An aged debtors report lists what each customer owes at a date, split into columns by how long each invoice has been unpaid. Amounts not yet due sit in the current column; overdue amounts fall into 30-day bands, usually 1–30, 31–60, 61–90 and over 90 days. It shows who owes you money and how late they are. It is also called an aged debt report, aged receivables or debtor ageing. The aged creditors report is the mirror image: what you owe suppliers, aged the same way.
What an aged debtors report shows
There is one line per customer, with their unpaid invoices spread across the ageing columns. The column totals show how much of the sales ledger is late, and the grand total should agree with trade debtors on the trial balance.
Most reports age by due date, so an invoice on 30-day terms only starts ageing after 30 days. Some age by invoice date, which puts the same invoice in a later column.
Ageing buckets
- Current: not yet due. Nothing to do.
- 1–30 days: just overdue. Send a reminder.
- 31–60 days: call, and check the invoice isn't disputed.
- 61–90 days: escalate, or put the account on stop.
- Over 90 days: at risk. Keep chasing, provide for it or write it off.
Aged debtors report example
A small UK company runs its aged debtors at its 31 March year end. Customers are on 30-day terms, aged by due date.
| Customer | Current | 1–30 | 31–60 | 61–90 | 90+ | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Harbour Cafés Ltd | £4,800 | £1,200 | £6,000 | |||
| Lowther Events Ltd | £600 | £2,250 | £2,850 | |||
| Northfield Builders | £1,800 | £1,200 | £3,000 | |||
| Pine & Co | £2,700 | £2,700 | ||||
| Total | £7,500 | £3,000 | £1,200 | £600 | £2,250 | £14,550 |
Just over half of the £14,550 isn't due yet. Harbour Cafés and Northfield Builders need reminders. Lowther Events is the problem: £2,250 is over 90 days late and a second invoice is following it.
How to use an aged debtors report
- Chasing: work from the oldest and largest balances down, weekly.
- Spotting disputes: one old invoice on a paid-up account often means a query, a missing credit note or a misallocated payment.
- Bad debt provisions: at period end, review anything over 90 days. If payment is doubtful, debit bad debts and credit a provision for doubtful debts, which reduces debtors on the balance sheet.
- Write-offs: once a debt won't be paid, for example after the customer goes into liquidation, debit bad debts and credit trade debtors. It leaves the report.
Aged creditors report
An aged creditors report lists unpaid supplier bills by supplier and age, in the same columns. Its total should agree with trade creditors on the trial balance.
Use it to plan payment runs and check balances against supplier statements. Old items are often errors rather than unpaid bills: a bill entered twice or a payment not matched. A negative balance usually means a duplicate payment or a missing bill.
Aged debtors and creditors in Briefcase
In Briefcase Ledger, open Reports, then Aged debtors or Aged creditors, and pick any date. Ledger ages every open invoice or bill from its due date into Current, under 1 month, 1–2, 2–3 and over 3 months, with outstanding, not yet due and overdue totals on top. Expand a customer to see each invoice's due date and days overdue, or when it was paid after the report date.
| Customer | Current | <1 Month | 1–2 Months | 2–3 Months | >3 Months | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Harbour Cafés Ltd3 invoices | £4,800.00 | £1,200.00 | — | — | — | £6,000.00 |
| Lowther Events Ltd2 invoices | — | — | — | £600.00 | £2,250.00 | £2,850.00 |
| ||||||
| Northfield Builders2 invoices | — | £1,800.00 | £1,200.00 | — | — | £3,000.00 |
| Pine & Co1 invoices | £2,700.00 | — | — | — | — | £2,700.00 |
| Total outstanding | £7,500.00 | £3,000.00 | £1,200.00 | £600.00 | £2,250.00 | £14,550.00 |
Unallocated credit notes and payments on account show as credits held, and you can allocate them to open invoices from the report. Export to CSV or PDF, add aged debtors to a custom management accounts pack, or ask Claude or ChatGPT for it through Briefcase MCP. Open items imported from Xero, QuickBooks or Sage are included.
At period end, the debtors and creditors working papers show the aged report at the close date. Briefcase flags balances over 90 days and negative balances, with how each was handled at earlier closes, and you resolve them with a note and attachments. For limited companies on Ledger, write off all or part of a bad debt from the line: Briefcase suggests the account, previews the journal and lets you reverse it later.
Frequently asked questions
What does aged debtors mean?
Aged debtors are the amounts customers owe a business, grouped by how long each invoice has been outstanding. The report that shows them is the aged debtors report.
What is the difference between aged debtors and aged creditors?
Aged debtors is money customers owe you, an asset. Aged creditors is money you owe suppliers, a liability. Both are aged into the same 30-day columns.
Should the aged debtors total match the balance sheet?
Yes. The total should equal trade debtors on the trial balance and balance sheet at the same date. A difference usually means a journal posted to the control account without a customer, or a receipt not allocated to an invoice.
How often should you run an aged debtors report?
Weekly for credit control, and at every month end and year end when reviewing balances for provisions and write-offs.