What is the difference between information and data? I was taught that information is useful data. The point is there are lots of data (plural of datum) everywhere, and most of the data will not be useful to a decision...
What is the difference between information and data? I was taught that information is useful data. The point is there are lots of data (plural of datum) everywhere, and most of the data will not be useful to a decision...
How do I start a petty cash fund? Definition of Petty Cash Fund A petty cash fund is a small amount of money available to pay small amounts without requiring the processing of a business check. Example of Starting a...
Is a security deposit for a rental agreement recorded in a liability account? The person paying the security deposit would credit the asset account Cash and would debit the asset account Security Deposits. The person...
How do you account for payroll withholdings for health insurance? Definition of Payroll Withholdings for Health Insurance Payroll withholdings for health insurance are the amounts deducted from employees’ pay for their...
What is a credit memo? Definition of Credit Memo One type of credit memo is issued by a seller in order to reduce the amount that a customer owes from a previously issued sales invoice. Another type of credit memo, or...
Is it possible to have a balance sheet for a single day? A balance sheet presents the amounts of a company’s assets, liabilities, and owner’s equity as of an instant or moment in time within a day. Usually it is the...
What is an overdraft? Definition of Overdraft An overdraft (also known as a bank overdraft) generally means that the amount of a company’s checks being presented at the bank for payment exceeded the amount on deposit....
What is historical cost? Definition of Historical Cost Historical cost is a term used instead of the term cost. Cost and historical cost usually mean the original cost at the time of a transaction. The term historical...
What does it mean to amortize the premium, discount, and issue costs on bonds payable? Definition of Amortize Premium, Discount, and Issue Costs With regards to bonds payable, the term amortize means to systematically...
Is the drawing account a capital account? Definition of Drawing Account A sole proprietorship will have a drawing account in which the owner’s withdrawals or draws of cash or other assets are recorded. The amounts of...
What is liquidity? Definition of Liquidity Liquidity is a company’s ability to convert its assets to cash in order to pay its liabilities when they are due. Current Assets Generally, the assets that are expected to...
How can I learn bookkeeping? You can learn bookkeeping at no cost on our website AccountingCoach.com. We recently expanded our Explanation of Bookkeeping, and we have many other topics that are relevant including debits...
What is the gross profit method? Gross Profit Method Definition The gross profit method is a technique used to estimate the amount of ending inventory. The technique could be used for monthly financial statements when a...
Accounts Payable Accounts Payable Accounts payable are sometimes referred to as trade payables. Accounts payable involve the amounts that a company owes to vendors and others who have supplied goods or services on...
Payroll Accounting(Quick Test #3 with Coaching) Download PDF This Quick Test with Coaching includes a “View Coaching” button to the right of each answer box. If you choose to click the button, an explanation for the...
Which assets are classified as current assets? Definition of Current Assets Current assets include cash and assets that are expected to turn to cash within one year of the balance sheet date. Current assets also include...
What is a promissory note? Definition of Promissory Note A promissory note is a written promise to pay an amount of money by a specified date (or perhaps on demand). The maker of the promissory note agrees to pay the...
What is standard costing? Definition of Standard Costing Standard costing is an accounting system used by some manufacturers to identify the differences or variances between: The actual costs of the goods that were...
With regard to depreciation, what does the term mid-month convention mean? Definition of Mid-Month Convention In depreciation, the mid-month convention means that an asset placed into service anytime during a given...
How do you calculate the payroll accrual? Definition of Payroll Accrual The payroll accrual is the amounts a company owes for work done by employees, but the amounts have not yet been recorded in the company’s general...
Why is a product that sells for $50 reported in inventory at its cost of $40? Generally, items in inventory are valued at their cost—not their selling prices—because of the cost principle. Another reason for not...
How should the cost of a yearly subscription for a newspaper be recorded? Definition of Recording a Yearly Subscription Typically, yearly subscriptions are paid in advance or at the start of the subscription period. If...
What is the employee's Social Security tax rate for 2022 and 2023? Social Security Payroll Tax for 2022 The employee’s Social Security payroll tax rate for 2022 (January 1 through December 31, 2022) is 6.2% of the...
What is a predetermined overhead rate? Definition of Predetermined Overhead Rate A predetermined overhead rate is often an annual rate used to assign or allocate indirect manufacturing costs to the goods it produces....
What is the meaning of base year? In accounting, base year may refer to the year in which a U.S. business had adopted the LIFO cost flow assumption for valuing its inventory and its cost of goods sold. Under the...
A reference used to indicate the combination of the Social Security tax and the Medicare tax. For the year 2024, the employee’s portion of the FICA tax is 7.65% (the Social Security tax of 6.2% plus the Medicare...
Closing Entries(Quick Test) Download PDF After you have answered all 10 questions, click "Grade This Quick Test" at the bottom of the page to view your grade and receive feedback on your answers. Note: Some of the...
What does an accountant do? Some accountants are directly involved in preparing an organization’s financial statements. This is likely to include maintaining the general ledger and supervising some employees. Other...
Is depreciation expense an administrative expense? Definition of Depreciation Expense Depreciation expense is the systematic allocation of a depreciable asset’s cost to the accounting periods in which the asset is...
What is accrued rent? Definition of Accrued Rent Accrued rent is the amount of rent that has not yet been paid by the tenant or received by the landlord for a past period of time. [If the tenant always pays the monthly...
What is accrued interest? Definition of Accrued Interest Accrued interest is the amount of loan interest that has already occurred, but has not yet been paid by the borrower and not yet received by the lender. Under the...
What is long-term debt? Definition of Long-term Debt In accounting, long-term debt generally refers to a company’s loans and other liabilities that will not become due within one year of the balance sheet date. (The...
What causes an increase in break-even point? Definition of Break-even Point The break-even point is the sales volume or sales revenue that is needed to cover the company’s expenses. In other words, it is the point...
What is gross pay? Definition of Gross Pay Gross pay is the amount an employee is paid before the employer withholds FICA (Social Security and Medicare payroll taxes), income taxes (federal, state, local) if applicable,...
What is obsolete inventory? Definition of Obsolete Inventory Obsolete inventory refers to products that a company had purchased or produced which cannot be sold. The obsolete items may be the result of one or more of the...
What is a bond sinking fund? Definition of Bond Sinking Fund A bond sinking fund is a corporation’s noncurrent asset that is restricted for the purpose of redeeming or buying back its bonds payable. Bonds that require...
How do I determine the cost of missing inventory? Definition of Determining the Cost of Missing Inventory The approximate cost of missing inventory is the difference between 1) the cost of the inventory items that are...
How do you calculate the payback period? Definition of Payback Period The payback period is the expected number of years it will take for a company to recoup the cash it invested in a project. Examples of Payback Periods...
Why is manufacturing overhead allocated to products? Definition of Manufacturing Overhead Allocated to Products Manufacturing overhead refers to the indirect production costs of producing goods, products, component...
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