When managing multiple companies in Odoo 19, maintaining separate and organized numbering systems for documents like invoices, sales orders, and purchase orders is crucial. This tutorial provides a comprehensive guide to implementing company-specific sequences that ensure each business entity has its own independent numbering scheme.

Why Company-Wise Sequences Matter

In a multi-company Odoo environment, having distinct sequences for each company helps with:

Clear identification - Instantly know which company a document belongs to
Regulatory compliance - Meet legal requirements for separate numbering
Audit trails - Maintain clean, company-specific document histories
Avoiding conflicts - Prevent duplicate numbers across companies

Step 1: Define the Model

First, create your model with a field that will store the sequence number and link it to a company:

from odoo import models, fields, api

class CompanyDocument(models.Model):
    _name = 'company.document'
    _description = 'Company Document with Sequence'
    
    name = fields.Char(
        string='Reference',
        required=True,
        copy=False,
        readonly=True,
        default='New'
    )
    company_id = fields.Many2one(
        'res.company',
        string='Company',
        required=True,
        default=lambda self: self.env.company
    )
    description = fields.Text('Description')
    date = fields.Date('Date', default=fields.Date.today)
    
    @api.model
    def create(self, vals):
        if vals.get('name', 'New') == 'New':
            company_id = vals.get('company_id') or self.env.company.id
            vals['name'] = self.env['ir.sequence'].with_company(
                company_id
            ).next_by_code('company.document') or 'New'
        return super().create(vals)

Step 2: Define the Sequence in XML

Create the sequence definition in your module's data file. The key is setting company_id to False initially, then creating company-specific sequences:

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<odoo>
    <data noupdate="1">
        <!-- Base sequence (template) -->
        <record id="seq_company_document" model="ir.sequence">
            <field name="name">Company Document Sequence</field>
            <field name="code">company.document</field>
            <field name="prefix">DOC/%(year)s/</field>
            <field name="padding">5</field>
            <field name="company_id" eval="False"/>
        </record>
        
        <!-- Company A specific sequence -->
        <record id="seq_company_document_company_a" model="ir.sequence">
            <field name="name">Company A Document Sequence</field>
            <field name="code">company.document</field>
            <field name="prefix">COMP-A/%(year)s/</field>
            <field name="padding">5</field>
            <field name="company_id" ref="base.main_company"/>
        </record>
    </data>
</odoo>

Step 3: Using with_company() Method

The with_company() method is crucial for fetching the correct sequence:

# Get sequence for specific company
sequence = self.env['ir.sequence'].with_company(company_id).next_by_code('company.document')

# Or use the current user's company
sequence = self.env['ir.sequence'].next_by_code('company.document')

Best Practices

Use meaningful prefixes - Include company codes or abbreviations in prefixes
Include year/month in sequences - Helps with document organization
Set appropriate padding - Ensure enough digits for your volume
Test with multiple companies - Verify sequences work correctly across all companies
Handle edge cases - What happens when company_id is not set?

Conclusion

Implementing company-wise sequences in Odoo 19 is straightforward once you understand the pattern. By using the with_company() method and properly configuring your sequences, you can maintain clean, organized numbering across all your business entities.

Need Help with Multi-Company Odoo Setup?

Our experts can help you configure company-wise sequences, multi-company accounting, and more.

Why Company-Wise Sequences Matter

In a multi-company Odoo environment, having distinct sequences for each company helps with:

Clear identification - Instantly know which company a document belongs to
Regulatory compliance - Meet legal requirements for separate numbering
Audit trails - Maintain clean, company-specific document histories
Avoiding conflicts - Prevent duplicate numbers across companies

Step 1: Define the Model

First, create your model with a field that will store the sequence number and link it to a company:

from odoo import models, fields, api

class CompanyDocument(models.Model):
    _name = 'company.document'
    _description = 'Company Document with Sequence'
    
    name = fields.Char(
        string='Reference',
        required=True,
        copy=False,
        readonly=True,
        default='New'
    )
    company_id = fields.Many2one(
        'res.company',
        string='Company',
        required=True,
        default=lambda self: self.env.company
    )
    description = fields.Text('Description')
    date = fields.Date('Date', default=fields.Date.today)
    
    @api.model
    def create(self, vals):
        if vals.get('name', 'New') == 'New':
            company_id = vals.get('company_id') or self.env.company.id
            vals['name'] = self.env['ir.sequence'].with_company(
                company_id
            ).next_by_code('company.document') or 'New'
        return super().create(vals)

Step 2: Define the Sequence in XML

Create the sequence definition in your module's data file. The key is setting company_id to False initially, then creating company-specific sequences:

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<odoo>
    <data noupdate="1">
        <!-- Base sequence (template) -->
        <record id="seq_company_document" model="ir.sequence">
            <field name="name">Company Document Sequence</field>
            <field name="code">company.document</field>
            <field name="prefix">DOC/%(year)s/</field>
            <field name="padding">5</field>
            <field name="company_id" eval="False"/>
        </record>
        
        <!-- Company A specific sequence -->
        <record id="seq_company_document_company_a" model="ir.sequence">
            <field name="name">Company A Document Sequence</field>
            <field name="code">company.document</field>
            <field name="prefix">COMP-A/%(year)s/</field>
            <field name="padding">5</field>
            <field name="company_id" ref="base.main_company"/>
        </record>
    </data>
</odoo>

Step 3: Using with_company() Method

The with_company() method is crucial for fetching the correct sequence:

# Get sequence for specific company
sequence = self.env['ir.sequence'].with_company(company_id).next_by_code('company.document')

# Or use the current user's company
sequence = self.env['ir.sequence'].next_by_code('company.document')

Best Practices

Use meaningful prefixes - Include company codes or abbreviations in prefixes
Include year/month in sequences - Helps with document organization
Set appropriate padding - Ensure enough digits for your volume
Test with multiple companies - Verify sequences work correctly across all companies
Handle edge cases - What happens when company_id is not set?

Conclusion

Need Help with Multi-Company Odoo Setup?

Our experts can help you configure company-wise sequences, multi-company accounting, and more.

Not sure where to start?

Implementing Company-Specific Sequences in Odoo 19: A Complete Developer Guide

Why Company-Wise Sequences Matter

Step 1: Define the Model

Step 2: Define the Sequence in XML

Step 3: Using with_company() Method

Best Practices

Conclusion

Need Help with Multi-Company Odoo Setup?

Need this implemented in your project?

Take the guide with you

Book a 30-min architecture call

Get a free 48-hour written brief

Implementing Company-Specific Sequences in Odoo 19: A Complete Developer Guide

Why Company-Wise Sequences Matter

Step 1: Define the Model

Step 2: Define the Sequence in XML

Step 3: Using with_company() Method

Best Practices

Conclusion

Need Help with Multi-Company Odoo Setup?

Need this implemented in your project?

Take the guide with you

Book a 30-min architecture call

Get a free 48-hour written brief