              expenses:food
              expenses:supplies
              income:gifts
              income:salary
              liabilities:debts

              $ hledger accounts --undeclared --directives >> $LEDGER_FILE
              $ hledger check accounts

   codes
       List the codes seen in transactions, in the order parsed.

              Flags:
              no command-specific flags

       This  command prints the value of each transaction's code field, in the
       order transactions were parsed.  The transaction code  is  an  optional
       value  written  in  parentheses between the date and description, often
       used to store a cheque number, order number or similar.

       Transactions aren't required to have a code, and missing or empty codes
       will not be shown by default.  With the -E/--empty flag, they  will  be
       printed as blank lines.

       You can add a query to select a subset of transactions.

       Examples:

              2022/1/1 (123) Supermarket
               Food       $5.00
               Checking

              2022/1/2 (124) Post Office
               Postage    $8.32
               Checking

              2022/1/3 Supermarket
               Food      $11.23
               Checking

              2022/1/4 (126) Post Office
               Postage    $3.21
               Checking

              $ hledger codes
              123
              124
              126

              $ hledger codes -E
              123
              124

              126

   commodities
       List the commodity symbols used or declared in the journal.

              Flags:
                   --used                 list commodities used
                   --declared             list commodities declared
                   --undeclared           list commodities used but not declared
                   --unused               list commodities declared but not used
                   --find                 list the first commodity matched by the first
                                          argument (a case-insensitive infix regexp)

       This command lists commodity symbols/names - all of them by default, or
       just  the ones which have been used in transactions or P directives, or
       declared with commodity directives, or used but not  declared,  or  de-
       clared  but  not used, or just the first one matched by a pattern (with
       --find, returning a non-zero exit code if it fails).

       You can add cur: query arguments to further limit the commodities.

   descriptions
       List the unique descriptions used in transactions.

              Flags:
              no command-specific flags

       This command lists the unique descriptions that appear in transactions,
       in alphabetic order.  You can add a query to select a subset of  trans-
       actions.

       Example:

              $ hledger descriptions
              Store Name
              Gas Station | Petrol
              Person A

   files
       List  all  files  included in the journal.  With a REGEX argument, only
       file names matching the regular expression (case sensitive) are shown.

              Flags:
              no command-specific flags

   notes
       List the unique notes that appear in transactions.

              Flags:
              no command-specific flags

       This command lists the unique notes that appear in transactions, in al-
       phabetic order.  You can add a query to select  a  subset  of  transac-
       tions.   The  note is the part of the transaction description after a |
       character (or if there is no |, the whole description).

       Example:

              $ hledger notes
              Petrol
              Snacks

   payees
       List the payee/payer names used or declared in the journal.

              Flags:
                   --used                 list payees used
                   --declared             list payees declared
                   --undeclared           list payees used but not declared
                   --unused               list payees declared but not used
                   --find                 list the first payee matched by the first
                                          argument (a case-insensitive infix regexp)

       This command lists unique payee/payer names - all of them  by  default,
       or  just  the ones which have been used in transaction descriptions, or
       declared with payee directives, or used but not declared,  or  declared
       but  not used, or just the first one matched by a pattern (with --find,
       returning a non-zero exit code if it fails).

       The payee/payer name is the part of the transaction description  before
       a | character (or if there is no |, the whole description).

       You  can add query arguments to select a subset of transactions or pay-
       ees.

       Example:

              $ hledger payees
              Store Name
              Gas Station
              Person A

   prices
       Print the market prices declared with P directives.  With  --infer-mar-
       ket-prices,  also show any additional prices inferred from costs.  With
       --show-reverse, also show additional prices inferred by reversing known
       prices.

              Flags:
                   --show-reverse         also show the prices inferred by reversing known
                                          prices

       Price amounts are always displayed with their  full  precision,  except
       for reverse prices which are limited to 8 decimal digits.

       Prices can be filtered by a date:, cur: or amt: query.

       Generally if you run this command with --infer-market-prices --show-re-
       verse,  it will show the same prices used internally to calculate value
       reports.  But if in doubt, you can inspect those  directly  by  running
       the value report with --debug=2.

   stats
       Show journal and performance statistics.

              Flags:
                -1                        show a single line of output
                -v --verbose              show more detailed output
                -o --output-file=FILE     write output to FILE.

       The stats command shows summary information for the whole journal, or a
       matched  part  of it.  With a reporting interval, it shows a report for
       each report period.

       It also shows some performance statistics:

       o how long the program ran for

       o the number of transactions processed per second

       o the peak live memory in use by the program to do its work

       o the peak allocated memory as seen by the program

       By default, the output is reasonably discreet; it reveals the main file
       name, your activity level, and the speed of your machine.

       With -v/--verbose, more details are shown: the full paths of all files,
       and the names of the commodities you work with.

       With -1, only one line  of  output  is  shown,  in  a  machine-friendly
       tab-separated  format: the program version, the main journal file name,
       and the performance stats,

       The run time of stats is similar to that of a balance report.

       Example:

              $ hledger stats -f examples/1ktxns-1kaccts.journal
              Main file           : .../1ktxns-1kaccts.journal
              Included files      : 0
              Txns span           : 2000-01-01 to 2002-09-27 (1000 days)
              Last txn            : 2002-09-26 (7827 days ago)
              Txns                : 1000 (1.0 per day)
              Txns last 30 days   : 0 (0.0 per day)
              Txns last 7 days    : 0 (0.0 per day)
              Payees/descriptions : 1000
              Accounts            : 1000 (depth 10)
              Commodities         : 26
              Market prices       : 1000
              Runtime stats       : 0.12 s elapsed, 8266 txns/s, 4 MB live, 16 MB alloc

              $ hledger stats -1 -f examples/10ktxns-1kaccts.journal
              1.50.99-g0835a2485-20251119, mac-aarch64    10ktxns-1kaccts.journal 0.66 s elapsed  15244 txns/s    28 MB live  86 MB alloc

       This command supports the -o/--output-file option  (but  not  -O/--out-
       put-format).

   tags
       List the tag names used or declared in the journal, or their values.

              Flags:
                   --used                 list tags used
                   --declared             list tags declared
                   --undeclared           list tags used but not declared
                   --unused               list tags declared but not used
                   --find                 list the first tag whose name is matched by the
                                          first argument (a case-insensitive infix regexp)
                   --values               list tag values instead of tag names
                   --parsed               show them in the order they were parsed (mostly),
                                          including duplicates

       This command lists tag names - all of them by default, or just the ones
       which  have  been  used  on transactions/postings/accounts, or declared
       with tag directives, or used but not  declared,  or  declared  but  not
       used,  or just the first one matched by a pattern (with --find, return-
       ing a non-zero exit code if it fails).

       Note this command's non-standard first argument: it is a  case-insensi-
       tive  infix regular expression for matching tag names, which limits the
       tags shown.  Any additional arguments  are  standard  query  arguments,
       which limit the transactions, postings, or accounts providing tags.

       With --values, the tags' unique non-empty values are listed instead.

       With -E/--empty, blank/empty values are also shown.

       With  --parsed, tags or values are shown in the order they were parsed,
       with duplicates included.  (Except, tags from account declarations  are
       always shown first.)

       Remember  that  accounts also acquire tags from their parents; postings
       also acquire tags from their account and transaction; and  transactions
       also acquire tags from their postings.

Standard report commands
   print
       Show full journal entries, representing transactions.

              Flags:
                -x --explicit             show all amounts explicitly
                   --invert               display all amounts with reversed sign
                   --locations            add tags showing file paths and line numbers
                -m --match=DESC           fuzzy search for one recent transaction with
                                          description closest to DESC
                   --new                  show only newer-dated transactions added in each
                                          file since last run
                   --round=TYPE           how much rounding or padding should be done when
                                          displaying amounts ?
                                          none - show original decimal digits,
                                                 as in journal (default)
                                          soft - just add or remove decimal zeros
                                                 to match precision
                                          hard - round posting amounts to precision
                                                 (can unbalance transactions)
                                          all  - also round cost amounts to precision
                                                 (can unbalance transactions)
                   --base-url=URLPREFIX   in html output, generate links to hledger-web,
                                          with this prefix. (Usually the base url shown by
                                          hledger-web; can also be relative.)
                -O --output-format=FMT    select the output format. Supported formats:
                                          txt, beancount, csv, tsv, html, fods, json, sql.
                -o --output-file=FILE     write output to FILE. A file extension matching
                                          one of the above formats selects that format.

       The print command displays full journal entries (transactions) from the
       journal file, sorted by date (or with --date2, by secondary date).

       Directives  and  inter-transaction  comments  are not shown, currently.
       This means the print command is somewhat lossy, and if you are using it
       to reformat/regenerate your journal you should take care to  also  copy
       over the directives and inter-transaction comments.

       Eg:

              $ hledger print -f examples/sample.journal date:200806
              2008/06/01 gift
                  assets:bank:checking            $1
                  income:gifts                   $-1

              2008/06/02 save
                  assets:bank:saving              $1
                  assets:bank:checking           $-1

              2008/06/03 * eat & shop
                  expenses:food                $1
                  expenses:supplies            $1
                  assets:cash                 $-2

   print amount explicitness
       Normally,  whether  posting  amounts  are  implicit or explicit is pre-
       served.  For example, when an amount is omitted in the journal, it will
       not appear in the output.  Similarly, if a conversion cost  is  implied
       but not written, it will not appear in the output.

       You  can  use  the  -x/--explicit flag to force explicit display of all
       amounts and costs.  This can be useful for troubleshooting or for  mak-
       ing  your  journal  more readable and robust against data entry errors.
       -x is also implied by using any of -B,-V,-X,--value.

       The -x/--explicit flag will cause any postings with  a  multi-commodity
       amount  (which  can arise when a multi-commodity transaction has an im-
       plicit amount) to be split  into  multiple  single-commodity  postings,
       keeping the output parseable.

   print alignment
       Amounts  are  shown  right-aligned  within  each  transaction  (but not
       aligned across all transactions; you can achieve that with  ledger-mode
       in Emacs).

   print amount style
       Amounts  will  be  displayed mostly in their commodity's display style,
       with standardised symbol  placement,  decimal  mark,  and  digit  group
       marks.   This  does  not  apply to their decimal digits; print normally
       shows the same decimal digits that are recorded in each journal entry.

       You can override the decimal precisions with  print's  special  --round
       option (since 1.32).  --round tries to show amounts with their commodi-
       ties' standard decimal precisions, increasingly strongly:

       o --round=none show amounts with original precisions (default)

       o --round=soft add/remove decimal zeros in amounts (except costs)

       o --round=hard  round  amounts (except costs), possibly hiding signifi-
         cant digits

       o --round=all round all amounts and costs

       soft is good for non-lossy cleanup, displaying more consistent decimals
       where possible, without making entries unbalanced.

       hard or all can be good for stronger cleanup, when decimal rounding  is
       wanted.   Note rounding can produce unbalanced journal entries, perhaps
       requiring manual fixup.

   print parseability
       Normally, print's output is a valid  hledger  journal,  which  you  can
       "pipe"  to  a  second  hledger command for further processing.  This is
       sometimes convenient for achieving certain kinds of query (though  less
       needed now that queries have become more powerful):

              # Show running total of food expenses paid from cash.
              # -f- reads from stdin. -I/--ignore-assertions is sometimes needed.
              $ hledger print assets:cash | hledger -f- -I reg expenses:food

       But  here  are some things which can cause print's output to become un-
       parseable:

       o --round (see above) can disrupt transaction balancing.

       o Account aliases or pivoting can disrupt account names, balance asser-
         tions, or balance assignments.

       o Value reporting also can disrupt balance assertions  or  balance  as-
         signments.

       o Auto postings can generate too many amountless postings.

       o --infer-costs  or  --infer-equity  can generate too-complex redundant
         costs.

       o Because print always shows transactions in date order, balance asser-
         tions involving non-date-ordered transactions (and same-day postings)
         could be disrupted.

   print, other features
       With -B/--cost, amounts with costs are shown converted to cost.

       With --invert, posting amounts are shown with their sign  flipped.   It
       could  be  useful  if  you have accidentally recorded some transactions
       with the wrong signs.

       With --new, print shows only transactions it has not seen on a previous
       run.  This uses the same deduplication system as  the  import  command.
       (See import's docs for details.)

       With -m DESC/--match=DESC, print shows one recent transaction whose de-
       scription  is  most  similar to DESC.  DESC should contain at least two
       characters.  If there is no similar-enough match, no  transaction  will
       be shown and the program exit code will be non-zero.

       With  --locations,  print adds the source file and line number to every
       transaction, as a tag.

   print output format
       This command also supports the output destination and output format op-
       tions The output formats supported are txt, beancount (Added in  1.32),
       csv, tsv (Added in 1.32), json and sql.

       The  beancount  format tries to produce Beancount-compatible output, as
       follows:

       o Transaction and  postings  with  unmarked  status  are  converted  to
         cleared (*) status.

       o Transactions'   payee   and   note  are  backslash-escaped  and  dou-
         ble-quote-escaped and wrapped in double quotes.

       o Transaction tags are copied to Beancount #tag format.

       o Commodity symbols are converted to upper case, and a small number  of
         currency  symbols  like $ are converted to the corresponding currency
         names.

       o Account name parts are capitalised and unsupported characters are re-
         placed with -.  If an account name part does not begin with a letter,
         or if the first part is not Assets, Liabilities, Equity,  Income,  or
         Expenses, an error is raised.  (Use --alias options to bring your ac-
         counts into compliance.)

       o An open directive is generated for each account used, on the earliest
         transaction date.

       Some limitations:

       o Balance assertions are removed.

       o Balance assignments become missing amounts.

       o Virtual and balanced virtual postings become regular postings.

       o Directives are not converted.

       Here's an example of print's CSV output:

              $ hledger print -Ocsv
              "txnidx","date","date2","status","code","description","comment","account","amount","commodity","credit","debit","posting-status","posting-comment"
              "1","2008/01/01","","","","income","","assets:bank:checking","1","$","","1","",""
              "1","2008/01/01","","","","income","","income:salary","-1","$","1","","",""
              "2","2008/06/01","","","","gift","","assets:bank:checking","1","$","","1","",""
              "2","2008/06/01","","","","gift","","income:gifts","-1","$","1","","",""
              "3","2008/06/02","","","","save","","assets:bank:saving","1","$","","1","",""
              "3","2008/06/02","","","","save","","assets:bank:checking","-1","$","1","","",""
              "4","2008/06/03","","*","","eat & shop","","expenses:food","1","$","","1","",""
              "4","2008/06/03","","*","","eat & shop","","expenses:supplies","1","$","","1","",""
              "4","2008/06/03","","*","","eat & shop","","assets:cash","-2","$","2","","",""
              "5","2008/12/31","","*","","pay off","","liabilities:debts","1","$","","1","",""
              "5","2008/12/31","","*","","pay off","","assets:bank:checking","-1","$","1","","",""

       o There  is  one  CSV record per posting, with the parent transaction's
         fields repeated.

       o The "txnidx" (transaction index) field shows which postings belong to
         the same transaction.  (This number might change if transactions  are
         reordered  within  the file, files are parsed/included in a different
         order, etc.)

       o The amount is separated into "commodity" (the  symbol)  and  "amount"
         (numeric quantity) fields.

       o The numeric amount is repeated in either the "credit" or "debit" col-
         umn,  for convenience.  (Those names are not accurate in the account-
         ing sense; it just puts negative amounts under  credit  and  zero  or
         greater amounts under debit.)

   aregister
       (areg)

       Show  the  transactions  and running balances in one account, with each
       transaction on one line.

              Flags:
                   --txn-dates            filter strictly by transaction date, not posting
                                          date. Warning: this can show a wrong running
                                          balance.
                   --no-elide             don't show only 2 commodities per amount
                   --cumulative           accumulation mode: show running total from report
                                          start date
                -H --historical           accumulation mode: show historical running
                                          total/balance (includes postings before report
                                          start date) (default)
                   --invert               display all amounts with reversed sign
                   --heading=YN           show heading row above table: yes (default) or no
                -w --width=N              set output width (default: terminal width). -wN,M
                                          sets description width as well.
                   --align-all            guarantee alignment across all lines (slower)
                -O --output-format=FMT    select the output format. Supported formats:
                                          txt, html, csv, tsv, json.
                -o --output-file=FILE     write output to FILE. A file extension matching
                                          one of the above formats selects that format.

       aregister shows the overall transactions affecting a particular account
       (and any subaccounts).  Each report line represents one transaction  in
       this  account.   Transactions before the report start date are included
       in the running balance (--historical mode is  the  default).   You  can
       suppress this behaviour using the --cumulative option.

       This  is  a more "real world", bank-like view than the register command
       (which shows individual postings, possibly from multiple accounts,  not
       necessarily in historical mode).  As a quick rule of thumb:

       o aregister  is  best  when  reconciling real-world asset/liability ac-
         counts

       o register is best when reviewing individual revenues/expenses.

       Note this command's non-standard,  and  required,  first  argument;  it
       specifies  the account whose register will be shown.  You can write the
       account's name, or (to save typing) a  case-insensitive  infix  regular
       expression  matching  the  name, which selects the alphabetically first
       matched account.  (For example, if you  have  assets:personal  checking
       and  assets:business  checking,  hledger areg checking would select as-
       sets:business checking.)

       Transactions involving subaccounts of this account will also be  shown.
       aregister  ignores depth limits, so its final total will always match a
       historical balance report with similar arguments.

       Any additional arguments are standard query arguments, which will limit
       the transactions shown.  Note some queries  will  disturb  the  running
       balance,  causing it to be different from the account's real-world run-
       ning balance.

       An example: this shows the transactions and historical running  balance
       during july, in the first account whose name contains "checking":

              $ hledger areg checking date:jul

       Each aregister line item shows:

       o the  transaction's date (or the relevant posting's date if different,
         see below)

       o the names of all the other account(s) involved  in  this  transaction
         (probably abbreviated)

       o the total change to this account's balance from this transaction

       o the account's historical running balance after this transaction.

       Transactions  making a net change of zero are not shown by default; add
       the -E/--empty flag to show them.

       For performance reasons, column widths are chosen based  on  the  first
       1000  lines;  this means unusually wide values in later lines can cause
       visual discontinuities as column widths are adjusted.  If you  want  to
       ensure  perfect alignment, at the cost of more time and memory, use the
       --align-all flag.

       By default, aregister shows a heading above the  data.   However,  when
       reporting  in  a  language different from English, it is easier to omit
       this heading and prepend your own  one.   For  this  purpose,  use  the
       --heading=no option.

       This command also supports the output destination and output format op-
       tions.  The output formats supported are txt, csv, tsv (Added in 1.32),
       html, fods (Added in 1.41) and json.

   aregister and posting dates
       aregister  always shows one line (and date and amount) per transaction.
       But sometimes transactions have postings with different  dates.   Also,
       not  all  of  a transaction's postings may be within the report period.
       To resolve this, aregister shows the earliest of the transaction's date
       and posting dates that is in-period, and the sum of the in-period post-
       ings.  In other words it will show a combined line item with  just  the
       earliest  date,  and  the  running balance will (temporarily, until the
       transaction's last posting) be inaccurate.  Use register -H if you need
       to see the individual postings.

       There is also a --txn-dates flag, which filters strictly by transaction
       date, ignoring posting dates.  This too can cause an inaccurate running
       balance.

   register
       (reg)

       Show postings and their running total.

              Flags:
                   --cumulative           accumulation mode: show running total from report
                                          start date (default)
                -H --historical           accumulation mode: show historical running
                                          total/balance (includes postings before report
                                          start date)
                -A --average              show running average of posting amounts instead
                                          of total (implies --empty)
                -m --match=DESC           fuzzy search for one recent posting with
                                          description closest to DESC
                -r --related              show postings' siblings instead
                   --invert               display all amounts with reversed sign
                   --sort=FIELDS          sort by: date, desc, account, amount, absamount,
                                          or a comma-separated combination of these. For a
                                          descending sort, prefix with -. (Default: date)
                -w --width=N              set output width (default: terminal width). -wN,M
                                          sets description width as well.
                   --align-all            guarantee alignment across all lines (slower)
                   --base-url=URLPREFIX   in html output, generate links to hledger-web,
                                          with this prefix. (Usually the base url shown by
                                          hledger-web; can also be relative.)
                -O --output-format=FMT    select the output format. Supported formats:
                                          txt, csv, tsv, html, fods, json.
                -o --output-file=FILE     write output to FILE. A file extension matching
                                          one of the above formats selects that format.

       The register command displays matched postings, across all accounts, in
       date order, with their running total  or  running  historical  balance.
       (See  also the aregister command, which shows matched transactions in a
       specific account.)

       register normally shows line per posting, but note that multi-commodity
       amounts will occupy multiple lines (one line per commodity).

       It is typically used with a query selecting a  particular  account,  to
       see that account's activity:

              $ hledger register checking
              2008/01/01 income               assets:bank:checking            $1           $1
              2008/06/01 gift                 assets:bank:checking            $1           $2
              2008/06/02 save                 assets:bank:checking           $-1           $1
              2008/12/31 pay off              assets:bank:checking           $-1            0

       With --date2, it shows and sorts by secondary date instead.

       For  performance  reasons,  column widths are chosen based on the first
       1000 lines; this means unusually wide values in later lines  can  cause
       visual  discontinuities  as column widths are adjusted.  If you want to
       ensure perfect alignment, at the cost of more time and memory, use  the
       --align-all flag.

       The  --historical/-H  flag  adds the balance from any undisplayed prior
       postings to the running total.  This is useful when  you  want  to  see
       only recent activity, with a historically accurate running balance:

              $ hledger register checking -b 2008/6 --historical
              2008/06/01 gift                 assets:bank:checking            $1           $2
              2008/06/02 save                 assets:bank:checking           $-1           $1
              2008/12/31 pay off              assets:bank:checking           $-1            0

       The --depth option limits the amount of sub-account detail displayed.

       The  --average/-A flag shows the running average posting amount instead
       of the running total (so, the final number displayed is the average for
       the whole report period).  This flag implies --empty (see  below).   It
       is  affected  by --historical.  It works best when showing just one ac-
       count and one commodity.

       The --related/-r flag shows the other postings in the  transactions  of
       the postings which would normally be shown.

       The  --invert flag negates all amounts.  For example, it can be used on
       an income account where amounts are normally displayed as negative num-
       bers.  It's also useful to show postings on the  checking  account  to-
       gether with the related account:

       The  --sort=FIELDS  flag sorts by the fields given, which can be any of
       account, amount, absamount, date, or desc/description, optionally sepa-
       rated by commas.  For example, --sort  account,amount  will  group  all
       transactions in each account, sorted by transaction amount.  Each field
       can  be  negated by a preceding -, so --sort -amount will show transac-
       tions ordered from smallest amount to largest amount.

              $ hledger register --related --invert assets:checking

       With a reporting interval, register shows summary postings, one per in-
       terval, aggregating the postings to each account:

              $ hledger register --monthly income
              2008/01                 income:salary                          $-1          $-1
              2008/06                 income:gifts                           $-1          $-2

       Periods with no activity, and summary postings with a zero amount,  are
       not shown by default; use the --empty/-E flag to see them:

              $ hledger register --monthly income -E
              2008/01                 income:salary                          $-1          $-1
              2008/02                                                          0          $-1
              2008/03                                                          0          $-1
              2008/04                                                          0          $-1
              2008/05                                                          0          $-1
              2008/06                 income:gifts                           $-1          $-2
              2008/07                                                          0          $-2
              2008/08                                                          0          $-2
              2008/09                                                          0          $-2
              2008/10                                                          0          $-2
              2008/11                                                          0          $-2
              2008/12                                                          0          $-2

       Often,  you'll want to see just one line per interval.  The --depth op-
       tion helps with this, causing subaccounts to be aggregated:

              $ hledger register --monthly assets --depth 1
              2008/01                 assets                                  $1           $1
              2008/06                 assets                                 $-1            0
              2008/12                 assets                                 $-1          $-1

       Note when using report intervals, if you specify start/end dates  these
       will  be adjusted outward if necessary to contain a whole number of in-
       tervals.  This ensures that the  first  and  last  intervals  are  full
       length and comparable to the others in the report.

       With  -m DESC/--match=DESC, register does a fuzzy search for one recent
       posting whose description is most similar to DESC.  DESC should contain
       at least two characters.  If there is no similar-enough match, no post-
       ing will be shown and the program exit code will be non-zero.

   Custom register output
       register normally uses the full terminal width (or  80  columns  if  it
       can't detect that).  You can override this with the --width/-w option.

       The  description  and  account columns normally share the space equally
       (about half of (width - 40) each).  You can adjust this by adding a de-
       scription width as part of --width's argument, comma-separated: --width
       W,D .  Here's a diagram (won't display correctly in --help):

              <--------------------------------- width (W) ---------------------------------->
              date (10)  description (D)       account (W-41-D)     amount (12)   balance (12)
              DDDDDDDDDD dddddddddddddddddddd  aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa  AAAAAAAAAAAA  AAAAAAAAAAAA

       and some examples:

              $ hledger reg                     # use terminal width (or 80 on windows)
              $ hledger reg -w 100              # use width 100
              $ hledger reg -w 100,40           # set overall width 100, description width 40

       This command also supports the output destination and output format op-
       tions The output formats supported are txt, csv, tsv (Added  in  1.32),
       and json.

   balancesheet
       (bs)

       Show  the  end  balances  in asset and liability accounts.  Amounts are
       shown with normal positive sign, as in  conventional  financial  state-
       ments.

              Flags:
                   --sum                  calculation mode: show sum of posting amounts
                                          (default)
                   --valuechange          calculation mode: show total change of value of
                                          period-end historical balances (caused by deposits,
                                          withdrawals, market price fluctuations)
                   --gain                 calculation mode: show unrealised capital
                                          gain/loss (historical balance value minus cost
                                          basis)
                   --count                calculation mode: show the count of postings
                   --change               accumulation mode: accumulate amounts from column
                                          start to column end (in multicolumn reports)
                   --cumulative           accumulation mode: accumulate amounts from report
                                          start (specified by e.g. -b/--begin) to column end
                -H --historical           accumulation mode: accumulate amounts from
                                          journal start to column end (includes postings
                                          before report start date) (default)
                -l --flat                 list/tree mode: show accounts as a flat list
                                          (default). Amounts exclude subaccount amounts,
                                          except where the account is depth-clipped.
                -t --tree                 list/tree mode: show accounts as a tree. Amounts
                                          include subaccount amounts.
                   --drop=N               in list mode, omit N leading account name parts
                   --declared             include non-parent declared accounts (best used
                                          with -E)
                -A --average              show a row average column (in multicolumn
                                          reports)
                -T --row-total            show a row total column (in multicolumn reports)
                   --summary-only         display only row summaries (e.g. row total,
                                          average) (in multicolumn reports)
                -N --no-total             omit the final total row
                   --no-elide             in tree mode, don't squash boring parent accounts
                   --format=FORMATSTR     use this custom line format (in simple reports)
                -S --sort-amount          sort by amount instead of account code/name
                -% --percent              express values in percentage of each column's
                                          total
                   --layout=ARG           how to show multi-commodity amounts:
                                          'wide[,WIDTH]': all commodities on one line
                                          'tall'        : each commodity on a new line
                                          'bare'        : bare numbers, symbols in a column
                   --base-url=URLPREFIX   in html output, generate hyperlinks to
                                          hledger-web, with this prefix. (Usually the base
                                          url shown by hledger-web; can also be relative.)
                -O --output-format=FMT    select the output format. Supported formats:
                                          txt, html, csv, tsv, json.
                -o --output-file=FILE     write output to FILE. A file extension matching
                                          one of the above formats selects that format.

       This  command  displays a balance sheet, showing historical ending bal-
       ances of asset and liability accounts.  (To see equity as well, use the
       balancesheetequity command.)

       Accounts declared with the Asset, Cash or Liability type are shown (see
       account types).   Or  if  no  such  accounts  are  declared,  it  shows
       top-level  accounts named asset or liability (case insensitive, plurals
       allowed) and their subaccounts.

       Example:

              $ hledger balancesheet
              Balance Sheet 2008-12-31

                                  || 2008-12-31
              ====================++============
               Assets             ||
              --------------------++------------
               assets:bank:saving ||         $1
               assets:cash        ||        $-2
              --------------------++------------
                                  ||        $-1
              ====================++============
               Liabilities        ||
              --------------------++------------
               liabilities:debts  ||        $-1
              --------------------++------------
                                  ||        $-1
              ====================++============
               Net:               ||          0

       This command is a higher-level variant of the balance command, and sup-
       ports many of that command's features, such  as  multi-period  reports.
       It  is  similar  to  hledger  balance  -H  assets liabilities, but with
       smarter account detection, and liabilities displayed  with  their  sign
       flipped.

       This command also supports the output destination and output format op-
       tions  The  output formats supported are txt, csv, tsv (Added in 1.32),
       html, and json.

   balancesheetequity
       (bse)

       This command displays a balance sheet, showing historical  ending  bal-
       ances  of asset, liability and equity accounts.  Amounts are shown with
       normal positive sign, as in conventional financial statements.

              Flags:
                   --sum                  calculation mode: show sum of posting amounts
                                          (default)
                   --valuechange          calculation mode: show total change of value of
                                          period-end historical balances (caused by deposits,
                                          withdrawals, market price fluctuations)
                   --gain                 calculation mode: show unrealised capital
                                          gain/loss (historical balance value minus cost
                                          basis)
                   --count                calculation mode: show the count of postings
                   --change               accumulation mode: accumulate amounts from column
                                          start to column end (in multicolumn reports)
                   --cumulative           accumulation mode: accumulate amounts from report
                                          start (specified by e.g. -b/--begin) to column end
                -H --historical           accumulation mode: accumulate amounts from
                                          journal start to column end (includes postings
                                          before report start date) (default)
                -l --flat                 list/tree mode: show accounts as a flat list
                                          (default). Amounts exclude subaccount amounts,
                                          except where the account is depth-clipped.
                -t --tree                 list/tree mode: show accounts as a tree. Amounts
                                          include subaccount amounts.
                   --drop=N               in list mode, omit N leading account name parts
                   --declared             include non-parent declared accounts (best used
                                          with -E)
                -A --average              show a row average column (in multicolumn
                                          reports)
                -T --row-total            show a row total column (in multicolumn reports)
                   --summary-only         display only row summaries (e.g. row total,
                                          average) (in multicolumn reports)
                -N --no-total             omit the final total row
                   --no-elide             in tree mode, don't squash boring parent accounts
                   --format=FORMATSTR     use this custom line format (in simple reports)
                -S --sort-amount          sort by amount instead of account code/name
                -% --percent              express values in percentage of each column's
                                          total
                   --layout=ARG           how to show multi-commodity amounts:
                                          'wide[,WIDTH]': all commodities on one line
                                          'tall'        : each commodity on a new line
                                          'bare'        : bare numbers, symbols in a column
                   --base-url=URLPREFIX   in html output, generate hyperlinks to
                                          hledger-web, with this prefix. (Usually the base
                                          url shown by hledger-web; can also be relative.)
                -O --output-format=FMT    select the output format. Supported formats:
                                          txt, html, csv, tsv, json.
                -o --output-file=FILE     write output to FILE. A file extension matching
                                          one of the above formats selects that format.

       This report shows accounts declared with the Asset, Cash, Liability  or
       Equity  type (see account types).  Or if no such accounts are declared,
       it shows top-level accounts named asset, liability or equity (case  in-
       sensitive, plurals allowed) and their subaccounts.

       Example:

              $ hledger balancesheetequity
              Balance Sheet With Equity 2008-12-31

                                  || 2008-12-31
              ====================++============
               Assets             ||
              --------------------++------------
               assets:bank:saving ||         $1
               assets:cash        ||        $-2
              --------------------++------------
                                  ||        $-1
              ====================++============
               Liabilities        ||
              --------------------++------------
               liabilities:debts  ||        $-1
              --------------------++------------
                                  ||        $-1
              ====================++============
               Equity             ||
              --------------------++------------
              --------------------++------------
                                  ||          0
              ====================++============
               Net:               ||          0

       This command is a higher-level variant of the balance command, and sup-
       ports  many  of  that command's features, such as multi-period reports.
       It is similar to hledger balance -H assets liabilities equity, but with
       smarter account detection, and liabilities/equity displayed with  their
       sign flipped.

       This report is the easiest way to see if the accounting equation (A+L+E
       =  0)  is satisfied (after you have done a close --retain to merge rev-
       enues and expenses with equity, and  perhaps  added  --infer-equity  to
       balance your commodity conversions).

       This command also supports the output destination and output format op-
       tions The output formats supported are txt, csv, tsv, html, and json.

   cashflow
       (cf)

       This  command  displays  a (simple) cashflow statement, showing the in-
       flows and outflows affecting "cash" (ie,  liquid,  easily  convertible)
       assets.   Amounts  are  shown  with normal positive sign, as in conven-
       tional financial statements.

              Flags:
                   --sum                  calculation mode: show sum of posting amounts
                                          (default)
                   --valuechange          calculation mode: show total change of value of
                                          period-end historical balances (caused by deposits,
                                          withdrawals, market price fluctuations)
                   --gain                 calculation mode: show unrealised capital
                                          gain/loss (historical balance value minus cost
                                          basis)
                   --count                calculation mode: show the count of postings
                   --change               accumulation mode: accumulate amounts from column
                                          start to column end (in multicolumn reports)
                                          (default)
                   --cumulative           accumulation mode: accumulate amounts from report
                                          start (specified by e.g. -b/--begin) to column end
                -H --historical           accumulation mode: accumulate amounts from
                                          journal start to column end (includes postings
                                          before report start date)
                -l --flat                 list/tree mode: show accounts as a flat list
                                          (default). Amounts exclude subaccount amounts,
                                          except where the account is depth-clipped.
                -t --tree                 list/tree mode: show accounts as a tree. Amounts
                                          include subaccount amounts.
                   --drop=N               in list mode, omit N leading account name parts
                   --declared             include non-parent declared accounts (best used
                                          with -E)
                -A --average              show a row average column (in multicolumn
                                          reports)
                -T --row-total            show a row total column (in multicolumn reports)
                   --summary-only         display only row summaries (e.g. row total,
                                          average) (in multicolumn reports)
                -N --no-total             omit the final total row
                   --no-elide             in tree mode, don't squash boring parent accounts
                   --format=FORMATSTR     use this custom line format (in simple reports)
                -S --sort-amount          sort by amount instead of account code/name
                -% --percent              express values in percentage of each column's
                                          total
                   --layout=ARG           how to show multi-commodity amounts:
                                          'wide[,WIDTH]': all commodities on one line
                                          'tall'        : each commodity on a new line
                                          'bare'        : bare numbers, symbols in a column
                   --base-url=URLPREFIX   in html output, generate hyperlinks to
                                          hledger-web, with this prefix. (Usually the base
                                          url shown by hledger-web; can also be relative.)
                -O --output-format=FMT    select the output format. Supported formats:
                                          txt, html, csv, tsv, json.
                -o --output-file=FILE     write output to FILE. A file extension matching
                                          one of the above formats selects that format.

       This report shows accounts declared with the  Cash  type  (see  account
       types).  Or if no such accounts are declared, it shows accounts

       o under  a  top-level account named asset (case insensitive, plural al-
         lowed)

       o whose name contains some variation of cash, bank, checking or saving.

       More precisely: all accounts matching this case insensitive regular ex-
       pression:

       ^assets?(:.+)?:(cash|bank|che(ck|que?)(ing)?|savings?|currentcash)(:|$)

       and their subaccounts.

       An example cashflow report:

              $ hledger cashflow
              Cashflow Statement 2008

                                  || 2008
              ====================++======
               Cash flows         ||
              --------------------++------
               assets:bank:saving ||   $1
               assets:cash        ||  $-2
              --------------------++------
                                  ||  $-1

       This command is a higher-level variant of the balance command, and sup-
       ports many of that command's features, such  as  multi-period  reports.
       It  is  similar  to  hledger  balance  assets  not:fixed not:investment
       not:receivable, but with smarter account detection.

       This command also supports the output destination and output format op-
       tions The output formats supported are txt, csv, tsv (Added  in  1.32),
       html, and json.

   incomestatement
       (is)

       Show  revenue  inflows  and  expense outflows during the report period.
       Amounts are shown with normal positive sign, as in conventional  finan-
       cial statements.

              Flags:
                   --sum                  calculation mode: show sum of posting amounts
                                          (default)
                   --valuechange          calculation mode: show total change of value of
                                          period-end historical balances (caused by deposits,
                                          withdrawals, market price fluctuations)
                   --gain                 calculation mode: show unrealised capital
                                          gain/loss (historical balance value minus cost
                                          basis)
                   --count                calculation mode: show the count of postings
                   --change               accumulation mode: accumulate amounts from column
                                          start to column end (in multicolumn reports)
                                          (default)
                   --cumulative           accumulation mode: accumulate amounts from report
                                          start (specified by e.g. -b/--begin) to column end
                -H --historical           accumulation mode: accumulate amounts from
                                          journal start to column end (includes postings
                                          before report start date)
                -l --flat                 list/tree mode: show accounts as a flat list
                                          (default). Amounts exclude subaccount amounts,
                                          except where the account is depth-clipped.
                -t --tree                 list/tree mode: show accounts as a tree. Amounts
                                          include subaccount amounts.
                   --drop=N               in list mode, omit N leading account name parts
                   --declared             include non-parent declared accounts (best used
                                          with -E)
                -A --average              show a row average column (in multicolumn
                                          reports)
                -T --row-total            show a row total column (in multicolumn reports)
                   --summary-only         display only row summaries (e.g. row total,
                                          average) (in multicolumn reports)
                -N --no-total             omit the final total row
                   --no-elide             in tree mode, don't squash boring parent accounts
                   --format=FORMATSTR     use this custom line format (in simple reports)
                -S --sort-amount          sort by amount instead of account code/name
                -% --percent              express values in percentage of each column's
                                          total
                   --layout=ARG           how to show multi-commodity amounts:
                                          'wide[,WIDTH]': all commodities on one line
                                          'tall'        : each commodity on a new line
                                          'bare'        : bare numbers, symbols in a column
                   --base-url=URLPREFIX   in html output, generate hyperlinks to
                                          hledger-web, with this prefix. (Usually the base
                                          url shown by hledger-web; can also be relative.)
                -O --output-format=FMT    select the output format. Supported formats:
                                          txt, html, csv, tsv, json.
                -o --output-file=FILE     write output to FILE. A file extension matching
                                          one of the above formats selects that format.

       This  command  displays  an  income statement, showing revenues and ex-
       penses during one or more periods.

       It shows accounts declared with the Revenue or Expense  type  (see  ac-
       count  types).  Or if no such accounts are declared, it shows top-level
       accounts named revenue or income or expense (case insensitive,  plurals
       allowed) and their subaccounts.

       Example:

              $ hledger incomestatement
              Income Statement 2008

                                 || 2008
              ===================++======
               Revenues          ||
              -------------------++------
               income:gifts      ||   $1
               income:salary     ||   $1
              -------------------++------
                                 ||   $2
              ===================++======
               Expenses          ||
              -------------------++------
               expenses:food     ||   $1
               expenses:supplies ||   $1
              -------------------++------
                                 ||   $2
              ===================++======
               Net:              ||    0

       This command is a higher-level variant of the balance command, and sup-
       ports  many  of  that command's features, such as multi-period reports.
       It is similar to hledger balance '(revenues|income)' expenses, but with
       smarter account detection, and  revenues/income  displayed  with  their
       sign flipped.

       This command also supports the output destination and output format op-
       tions  The  output formats supported are txt, csv, tsv (Added in 1.32),
       html, and json.

Advanced report commands
   balance
       (bal)

       A flexible, general purpose "summing" report that shows  accounts  with
       some kind of numeric data.  This can be balance changes per period, end
       balances, budget performance, unrealised capital gains, etc.

              Flags:
                   --sum                  calculation mode: show sum of posting amounts
                                          (default)
                   --valuechange          calculation mode: show total change of value of
                                          period-end historical balances (caused by deposits,
                                          withdrawals, market price fluctuations)
                   --gain                 calculation mode: show unrealised capital
                                          gain/loss (historical balance value minus cost
                                          basis)
                   --budget[=DESCPAT]     calculation mode: show sum of posting amounts
                                          together with budget goals defined by periodic
                                          transactions. With a DESCPAT argument (must be
                                          separated by = not space),
                                          use only periodic transactions with matching
                                          description
                                          (case insensitive substring match).
                   --count                calculation mode: show the count of postings
                   --change               accumulation mode: accumulate amounts from column
                                          start to column end (in multicolumn reports,
                                          default)
                   --cumulative           accumulation mode: accumulate amounts from report
                                          start (specified by e.g. -b/--begin) to column end
                -H --historical           accumulation mode: accumulate amounts from
                                          journal start to column end (includes postings
                                          before report start date)
                -l --flat                 list/tree mode: show accounts as a flat list
                                          (default). Amounts exclude subaccount amounts,
                                          except where the account is depth-clipped.
                -t --tree                 list/tree mode: show accounts as a tree. Amounts
                                          include subaccount amounts.
                   --drop=N               in list mode, omit N leading account name parts
                   --declared             include non-parent declared accounts (best used
                                          with -E)
                -A --average              show a row average column (in multicolumn
                                          reports)
                -T --row-total            show a row total column (in multicolumn reports)
                   --summary-only         display only row summaries (e.g. row total,
                                          average) (in multicolumn reports)
                -N --no-total             omit the final total row
                   --no-elide             in tree mode, don't squash boring parent accounts
                   --format=FORMATSTR     use this custom line format (in simple reports)
                -S --sort-amount          sort by amount instead of account code/name (in
                                          flat mode). With multiple columns, sorts by the row
                                          total, or by row average if that is displayed.
                -% --percent              express values in percentage of each column's
                                          total
                -r --related              show the other accounts transacted with, instead
                   --invert               display all amounts with reversed sign
                   --transpose            switch rows and columns (use vertical time axis)
                   --layout=ARG           how to lay out multi-commodity amounts and the
                                          overall table:
                                          'wide[,W]': commodities on same line, up to W wide
                                          'tall'    : commodities on separate lines
                                          'bare'    : commodity symbols in a separate column
                                          'tidy'    : each data field in its own column
                   --base-url=URLPREFIX   in html output, generate links to hledger-web,
                                          with this prefix. (Usually the base url shown by
                                          hledger-web; can also be relative.)
                -O --output-format=FMT    select the output format. Supported formats:
                                          txt, html, csv, tsv, json, fods.
                -o --output-file=FILE     write output to FILE. A file extension matching
                                          one of the above formats selects that format.

       balance  is  one  of  hledger's oldest and most versatile commands, for
       listing account balances, balance changes, values,  value  changes  and
       more, during one time period or many.  Generally it shows a table, with
       rows representing accounts, and columns representing periods.

       Note there are some variants of the balance command with convenient de-
       faults,  which  are  simpler  to use: balancesheet, balancesheetequity,
       cashflow and incomestatement.  When you need  more  control,  then  use
       balance.

   balance features
       Here's  a quick overview of the balance command's features, followed by
       more detailed descriptions and examples.  Many of these work  with  the
       other balance-like commands as well (bs, cf, is..).

       balance can show..

       o accounts as a list (-l) or a tree (-t)

       o optionally depth-limited (-[1-9])

       o sorted by declaration order and name, or by amount

       ..and their..

       o balance changes (the default)

       o or actual and planned balance changes (--budget)

       o or value of balance changes (-V)

       o or change of balance values (--valuechange)

       o or unrealised capital gain/loss (--gain)

       o or balance changes from sibling postings (--related/-r)

       o or postings count (--count)

       ..in..

       o one time period (the whole journal period by default)

       o or multiple periods (-D, -W, -M, -Q, -Y, -p INTERVAL)

       ..either..

       o per period (the default)

       o or accumulated since report start date (--cumulative)

       o or accumulated since account creation (--historical/-H)

       ..possibly converted to..

       o cost (--value=cost[,COMM]/--cost/-B)

       o or market value, as of transaction dates (--value=then[,COMM])

       o or at period ends (--value=end[,COMM])

       o or now (--value=now)

       o or at some other date (--value=YYYY-MM-DD)

       ..with..

       o totals  (-T),  averages  (-A), percentages (-%), inverted sign (--in-
         vert)

       o rows and columns swapped (--transpose)

       o another field used as account name (--pivot)

       o custom-formatted line items (single-period reports only) (--format)

       o commodities displayed on the same line or multiple lines (--layout)

       This command supports the output destination and output format options,
       with output formats txt, csv, tsv (Added in 1.32), json, and (multi-pe-
       riod reports only:) html, fods (Added in 1.40).  In  txt  output  in  a
       colour-supporting terminal, negative amounts are shown in red.

   Simple balance report
       With  no  arguments,  balance  shows  a  list of all accounts and their
       change of balance - ie, the sum of posting amounts,  both  inflows  and
       outflows  -  during  the  entire period of the journal.  ("Simple" here
       means just one column of numbers, covering a single  period.   You  can
       also have multi-period reports, described later.)

       For  real-world accounts, these numbers will normally be their end bal-
       ance at the end of the journal period; more on this below.

       Accounts are sorted by declaration order if any,  and  then  alphabeti-
       cally by account name.  For instance (using examples/sample.journal):

              $ hledger -f examples/sample.journal bal
                                $1  assets:bank:saving
                               $-2  assets:cash
                                $1  expenses:food
                                $1  expenses:supplies
                               $-1  income:gifts
                               $-1  income:salary
                                $1  liabilities:debts
              --------------------
                                 0

       Accounts with a zero balance (and no non-zero subaccounts, in tree mode
       -  see  below) are hidden by default.  Use -E/--empty to show them (re-
       vealing assets:bank:checking here):

              $ hledger -f examples/sample.journal bal  -E
                                 0  assets:bank:checking
                                $1  assets:bank:saving
                               $-2  assets:cash
                                $1  expenses:food
                                $1  expenses:supplies
                               $-1  income:gifts
                               $-1  income:salary
                                $1  liabilities:debts
              --------------------
                                 0

       The total of the amounts displayed is shown as the  last  line,  unless
       -N/--no-total is used.

   Balance report line format
       For single-period balance reports displayed in the terminal (only), you
       can  use --format FMT to customise the format and content of each line.
       Eg:

              $ hledger -f examples/sample.journal balance --format "%20(account) %12(total)"
                            assets          $-1
                       bank:saving           $1
                              cash          $-2
                          expenses           $2
                              food           $1
                          supplies           $1
                            income          $-2
                             gifts          $-1
                            salary          $-1
                 liabilities:debts           $1
              ---------------------------------
                                              0

       The FMT format string specifies the  formatting  applied  to  each  ac-
       count/balance pair.  It may contain any suitable text, with data fields
       interpolated like so:

       %[MIN][.MAX](FIELDNAME)

       o MIN pads with spaces to at least this width (optional)

       o MAX truncates at this width (optional)

       o FIELDNAME must be enclosed in parentheses, and can be one of:

         o depth_spacer  - a number of spaces equal to the account's depth, or
           if MIN is specified, MIN * depth spaces.

         o account - the account's name

         o total - the account's balance/posted total, right justified

       Also, FMT can begin with an optional prefix to control  how  multi-com-
       modity amounts are rendered:

       o %_ - render on multiple lines, bottom-aligned (the default)

       o %^ - render on multiple lines, top-aligned

       o %, - render on one line, comma-separated

       There are some quirks.  Eg in one-line mode, %(depth_spacer) has no ef-
       fect,  instead  %(account)  has indentation built in.   Experimentation
       may be needed to get pleasing results.

       Some example formats:

       o %(total) - the account's total

       o %-20.20(account) - the account's name, left justified, padded  to  20
         characters and clipped at 20 characters

       o %,%-50(account)   %25(total)  - account name padded to 50 characters,
         total padded to 20 characters, with multiple commodities rendered  on
         one line

       o %20(total)   %2(depth_spacer)%-(account) - the default format for the
         single-column balance report

   Filtered balance report
       You can show fewer accounts,  a  different  time  period,  totals  from
       cleared transactions only, etc.  by using query arguments or options to
       limit the postings being matched.  Eg:

              $ hledger -f examples/sample.journal bal --cleared assets date:200806
                               $-2  assets:cash
              --------------------
                               $-2

   List or tree mode
       By  default,  or with -l/--flat, accounts are shown as a flat list with
       their full names visible, as in the examples above.

       With -t/--tree, the  account  hierarchy  is  shown,  with  subaccounts'
       "leaf" names indented below their parent:

              $ hledger -f examples/sample.journal balance
                               $-1  assets
                                $1    bank:saving
                               $-2    cash
                                $2  expenses
                                $1    food
                                $1    supplies
                               $-2  income
                               $-1    gifts
                               $-1    salary
                                $1  liabilities:debts
              --------------------
                                 0

       Notes:

       o "Boring" accounts are combined with their subaccount for more compact
         output,  unless  --no-elide is used.  Boring accounts have no balance
         of their own and just one subaccount (eg assets:bank and  liabilities
         above).

       o All  balances  shown  are "inclusive", ie including the balances from
         all subaccounts.  Note this means  some  repetition  in  the  output,
         which requires explanation when sharing reports with non-plaintextac-
         counting-users.   A  tree mode report's final total is the sum of the
         top-level balances shown, not of all the balances shown.

       o Each group of sibling accounts (ie, under a common parent) is  sorted
         separately.

   Depth limiting
       With  a  depth:NUM  query, or --depth NUM option, or just -NUM (eg: -3)
       balance reports will show accounts only to the specified depth,  hiding
       the  deeper  subaccounts.   This  can be useful for getting an overview
       without too much detail.

       Account balances at the depth limit always include  the  balances  from
       any deeper subaccounts (even in list mode).  Eg, limiting to depth 1:

              $ hledger -f examples/sample.journal balance -1
                               $-1  assets
                                $2  expenses
                               $-2  income
                                $1  liabilities
              --------------------
                                 0

   Dropping top-level accounts
       You  can  also  hide  one  or  more top-level account name parts, using
       --drop NUM.  This can be useful for hiding repetitive top-level account
       names:

              $ hledger -f examples/sample.journal bal expenses --drop 1
                                $1  food
                                $1  supplies
              --------------------
                                $2

   Showing declared accounts
       With --declared, accounts which have been declared with an account  di-
       rective  will  be  included in the balance report, even if they have no
       transactions.  (Since they will have a zero balance, you will also need
       -E/--empty to see them.)

       More precisely, leaf declared accounts (with no  subaccounts)  will  be
       included, since those are usually the more useful in reports.

       The  idea  of this is to be able to see a useful "complete" balance re-
       port, even when you don't have transactions in all of your declared ac-
       counts yet.

   Sorting by amount
       With -S/--sort-amount, accounts with the largest (most  positive)  bal-
       ances  are  shown  first.   Eg:  hledger  bal  expenses -MAS shows your
       biggest averaged monthly expenses first.  When more than one  commodity
       is  present, they will be sorted by the alphabetically earliest commod-
       ity first, and then by subsequent commodities (if an amount is  missing
       a commodity, it is treated as 0).

       Revenues  and liability balances are typically negative, however, so -S
       shows these in reverse order.  To work around this, you can  add  --in-
       vert  to flip the signs.  Or you could use one of the higher-level bal-
       ance reports (bs, is..), which flip the sign automatically (eg: hledger
       is -MAS).

   Percentages
       With -%/--percent, balance reports show each account's value  expressed
       as a percentage of the (column) total.

       Note it is not useful to calculate percentages if the amounts in a col-
       umn  have  mixed  signs.  In this case, make a separate report for each
       sign, eg:

              $ hledger bal -% amt:`>0`
              $ hledger bal -% amt:`<0`

       Similarly, if the amounts in a column have mixed  commodities,  convert
       them  to  one  commodity with -B, -V, -X or --value, or make a separate
       report for each commodity:

              $ hledger bal -% cur:\\$
              $ hledger bal -% cur:

   Multi-period balance report
       With  a  report  interval  (set   by   the   -D/--daily,   -W/--weekly,
       -M/--monthly,  -Q/--quarterly,  -Y/--yearly, or -p/--period flag), bal-
       ance shows a tabular report, with columns representing successive  time
       periods (and a title):

              $ hledger -f examples/sample.journal bal --quarterly income expenses -E
              Balance changes in 2008:

                                 ||  2008q1  2008q2  2008q3  2008q4
              ===================++=================================
               expenses:food     ||       0      $1       0       0
               expenses:supplies ||       0      $1       0       0
               income:gifts      ||       0     $-1       0       0
               income:salary     ||     $-1       0       0       0
              -------------------++---------------------------------
                                 ||     $-1      $1       0       0

       Notes:

       o The report's start/end dates will be expanded, if necessary, to fully
         encompass the displayed subperiods (so that the first and last subpe-
         riods have the same duration as the others).

       o Leading  and trailing periods (columns) containing all zeroes are not
         shown, unless -E/--empty is used.

       o Accounts  (rows)  containing  all  zeroes  are  not   shown,   unless
         -E/--empty is used.

       o Amounts  with  many commodities are shown in abbreviated form, unless
         --no-elide is used.

       o Average and/or total columns can be added with the  -A/--average  and
         -T/--row-total flags.

       o The --transpose flag can be used to exchange rows and columns.

       o The  --pivot  FIELD option causes a different transaction field to be
         used as "account name".  See PIVOTING.

       o The --summary-only flag (--summary also works) hides all but the  To-
         tal and Average columns (those should be enabled with --row-total and
         -A/--average).

       Multi-period reports with many periods can be too wide for easy viewing
       in the terminal.  Here are some ways to handle that:

       o Hide the totals row with -N/--no-total

       o Filter to a single currency with cur:

       o Convert to a single currency with -V [--infer-market-price]

       o Use a more compact layout like --layout=bare

       o Maximize the terminal window

       o Reduce the terminal's font size

       o View  with  a  pager like less, eg: hledger bal -D --color=yes | less
         -RS

       o Output as CSV and use a CSV viewer like visidata (hledger bal  -D  -O
         csv  |  vd  -f  csv),  Emacs'  csv-mode (M-x csv-mode, C-c C-a), or a
         spreadsheet (hledger bal -D -o a.csv && open a.csv)

       o Output as HTML and view with a browser: hledger bal -D -o  a.html  &&
         open a.html

   Balance change, end balance
       It's  important to be clear on the meaning of the numbers shown in bal-
       ance reports.  Here is some terminology we use:

       A balance change is the net amount added to, or removed  from,  an  ac-
       count during some period.

       An  end balance is the amount accumulated in an account as of some date
       (and some time, but hledger doesn't store that; assume end  of  day  in
       your timezone).  It is the sum of previous balance changes.

       We  call it a historical end balance if it includes all balance changes
       since the account was created.  For a real world account, this means it
       will match the "historical record", eg the balances  reported  in  your
       bank statements or bank web UI.  (If they are correct!)

       In  general,  balance  changes  are what you want to see when reviewing
       revenues and expenses, and historical end balances are what you want to
       see when reviewing or reconciling asset, liability and equity accounts.

       balance shows balance changes by default.  To see  accurate  historical
       end balances:

       1. Initialise  account  starting  balances  with  an "opening balances"
          transaction (a transfer from equity  to  the  account),  unless  the
          journal covers the account's full lifetime.

       2. Include all of of the account's prior postings in the report, by not
          specifying  a  report  start  date,  or by using the -H/--historical
          flag.  (-H causes report start date to be ignored when summing post-
          ings.)

   Balance report modes
       The balance command is quite flexible; here is the full detail  on  how
       to  control what it reports.  If the following seems complicated, don't
       worry - this is for advanced reporting, and it does take time  and  ex-
       perimentation to get familiar with all the report modes.

       There are three important option groups:

       hledger  balance  [CALCULATIONMODE]  [ACCUMULATIONMODE] [VALUATIONMODE]
       ...

   Calculation mode
       The basic calculation to perform for each table cell.  It is one of:

       o --sum : sum the posting amounts (default)

       o --budget : sum the amounts, but also show the budget goal amount (for
         each account/period)

       o --valuechange : show the change in period-end historical balance val-
         ues (caused by deposits, withdrawals, and/or  market  price  fluctua-
         tions)

       o --gain  :  show the unrealised capital gain/loss, (the current valued
         balance minus each amount's original cost)

       o --count : show the count of postings

   Accumulation mode
       How amounts should accumulate  across  a  report's  subperiods/columns.
       Another  way  to say it: which time period's postings should contribute
       to each cell's calculation.  It is one of:

       o --change : calculate with postings from column start to  column  end,
         ie  "just  this  column".   Typically  used to see revenues/expenses.
         (default for balance, cashflow, incomestatement)

       o --cumulative : calculate with postings from report  start  to  column
         end,  ie "previous columns plus this column".  Typically used to show
         changes accumulated since the report's start date.  Not often used.

       o --historical/-H : calculate with postings from journal start to  col-
         umn  end,  ie  "all postings from before report start date until this
         column's end".  Typically used to see historical end balances of  as-
         sets/liabilities/equity.   (default  for balancesheet, balancesheete-
         quity)

   Valuation mode
       Which kind of value or cost conversion should be applied, if  any,  be-
       fore displaying the report.  See Cost reporting and Value reporting for
       more about conversions.

       A valuation (or cost) mode can be selected with the --value option:

       o no conversion : don't convert to cost or value (default)

       o --value=cost[,COMM]  :  convert  amounts  to cost (then optionally to
         some other commodity)

       o --value=then[,COMM] : convert amounts to market value on  transaction
         dates

       o --value=end[,COMM]  :  convert  amounts to market value on period end
         date(s)
       (default with --valuechange, --gain)

       o --value=now[,COMM] : convert amounts to market value on today's date

       o --value=YYYY-MM-DD[,COMM] : convert amounts to market  value  on  an-
         other date

       or with the legacy -B/-V/-X options, which are equivalent and easier to
       type:

       o -B/--cost : like --value=cost

       o -V/--market : like --value=end

       o -X COMM/--exchange COMM : like --value=end,COMM

       Note that --value can also convert to cost, as a convenience; but actu-
       ally  --cost and --value are independent options, and could be used to-
       gether.

   Combining balance report modes
       Most combinations of these modes should produce reasonable reports, but
       if you find any that seem wrong or misleading, let us know.   The  fol-
       lowing restrictions are applied:

       o --valuechange implies --value=end

       o --valuechange  makes  --change  the  default  when used with the bal-
         ancesheet/balancesheetequity commands

       o --cumulative or --historical disables --row-total/-T

       For reference, here is what the combinations of accumulation and valua-
       tion show:

       Valua-     no valuation       --value= then       --value= end      --value=
       tion:>                                                              YYYY-MM-DD
       Accumu-                                                             /now
       lation:v
       -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
       --change   change in period   sum   of    post-   period-end        DATE-value  of
                                     ing-date   market   value of change   change  in pe-
                                     values in period    in period         riod
       --cumu-    change from  re-   sum   of    post-   period-end        DATE-value  of
       lative     port   start  to   ing-date   market   value of change   change    from
                  period end         values  from  re-   from     report   report   start
                                     port start to pe-   start to period   to period end
                                     riod end            end
       --his-     change      from   sum   of    post-   period-end        DATE-value  of
       torical    journal start to   ing-date   market   value of change   change    from
       /-H        period end (his-   values from jour-   from    journal   journal  start
                  torical end bal-   nal start to  pe-   start to period   to period end
                  ance)              riod end            end

   Budget report
       The --budget report is like a regular balance report, but with two main
       differences:

       o Budget goals and performance percentages are also shown, in brackets

       o Accounts which don't have budget goals are hidden by default.

       This  is useful for comparing planned and actual income, expenses, time
       usage, etc.

       Periodic transaction rules are used to define budget goals.  For  exam-
       ple,  here's  a periodic rule defining monthly goals for bus travel and
       food expenses:

              ;; Budget
              ~ monthly
                (expenses:bus)              $30
                (expenses:food)            $400

       After recording some actual expenses,

              ;; Two months worth of expenses
              2017-11-01
                income                   $-1950
                expenses:bus                $35
                expenses:food:groceries    $310
                expenses:food:dining        $42
                expenses:movies             $38
                assets:bank:checking

              2017-12-01
                income                   $-2100
                expenses:bus                $53
                expenses:food:groceries    $380
                expenses:food:dining        $32
                expenses:gifts             $100
                assets:bank:checking

       we can see a budget report like this:

              $ hledger bal -M --budget
              Budget performance in 2017-11-01..2017-12-31:

                             ||                  Nov                   Dec
              ===============++============================================
               <unbudgeted>  || $-425                 $-565
               expenses      ||  $425 [ 99% of $430]   $565 [131% of $430]
               expenses:bus  ||   $35 [117% of  $30]    $53 [177% of  $30]
               expenses:food ||  $352 [ 88% of $400]   $412 [103% of $400]
              ---------------++--------------------------------------------
                             ||     0 [  0% of $430]      0 [  0% of $430]

       This is "goal-based budgeting"; you define goals for accounts and peri-
       ods, often recurring, and hledger shows  performance  relative  to  the
       goals.   This  contrasts  with  "envelope budgeting", which is more de-
       tailed and strict - useful when cash is tight, but  also  quite  a  bit
       more  work.  https://plaintextaccounting.org/Budgeting has more on this
       topic.

   Using the budget report
       Historically this report has been  confusing  and  fragile.   hledger's
       version  should  be  relatively robust and intuitive, but you may still
       find surprises.  Here are more notes to help with  learning  and  trou-
       bleshooting.

       o In  the  above  example, expenses:bus and expenses:food are shown be-
         cause they have budget goals during the report period.

       o Their parent expenses is also shown,  with  budget  goals  aggregated
         from the children.

       o The  subaccounts expenses:food:groceries and expenses:food:dining are
         not shown since they have no budget goal of their own, but they  con-
         tribute to expenses:food's actual amount.

       o Unbudgeted  accounts  expenses:movies and expenses:gifts are also not
         shown, but they contribute to expenses's actual amount.

       o The other unbudgeted accounts  income  and  assets:bank:checking  are
         grouped as <unbudgeted>.

       o --depth  or depth: can be used to limit report depth in the usual way
         (but will not reveal unbudgeted subaccounts).

       o Amounts are always inclusive of subaccounts (even in -l/--list mode).

       o Numbers displayed in a --budget report will not always agree with the
         totals, because  of  hidden  unbudgeted  accounts;  this  is  normal.
         -E/--empty can be used to reveal the hidden accounts.

       o In the periodic rules used for setting budget goals, unbalanced post-
         ings are convenient.

       o You  can filter budget reports with the usual queries, eg to focus on
         particular accounts.  It's common to restrict them to just  expenses.
         (The  <unbudgeted>  account  is occasionally hard to exclude; this is
         because of date surprises, discussed below.)

       o When you have multiple currencies, you may want to  convert  them  to
         one  (-X  COMM  --infer-market-prices) and/or show just one at a time
         (cur:COMM).  If you do need to  show  multiple  currencies  at  once,
         --layout bare can be helpful.

       o You  can "roll over" amounts (actual and budgeted) to the next period
         with --cumulative.

       See also: https://hledger.org/budgeting.html.

   Budget date surprises
       With small data, or when starting out, some  of  the  generated  budget
       goal  transaction dates might fall outside the report periods.  Eg with
       the following journal and report, the first period appears to  have  no
       expenses:food  budget.   (Also  the  <unbudgeted> account should be ex-
       cluded by the expenses query, but isn't.):

              ~ monthly in 2020
                (expenses:food)  $500

              2020-01-15
                expenses:food    $400
                assets:checking

              $ hledger bal --budget expenses
              Budget performance in 2020-01-15:

                             ||         2020-01-15
              ===============++====================
               <unbudgeted>  || $400
               expenses:food ||    0 [ 0% of $500]
              ---------------++--------------------
                             || $400 [80% of $500]

       In this case, the budget goal transactions are generated on first  days
       of  of month (this can be seen with hledger print --forecast tag:gener-
       ated expenses).  Whereas the report period defaults to  just  the  15th
       day  of  january (this can be seen from the report table's column head-
       ings).

       To fix this kind of thing, be more explicit  about  the  report  period
       (and/or  the periodic rules' dates).  In this case, adding -b 2020 does
       the trick.

   Selecting budget goals
       By default, the budget report uses all available  periodic  transaction
       rules  to  generate goals.  This includes rules with a different report
       interval from your report.  Eg if you have daily,  weekly  and  monthly
       periodic  rules, all of these will contribute to the goals in a monthly
       budget report.

       You can select a subset of periodic rules by providing an  argument  to
       the  --budget  flag.   --budget=DESCPAT  will  match all periodic rules
       whose description contains DESCPAT, a case-insensitive substring (not a
       regular expression or query).  This means you can  give  your  periodic
       rules  descriptions (remember that two spaces are needed between period
       expression and description), and then select from multiple budgets  de-
       fined in your journal.

   Budgeting vs forecasting
       --forecast  and --budget both use the periodic transaction rules in the
       journal to generate  temporary  transactions  for  reporting  purposes.
       However  they  are  separate  features - though you can use both at the
       same time if you want.  Here are some differences between them:

       --forecast                               --budget
       --------------------------------------------------------------------------
       is a general option; it enables  fore-   is  a balance command option; it
       casting with all reports                 selects  the  balance   report's
                                                budget mode
       generates  visible  transactions which   generates invisible transactions
       appear in reports                        which produce goal amounts
       generates forecast  transactions  from   generates  budget  goal transac-
       after the last regular transaction, to   tions throughout the report  pe-
       the  end of the report period; or with   riod,  optionally  restricted by
       an argument --forecast=PERIODEXPR gen-   periods specified in  the  peri-
       erates them throughout  the  specified   odic transaction rules
       period,  both optionally restricted by
       periods  specified  in  the   periodic
       transaction rules
       uses all periodic rules                  uses all periodic rules; or with
                                                an   argument   --budget=DESCPAT
                                                uses just the rules  matched  by
                                                DESCPAT

   Balance report layout
       The --layout option affects how balance and the other balance-like com-
       mands  show  multi-commodity amounts and commodity symbols.  It can im-
       prove readability, for humans and/or machines (other software).  It has
       four possible values:

       o --layout=wide[,WIDTH]: commodities are shown on a  single  line,  op-
         tionally elided to WIDTH

       o --layout=tall: each commodity is shown on a separate line

       o --layout=bare: commodity symbols are in their own column, amounts are
         bare numbers

       o --layout=tidy:  data  is  normalised  to easily-consumed "tidy" form,
         with one row per data value.  (This one is currently  supported  only
         by the balance command.)

       Here  are  the  --layout modes supported by each output format Only CSV
       output supports all of them:

       -      txt   csv   html   json   sql
       -------------------------------------
       wide   Y     Y     Y
       tall   Y     Y     Y
       bare   Y     Y     Y
       tidy         Y

       Examples:

   Wide layout
       With many commodities, reports can be very wide:

              $ hledger -f examples/bcexample.hledger bal assets:us:etrade -3 -T -Y --layout=wide
              Balance changes in 2012-01-01..2014-12-31:

                                ||                                          2012                                                     2013                                             2014                                                      Total
              ==================++====================================================================================================================================================================================================================
               Assets:US:ETrade || 10.00 ITOT, 337.18 USD, 12.00 VEA, 106.00 VHT  70.00 GLD, 18.00 ITOT, -98.12 USD, 10.00 VEA, 18.00 VHT  -11.00 ITOT, 4881.44 USD, 14.00 VEA, 170.00 VHT  70.00 GLD, 17.00 ITOT, 5120.50 USD, 36.00 VEA, 294.00 VHT
              ------------------++--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                || 10.00 ITOT, 337.18 USD, 12.00 VEA, 106.00 VHT  70.00 GLD, 18.00 ITOT, -98.12 USD, 10.00 VEA, 18.00 VHT  -11.00 ITOT, 4881.44 USD, 14.00 VEA, 170.00 VHT  70.00 GLD, 17.00 ITOT, 5120.50 USD, 36.00 VEA, 294.00 VHT

       A width limit reduces the width, but some commodities will be hidden:

              $ hledger -f examples/bcexample.hledger bal assets:us:etrade -3 -T -Y --layout=wide,32
              Balance changes in 2012-01-01..2014-12-31:

                                ||                             2012                             2013                   2014                            Total
              ==================++===========================================================================================================================
               Assets:US:ETrade || 10.00 ITOT, 337.18 USD, 2 more..  70.00 GLD, 18.00 ITOT, 3 more..  -11.00 ITOT, 3 more..  70.00 GLD, 17.00 ITOT, 3 more..
              ------------------++---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                || 10.00 ITOT, 337.18 USD, 2 more..  70.00 GLD, 18.00 ITOT, 3 more..  -11.00 ITOT, 3 more..  70.00 GLD, 17.00 ITOT, 3 more..

   Tall layout
       Each commodity gets a new line (may be different in each  column),  and
       account names are repeated:

              $ hledger -f examples/bcexample.hledger bal assets:us:etrade -3 -T -Y --layout=tall
              Balance changes in 2012-01-01..2014-12-31:

                                ||       2012        2013         2014        Total
              ==================++==================================================
               Assets:US:ETrade || 10.00 ITOT   70.00 GLD  -11.00 ITOT    70.00 GLD
               Assets:US:ETrade || 337.18 USD  18.00 ITOT  4881.44 USD   17.00 ITOT
               Assets:US:ETrade ||  12.00 VEA  -98.12 USD    14.00 VEA  5120.50 USD
               Assets:US:ETrade || 106.00 VHT   10.00 VEA   170.00 VHT    36.00 VEA
               Assets:US:ETrade ||              18.00 VHT                294.00 VHT
              ------------------++--------------------------------------------------
                                || 10.00 ITOT   70.00 GLD  -11.00 ITOT    70.00 GLD
                                || 337.18 USD  18.00 ITOT  4881.44 USD   17.00 ITOT
                                ||  12.00 VEA  -98.12 USD    14.00 VEA  5120.50 USD
                                || 106.00 VHT   10.00 VEA   170.00 VHT    36.00 VEA
                                ||              18.00 VHT                294.00 VHT

   Bare layout
       Commodity  symbols  are  kept in one column, each commodity has its own
       row, amounts are bare numbers, account names are repeated:

              $ hledger -f examples/bcexample.hledger bal assets:us:etrade -3 -T -Y --layout=bare
              Balance changes in 2012-01-01..2014-12-31:

                                || Commodity    2012    2013     2014    Total
              ==================++=============================================
               Assets:US:ETrade || GLD             0   70.00        0    70.00
               Assets:US:ETrade || ITOT        10.00   18.00   -11.00    17.00
               Assets:US:ETrade || USD        337.18  -98.12  4881.44  5120.50
               Assets:US:ETrade || VEA         12.00   10.00    14.00    36.00
               Assets:US:ETrade || VHT        106.00   18.00   170.00   294.00
              ------------------++---------------------------------------------
                                || GLD             0   70.00        0    70.00
                                || ITOT        10.00   18.00   -11.00    17.00
                                || USD        337.18  -98.12  4881.44  5120.50
                                || VEA         12.00   10.00    14.00    36.00
                                || VHT        106.00   18.00   170.00   294.00

       Bare layout also affects CSV output, which is useful for producing data
       that is easier to consume, eg for making charts:

              $ hledger -f examples/bcexample.hledger bal assets:us:etrade -3 -O csv --layout=bare
              "account","commodity","balance"
              "Assets:US:ETrade","GLD","70.00"
              "Assets:US:ETrade","ITOT","17.00"
              "Assets:US:ETrade","USD","5120.50"
              "Assets:US:ETrade","VEA","36.00"
              "Assets:US:ETrade","VHT","294.00"
              "Total:","GLD","70.00"
              "Total:","ITOT","17.00"
              "Total:","USD","5120.50"
              "Total:","VEA","36.00"
              "Total:","VHT","294.00"

       Bare layout will sometimes display an extra row for the no-symbol  com-
       modity,  because  of  zero  amounts  (hledger  treats zeroes as commod-
       ity-less,   usually).    This   can   break   hledger-bar   confusingly
       (workaround: add a cur: query to exclude the no-symbol row).

   Tidy layout
       This       produces       normalised       "tidy       data"       (see
       https://cran.r-project.org/web/packages/tidyr/vignettes/tidy-data.html)
       where every variable has its own column and each row represents a  sin-
       gle data point.  This is the easiest kind of data for other software to
       consume:

              $ hledger -f examples/bcexample.hledger bal assets:us:etrade -3 -Y -O csv --layout=tidy
              "account","period","start_date","end_date","commodity","value"
              "Assets:US:ETrade","2012","2012-01-01","2012-12-31","GLD","0"
              "Assets:US:ETrade","2012","2012-01-01","2012-12-31","ITOT","10.00"
              "Assets:US:ETrade","2012","2012-01-01","2012-12-31","USD","337.18"
              "Assets:US:ETrade","2012","2012-01-01","2012-12-31","VEA","12.00"
              "Assets:US:ETrade","2012","2012-01-01","2012-12-31","VHT","106.00"
              "Assets:US:ETrade","2013","2013-01-01","2013-12-31","GLD","70.00"
              "Assets:US:ETrade","2013","2013-01-01","2013-12-31","ITOT","18.00"
              "Assets:US:ETrade","2013","2013-01-01","2013-12-31","USD","-98.12"
              "Assets:US:ETrade","2013","2013-01-01","2013-12-31","VEA","10.00"
              "Assets:US:ETrade","2013","2013-01-01","2013-12-31","VHT","18.00"
              "Assets:US:ETrade","2014","2014-01-01","2014-12-31","GLD","0"
              "Assets:US:ETrade","2014","2014-01-01","2014-12-31","ITOT","-11.00"
              "Assets:US:ETrade","2014","2014-01-01","2014-12-31","USD","4881.44"
              "Assets:US:ETrade","2014","2014-01-01","2014-12-31","VEA","14.00"
              "Assets:US:ETrade","2014","2014-01-01","2014-12-31","VHT","170.00"

   Balance report output
       As  noted in Output format, if you choose HTML output (by using -O html
       or -o somefile.html), you can create a hledger.css file in the same di-
       rectory to customise the report's appearance.

       The  HTML  and  FODS  output  formats  can  generate  hyperlinks  to  a
       hledger-web  register  view for each account and period.  E.g.  if your
       hledger-web server is reachable at http://localhost:5000 then you might
       run the balance command with the extra option  --base-url=http://local-
       host:5000.     You    can    also    produce   relative   links,   like
       --base-url="some/path" or --base-url="".)

   Some useful balance reports
       Some frequently used balance options/reports are:

       o bal -M revenues expenses
       Show revenues/expenses in each month.  Also available as  the  incomes-
       tatement command.

       o bal -M -H assets liabilities
       Show  historical  asset/liability  balances  at  each  month end.  Also
       available as the balancesheet command.

       o bal -M -H assets liabilities equity
       Show historical asset/liability/equity  balances  at  each  month  end.
       Also available as the balancesheetequity command.

       o bal -M assets not:receivable
       Show  changes  to  liquid  assets in each month.  Also available as the
       cashflow command.

       Also:

       o bal -M expenses -2 -SA
       Show monthly expenses summarised to  depth  2  and  sorted  by  average
       amount.

       o bal -M --budget expenses
       Show monthly expenses and budget goals.

       o bal -M --valuechange investments
       Show monthly change in market value of investment assets.

       o bal  investments  --valuechange  -D  date:lastweek  amt:'>1000'  -STA
         [--invert]
       Show top gainers [or losers] last week

   roi
       Shows the time-weighted (TWR) and money-weighted (IRR) rate  of  return
       on your investments.

              Flags:
                   --cashflow                 show all amounts that were used to compute
                                              returns
                   --investment=QUERY         query to select your investment transactions
                   --profit-loss=QUERY --pnl  query to select profit-and-loss or
                                              appreciation/valuation transactions

       At  a  minimum,  you need to supply a query (which could be just an ac-
       count name) to select your investment(s) with --inv, and another  query
       to identify your profit and loss transactions with --pnl.

       If  you do not record changes in the value of your investment manually,
       or do not require computation  of  time-weighted  return  (TWR),  --pnl
       could be an empty query (--pnl "" or --pnl STR where STR does not match
       any of your accounts).

       This  command  will compute and display the internalized rate of return
       (IRR, also known as money-weighted rate of  return)  and  time-weighted
       rate  of  return  (TWR)  for  your  investments for the time period re-
       quested.  IRR is always annualized due to the way it is  computed,  but
       TWR  is reported both as a rate over the chosen reporting period and as
       an annual rate.

       Price directives will be taken into account if you  supply  appropriate
       --cost or --value flags (see VALUATION).

       Note, in some cases this report can fail, for these reasons:

       o Error  (NotBracketed): No solution for Internal Rate of Return (IRR).
         Possible causes: IRR is huge (>1000000%), balance of  investment  be-
         comes negative at some point in time.

       o Error  (SearchFailed):  Failed  to find solution for Internal Rate of
         Return (IRR).  Either search does not converge to a solution, or con-
         verges too slowly.

       Examples:

       o Using  roi  to  compute  total  return  of  investment   in   stocks:
         https://github.com/simonmichael/hledger/blob/master/examples/invest-
         ing/roi-unrealised.ledger

       o Cookbook > Return on Investment: https://hledger.org/roi.html

   Spaces and special characters in --inv and --pnl
       Note that --inv and --pnl's argument is a query, and queries could have
       several space-separated terms (see QUERIES).

       To  indicate  that  all search terms form single command-line argument,
       you will need to put them in quotes (see Special characters):

              $ hledger roi --inv 'term1 term2 term3 ...'

       If any query terms contain spaces themselves, you will  need  an  extra
       level of nested quoting, eg:

              $ hledger roi --inv="'Assets:Test 1'" --pnl="'Equity:Unrealized Profit and Loss'"

   Semantics of --inv and --pnl
       Query  supplied to --inv has to match all transactions that are related
       to your investment.  Transactions not matching --inv will be ignored.

       In these transactions, ROI will conside postings that match --inv to be
       "investment postings" and other postings (not matching --inv)  will  be
       sorted  into  two categories: "cash flow" and "profit and loss", as ROI
       needs to know which part of the investment value is your  contributions
       and which is due to the return on investment.

       o "Cash flow" is depositing or withdrawing money, buying or selling as-
         sets,  or  otherwise converting between your investment commodity and
         any other commodity.  Example:

                2019-01-01 Investing in Snake Oil
                  assets:cash          -$100
                  investment:snake oil

                2020-01-01 Selling my Snake Oil
                  assets:cash           $10
                  investment:snake oil  = 0

       o "Profit and loss" is change in the value of your investment:

                2019-06-01 Snake Oil falls in value
                  investment:snake oil  = $57
                  equity:unrealized profit or loss

       All non-investment postings are assumed to be "cash flow", unless  they
       match  --pnl query.  Changes in value of your investment due to "profit
       and loss" postings will be considered as part of  your  investment  re-
       turn.

       Example:  if you use --inv snake --pnl equity:unrealized, then postings
       in the example below would be classifed as:

              2019-01-01 Snake Oil #1
                assets:cash          -$100   ; cash flow posting
                investment:snake oil         ; investment posting

              2019-03-01 Snake Oil #2
                equity:unrealized pnl  -$100 ; profit and loss posting
                snake oil                    ; investment posting

              2019-07-01 Snake Oil #3
                equity:unrealized pnl        ; profit and loss posting
                cash          -$100          ; cash flow posting
                snake oil     $50            ; investment posting

   IRR and TWR explained
       "ROI" stands for "return on investment".  Traditionally this  was  com-
       puted  as a difference between current value of investment and its ini-
       tial value, expressed in percentage of the initial value.

       However, this approach is only practical in simple cases, where invest-
       ments receives no in-flows or out-flows of money,  and  where  rate  of
       growth is fixed over time.  For more complex scenarios you need differ-
       ent  ways to compute rate of return, and this command implements two of
       them: IRR and TWR.

       Internal rate of return, or "IRR" (also called "money-weighted rate  of
       return")  takes into account effects of in-flows and out-flows, and the
       time between them.  Investment at a particular fixed interest  rate  is
       going  to  give  you more interest than the same amount invested at the
       same interest rate, but made later in time.   If  you  are  withdrawing
       from  your  investment, your future gains would be smaller (in absolute
       numbers), and will be a smaller percentage of your initial  investment,
       so your IRR will be smaller.  And if you are adding to your investment,
       you will receive bigger absolute gains, which will be a bigger percent-
       age of your initial investment, so your IRR will be larger.

       As  mentioned before, in-flows and out-flows would be any cash that you
       personally put in or withdraw, and for the "roi" command, these are the
       postings that match the query in the--inv argument and  NOT  match  the
       query in the--pnl argument.

       If  you  manually  record  changes  in  the value of your investment as
       transactions that balance them against "profit and loss"  (or  "unreal-
       ized  gains") account or use price directives, then in order for IRR to
       compute the precise effect of your in-flows and out-flows on  the  rate
       of  return, you will need to record the value of your investement on or
       close to the days when in- or out-flows occur.

       In technical terms, IRR uses the same approach as  computation  of  net
       present value, and tries to find a discount rate that makes net present
       value of all the cash flows of your investment to add up to zero.  This
       could  be hard to wrap your head around, especially if you haven't done
       discounted cash flow analysis before.  Implementation of IRR in hledger
       should produce results that match the =XIRR formula in Excel.

       Second way to compute rate of return that  roi  command  implements  is
       called  "time-weighted rate of return" or "TWR".  Like IRR, it will ac-
       count for the effect of your in-flows and out-flows, but unlike IRR  it
       will  try  to  compute the true rate of return of the underlying asset,
       compensating for the effect that deposits and withdrawas  have  on  the
       apparent rate of growth of your investment.

       TWR  represents  your  investment  as  an  imaginary  "unit fund" where
       in-flows/ out-flows lead to buying or selling "units" of  your  invest-
       ment  and  changes  in its value change the value of "investment unit".
       Change in "unit price" over the reporting period gives you rate of  re-
       turn  of  your  investment, and make TWR less sensitive than IRR to the
       effects of cash in-flows and out-flows.

       References:

       o Explanation of rate of return

       o Explanation of IRR

       o Explanation of TWR

       o IRR vs TWR

       o Examples of computing IRR and TWR and discussion of  the  limitations
         of both metrics

Chart commands
   activity
       Show an ascii barchart of posting counts per interval.

              Flags:
              no command-specific flags

       The  activity  command  displays an ascii histogram showing transaction
       counts by day, week, month or other reporting interval (by day  is  the
       default).  With query arguments, it counts only matched transactions.

       Examples:

              $ hledger activity --quarterly
              2008-01-01 **
              2008-04-01 *******
              2008-07-01
              2008-10-01 **

Data generation commands
   close
       (equity)

       close  prints several kinds of "closing" and/or "opening" transactions,
       useful in various situations: migrating balances to a new journal file,
       retaining earnings into equity,  consolidating  balances,  viewing  lot
       costs..   Like  print,  it  prints valid journal entries.  You can copy
       these into your journal file(s) when you are happy with how they look.

              Flags:
                   --clopen[=TAGVAL]      show closing and opening balances transactions,
                                          for AL accounts by default
                   --close[=TAGVAL]       show just a closing balances transaction
                   --open[=TAGVAL]        show just an opening balances transaction
                   --assert[=TAGVAL]      show a balance assertions transaction
                   --assign[=TAGVAL]      show a balance assignments transaction
                   --retain[=TAGVAL]      show a retain earnings transaction, for RX
                                          accounts by default
                -x --explicit             show all amounts explicitly
                   --show-costs           show amounts with different costs separately
                   --interleaved          show source and destination postings together
                   --assertion-type=TYPE  =, ==, =* or ==*
                   --close-desc=DESC      set closing transaction's description
                   --close-acct=ACCT      set closing transaction's destination account
                   --open-desc=DESC       set opening transaction's description
                   --open-acct=ACCT       set opening transaction's source account
                   --round=TYPE           how much rounding or padding should be done when
                                          displaying amounts ?
                                          none - show original decimal digits,
                                                 as in journal (default)
                                          soft - just add or remove decimal zeros
                                                 to match precision
                                          hard - round posting amounts to precision
                                                 (can unbalance transactions)
                                          all  - also round cost amounts to precision
                                                 (can unbalance transactions)

       close has six modes, selected  by  choosing  one  of  the  mode  flags:
       --clopen,  --close  (default), --open, --assert, --assign, or --retain.
       They are all doing the same kind of operation, but with  different  de-
       faults for different situations.

       The  journal  entries generated by close will have a clopen: tag, which
       is helpful when you want to exclude them from  reports.   If  the  main
       journal  file name contains a number, the tag's value will be that base
       file name with the number incremented.   Eg  if  the  journal  file  is
       2025.journal,  the  tag  will  be  clopen:2026.  Or you can set the tag
       value by providing an argument to the mode  flag.   Eg  --close=foo  or
       --clopen=2025-main.

   close --clopen
       This is useful if migrating balances to a new journal file at the start
       of  a new year.  It prints a "closing balances" transaction that zeroes
       out account balances (Asset and Liability accounts, by default), and an
       opposite "opening balances" transaction that restores them again.  Typ-
       ically, you would run

              hledger close --clopen -e NEWYEAR >> $LEDGER_FILE

       and then move the opening transaction from the old file to the new file
       (and probably also update your LEDGER_FILE environment variable).

       Why might you do this ?  If your reports are fast, you may not need it.
       But at some point you will probably want  to  partition  your  data  by
       time,  for  performance or data integrity or regulatory reasons.  A new
       file or set of files per year is common.  Then, having each  file/file-
       set  "bookended" with opening and closing balance transactions will al-
       low you to freely pick and choose which files to read - just  the  cur-
       rent year, any past year, any sequence of years, or all of them - while
       showing  correct  account  balances in each case.  The earliest opening
       balances transaction sets correct  starting  balances,  and  any  later
       closing/opening pairs will harmlessly cancel each other out.

       The  balances  will  be  transferred to and from equity:opening/closing
       balances by default.  You  can  override  this  by  using  --close-acct
       and/or --open-acct.

       You  can  select a different set of accounts to close/open by providing
       an account query.  Eg to add Equity accounts,  provide  arguments  like
       assets  liabilities  equity or type:ALE.  When migrating to a new file,
       you'll usually want to bring along the AL or ALE accounts, but not  the
       RX accounts (Revenue, Expense).

       Assertions  will  be  added indicating and checking the new balances of
       the closed/opened accounts.

   close --close
       This prints just the closing balances transaction of --clopen.   It  is
       the default if you don't specify a mode.

       More  customisation  options  are described below.  Among other things,
       you can use close --close to generate a transaction moving the balances
       from any set of accounts, to a different account.  (If you need to move
       just a portion of the balance, see hledger-move.)

   close --open
       This prints just the opening balances transaction of --clopen.  (It  is
       similar to Ledger's equity command.)

   close --assert
       This prints a transaction that asserts the account balances as they are
       on the end date (and adds an assert: tag).  It could be useful as docu-
       mention and to guard against changes.

   close --assign
       This prints a transaction that assigns the account balances as they are
       on  the  end  date  (and adds an "assign:" tag).  Unlike balance asser-
       tions, assignments will post changes to balances as needed to reach the
       specified amounts.

       This is another way to set starting balances when migrating  to  a  new
       file,  and  it  will set them correctly even in the presence of earlier
       files which do not have a closing balances  transaction.   However,  it
       can  hide  errors,  and disturb the accounting equation, so --clopen is
       usually recommended.

   close --retain
       This is like --close, but it closes Revenue and  Expense  account  bal-
       ances  by  default.   They will be transferred to equity:retained earn-
       ings, or another account specified with --close-acct.

       Revenues and expenses correspond to changes in equity.  They are  cate-
       gorised separately for reporting purposes, but traditionally at the end
       of  each  accounting  period,  businesses consolidate them into equity,
       This is called "retaining earnings", or "closing the books".

       In personal accounting, there's not much reason to do  this,  and  most
       people  don't.   (One reason to do it is to help the balancesheetequity
       report show a zero total, demonstrating that  the  accounting  equation
       (A-L=E) is satisfied.)

   close customisation
       In all modes, the following things can be overridden:

       o the accounts to be closed/opened, with account query arguments

       o the closing/opening dates, with -e OPENDATE

       o the balancing account, with --close-acct=ACCT and/or --open-acct=ACCT

       o the    transaction    descriptions,    with   --close-desc=DESC   and
         --open-desc=DESC

       o the transactions' clopen tag value, with a TAGVAL  argument  for  the
         mode flag (see above).

       By  default,  the closing date is yesterday, or the journal's end date,
       whichever is later; and the opening date is always one  day  after  the
       closing  date.   You  can change these by specifying a report end date;
       the closing date will be the last day of the report period.  Eg -e 2024
       means "close on 2023-12-31, open on 2024-01-01".

       With --x/--explicit, the balancing amount will be shown explicitly, and
       if it involves multiple commodities, a separate posting will be  gener-
       ated for each of them (similar to print -x).

       With  --interleaved,  each individual transfer is shown with source and
       destination postings next to  each  other  (perhaps  useful  for  trou-
       bleshooting).

       With --show-costs, balances' costs are also shown, with different costs
       kept  separate.   This  may generate very large journal entries, if you
       have many  currency  conversions  or  investment  transactions.   close
       --show-costs  is  currently  the  best way to view investment lots with
       hledger.   (To  move  or  dispose  of  lots,  see  the   more   capable
       hledger-move script.)

   close and balance assertions
       close adds balance assertions verifying that the accounts have been re-
       set to zero in a closing transaction or restored to their previous bal-
       ances  in an opening transaction.  These provide useful error checking,
       but you can ignore them temporarily with -I, or remove them if you pre-
       fer.

       Single-commodity, subaccount-exclusive balance assertions (=) are  gen-
       erated  by  default.   This  can be changed with --assertion-type='==*'
       (eg).

       When running close you should probably  avoid  using  -C,  -R,  status:
       (filtering  by  status  or  realness)  or --auto (generating postings),
       since the generated balance assertions would then require these.

       Transactions with multiple dates (eg posting dates) spanning  the  file
       boundary also can disrupt the balance assertions:

              2023-12-30 a purchase made in december, cleared in january
                  expenses:food          5
                  assets:bank:checking  -5  ; date: 2023-01-02

       To  solve  this  you can transfer the money to and from a temporary ac-
       count, splitting the multi-day transaction into two single-day transac-
       tions:

              ; in 2022.journal:
              2022-12-30 a purchase made in december, cleared in january
                  expenses:food          5
                  equity:pending        -5

              ; in 2023.journal:
              2023-01-02 last year's transaction cleared
                  equity:pending         5 = 0
                  assets:bank:checking  -5

   close examples
   Retain earnings
       Record 2022's revenues/expenses as retained earnings on 2022-12-31, ap-
       pending the generated transaction to the journal:

              $ hledger close --retain -f 2022.journal -p 2022 >> 2022.journal

       After this, to see 2022's revenues and expenses you  must  exclude  the
       retain earnings transaction:

              $ hledger -f 2022.journal is not:desc:'retain earnings'

   Migrate balances to a new file
       Close assets/liabilities on 2022-12-31 and re-open them on 2023-01-01:

              $ hledger close --clopen -f 2022.journal -p 2022
              # copy/paste the closing transaction to the end of 2022.journal
              # copy/paste the opening transaction to the start of 2023.journal

       After  this,  to  see  2022's end-of-year balances you must exclude the
       closing balances transaction:

              $ hledger -f 2022.journal bs not:desc:'closing balances'

       For more flexibility, it helps to tag closing and opening  transactions
       with eg clopen:NEWYEAR, then you can ensure correct balances by exclud-
       ing all opening/closing transactions except the first, like so:

              $ hledger bs -Y -f 2021.j -f 2022.j -f 2023.j expr:'tag:clopen=2021 or not tag:clopen'
              $ hledger bs -Y -f 2021.j -f 2022.j           expr:'tag:clopen=2021 or not tag:clopen'
              $ hledger bs -Y -f 2022.j -f 2023.j           expr:'tag:clopen=2022 or not tag:clopen'
              $ hledger bs -Y -f 2021.j                     expr:'tag:clopen=2021 or not tag:clopen'
              $ hledger bs -Y -f 2022.j                     expr:'tag:clopen=2022 or not tag:clopen'
              $ hledger bs -Y -f 2023.j                     # unclosed file, no query needed

   More detailed close examples
       See examples/multi-year.

   rewrite
       Print all transactions, rewriting the postings of matched transactions.
       For  now  the only rewrite available is adding new postings, like print
       --auto.

              Flags:
                   --add-posting='ACCT  AMTEXPR'  add a posting to ACCT, which may be
                                                  parenthesised. AMTEXPR is either a literal
                                                  amount, or *N which means the transaction's
                                                  first matched amount multiplied by N (a
                                                  decimal number). Two spaces separate ACCT
                                                  and AMTEXPR.
                   --diff                         generate diff suitable as an input for
                                                  patch tool

       This is a start at a generic rewriter of transaction entries.  It reads
       the default journal and prints the transactions, like print,  but  adds
       one or more specified postings to any transactions matching QUERY.  The
       posting  amounts can be fixed, or a multiplier of the existing transac-
       tion's first posting amount.

       Examples:

              $ hledger-rewrite.hs ^income --add-posting '(liabilities:tax)  *.33  ; income tax' --add-posting '(reserve:gifts)  $100'
              $ hledger-rewrite.hs expenses:gifts --add-posting '(reserve:gifts)  *-1"'
              $ hledger-rewrite.hs -f rewrites.hledger

       rewrites.hledger may consist of entries like:

              = ^income amt:<0 date:2017
                (liabilities:tax)  *0.33  ; tax on income
                (reserve:grocery)  *0.25  ; reserve 25% for grocery
                (reserve:)  *0.25  ; reserve 25% for grocery

       Note the single quotes to protect the dollar sign from  bash,  and  the
       two spaces between account and amount.

       More:

              $ hledger rewrite [QUERY]        --add-posting "ACCT  AMTEXPR" ...
              $ hledger rewrite ^income        --add-posting '(liabilities:tax)  *.33'
              $ hledger rewrite expenses:gifts --add-posting '(budget:gifts)  *-1"'
              $ hledger rewrite ^income        --add-posting '(budget:foreign currency)  *0.25 JPY; diversify'

       Argument  for  --add-posting  option  is a usual posting of transaction
       with an exception for amount specification.  More  precisely,  you  can
       use '*' (star symbol) before the amount to indicate that that this is a
       factor  for  an  amount of original matched posting.  If the amount in-
       cludes a commodity name, the new posting amount will be in the new com-
       modity; otherwise, it will be in the matched posting  amount's  commod-
       ity.

   Re-write rules in a file
       During  the  run  this  tool will execute so called "Automated Transac-
       tions" found in any journal it process.  I.e instead of specifying this
       operations in command line you can put them in a journal file.

              $ rewrite-rules.journal

       Make contents look like this:

              = ^income
                  (liabilities:tax)  *.33

              = expenses:gifts
                  budget:gifts  *-1
                  assets:budget  *1

       Note that '=' (equality symbol) that is used instead of date in  trans-
       actions you usually write.  It indicates the query by which you want to
       match the posting to add new ones.

              $ hledger rewrite -f input.journal -f rewrite-rules.journal > rewritten-tidy-output.journal

       This is something similar to the commands pipeline:

              $ hledger rewrite -f input.journal '^income' --add-posting '(liabilities:tax)  *.33' \
                | hledger rewrite -f - expenses:gifts      --add-posting 'budget:gifts  *-1'       \
                                                              --add-posting 'assets:budget  *1'       \
                > rewritten-tidy-output.journal

       It  is  important  to understand that relative order of such entries in
       journal is important.  You can re-use result of previously added  post-
       ings.

   Diff output format
       To  use  this tool for batch modification of your journal files you may
       find useful output in form of unified diff.

              $ hledger rewrite --diff -f examples/sample.journal '^income' --add-posting '(liabilities:tax)  *.33'

       Output might look like:

              --- /tmp/examples/sample.journal
              +++ /tmp/examples/sample.journal
              @@ -18,3 +18,4 @@
               2008/01/01 income
              -    assets:bank:checking  $1
              +    assets:bank:checking            $1
                   income:salary
              +    (liabilities:tax)                0
              @@ -22,3 +23,4 @@
               2008/06/01 gift
              -    assets:bank:checking  $1
              +    assets:bank:checking            $1
                   income:gifts
              +    (liabilities:tax)                0

       If you'll pass this through patch tool you'll get transactions contain-
       ing the posting that matches your query be updated.  Note that multiple
       files might be update according to list of input  files  specified  via
       --file options and include directives inside of these files.

       Be  careful.  Whole transaction being re-formatted in a style of output
       from hledger print.

       See also:

       https://github.com/simonmichael/hledger/issues/99

   rewrite vs. print --auto
       This command predates print --auto, and currently does  much  the  same
       thing, but with these differences:

       o with  multiple files, rewrite lets rules in any file affect all other
         files.  print --auto uses standard directive  scoping;  rules  affect
         only child files.

       o rewrite's  query  limits which transactions can be rewritten; all are
         printed.  print --auto's query limits which transactions are printed.

       o rewrite applies rules specified on command line or  in  the  journal.
         print --auto applies rules specified in the journal.

Maintenance commands
   check
       Check for various kinds of errors in your data.

              Flags:
              no command-specific flags

       hledger  provides a number of built-in correctness checks to help vali-
       date your data and prevent errors.  Some are  run  automatically,  some
       when  you enable --strict mode; or you can run any of them on demand by
       providing them as arguments to the check command.   check  produces  no
       output and a zero exit code if all is well.  Eg:

              hledger check                      # run basic checks
              hledger check -s                   # run basic and strict checks
              hledger check ordereddates payees  # run basic checks and two others

       If  you  are  an Emacs user, you can also configure flycheck-hledger to
       run these checks, providing instant feedback as you edit the journal.

       Here are the checks currently available.  They are generally checked in
       the order they are shown here, and only the first failure will  be  re-
       ported.

   Basic checks
       These  important checks are performed by default, by almost all hledger
       commands:

       o parseable - data files are in a supported format, with no syntax  er-
         rors  and no invalid include directives.  This ensures that all files
         exist and are readable.

       o autobalanced - all transactions are balanced, after automatically in-
         ferring missing amounts and  conversion  rates  and  then  converting
         amounts  to cost.  This ensures that each transaction's journal entry
         is well formed.

       o assertions - all balance assertions in the journal are passing.  Bal-
         ance assertions are a strong defense against  errors,  catching  many
         problems.   This  check is on by default, but if it gets in your way,
         you can disable it temporarily with -I/--ignore-assertions, or  as  a
         default  by  adding  that  flag  to  your  config  file.   (Then  use
         -s/--strict or hledger check assertions when you want to enable it).

   Strict checks
       When the -s/--strict flag is used (AKA strict mode), all commands  will
       perform the following additional checks (and assertions, above).  These
       provide extra error-catching power to help you keep your data clean and
       correct:

       o balanced  -  like autobalanced, but implicit conversions between com-
         modities are not allowed; all conversion transactions must  use  cost
         notation  or equity postings.  This prevents wrong conversions caused
         by typos.

       o commodities - all commodity symbols  used  must  be  declared.   This
         guards against mistyping or omitting commodity symbols.

       o accounts  -  all  account names used must be declared.  This prevents
         the use of mis-spelled or outdated account names.

   Other checks
       These are not wanted by everyone, but can be run using the  check  com-
       mand:

       o tags - all tags used must be declared.  This prevents mis-spelled tag
         names.  Note hledger fairly often finds unintended tags in comments.

       o payees - all payees used in transactions must be declared.  This will
         force you to declare any new payee name before using it.  Most people
         will probably find this a bit too strict.

       o ordereddates  -  within  each  file,  transactions must be ordered by
         date.  This is a simple and effective error catcher.   It's  not  in-
         cluded in strict mode, but you can add it by running hledger check -s
         ordereddates.  If enabled, this check is performed before balance as-
         sertions.

       o recentassertions - all accounts with balance assertions must have one
         that's  within the 7 days before their latest posting.  This will en-
         courage adding balance assertions for your active asset/liability ac-
         counts, which in turn should encourage  you  to  reconcile  regularly
         with  those  real world balances - another strong defense against er-
         rors.  (hledger close --assert >>$LEDGER_FILE is a convenient way  to
         add  new balance assertions.  Later these become quite redundant, and
         you might choose to remove them to reduce clutter.)

       o uniqueleafnames - no two accounts may have the same last account name
         part (eg the checking in assets:bank:checking).   This  ensures  each
         account can be matched by a unique short name, easier to remember and
         to type.

   Custom checks
       You  can build your own custom checks with add-on command scripts.  See
       also Cookbook > Scripting.  Here are some examples from hledger/bin/:

       o hledger-check-tagfiles - all tag values containing /  exist  as  file
         paths

       o hledger-check-fancyassertions  -  more complex balance assertions are
         passing

   diff
       Compares a particular account's transactions in two  input  files.   It
       shows any transactions to this account which are in one file but not in
       the other.

              Flags:
              no command-specific flags

       More precisely: for each posting affecting this account in either file,
       this  command looks for a corresponding posting in the other file which
       posts the same amount to the same account (ignoring date,  description,
       etc).

       Since it compares postings, not transactions, this also works when mul-
       tiple bank transactions have been combined into a single journal entry.

       This  command is useful eg if you have downloaded an account's transac-
       tions from your bank (eg as CSV data): when hledger and your bank  dis-
       agree  about  the  account  balance, you can compare the bank data with
       your journal to find out the cause.

       Examples:

              $ hledger diff -f $LEDGER_FILE -f bank.csv assets:bank:giro
              These transactions are in the first file only:

              2014/01/01 Opening Balances
                  assets:bank:giro              EUR ...
                  ...
                  equity:opening balances       EUR -...

              These transactions are in the second file only:

   setup
       Check the status of the hledger installation.

              Flags:
              no command-specific flags

       setup tests your hledger installation and prints  a  list  of  results,
       sometimes  with helpful hints.  This is a good first command to run af-
       ter installing hledger.  Also after upgrading, or when something's  not
       working, or just when you want a reminder of where things are.

       It  makes one network request to detect the latest hledger release ver-
       sion.  It's ok if this fails or times out.  It will use ANSI  color  by
       default,  unless  disabled by NO_COLOR or --color=n.  It does not use a
       pager or a config file.

       It expects that the hledger version you are  running  is  installed  in
       your  PATH.   If  not,  it  will stop until you have done that (to keep
       things simple).

       Example:

              $ hledger setup
              Checking your hledger setup..
              Legend: good, neutral, unknown, warning

              hledger
              * is a released version ?                   no  hledger 1.42.99-gbca4b39c5-20250425, mac-aarch64
              * is up to date ?                          yes  1.42.99 installed, latest is 1.42.1
              * is a native binary for this machine ?    yes  aarch64
              * is installed in PATH ?                   yes  /Users/simon/.local/bin/hledger
              * has a system text encoding configured ?  yes  UTF-8, data files should use this encoding
              * has a user config file ? (optional)       no
              * current directory has a local config ?   yes  /Users/simon/src/hledger/hledger.conf
              * the config file is readable ?            yes  /Users/simon/src/hledger/hledger.conf

              terminal
              * the NO_COLOR variable is defined ?        no
              * --color is configured by config file ?    no
              * hledger will use color by default ?      yes
              * the PAGER variable is defined ?          yes  less
              * --pager is configured by config file ?    no
              * hledger will use a pager when needed ?   yes  /opt/homebrew/bin/less
              * the LESS variable is defined ?           yes
              * the HLEDGER_LESS variable is defined ?    no
              * adjusting LESS variable for color etc. ? yes
              * --pretty is enabled by config file ?      no  tables will use ASCII characters
              * bash shell completions are installed ?     ?
              * zsh shell completions are installed ?      ?

              journal
              * the LEDGER_FILE variable is defined ?    yes  /Users/simon/finance/2025/2025.journal
              * a default journal file is readable ?     yes  /Users/simon/finance/2025/2025.journal
              * it includes additional files ?           yes  15
              * all commodities are declared ?           yes  10
              * all accounts are declared ?              yes  160
              * all accounts have types ?                 no  14 untyped
              * accounts of each type were detected ?    yes  ALERXCV
              * commodities/accounts are checked ?        no  use -s to check commodities/accounts
              * balance assertions are checked ?         yes  use -I to ignore assertions

   test
       Run built-in unit tests.

              Flags:
              no command-specific flags

       This command runs the unit tests built in to hledger  and  hledger-lib,
       printing  the results on stdout.  If any test fails, the exit code will
       be non-zero.

       This is mainly used by hledger developers, but you can also use  it  to
       sanity-check  the  installed  hledger executable on your platform.  All
       tests are expected to pass - if you ever see a failure,  please  report
       as a bug!

       Any  arguments  before  a  -- argument will be passed to the tasty test
       runner as test-selecting -p patterns, and any arguments after  --  will
       be passed to tasty unchanged.

       Examples:

              $ hledger test               # run all unit tests
              $ hledger test balance       # run tests with "balance" in their name
              $ hledger test -- -h         # show tasty's options

PART 5: COMMON TASKS
       Here  are  some  quick  examples  of  how  to  do some basic tasks with
       hledger.

   Getting help
       Here's how to list commands and view options and command docs:

              $ hledger                # show available commands
              $ hledger --help         # show common options
              $ hledger CMD --help     # show CMD's options, common options and CMD's documentation

       You can also view your hledger version's manual in several  formats  by
       using the help command.  Eg:

              $ hledger help           # show the hledger manual with info, man or $PAGER (best available)
              $ hledger help journal   # show the journal topic in the hledger manual
              $ hledger help --help    # find out more about the help command

       To   view   manuals   and   introductory   docs   on   the  web,  visit
       https://hledger.org.   Chat  and  mail  list  support  and   discussion
       archives can be found at https://hledger.org/support.

   Constructing command lines
       hledger  has  a  flexible command line interface.  We strive to keep it
       simple and ergonomic, but if you run into one of the  sharp  edges  de-
       scribed in OPTIONS, here are some tips that might help:

       o command-specific  options must go after the command (it's fine to put
         common options there too: hledger CMD OPTS ARGS)

       o you can run addon commands via hledger (hledger  ui  [ARGS])  or  di-
         rectly (hledger-ui [ARGS])

       o enclose "problematic" arguments in single quotes

       o if  needed, also add a backslash to hide regular expression metachar-
         acters from the shell

       o to see how a misbehaving command line is being parsed, add --debug=2.

   Starting a journal file
       hledger  looks  for  your  accounting   data   in   a   journal   file,
       $HOME/.hledger.journal by default:

              $ hledger stats
              The hledger journal file "/Users/simon/.hledger.journal" was not found.
              Please create it first, eg with "hledger add" or a text editor.
              Or, specify an existing journal file with -f or LEDGER_FILE.

       You  can  override this by setting the LEDGER_FILE environment variable
       (see below).  It's a good practice to keep this  important  file  under
       version  control,  and  to start a new file each year.  So you could do
       something like this:

              $ mkdir ~/finance
              $ cd ~/finance
              $ git init
              Initialized empty Git repository in /Users/simon/finance/.git/
              $ touch 2023.journal
              $ echo "export LEDGER_FILE=$HOME/finance/2023.journal" >> ~/.profile
              $ source ~/.profile
              $ hledger stats
              Main file                : /Users/simon/finance/2023.journal
              Included files           :
              Transactions span        :  to  (0 days)
              Last transaction         : none
              Transactions             : 0 (0.0 per day)
              Transactions last 30 days: 0 (0.0 per day)
              Transactions last 7 days : 0 (0.0 per day)
              Payees/descriptions      : 0
              Accounts                 : 0 (depth 0)
              Commodities              : 0 ()
              Market prices            : 0 ()

   Setting LEDGER_FILE
   Set LEDGER_FILE on unix
       It depends on your shell, but running these commands  in  the  terminal
       will work for many people; adapt if needed:

              $ echo 'export LEDGER_FILE=~/finance/my.journal' >> ~/.profile
              $ source ~/.profile

       When correctly configured:

       o env | grep LEDGER_FILE will show your new setting

       o and so should hledger setup and hledger files.

   Set LEDGER_FILE on mac
       In a terminal window, follow the unix procedure above.

       Also, this optional step may be helpful for GUI applications:

       1. Add an entry to ~/.MacOSX/environment.plist like

                  {
                    "LEDGER_FILE" : "~/finance/my.journal"
                  }

       2. Run  killall  Dock in a terminal window (or restart the machine), to
          complete the change.

       When correctly configured for GUI applications:

       o apps started from the dock or a  spotlight  search,  such  as  a  GUI
         Emacs, will be aware of the new LEDGER_FILE setting.

   Set LEDGER_FILE on Windows
       Using the gui is easiest:

       1. In  task bar, search for environment variables, and choose "Edit en-
          vironment variables for your account".

       2. Create or change a LEDGER_FILE setting in the User  variables  pane.
          A typical value would be C:\Users\USERNAME\finance\my.journal.

       3. Click OK to complete the change.

       4. And  open  a new powershell window.  (Existing windows won't see the
          change.)

       Or at the command line, you can do it this way:

       1. In  a  powershell  window,  run   [Environment]::SetEnvironmentVari-
          able("LEDGER_FILE",   "C:\User\USERNAME\finance\my.journal",   [Sys-
          tem.EnvironmentVariableTarget]::User)

       2. And open a new powershell window.  (Existing windows won't  see  the
          change.)

       Warning,  doing this from the Windows command line can be tricky; other
       methods you may find online:

       o may not affect the current window

       o may not be persistent

       o may not work unless you are an administrator

       o may limit values to 1024 characters

       o may break dynamic references to other variables

       o may require a new-enough version of powershell

       o or may be intended for the older command window.

       o If you still have trouble, see eg Setting Windows PowerShell environ-
         ment variables or Adding path permanently to windows using powershell
         doesn't appear to work.

       When correctly configured:

       o in a new powershell window, $env:LEDGER_FILE will show your new  set-
         ting

       o and so should hledger setup and (once the file exists) hledger files.

   Setting opening balances
       Pick  a  starting  date  for which you can look up the balances of some
       real-world assets (bank accounts, wallet..)   and  liabilities  (credit
       cards..).

       To  avoid  a  lot of data entry, you may want to start with just one or
       two accounts, like your checking account or cash wallet; and pick a re-
       cent starting date, like today or the start of the week.  You  can  al-
       ways  come  back later and add more accounts and older transactions, eg
       going back to january 1st.

       Add an opening balances transaction to the journal, declaring the  bal-
       ances on this date.  Here are two ways to do it:

       o The  first way: open the journal in any text editor and save an entry
         like this:

                2023-01-01 * opening balances
                    assets:bank:checking                $1000   = $1000
                    assets:bank:savings                 $2000   = $2000
                    assets:cash                          $100   = $100
                    liabilities:creditcard               $-50   = $-50
                    equity:opening/closing balances

         These are start-of-day balances, ie whatever was in  the  account  at
         the end of the previous day.

         The  *  after  the  date  is  an optional status flag.  Here it means
         "cleared & confirmed".

         The currency symbols are optional, but usually a good idea as  you'll
         be dealing with multiple currencies sooner or later.

         The  = amounts are optional balance assertions, providing extra error
         checking.

       o The second way: run hledger add and follow the prompts  to  record  a
         similar transaction:

                $ hledger add
                Adding transactions to journal file /Users/simon/finance/2023.journal
                Any command line arguments will be used as defaults.
                Use tab key to complete, readline keys to edit, enter to accept defaults.
                An optional (CODE) may follow transaction dates.
                An optional ; COMMENT may follow descriptions or amounts.
                If you make a mistake, enter < at any prompt to go one step backward.
                To end a transaction, enter . when prompted.
                To quit, enter . at a date prompt or press control-d or control-c.
                Date [2023-02-07]: 2023-01-01
                Description: * opening balances
                Account 1: assets:bank:checking
                Amount  1: $1000
                Account 2: assets:bank:savings
                Amount  2 [$-1000]: $2000
                Account 3: assets:cash
                Amount  3 [$-3000]: $100
                Account 4: liabilities:creditcard
                Amount  4 [$-3100]: $-50
                Account 5: equity:opening/closing balances
                Amount  5 [$-3050]:
                Account 6 (or . or enter to finish this transaction): .
                2023-01-01 * opening balances
                    assets:bank:checking                      $1000
                    assets:bank:savings                       $2000
                    assets:cash                                $100
                    liabilities:creditcard                     $-50
                    equity:opening/closing balances          $-3050

                Save this transaction to the journal ? [y]:
                Saved.
                Starting the next transaction (. or ctrl-D/ctrl-C to quit)
                Date [2023-01-01]: .

       If  you're  using  version control, this could be a good time to commit
       the journal.  Eg:

              $ git commit -m 'initial balances' 2023.journal

   Recording transactions
       As you spend or receive money, you can record these transactions  using
       one  of  the  methods  above (text editor, hledger add) or by using the
       hledger-iadd or hledger-web add-ons, or by using the import command  to
       convert CSV data downloaded from your bank.

       Here  are  some  simple transactions, see the hledger_journal(5) manual
       and hledger.org for more ideas:

              2023/1/10 * gift received
                assets:cash   $20
                income:gifts

              2023.1.12 * farmers market
                expenses:food    $13
                assets:cash

              2023-01-15 paycheck
                income:salary
                assets:bank:checking    $1000

   Reconciling
       Periodically you should reconcile - compare your hledger-reported  bal-
       ances  against  external sources of truth, like bank statements or your
       bank's website - to be sure that your ledger accurately represents  the
       real-world  balances  (and,  that  the real-world institutions have not
       made a mistake!).  This gets easy and fast with (1)  practice  and  (2)
       frequency.   If  you do it daily, it can take 2-10 minutes.  If you let
       it pile up, expect it to take longer as you hunt down errors  and  dis-
       crepancies.

       A typical workflow:

       1. Reconcile  cash.   Count  what's  in your wallet.  Compare with what
          hledger reports (hledger bal cash).  If they are different,  try  to
          remember  the  missing transaction, or look for the error in the al-
          ready-recorded transactions.   A  register  report  can  be  helpful
          (hledger  reg cash).  If you can't find the error, add an adjustment
          transaction.  Eg if you have $105 after the above, and can't explain
          the missing $2, it could be:

                  2023-01-16 * adjust cash
                      assets:cash    $-2 = $105
                      expenses:misc

       2. Reconcile checking.  Log in to your bank's website.  Compare today's
          (cleared) balance with hledger's cleared balance (hledger bal check-
          ing -C).  If they are different, track down the error or record  the
          missing  transaction(s) or add an adjustment transaction, similar to
          the above.  Unlike the cash case, you can usually compare the trans-
          action history and running balance from your bank with the  one  re-
          ported  by hledger reg checking -C.  This will be easier if you gen-
          erally record transaction dates quite similar to your bank's  clear-
          ing dates.

       3. Repeat for other asset/liability accounts.

       Tip:  instead of the register command, use hledger-ui to see a live-up-
       dating register while you edit the journal: hledger-ui --watch --regis-
       ter checking -C

       After reconciling, it could be a  good  time  to  mark  the  reconciled
       transactions'  status  as "cleared and confirmed", if you want to track
       that, by adding the * marker.  Eg in the  paycheck  transaction  above,
       insert * between 2023-01-15 and paycheck

       If  you're using version control, this can be another good time to com-
       mit:

              $ git commit -m 'txns' 2023.journal

   Reporting
       Here are some basic reports.

       Show all transactions:

              $ hledger print
              2023-01-01 * opening balances
                  assets:bank:checking                      $1000
                  assets:bank:savings                       $2000
                  assets:cash                                $100
                  liabilities:creditcard                     $-50
                  equity:opening/closing balances          $-3050

              2023-01-10 * gift received
                  assets:cash              $20
                  income:gifts

              2023-01-12 * farmers market
                  expenses:food             $13
                  assets:cash

              2023-01-15 * paycheck
                  income:salary
                  assets:bank:checking           $1000

              2023-01-16 * adjust cash
                  assets:cash               $-2 = $105
                  expenses:misc

       Show account names, and their hierarchy:

              $ hledger accounts --tree
              assets
                bank
                  checking
                  savings
                cash
              equity
                opening/closing balances
              expenses
                food
                misc
              income
                gifts
                salary
              liabilities
                creditcard

       Show all account totals:

              $ hledger balance
                             $4105  assets
                             $4000    bank
                             $2000      checking
                             $2000      savings
                              $105    cash
                            $-3050  equity:opening/closing balances
                               $15  expenses
                               $13    food
                                $2    misc
                            $-1020  income
                              $-20    gifts
                            $-1000    salary
                              $-50  liabilities:creditcard
              --------------------
                                 0

       Show only asset and liability balances, as  a  flat  list,  limited  to
       depth 2:

              $ hledger bal assets liabilities -2
                             $4000  assets:bank
                              $105  assets:cash
                              $-50  liabilities:creditcard
              --------------------
                             $4055

       Show  the  same  thing  without negative numbers, formatted as a simple
       balance sheet:

              $ hledger bs -2
              Balance Sheet 2023-01-16

                                      || 2023-01-16
              ========================++============
               Assets                 ||
              ------------------------++------------
               assets:bank            ||      $4000
               assets:cash            ||       $105
              ------------------------++------------
                                      ||      $4105
              ========================++============
               Liabilities            ||
              ------------------------++------------
               liabilities:creditcard ||        $50
              ------------------------++------------
                                      ||        $50
              ========================++============
               Net:                   ||      $4055

       The final total is your "net worth" on the end date.  (Or use bse for a
       full balance sheet with equity.)

       Show income and expense totals, formatted as an income statement:

              hledger is
              Income Statement 2023-01-01-2023-01-16

                             || 2023-01-01-2023-01-16
              ===============++=======================
               Revenues      ||
              ---------------++-----------------------
               income:gifts  ||                   $20
               income:salary ||                 $1000
              ---------------++-----------------------
                             ||                 $1020
              ===============++=======================
               Expenses      ||
              ---------------++-----------------------
               expenses:food ||                   $13
               expenses:misc ||                    $2
              ---------------++-----------------------
                             ||                   $15
              ===============++=======================
               Net:          ||                 $1005

       The final total is your net income during this period.

       Show transactions affecting your wallet, with running total:

              $ hledger register cash
              2023-01-01 opening balances     assets:cash                   $100          $100
              2023-01-10 gift received        assets:cash                    $20          $120
              2023-01-12 farmers market       assets:cash                   $-13          $107
              2023-01-16 adjust cash          assets:cash                    $-2          $105

       Show weekly posting counts as a bar chart:

              $ hledger activity -W
              2019-12-30 *****
              2023-01-06 ****
              2023-01-13 ****

   Migrating to a new file
       At the end of the year, you may want to continue your journal in a  new
       file, so that old transactions don't slow down or clutter your reports,
       and  to  help ensure the integrity of your accounting history.  See the
       close command.

       If using version control, don't forget to git add the new file.

BUGS
       We   welcome   bug   reports   in    the    hledger    issue    tracker
       (https://bugs.hledger.org),  or  on  the  hledger  chat  or  mail  list
       (https://hledger.org/support).

       Some known issues and limitations:

       hledger uses the system's text encoding when  reading  non-ascii  text.
       If  no system encoding is configured, or if the data's encoding is dif-
       ferent, hledger will give an error.  (See Text encoding,  Troubleshoot-
       ing.)

       On  Microsoft  Windows, depending what kind of terminal window you use,
       non-ascii characters, ANSI text formatting, and/or  the  add  command's
       TAB  key,  may not be fully supported.  (For best results, try a power-
       shell window.)

       When processing large data files, hledger uses more memory than Ledger.

   Troubleshooting
       Here are some common issues you might encounter when you  run  hledger,
       and  how  to  resolve them (and remember also you can usually get quick
       Support):

       PATH issues: I get an error like "No command 'hledger' found"
       Depending how you installed hledger, the executables may not be in your
       shell's PATH.  Eg on unix systems, stack  installs  hledger  in  ~/.lo-
       cal/bin and cabal installs it in ~/.cabal/bin.  You may need to add one
       of  these  directories to your shell's PATH, and/or open a new terminal
       window.

       LEDGER_FILE issues: I configured LEDGER_FILE but hledger is  not  using
       it
       o LEDGER_FILE  should  be a real environment variable, not just a shell
         variable.  Eg on unix, the command env | grep LEDGER_FILE should show
         it.   You  may   need   to   use   export   (see   https://stackover-
         flow.com/a/7411509).  On Windows, $env:LEDGER_FILE should show it.

       o You  may  need  to  force your shell to see the new configuration.  A
         simple way is to close your terminal window and open a new one.

       Text decoding issues: I get errors like "Illegal byte sequence" or "In-
       valid or incomplete multibyte or wide character" or  "commitAndRelease-
       Buffer: invalid argument (invalid character)"
       hledger  usually  needs  its  input to be decodable with the system lo-
       cale's text encoding.  See Text encoding and Install: Text encoding.

       COMPATIBILITY ISSUES: hledger gives an error with my Ledger file
       Not all of Ledger's journal file syntax or feature  set  is  supported.
       See hledger and Ledger for full details.



AUTHORS
       Simon Michael <simon@joyful.com> and contributors.
       See http://hledger.org/CREDITS.html


COPYRIGHT
       Copyright 2007-2023 Simon Michael and contributors.


LICENSE
       Released under GNU GPL v3 or later.


SEE ALSO
       hledger(1), hledger-ui(1), hledger-web(1), ledger(1)

hledger-1.51.99                  December 2025                      HLEDGER(1)
