The accumulated depreciation account appears on the balance sheet and reduces the gross amount of fixed assets. The natural balance in a contra asset account is a credit balance, as opposed to the natural debit balance in all other asset accounts. There is no reason for there to ever be a debit balance in a contra asset account; thus, a debit balance probably indicates an incorrect accounting entry. When a contra asset transaction is created, the offset is a charge to the income statement, which reduces profits. Examples of revenue contra accounts are Sales Discounts, Returns and Allowances.

The percentage of sales method assumes that the company cannot collect payment for a fixed percentage of goods or services that it has sold. The accounting entries for a discount on notes receivables are as follows. In footnote 3, the company reports, “Net property and equipment includes accumulated depreciation and amortization of $25.3 billion as of August 1, 2021 and $24.1 billion as of January 31, 2021.” This will repeat until the machinery has been totally depreciated, sold, or retired. As evident from the table below, each contra account has a parent account whose normal balance is often exactly opposite of the normal balance of the relevant contra account.

• The allowance method of accounting allows a company to estimate what amount is reasonable to book into the contra account.
• If we record depreciation expense in the cost accounts directly, we will lose key information about the original cost of the assets and accumulated depreciation.
• For example, if the balance of accumulated depreciation increases from $20,000 to $50,000, this means that the depreciation expense amounts to $30,000, which will be listed in the income statement.
• This contra account holds a reserve, similar to the allowance for doubtful accounts.

A key example of contra liabilities include discount on notes or bonds payable. Contra liability accounts are not as popular as contra asset accounts. A contra account offsets the balance in another, related account with which it is paired. Contra accounts appear in the financial statements directly below their paired accounts. Sometimes the balances in the two accounts are merged for presentation purposes, so that only a net amount is presented.

Presentation of Contra Assets

Get instant access to video lessons taught by experienced investment bankers. Learn financial statement modeling, DCF, M&A, LBO, Comps and Excel shortcuts. Suppose a clothing business has sold $50,000 of inventory on credit.

Sometimes, both accounts can be written in a single line if they don’t represent a large portion of the assets. In case the CA account is not listed in the balance sheet, it must be listed in the footnotes of the financial statement for the users to be informed. A contra asset (CA) account is an account in the balance sheet that offsets the balance of a regular asset account. A less common example of a contra asset account is Discount on Notes Receivable.

Contra revenue account

For example, the contra asset account Allowance for Doubtful Accounts is related to Accounts Receivable. The contra asset account Accumulated Depreciation is related to a constructed asset(s), and the contra asset account Accumulated Depletion is related to natural resources. Contra asset accounts also provide a clear picture of the companies’ accumulation of assets.

These accounts also ensure that you follow the matching principle in accounting, which states that you record expenses in the same period you incur them. A second example of a contra asset account is Accumulated Depreciation. Revenue is an income statement account, but it flows through to the equity section of retained earnings as well. Any products that are sold at a discount or returns are deducted from gross revenue to produce net revenue as the top line on the income statement.

The Contra Asset Account

To avoid this loss of important data, we record actual cost and depreciation in separate ledger accounts. Allowance for doubtful accounts is contra asset accounts that offset the accounts receivable. They are used in case some customers won’t be able to pay the money they owe to the business. This account appears next to the current asset Accounts Receivable. The account Allowance for Doubtful Account is credited when the account Bad Debts Expense is debited under the allowance method. The use of Allowance for Doubtful Accounts allows us to see in Accounts Receivable the total amount that the company has a right to collect from its credit customers.

The credit balance in the account Allowance for Doubtful Accounts tells us how much of the debit balance in Accounts Receivable is unlikely to be collected. For example, if your business has accounts receivable of $50,000 and an allowance for doubtful debts account totalling $5,000, the net accounts receivable is $45,000. In this way, a contra asset (credit) lowers the overall value of your accounts receivables (debit) on the balance sheet. Contra accounts are a significant part of a company’s financial statements. These accounts can significantly reduce balances on the balance sheet.

Allowance for doubtful accounts (ADA) is a the new healthy food benefit from unitedhealthcare used to create an allowance for customers who are not expected to pay the money owed for purchased goods or services. The allowance for doubtful accounts appears on the balance sheet and reduces the amount of receivables. Far less common is the obsolete inventory reserve, which reduces the overall inventory value on the balance sheet. This contra account holds a reserve, similar to the allowance for doubtful accounts. For each debit against the inventory account, there will be a corresponding credit against the obsolete inventory contra account.

Contra Asset Account

Treasure stock is a good example as it carries a debit balance and decreases the overall stockholders’ equity. A contra account is an account with a balance opposite the normal accounts in its category. Contra accounts are usually linked to specific accounts on the balance sheet and are reported as subtractions from these accounts. In other words, contra accounts are used to reduce normal accounts on the balance sheet. Make sure that you report contra accounts on the same financial statement as the related accounts.

Usually, credit balances include items from one of those two natures. Therefore, contra asset accounts differ from other accounts that have a credit balance. Overall, contra accounts are offsetting balances that are the opposite of specific accounts. There are several examples of contra accounts, including accumulated depreciation, accumulated depletion, accumulated amortization, allowance for receivables, etc. These are all examples of contra asset accounts, which are the prevalent type of contra accounts.

A separate account is needed whenever the nature of transactions changes. It is because clubbing together dissimilar transactions impedes any analysis. For example, we need separate accounts to hold the actual cost of property, plant and equipment (PPE) and related accumulated depreciation. If we record depreciation expense in the cost accounts directly, we will lose key information about the original cost of the assets and accumulated depreciation.

By doing so, they can bring their asset accounts to a more accurate position. For example, after six years, the asset’s book value on the balance sheet will be $40,000. However, it will also have a negative accumulated depreciation of $60,000, offsetting that cost.

A contra account is a general ledger account that offsets the balance of a corresponding account with which it’s paired. If you debit the contra account, ensure that you offset the related account with a credit balance. In essence, contra accounts allow you to report your firm’s gross and net amounts.

Why are contra asset accounts important for businesses?

For example, accumulated depreciation is a contra asset that reduces the value of a company’s fixed assets, resulting in net assets. The difference, which is $500, is thus listed as a discount on bonds payable and is debited to the contra liability account “discount on bonds payable.” As mentioned, CA accounts usually have a negative value which is the same as a credit balance. That is to completely or partially offset the balance of their related asset accounts. Asset accounts usually have a positive value which is the same as a debit balance.

If the related account is an asset account, then a contra asset account is used to offset it with a credit balance. If the related account is a liability account, then a contra liability account is used to offset it with a debit balance. Thus, the natural balance of a contra account is always the opposite of the account with which it is paired. A business might elect to separately state contra asset accounts on its balance sheet, so that the users of its financial statements can obtain additional information about the contents of these accounts.

If a contra account is not used, it can be difficult to determine historical costs, which can make tax preparation more difficult and time-consuming. This type of account could be called the allowance for doubtful accounts or bad debt reserve. The balance in the allowance for doubtful accounts represents the dollar amount of the current accounts receivable balance that is expected to be uncollectible. The amount is reported on the balance sheet in the asset section immediately below accounts receivable. The net of these two figures is typically reported on a third line.