Getting Started

Getting Started

Prerequisites

• Node.js >= 20
• pnpm 9+

Installation

git clone https://github.com/gfargo/daybook.git
cd daybook
pnpm install
pnpm build

To make the daybook command available globally:

npm install -g .

Environment Variables

daybook uses environment variables for API keys. Add these to your shell profile or .env file:

Variable	Required For	How to Get
ALCHEMY_API_KEY	EVM sync (Ethereum, Polygon)	Free at alchemy.com
ETHERSCAN_API_KEY	--include-failed-gas flag	Free at etherscan.io/apis
COINGECKO_API_KEY	CoinGecko pricing (optional)	Free tier works without a key

First Run

1. Initialize

Create the config file and SQLite database:

daybook init

This creates ~/.daybook/config.json and ~/.daybook/data.db.

2. Add Accounts

Register your exchange accounts and wallets:

# Coinbase
daybook account add main-coinbase \
  --source coinbase \
  --identifier you@example.com \
  --label "My Coinbase"

# Kraken
daybook account add main-kraken \
  --source kraken \
  --identifier you@example.com \
  --label "My Kraken"

# Binance
daybook account add main-binance \
  --source binance \
  --identifier you@example.com \
  --label "My Binance"

# Binance.US
daybook account add main-binance-us \
  --source binance-us \
  --identifier you@example.com \
  --label "My Binance.US"

# Generic CSV import bucket
daybook account add csv-imports \
  --source csv \
  --identifier manual-ledger \
  --label "Universal CSV"

# Ethereum wallet
daybook account add eth-main \
  --source eth \
  --identifier 0xYourAddress \
  --label "Main ETH"

# Polygon wallet
daybook account add polygon-main \
  --source polygon \
  --identifier 0xYourAddress \
  --label "Main Polygon"

Verify your accounts:

daybook account list

3. Sync Transactions

Import data from each source:

# Coinbase API — see [[Coinbase API Setup]] for key setup, then:
daybook sync --source coinbase --from 2024-01-01

# Coinbase CSV — download CSV from Coinbase, then:
daybook sync --source coinbase --file ~/Downloads/Coinbase-All-Transactions.csv

# Kraken — download ledger CSV from Kraken, then:
daybook sync --source kraken --file ~/Downloads/kraken-ledger.csv

# Binance — download ledger CSV from Binance, then:
daybook sync --source binance --file ~/Downloads/binance-ledger.csv

# Binance.US — download tax-report CSV from Binance.US, then:
daybook sync --source binance-us --file ~/Downloads/binance-us-tax.csv

# Generic universal/manual CSV:
daybook sync --source csv --file ~/Downloads/universal-ledger.csv

# EVM wallets — fetches from Alchemy API
daybook sync --source eth
daybook sync --source polygon

All syncs are idempotent. Running them again with the same data is a no-op.

4. Classify Events

Run the classifier to produce ledger entries:

daybook classify

To preview what would change first:

daybook classify --dry-run

To interactively review and override unclassified events:

daybook classify --review

5. Export Tax Report

# Default: FIFO method
daybook export 2024 --output ./taxes-2024.csv

# Compare methods first
daybook compare 2024

# Export with HIFO
daybook export 2024 --method HIFO --output ./taxes-2024-hifo.csv

Incremental Workflow

After the initial full sync, use incremental sync for faster updates:

# Sync only new transactions since a date
daybook sync --source eth --from 2024-06-01

# Or from a specific block number
daybook sync --source eth --from 20000000

# Re-classify with the new data
daybook classify

# Re-export
daybook export 2024 --output ./taxes-2024.csv

Next Steps

• CLI Reference — full command documentation
• Source Adapters — details on each source adapter
• Tax Engine — cost basis methods and wash sale flagging