(January 2018) I was disappointed to discover that QB 2016 for Mac (R32) does not react as suggested. All searches for "account numbers" get zero results. It took a LOT of searching to finally discover...

The account numbers are hidden by default, but for all Charts of Accounts which are built into QB 2016 for Mac, the numbers exist. To make them visible: 

- Open your company file

- Select: QuickBooks>Preferences>Transactions (in the Workflow section)

- Check the "Use account numbers" block.

NOTE: If you use layers of subaccounts, you may wish to also check "Show lowest subaccount only", otherwise you will always see the entire account number and label chain.

Addendum: This applies to Quickbooks 2019 Desktop for Mac, too.

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@IntuitBrooks wrote:

QuickBooks->Preferences menu.  Type "account numbers" into the search field on the top right.

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When you click on the magnifying glass ("search") a "Transactions" window opens.

You can also get there:

- Open your company file

- Select: QuickBooks>Preferences>Transactions (in the Workflow section)

Now you can make the account numbers visible:

- Check the "Use account numbers" block.

NOTE: If you use layers of subaccounts, you may wish to also check "Show lowest subaccount only", otherwise you will always see the entire account number and label chain.

We have 14 digit account numbers.  How do I set the field to accomodate?

Hi there, @sd4216.

Each field in your QuickBooks Desktop for Mac has a maximum number of characters that can be entered. Right now, the maximum number of characters that can be entered into the Account Number field on the Chart of Accounts is 7, and it includes spaces.

You can check the following article for additional information about this: Character limitations for fields in QuickBooks.

However, being able to add more characters in the account number fields is a great enhancement we could add in the future. We take this as an opportunity for us to improve our product features.

For now, I recommend making sure your QuickBooks is always up to date for any new features that will be added by our product developers. I'm adding some articles for the steps, as well as the latest updates about the product: 

• Update QuickBooks Mac Desktop
• What's new in QuickBooks Desktop for Mac 2019

Feel free to leave a comment below if you have any other questions about QuickBooks. I'll be around to lend you a helping hand.

I have QB 2016 Desktop Pro for Windows. At least in this version, the path to show account numbers is at:

Edit/Preferences

Accounting

Now click on the Company Preferences tab.

Check the box to Use Account Numbers and you can choose whether to make it required or not.

I have the same problem in 'invoices,' wherein i can't add the specific code system we use for invoice numbers.  it is VERY annoying.  At least increase that to ten, we can work with that by avoiding dashes, but still a pain. 

this doesn't solve 'adding or changing' account numbers.  the account numbers supplied are not sufficient for what we need to do, I need to add/change numbers and accounts, and when you use 'add/edit,' that account numbers don't show in that dialogue/entry box as even an option.  VERY annoying.  ???