USALI in Hotel Accounting: What is new in Version 12?

Following the recent publication of the 12^th edition of the Uniform System Accounts for the Lodging Industry (USALI) we thought it would be good to take a closer look at some of the key changes, and what you need to do to get ready for implementation from 1 January 2026.

What is USALI?

USALI provides guidance for standardised financial reporting and analysis across the hotel accounting industry. The first edition was published in 1926 by the Hotel Association of New York City, with the aim of providing guidance to hotels to succeed by effective utilisation of their financial records.

Over time, USALI standards have become the benchmark for hotel accountants and hotel consulting professionals across the world. They help ensure consistency and comparability in financial data, which is essential when reviewing performance across multiple properties or brands.

What are the benefits of USALI?

USALI is business critical for any hotel – some of the benefits include:

• Carrying out benchmarking activities, allowing segmentation of financial reporting by operational departments
• Performance comparisons with other hotels in the industry
• Uniformity of hotel accounting and financial reporting
• Reporting to stakeholders and investors in a format they are used to

For those offering hotel accounting services, the system provides a recognised framework to ensure accuracy and consistency. It also helps management teams and investors speak the same financial language, a key factor for decision-making in the hotel accounting system.

Using USALI to measure your hotel’s financial performance

USALI consists of two main parts – operating statements and a chart of accounts.

Operating statements

As you would expect, operating statements contain your income and expenses. The information is split into categories to make it easy to track what is being spent where and when, giving you a clear view of your financial situation at any given time. It can also be used to identify any common themes or trends.

Chart of accounts

The chart of accounts is basically a list of all income and costs for the hotel, and would typically include Food & Beverage, Staffing costs, Laundry costs etc.

Both of the above would usually be adhered to by any business as a matter of course, but not all industries are provided with such in-depth guidance.

Hotel owners and operators wishing to use USALI must subscribe. It’s available as a digital subscription service or a softcover book and is available for an annual subscription. Visit the USALI website for further details.

Key changes to the 12^th edition of USALI

There are a number of key changes to the next edition of USALI, which are aimed at increasing transparency in financial reporting.

There will be new USALI guidelines for revenue recognition, expense categorisation and reporting standards. These changes aim to provide more clarity and consistency across the hotel and lodging industry.

We have summarised some of the key changes here, although the list is not extensive:

General Updates

• Some major changes to the operational statements
• New codes are being added
• Changes to the current coding for certain costs
• More transparent and comprehensive guide with inline lookups and data flows
• New guidance to improve transparency in terms of the costs of services and amenities related to Brand/Operating costs, Energy & Waste (see below).
• Payroll – FTE (Full Time Equivalent) schedules to be introduced, including categorisation of Management and Non-Management FTE’s
• There will be recommendations to follow in terms of all-inclusive properties

Rooms Department Reporting

• New accounts are being created in the rooms schedule, Executive Lounge Expense & Loyalty Program Member benefits.
• Room Upgrade revenue related to any Executive Lounge upgrade to be recorded as room revenue, cost of Executive Lounge provisions such as food and beverage to remain in the Food and Beverage department but other associated costs such as Payroll, Cleaning Supplies, Disposables etc, to remain a room’s cost.

Energy, Water & Waste

Perhaps the most significant change is in the introduction of a new Energy Water & Waste (EWW) Schedule replacing the previous Utilities Schedule.  It is designed to meet the growing clamour for effective Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) reporting.   The new EWW Schedule introduce new metrics such as:-

• Energy Cost per kWh
• Water Cost per cubic metre
• Waste Cost per Kg
• Energy used per square metre
• Water consumer per available/occupied room
• Waste per Kg per occupied room

Although the new USALI 12th Edition is now published, implementation will be 1st of January 2026. This will give hotels time to plan and adapt their processes in terms of recording energy consumption, waste, FTE’s etc which most of the large brands adopted a while ago, as well as time to incorporate the changes into budgets and forecasts.

Next steps

Our Hotel Accounting team have expert knowledge of USALI reporting and would be delighted to speak to you if you have any questions, or if you need any assistance in adapting your systems or reporting tools to comply with these important updates. If you’d like to know more about the benefits of hotel accounting in general, have a read of our ‘Ten Benefits of Hotel Accounting’ blog.

At AAB, our hotel consulting specialists work closely with you to put practical, reliable hotel accounting systems in place. Each one is built around USALI standards and the USALI latest edition, helping you keep your reporting consistent and compliant. Whether you’re refining your processes or developing new ones, we make hotel accounting services simple, transparent, and tailored to your business.