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title: rledger format description: Auto-format beancount files

rledger format

Automatically format beancount files for consistent style.

Usage

rledger format [OPTIONS] [FILE]...

Arguments

Argument	Description
FILE...	One or more beancount files to format

Options

Option	Description
-P, --profile <PROFILE>	Use a profile from config
-o, --output <OUTPUT>	Output file (only valid with single input file)
-i, --in-place	Format file(s) in place
--check	Check if file is formatted (exit 1 if not)
--diff	Show diff when using --check
-v, --verbose	Show verbose output

Examples

Preview Formatting

# Print formatted output (doesn't modify file)
rledger format ledger.beancount

Format In Place

rledger format --in-place ledger.beancount

Format Multiple Files

rledger format --in-place *.beancount

Check Formatting (CI/Pre-commit)

# Exit with error if not formatted
rledger format --check ledger.beancount

# Show diff of what would change
rledger format --check --diff ledger.beancount

Pre-commit Hook

Add to .git/hooks/pre-commit:

#!/bin/bash
for file in $(git diff --cached --name-only | grep '\.beancount$'); do
  rledger format --in-place "$file"
  git add "$file"
done

Formatting Rules

The formatter applies these rules:

• Alignment: Numbers aligned at the decimal point
• Spacing: Consistent spacing around operators
• Indentation: Standard 2-space indentation for postings
• Dates: ISO format (YYYY-MM-DD)
• Metadata: Aligned key-value pairs

Before

2024-01-15 * "Coffee shop"
  Expenses:Food     5.00USD
  Assets:Cash    -5.00 USD
    note: "morning coffee"

After

2024-01-15 * "Coffee shop"
  Expenses:Food             5.00 USD
  Assets:Cash              -5.00 USD
    note: "morning coffee"

See Also

• check - Validate your ledger