How to Create and Manage Assets in Odoo Accounting

Table of Contents

• Why Track Fixed Assets?
• Creating a New Asset
• Setting the Asset Value
• Choosing a Depreciation Method
• Configuring Computation Options
• Setting Up Accounts
• Reviewing the Depreciation Board
• Viewing Journal Entries
• Using the Depreciation Schedule Report

Why Track Fixed Assets?

Even small companies own assets that lose value over time — vehicles, laptops, office furniture. Rather than recording the full cost upfront, best practice is to spread that cost across the asset's useful life through depreciation. This means creating regular journal entries that reflect the declining value of each asset.

Odoo Accounting automates this process. You define the asset once, and Odoo generates all the depreciation entries for you.

Creating a New Asset

1. Open the Accounting application
2. Go to Accounting > Assets
3. Click Create
4. Enter a name for the asset (e.g., "Opal Combo" for a company vehicle)
5. Optionally add identifying details like a license plate number in the reference field

Setting the Asset Value

The top section of the asset form controls value-related fields:

• Original Value — The purchase price of the asset (e.g., 20,000)
• Acquisition Date — When the asset was purchased
• Not Depreciable Value (Salvage Value) — The estimated residual value at the end of the asset's life (e.g., 6,000)
• Book Value — Calculated automatically. This is the current value minus cumulative depreciation

In this example, a vehicle worth 20,000 with a salvage value of 6,000 has 14,000 in depreciable value.

You can also apply an Asset Model to pre-fill depreciation settings. Asset models are covered in a separate guide on asset automation.

Choosing a Depreciation Method

Odoo offers three depreciation methods:

Method	How It Works
Straight Line	Equal depreciation amount each period
Declining	Depreciates by a fixed percentage each period, so amounts decrease over time
Declining then Straight Line	Starts with declining method, then switches to straight line

Setting the Duration

You set the number of periods and the period type (months or years). This distinction matters:

• 84 months creates a journal entry every month for 7 years
• 7 years creates a journal entry once per year for 7 years

Choose months if you want monthly depreciation entries, which is the more common approach.

Tip: You can type calculations directly into number fields in Odoo. For example, type =7*12 to get 84.

Configuring Computation Options

Odoo provides three computation modes:

• Constant Periods — Each depreciation entry covers the same length of time. Supports a pro-rata date to adjust the first and last entries based on when depreciation begins within a period.
• Based on Days per Period — Offers more precision by accounting for months with different numbers of days. Also supports pro-rata.
• No Pro-rata — Works like constant periods but does not adjust the first and last entries. The pro-rata date field is hidden.

For most use cases, Constant Periods is the standard choice.

Setting Up Accounts

The right side of the asset form has three account fields:

1. Fixed Asset Account — Stores the original value of the asset. Determines which account group the asset appears under in the depreciation schedule report. If left empty, the depreciation account is used instead. When creating an asset from a vendor bill, this defaults to the account on the bill.

2. Depreciation Account — Credited with each depreciation journal entry (tracks accumulated depreciation).

3. Expense Account — Debited with each depreciation journal entry (records the cost of the asset losing value).

You can also select:

• Journal — Which accounting journal records the depreciation entries
• Analytic Distribution — If analytic accounting is enabled, allocate depreciation to specific projects or departments

Reviewing the Depreciation Board

Before confirming the asset, click Compute Depreciation to generate the depreciation board. This tab shows:

Column	Description
Depreciation	Amount depreciated in each entry
Cumulative Depreciation	Total depreciation to date
Remaining Depreciable Value	How much value is left to depreciate

Review this board to verify the schedule matches your expectations before confirming.

Viewing Journal Entries

After confirming the asset, Odoo creates all depreciation journal entries in draft. Access them through the Posted Entries smart button at the top of the asset form.

Each journal entry contains:

• A debit to the expense account
• A credit to the depreciation account
• The amounts matching the depreciation board

Draft entries are posted automatically when their scheduled date arrives.

Using the Depreciation Schedule Report

For a high-level view of all assets:

1. Go to Accounting > Reporting > Depreciation Schedule
2. Select the desired time frame (e.g., the current financial year)
3. Expand account groups to see individual assets

The report shows each asset's characteristics, depreciation amounts, and book value — all grouped by fixed asset account.

To include future depreciation, enable the Draft Entries filter. This previews what the schedule will look like as pending entries are posted.

This report becomes especially valuable as your asset portfolio grows and you need a consolidated overview rather than checking each asset individually.

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References

• Asset creation and management | Odoo Accounting — Odoo