What is the difference between a trial balance and a balance sheet? Definition of Trial Balance A trial balance is an internal report that remains in the accounting department. The trial balance lists all of the accounts...
What is the difference between a trial balance and a balance sheet? Definition of Trial Balance A trial balance is an internal report that remains in the accounting department. The trial balance lists all of the accounts...
What is par value? Definition of Par Value Par value is a per share amount that will appear on some stock certificates and in the corporation’s articles of incorporation. (Some states may require a corporation to have...
What is the difference between reserve and allowance? More than 60 years ago, accountants in the U.S. used Reserve for Bad Debts as the title of the contra account associated with Accounts Receivable or Loans Receivable....
What does double entry mean? Definition of Double Entry In accounting, double entry means that every transaction will involve at least two accounts. Double entry also requires that one account be debited and the other...
Why would a balance sheet list current liabilities as negative amounts? Reasons for Negative Current Liabilities on a Balance Sheet Some older accounting software used minus signs or parentheses to indicate credit...
What is capitalized interest? Definition of Capitalized Interest Capitalized interest is the interest on debt that was used to finance a self-constructed, long-term asset. The capitalized interest for the company’s...
What is the FUTA tax? Definition of FUTA Tax FUTA is the acronym for the Federal Unemployment Tax Act and is associated with a federal payroll or employment tax paid solely by the employer. (This unemployment tax is in...
Can a fully depreciated asset be revalued? A fully depreciated asset cannot be revalued because of accounting’s cost principle. Definition of a Fully Depreciated Asset A fully depreciated asset is one that has...
What is a long-term asset? Definition of Long-term Asset A long-term asset is an asset that is not expected to be converted to cash or be consumed within one year of the date shown in the heading of the balance sheet....
What is meant by reconciling an account? Definition of Reconciling an Account Reconciling an account is likely to mean proving or documenting that an account balance is correct. Examples of Reconciling an Account When a...
Our Explanation of Accounts Payable provides insights on the bill paying process in a large company. Included are discussions of the three-way match, early payment discounts, end of period accruals, and more.
How do I calculate depreciation using the sum of the years' digits? Definition of the Sum-of-the-Years’-Digits Depreciation The sum-of-the-years’-digits depreciation (SYD depreciation) is one method for calculating...
Accounting Principles (Word Scramble) Download PDF To see each answer, press or click on the blue "Unscramble" button. If you have difficulty answering the following questions, learn more about this topic by reading our...
Our Explanation of Future Value of a Single Amount will show you the power of compounded interest on a single deposit. You will see how the future value tables can be useful as well as the rule of 72.
Operating Budgets(Quick Test) Download PDF After you have answered all 25 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...
How does one prepare a company's first bank statement reconciliation? To prepare a bank reconciliation for a company that never prepared one previously, I would first make a list of outstanding checks. For example, if...
Why and how do you adjust the inventory account in the periodic method? Definition of Inventory Account in Periodic Method Under the periodic method or periodic system, the account Inventory is dormant throughout the...
Our Explanation of Activity Based Costing illustrates how manufacturing overhead costs for a product will differ when costs are allocated using only the number of machine hours, as opposed to being allocated using the...
What are LIFO layers? Definition of LIFO Layer LIFO is the acronym for Last-In, First-Out. In the context of inventory, it means that the cost of the most recently purchased units will be the first costs to be matched...
Manufacturing Overhead For multiple-choice and true/false questions, simply press or click on what you think is the correct answer. For fill-in-the-blank questions, press or click on the blank space provided. If you have...
Nonprofit Accounting (Word Scramble) Download PDF To see each answer, press or click on the blue "Unscramble" button. If you have difficulty answering the following questions, learn more about this topic by reading our...
Our Explanation of Payroll Accounting discusses the taxes and benefits which are withheld from employees' pay as well as the taxes and benefits that are expenses for the employers. Also provided are examples of the...
Can you help me to understand credit memo and debit memo in the bank reconciliation? Definition of Bank Credit Memo A bank credit memo is an item on a company’s bank account statement that increases a company’s...
Kindly illustrate various depreciation methods. Definition of Depreciation Depreciation is the systematic allocation of the cost of an asset to Depreciation Expenses over the asset’s useful life. If an asset will have...
Our Explanation of the Balance Sheet provides you with a basic understanding of a corporation's balance sheet (or statement of financial position). You will gain insights regarding the assets, liabilities, and...
What are reversing entries and why are they used? Definition of Reversing Entries Reversing entries are made on the first day of an accounting period to remove accrual adjusting entries that were made at the end of the...
Accounts Receivable and Bad Debts Expense For multiple-choice and true/false questions, simply press or click on what you think is the correct answer. For fill-in-the-blank questions, press or click on the blank space...
Our Explanation of the Balance Sheet provides you with a basic understanding of a corporation's balance sheet (or statement of financial position). You will gain insights regarding the assets, liabilities, and...
Manufacturing Overhead (Flashcards) Download Single-Sided PDF Download Double-Sided PDF All Cards (23) Marked Wrong (0) Marked Right (0) manufacturing overhead (or) factory overhead (or) burden This term indicates a...
Depreciation(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 answer...
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 is a blank check? Definition of Blank Check A blank check often refers to a check that has been signed by an authorized check signer without completing the other information (date, payee, amount). A blank check...
Why is a negative cash balance reported as a liability? The following will illustrate why a negative cash balance is reported as a liability instead of being reported as a negative asset amount. Company X writes checks...
What is the difference between fixed assets and noncurrent assets? Fixed Assets are Part of Noncurrent Assets Fixed assets are one of several categories of noncurrent assets. Fixed assets are usually reported on the...
Under accrual accounting, how are worker comp premiums handled? Worker comp insurance premiums should be charged to the areas where the related wages and salaries are charged. Let’s assume that the net cost of worker...
What is the debt ratio? Definition of Debt Ratio The debt ratio is also known as the debt to asset ratio or the total debt to total assets ratio. Hence, the formula for the debt ratio is: total liabilities divided by...
Is a money market account a current asset or a fixed asset? A money market account is a current asset unless it is restricted for a long-term purpose. The amount of an unrestricted money market account will likely be...
What is a liquidity ratio? Definition of Liquidity Ratio A liquidity ratio is a financial ratio that indicates whether a company’s current assets will be sufficient to meet the company’s obligations when they become...
What are some examples of financing activities on the cash flow statement? Definition of Financing Activities Financing activities reported on the statement of cash flows (SCF) involve changes to the long-term...
Featured Review
"Back in November of 2010, while attending an online university I was totally freaking out because I am at a loss when it comes to accounting. I had to take Financial Accounting Concepts and Principles. Had I not purchased your accounting package, I would have had to pay for another class. So, I want to thank you AccountingCoach because I got a B+ for my XACC/280 class and went on to receive my Associates back in 2011. I could not have achieved this had it not been for AccountingCoach, for that I truly thank you." - Jane B.
Join PRO or PRO Plus and Get Lifetime Access to Our Premium Materials
Read all 2,645 reviewsWe now offer 10 Certificates of Achievement for Introductory Accounting and Bookkeeping: