#accounting-basics
Accounting Basics
Foundational accounting concepts, terminology, and principles for small business owners
White-Label SaaS Reseller Bookkeeping: Principal vs. Agent Revenue Recognition
Under ASC 606, white-label SaaS resellers recognize either gross revenue as a principal or net commission as an agent, and should book gross sales, platform fees, refunds, and chargebacks as separate line items rather than a single net deposit.
How to Bookkeep a Coworking Space: Deferred Revenue, Cost Allocation, and CAM Charges
A coworking space earns revenue across five distinct streams and must defer prepaid membership revenue, allocate CAM charges, and split costs by square footage to accurately price hot desks against private offices.
Cat Cafe Accounting: Why Admission, Coffee, and Adoption Fees Need Separate Revenue Lines
Cat cafes run three distinct revenue streams — lounge admission, food and beverage, and pass-through pet adoption fees — that need separate accounting treatment because admission is often non-taxable, F&B is taxable, and adoption fees legally belong to the rescue partner as a liability, not cafe revenue.
Franchise Accounting 101: Initial Fees, Royalties, and the Ad Fund Explained
Franchisees must capitalize the initial franchise fee as a Section 197 intangible asset and amortize it straight-line over 15 years (180 months), calculate royalties against the FDD's exact gross sales definition, and record advertising fund contributions as a pass-through liability rather than a discretionary marketing expense.
Board Game Cafe Bookkeeping: Cover Charges, Food, Retail & Game Library Depreciation
Board game cafes blend three businesses — admission fees, food and beverage, and retail — and each needs its own revenue and COGS account; the game library itself should be capitalized and depreciated over 3-5 years, not expensed, while shrink-wrapped retail copies stay inventory.
Days Inventory Outstanding (DIO): Formula, Benchmarks, and Why It Matters
Days Inventory Outstanding (DIO) measures the average number of days it takes a business to sell through its inventory, calculated as average inventory divided by cost of goods sold, multiplied by the number of days in the period.
2/10 Net 30 Explained: How a 2% Discount Becomes a 37% Annualized Return
A 2/10 Net 30 trade discount — 2% off for paying within 10 days instead of 30 — is equivalent to an annualized return of roughly 37%, making it one of the highest guaranteed returns available to a small business's idle cash.
Cash Over and Short: Turning Till Discrepancies Into an Audit Trail
The Cash Over and Short account records the gap between expected and actual cash counts as a debit (shortage) or credit (overage), turning routine till discrepancies into a trackable, auditable pattern instead of a buried miscellaneous expense line.
Direct vs. Indirect Cash Flow Statement Method: Which One Fits Your Small Business?
The indirect method reconciles net income to operating cash flow using existing income-statement and balance-sheet data and is used by roughly 98% of public companies, while the direct method lists actual cash receipts and payments by category, which GAAP and IFRS both explicitly encourage; both always reconcile to the same total but answer different questions.
Obsolete Inventory Write-Downs: GAAP's Lower of Cost or Net Realizable Value Rule Explained
GAAP requires inventory to be reported at the lower of cost or net realizable value under ASC 330; here's how to identify obsolete and slow-moving stock, calculate the write-down, and record it while satisfying the IRS's stricter subnormal-goods test under Treasury Regulation §1.471-2(c).
Royalty Accounting for Licensors: The ASC 606 Sales- and Usage-Based Exception
Under ASC 606's sales- and usage-based royalty exception, licensors can't recognize royalty revenue until the licensee's underlying sale or usage actually occurs, regardless of invoice or payment date.
Cash vs. Accrual Accounting: How to Choose the Right Method (and When the IRS Forces Your Hand)
Cash accounting records revenue when money is received and expenses when paid; accrual accounting records revenue when earned and expenses when incurred. IRS Section 448 mandates the accrual method once a business's three-year average gross receipts exceed the $32 million threshold for 2026, and changing methods later requires Form 3115 plus a Section 481(a) adjustment.