Account Code Quick Reference
Three-digit account codes indicate the type of income (1XX) or expense (200 and above) for each transaction shown on the PeopleSoft financial system. The full list of codes includes many specialized codes that are primarily used in central offices. Most department managers will use only a subset of codes. Please see the Account Code Primer for a complete explanation of our account codes.
Access the Information Warehouse for a complete list of account codes (requires Information Warehouse access).
Income/Revenue Account Codes
The 1XX series of account codes greater than 109 but less than 190 are intended for income/revenue only. Departments outside of the Office of Finance and Treasury will likely only use the following codes for revenue: 121, 150, 152, 153, 155, and 156.
In general, departments should use a 1XX code when receiving cash (cash, check, credit card) payments for the sale of a product or service, conference or seminar, course or lab fee, and similar items.
Commonly Used Income Account Codes
| Account Code | Title | Description |
| 121 | Conf. fees | Income from conferences, seminars, or course/lab fees. |
| 150 | Sales/serv | Revenue from sales & services to non-University department customers. |
| 152 | Publ. sales | Revenue from sales of publications and royalties/copyright income. |
| 153 | Rents | Outside revenue from rents of commercial and residential properties. Sublets should be coded as negative rent expense. |
| 155 | Scrap | Revenue from disposal of assets. Should be handled through the purchasing department. |
| 156 | Misc Report | Miscellaneous cash receipts. Examples include contributions not handled through Gift Accounting, dues, and corporate affiliates programs. |
Transfer Account Codes 190-199
Departments will normally use these only for transfers of funding between fund 20 project grants. In some circumstances, they may also be used to transfer funds from fund 20 to fund 10. See further guidance below in discussion of code 199.
Departments should only use codes 192, 193, 194, and 199.
Commonly Used Income Transfer Codes
| Account Code | Title | Description |
| 190 | Bond Finan | Transfer of income from tax exempt bond financing used only by finance and treasury. |
| 192 | Save/Rbate | Transfer of Research Rebates, University Research Committee grants, and general funds savings (DPT2900). |
| 193 | Gen Trnsf | Transfer of funds other than investment income, major maintenance or construction not eligible for debt financing. Departments should use 193 for both sides of the transfer. |
| 194 | Science Fd | Transfers from the Science Fund to departments, and transfers of Science Fund allocations to other spending PGs. |
| 196 | IATP | Transfer of income added to principal; used only by finance and treasury. |
| 197 | Transfer to/from 081/082 | Transfer of balances to/from invested fund principal; used only by finance and treasury. |
| 198 | Trnsf-090 | Transfer of investment income to and from income-clearing 090 project grants. Used only by the budget office. |
| 199 | Trnsf-Othr | Transfer of investment income between project grants after initial income deposit. Both sides of the transfer should use the 199 account code unless transfer involves a student agency or fund 99. This code is used to move only investment income that was initially deposited on the 198 account code. Any other movement requires budget office approval and processing. See guidelines for permissibility of investment income transfers. |
Expense Account Codes
Commonly Used Expense Account Codes
| Account Code | Title | Description |
| 210 | Purch/Sale | Purchased labor from another University department. Use code 232 for temp agencies. |
| 216 | Scholarship | Undergraduate IRS qualified scholarship expense. Questions should be referred the tax manager. |
| 217 | Prizes-PU | Cash and merchandise awards/prizes to Princeton University students for achievement or merit. |
| 218 | Fellwshp Stpnd | Non-qualifying graduate student fellowship stipends and miscellaneous financial aid. |
| 219 | Postdoc Fellowshp | Non-qualifying postdoc fellowship support for research and travel expenses. |
| 220/520 | Mater/Supp | Materials & supplies for general purpose use, including flowers and fruit baskets. Use code 520 when charging a training grant. |
| 221 | Book, etc | Cost associated with purchasing a book, periodical or piece of music. Includes subventions expense. |
| 224 | Minor Equip | Computers, other equipment, & art costing less than $5,000. |
| 230 | Prof Fees | Honorarium. |
| 231 | Purch Serv | Any service other than purchased labor, printing, repair or rent of space or equipment performed. Used for annual software agreements and outside contractors. |
| 232 | Purch Labo | Labor expense purchased outside the University, commonly thru a temp agency. |
| 233 | Printing | Printing and copying services purchased outside the University. |
| 234 | Maint Serv | Maintenance and repairs purchased outside the University (includes maintenance agreements and warranties). |
| 235 | Misc Rental | Rental expense for tangible, personal property such as water coolers, coffee-makers, tents, table and chairs. |
| 245 | Postage | U.S postage (stamps & meters). |
| 246 | Freight | Shipping costs including DHL and UPS. |
| 247 | Tel Svc/Eq | Non-University provided telephone and internet service including equipment. |
| 248 | Tele Tolls | Telephone tolls and fax charges. |
| 250 | Electric | Electricity charges from an outside vendor. |
| 254 | Rechg/Equip | Recharge of computer or special purpose equipment. This code does not carry indirect costs. See account 312. |
| 270 | Nonprll ind sup | Non-payroll individual support; including dependent tuition reimbursements and allowances. |
| 271 | Food/Enter | Food and entertainment costs associated with University-sponsored events, whether paid to a supplier or reimbursed to an individual. |
| 272 | Membership | Dues and memberships. |
| 275/575 | Travel-Dom | Business-related domestic travel including transportation, food, lodging, internet charges, and seminar fees. Use 575 when charging training grants. |
| 276/576 | Travel-For | Business-related international travel including transportation, food, lodging, internet charges, and seminar fees. Use 576 when charging training grants. |
| 278 | Contrib | Contribution to outside charitable organizations qualifying for tax purposes. |
| 284 | Automotive | An automobile costing $5,000 or more. |
| 285 | Art Object | An art object costing $5,000 or more. |
| 286 | Spc Purpose | A special purpose piece of equipment costing $5,000 or more charged to sponsored research. The use is specific (eg. Mass spectrometer). |
| 287 | Gen'l Equp | A general purpose piece of equipment costing $5,000 or more. The equipment may be used for office, instructional, or research purposes (such as a computer). |
| 311 | Move/Reloc | Purchase of "outside" moving expenses or reimbursement of an employee’s moving expenses. |
| 312 | Recharge | Recharge of labor or other operating costs that support computer operation, special purpose equipment or other shared services charged from one department to another. This code carries indirect costs. See account code 254. |
| 313 | Thesis Grant | Miscellaneous undergraduate student aid in support of senior thesis, junior paper, outside instruction, tuition costs for courses not required for a degree, internships, Math Camp. |
| 341 | Permits, V | The cost of a permit, registration, or licenses. |
| 520/220 | Mater/Supp | Materials & supplies for general purpose use charged to a training grant. Use code 220 when charging anything other than a training grant. |
| 535 | Rent-prop/equip | Rental of building or residential space or major equipment, including the rental of University-owned apartments. |
| 575/275 | Travel-Dom | Business-related domestic travel including transportation, food, lodging, internet charges, and seminar fees charged to training grants ONLY. (See account 275 for all others.) |
| 576/276 | Travel-For | Business-related international travel including transportation, food, lodging, internet charges, and seminar fees charged to training grants ONLY. (See account 276 for all others.) |
| 578 | Non-charitable contri | Contributions to student organizations, lecture series, in-house publications. Used for fund 10 and non-charitable contributions outside the University from fund 20. |
