Asset accounts normally have debit balances, while liabilities and capital normally have credit balances. Income has a normal credit balance since it increases capital . If you put an amount on the opposite side, you are decreasing that account. Therefore, to increase an asset, you debit it.

Expenses decrease retained earnings, and decreases in retained earnings are recorded on the left side. The side that increases (debit or credit) is referred to as an account’s normal balance….Recording changes in Income Statement Accounts.

It’s a basic principle whereby Assets = Liabilities + Owner’s Equity (A=L+OE). The Accounting Equation determines whether an account increases with a debit or a credit entry. The normal balance is part of the double-entry bookkeeping method and refers to the expected debit or credit balance in a specified account.

An asset account is a general ledger account used to sort and store the debit and credit amounts from a company’s transactions involving the company’s resources. Generally, the asset account balances are debit balances and are increased with a debit entry and decreased with a credit entry.

Asset accounts represent the different types of economic resources owned or controlled by an entity. Common examples of asset accounts include cash in hand, cash in bank, receivables, inventory, prepaid expenses, land, structures, equipment, patents, copyrights, licenses, etc.

Current assets

• Cash. Includes bills and coins on hand, such as petty cash.
• Bank deposits. Includes cash kept in depository accounts.
• Marketable securities.
• Trade accounts receivable.
• Other accounts receivable.
• Notes receivable.
• Prepaid expenses.
• Other current assets.

Asset accounts are categories within the business’s books that show the value of what it owns. A debit to an asset account means that the business owns more (i.e. increases the asset), and a credit to an asset account means that the business owns less (i.e. reduces the asset).

Common examples of personal assets include: Cash and cash equivalents, certificates of deposit, checking, and savings accounts, money market accounts, physical cash, Treasury bills. Property or land and any structure that is permanently attached to it.

Asset is a resource available to a business that gives it some form of economic benefit in the future. In comparison, an expense is the amount of resources that have already been consumed in the operations of a business during an accounting period.

In double-entry bookkeeping, expenses are recorded as a debit to an expense account (an income statement account) and a credit to either an asset account or a liability account, which are balance sheet accounts. An expense decreases assets or increases liabilities.

Expenses include things like rent, food, utilities, clothes, office supplies and health insurance.

Is an asset the same as an expense? As both assets and expenses are incurred when you buy goods or services for your business, it’s easy to assume that they’re the same thing; however, they’re actually quite different. Helps your business produce goods or provide services. Usually decreases in value over time.

Because of ongoing depreciation, the net book value of an asset is always declining. Thus, a laptop computer could be considered a fixed asset (as long as its cost exceeds the capitalization limit).

Entertainment expenses include the cost of meals you provide to customers or clients, whether the meal alone is the entertainment or it’s a part of other entertainment (for example, refreshments at a football game). A meal expense includes the cost of food, beverages, taxes, and tips.

Things that are resources owned by a company and which have future economic value that can be measured and can be expressed in dollars. Examples include cash, investments, accounts receivable, inventory, supplies, land, buildings, equipment, and vehicles.

Physical assets belonging to a restaurant company, for example, would include chairs, tables, refrigerators, and food.

Some examples of long-term assets include: Fixed assets like property, plant, and equipment, which can include land, machinery, buildings, fixtures, and vehicles. Long-term investments such as stocks and bonds or real estate, or investments made in other companies.