Which inventory costing method assumes that the most recently purchased merchandise is sold first

Periodic means that the Inventory account is not routinely updated during the accounting period. Instead, the cost of merchandise purchased from suppliers is debited to the general ledger account Purchases. At the end of the accounting year the Inventory account is adjusted to equal the cost of the merchandise that has not been sold.

The cost of goods sold (which is reported on the income statement) is computed by taking the cost of the goods available for sale and subtracting the cost of the ending inventory.

FIFO is an acronym for first in, first out. Under the FIFO cost flow assumption, the first (oldest) costs are the first costs to leave inventory and be reported as the cost of goods sold on the income statement. The last (or recent) costs will remain in inventory and be reported as inventory on the balance sheet.

Remember that the costs can flow differently than the physical flow of the goods. For example, if the Corner Bookstore uses the FIFO cost flow assumption, the owner may sell any copy of the book but report the cost of goods at the first/oldest cost as shown in the exhibit that follows.

Let's demonstrate periodic FIFO with the following information from the Corner Bookstore:

As before, we need to account for the cost of goods available for sale (5 books having a total cost of $440). With FIFO we assign the first cost of $85 to be the cost of goods sold. The remaining $355 ($440 - $85) will be the cost of the ending inventory. The $355 of inventory costs consists of $87 + $89 + $89 + $90. The $85 cost that was assigned to the book sold is permanently gone from inventory.

If Corner Bookstore sells the textbook for $110, its gross profit using periodic FIFO will be $25 ($110 - $85). If the costs of textbooks continue to increase, FIFO will always result in more gross profit than other cost flows, because the first cost will always be lower.

Periodic LIFO

Periodic means that the Inventory account is not updated during the accounting period. Instead, the cost of merchandise purchased from suppliers is debited to the general ledger account Purchases. At the end of the accounting year the Inventory account is adjusted to the cost of the merchandise that is unsold. The remainder of the cost of goods available is reported on the income statement as the cost of goods sold.

LIFO is an acronym for last in, first out. Under the LIFO cost flow assumption, the latest (or most recent) costs are the first ones to leave inventory and become the cost of goods sold on the income statement. The first/oldest costs will remain in inventory and will be reported as the cost of the ending inventory on the balance sheet.

Remember that the costs can flow differently than the goods. In other words, if Corner Bookstore uses periodic LIFO, the owner may sell the oldest (first) copy of the book to a customer, and report the cost of goods sold of $90 (the cost of the most recently purchased book).

It's important to note that under periodic LIFO (not perpetual LIFO) you wait until the entire year is over before assigning the costs. Then you flow out of inventory the year's most recent costs first, even if those goods arrived after the last sale of the year. For example, assume the last sale of the year at the Corner Bookstore occurred on December 27. Also assume that the store's last purchase of the year arrived on December 31. Under periodic LIFO, the cost of the book purchased on December 31 is removed from inventory and sent to the cost of goods sold first, even though it was physically impossible for that book to be the one sold on December 27. (This reinforces our earlier statements that the flow of costs does not have to correspond with the physical flow of units.)

Let's illustrate periodic LIFO by using the data for the Corner Shelf Bookstore:

As before we need to account for the cost of goods available for sale: 5 books having a total cost of $440. Under periodic LIFO we assign the last cost of $90 to the book that was sold. (If two books were sold, $90 would be assigned to the first book and $89 to the second book.) The remaining $350 ($440 - $90) is reported as the cost of the ending inventory. The $350 of inventory cost consists of $85 + $87 + $89 + $89. The $90 assigned to the book that was sold is permanently gone from inventory.

If the bookstore sold the textbook for $110, its gross profit using periodic LIFO will be $20 ($110 - $90). If the costs of textbooks continue to increase, periodic LIFO will always result in the least amount of profit. The reason is that the last costs will always be higher than the first costs. Higher costs result in less profits and often lower income taxes.

Periodic Average

When the periodic inventory system is used, the Inventory account is not updated and purchases of merchandise are recorded in the general ledger account Purchases.

With the average or weighted average cost flow assumption an average cost is calculated using the cost of goods available for sale (cost from the beginning inventory plus the costs of all the purchases made during the year). This means that the periodic average cost is calculated after the year is over—after all the purchases for the year have occurred. This average cost is then applied to the units sold during the year and to the units in inventory at the end of the year.

We will assume the same facts. There were 5 books available for sale for the year 2021 and the cost of the goods available was $440. The weighted average cost of the books is $88 ($440 of cost of goods available ÷ 5 books). The average cost of $88 is used to compute both the cost of goods sold and the cost of the ending inventory.

Since the bookstore sold only one book, the cost of goods sold is $88 (1 x $88). The ending inventory of four unsold books is reported at the cost of $352 (4 x $88) . The total of the cost of goods sold plus the cost of the inventory should equal the cost of goods available ($88 + $352 = $440).

If Corner Bookstore sells the textbook for $110, its gross profit using the periodic average method will be $22 ($110 - $88). This gross profit of $22 lies between the $25 computed using the periodic FIFO and the $20 computed using the periodic LIFO.

Page 2

1. Part 1

   Introduction to Inventory and Cost of Goods Sold, Inventory Is Reported at Cost, Periodic vs Perpetual Inventory Systems

2. Part 2

   When a Company Purchases Identical Items at Increasing Costs, Demonstrating Cost Flow Assumptions, Inventory Systems with Cost Flow Assumptions

3. Part 3

   Periodic FIFO, Periodic LIFO, Periodic Average

4. Part 4

   Perpetual FIFO, Perpetual LIFO, Perpetual Average

5. Part 5

   Comparison of Cost Flow Assumptions, Specific Identification, LIFO Benefits Without Tracking Units, Inventory Management, Financial Ratios

6. Part 6

   Estimating Ending Inventory, Estimating Inventory: Gross Profit Method, Estimating Inventory: Retail Method

We will use a hypothetical business Corner Bookstore to demonstrate how to flow the costs out of inventory and into the cost of goods sold on the company's income statement. Often this is done by using either the periodic inventory method or the perpetual method.

Before we begin, keep in mind that there can be a difference between the following:

• How the units of product are physically removed from inventory
• How the costs are removed from inventory

Generally, the units are physically removed from inventory by selling the oldest units first. Therefore, the physical units of product are flowing first in, first out. Companies want to get the oldest items out of inventory and keep the most recent (freshest) ones in inventory. Businesses will refer to this as rotating the goods on hand or rotating the stock.

However, the costs of the goods in inventory does not have to flow the way the goods flowed. This means the bookstore can remove the oldest copy of its three copies from inventory but remove the cost of its most recently purchased copy. In other words, the goods can flow using first in, first out while the costs flow using last in, first out. This is why accountants refer to the cost flows as cost flow assumptions.

Demonstrating Cost Flow Assumptions

Let's assume the Corner Bookstore had one book in inventory at the start of the year 2021 and at different times during 2021 it purchased four additional copies of the same book. During the year 2021, the publisher increased the price of the books due to a paper shortage. The following chart shows Corner Bookstore's total cost of the five books was $440. It also assumes that none of the books has been sold as of December 31, 2021.

If the Corner Bookstore sells only one of the five books, which cost should Corner Shelf report as the cost of goods sold? Should it select $85, $87, $89, $89, $90, or the average cost of the five amounts? Which cost should Corner Bookstore report as inventory on its balance sheet for the four unsold books?

In the U.S., three of the most common ways to flow costs out of inventory and into the cost of goods sold are:

• First in, first out (FIFO)
• Last in, first out (LIFO)
• Average

Note that these are cost flow assumptions. Recall that the order in which costs are removed from inventory (and reported on the income statement as the cost of goods sold) can be different from the order in which the goods are physically removed from inventory. In other words, if Corner Bookstore sells one book that was on hand at the beginning of the year it can remove from inventory the $90 cost of the most recently purchased book in December 2021 (if it had elected the periodic LIFO cost flow assumption).

Inventory Systems with Cost Flow Assumptions

The combination of the three cost flow assumptions and the two inventory systems means six options for calculating the cost of inventory and the cost of goods sold:

• Periodic FIFO
• Periodic LIFO
• Periodic Average
• Perpetual FIFO
• Perpetual LIFO
• Perpetual Average

Page 3

When using the perpetual inventory system, the general ledger account Inventory is constantly (or perpetually) changing. For example, when a retailer purchases merchandise, the retailer debits its Inventory account for the cost. (Under the periodic system, the account Purchases was debited.) When the retailer sells the merchandise the Inventory account is credited and the Cost of Goods Sold account is debited for the cost of the goods sold. Rather than the Inventory account staying dormant as it did with the periodic method, the Inventory account balance is updated for every purchase and sale.

Under the perpetual system, two entries are recorded when merchandise is sold: (1) the amount of the sale is debited to Accounts Receivable or Cash and is credited to Sales, and (2) the cost of the merchandise sold is debited to the account Cost of Goods Sold and is credited to Inventory. (Note: Under the periodic system the second entry is not made.)

With perpetual FIFO, the first (or oldest) costs are the first removed from the Inventory account and debited to the Cost of Goods Sold account. Therefore, the perpetual FIFO cost flows and the periodic FIFO cost flows will result in the same cost of goods sold and the same cost of the ending inventory.

Perpetual LIFO

When using the perpetual system, the Inventory account is constantly (or perpetually) changing. The Inventory account is updated for every purchase and every sale.

Under the perpetual system, two transactions are recorded at the time that the merchandise is sold: (1) the amount of the sale is debited to Accounts Receivable or Cash and is credited to Sales, and (2) the cost of the merchandise sold is debited to the account Cost of Goods Sold and is credited to Inventory. (Note: Under the periodic system the second entry is not made.)

With perpetual LIFO, the last costs available at the time of the sale are the first to be removed from the Inventory account and debited to the Cost of Goods Sold account. Since this is the perpetual system we cannot wait until the end of the year to determine the last cost (as is done with periodic LIFO). An entry is needed at the time of the sale in order to reduce the balance in the Inventory account and to increase the balance in the Cost of Goods Sold account.

If the costs of the goods purchased rise throughout the entire year, perpetual LIFO will result in a lower cost of goods sold and a higher net income than periodic LIFO. Generally this means that periodic LIFO will result in less income taxes than perpetual LIFO. (If you wish to minimize the amount paid in income taxes during periods of inflation, you should discuss LIFO with your tax adviser.)

We will demonstrate perpetual LIFO by using the same Corner Bookstore information:

Let's assume that after Corner Bookstore makes its second purchase in June 2021, Corner Bookstore sells one book. This means the lastest cost at the time of the sale was $89. Under perpetual LIFO the following entry must be made at the time of the sale: $89 will be credited to Inventory and $89 will be debited to Cost of Goods Sold. If that was the only book sold during the year, at the end of the year the Cost of Goods Sold account will have a balance of $89 and the cost in the Inventory account will be $351 ($85 + $87 + $89 + $90).

If the bookstore sells the textbook for $110, its gross profit under perpetual LIFO will be $21 ($110 - $89). Note that this $21 is different than the gross profit of $20 under periodic LIFO.

Perpetual Average

When using the perpetual inventory system, the Inventory account is constantly (or perpetually) changing. The inventory account is updated for every purchase and every sale.

With the perpetual system, two sets of entries are made whenever merchandise is sold: (1) the amount of the sale is debited to Accounts Receivable or Cash and is credited to Sales, and (2) the cost of the merchandise sold is debited to the account Cost of Goods Sold and is credited to the account Inventory. (Note: Under the periodic system the second entry is not made.)

In the perpetual system, "average" means the average cost of the items in inventory as of the date of the sale. This requires calculating a new average cost per unit after every purchase. The new average cost is multiplied by the number of units sold and is credited to the Inventory account and debited to the Cost of Goods Sold account. (We use the average as of the time of the sale because this is a perpetual method. Under the periodic system we wait until the year is over before computing the average cost.)

Let's demonstrate the perpetual average method using the Corner Bookstore information:

Let's assume that on July 1 Corner Bookstore sells one book. This means the average cost at the time of the sale was $87.50 ([$85 + $87 + $89 + $89] ÷ 4). Because this is a perpetual average, a journal entry must be made at the time of the sale for $87.50. The $87.50 (the average cost at the time of the sale) is credited to Inventory and is debited to Cost of Goods Sold. After the sale on July 1, three copies remain in inventory. The balance in the Inventory account will be $262.50 (3 books at an average cost of $87.50).

After Corner Bookstore makes its third purchase of the year 2021, the average cost per unit will change to $88.125 ([$262.50 + $90] ÷ 4). As you can see, the average cost moved from $87.50 to $88.125—this is why the perpetual average method is sometimes referred to as the moving average method. The Inventory balance is $352.50 (4 books with an average cost of $88.125 each).

Page 4

1. Part 1

   Introduction to Inventory and Cost of Goods Sold, Inventory Is Reported at Cost, Periodic vs Perpetual Inventory Systems

2. Part 2

   When a Company Purchases Identical Items at Increasing Costs, Demonstrating Cost Flow Assumptions, Inventory Systems with Cost Flow Assumptions

3. Part 3

   Periodic FIFO, Periodic LIFO, Periodic Average

4. Part 4

   Perpetual FIFO, Perpetual LIFO, Perpetual Average

5. Part 5

   Comparison of Cost Flow Assumptions, Specific Identification, LIFO Benefits Without Tracking Units, Inventory Management, Financial Ratios

6. Part 6

   Estimating Ending Inventory, Estimating Inventory: Gross Profit Method, Estimating Inventory: Retail Method

Below is a recap of the varying amounts for the cost of goods sold, gross profit, and ending inventory that were calculated above.

The examples assumed that costs were continually increasing. The results would be different if costs were decreasing or increasing at a slower rate. Consult with your tax adviser concerning the election of a cost flow assumption.

In past periods of inflation, many U.S. companies switched from FIFO to LIFO. However, once the switch is made, a company cannot change back to FIFO.

Specific Identification

In addition to the six cost flow options discussed earlier, businesses have another option: expense to the cost of goods sold the specific cost of the specific item sold. For example, Gold Dealer, Inc. has an inventory of gold and each gold bar has an identification number and the cost of the gold bar. When Gold Dealer sells a gold bar, it can expense to the cost of goods sold the exact cost of the specific gold bar sold. The cost of the other gold bars will remain in inventory. (Alternatively, Gold Dealer could use one of the other six cost flow options described earlier.)

LIFO Benefits Without Tracking Units

Earlier we demonstrated that during periods of increasing costs, LIFO resulted in less profits. In the U.S. this can mean less income taxes paid by a corporation. Most corporations view lower taxes as a significant benefit. However, the process of tracking costs and then assigning those costs to the units sold and the units on hand could be too expensive for the amount of income tax savings. To gain the benefit of LIFO without tracking costs, there is a method known as dollar value LIFO. This topic is discussed in intermediate accounting textbooks. The Internal Revenue Service also allows companies to use dollar value LIFO by applying price indexes. (You should seek the advice of an accounting and/or tax professional to assess the cost and benefit of these techniques.)

Inventory Management

Over the past decades sophisticated companies have made great strides in reducing their levels of inventory. Rather than carry large inventories, they ask their suppliers to deliver goods "just in time." Suppliers and merchandisers have learned to coordinate their purchases and sales so that orders and shipments occur automatically.

A company will realize significant benefits if it can keep its inventory levels down without losing sales or production (if the company is a manufacturer). In its early days, Dell Computers greatly reduced its inventory in relationship to its sales. Since the cost of computer components had been dropping as new technologies emerged, it benefited Dell to keep a small inventory of components on hand. It would be a financial hardship if Dell had a large quantity of components that became obsolete or decreased in value.

Financial Ratios

Keeping track of inventory is important. There are two common financial ratios for monitoring inventory levels: (1) Inventory Turnover Ratio, and (2) Days' Sales in Inventory. These are discussed and illustrated in the Explanation of Financial Ratios.

Page 5

It is very time-consuming for a company to physically count the units of goods in its inventory. In fact, some companies shut down their operations near the end of their accounting year just to perform inventory counts. Often a company assigns one set of employees to count and tag the items and another set to verify the counts. If a company has outside auditors, they will be there to observe the process. (Even if the company's computers keep track of inventory, the computer quantities must be verified by physically counting the goods at least once per year.)

If a company using the periodic inventory system counts its inventory only once per year, it must estimate its inventory at the end of each month in order to prepare meaningful monthly financial statements. In fact, a company may need to estimate its inventory for other reasons as well. For example, if a company suffers a loss due to a disaster such as a tornado or a fire, it will need to file a claim for the approximate cost of the inventory that was lost. (An insurance adjuster will also compute the amount independently so that the company is not paid too much or too little for its loss.)

Estimating Inventory: Gross Profit Method

The gross profit method for estimating the cost of the ending inventory uses information from a previously issued income statement. To illustrate the gross profit method we will assume that ABC Company needs to estimate the cost of its ending inventory on June 30, 2021.

ABC's latest income statement (which is representative of current conditions) contained the following information:

From ABC's information we see that the company's gross profit is 20% of sales, and that the cost of goods sold is 80% of sales. If those percentages are reasonable for the current year, we can use them to estimate the cost of the inventory on hand as of June 30, 2021.

While an algebraic equation could be used, we prefer to simply use the income statement format. We will prepare a partial income statement for the period beginning after the date when inventory was last physically counted, and ending with the date for which we need the estimated inventory cost. In this case, the income statement we prepare will be from January 1, 2021 until June 30, 2021.

Some of the amounts needed can be obtained from sales records, customers, suppliers, earlier financial statements, etc. For example, sales for the first half of the year 2021 are taken from the company's records. The beginning inventory amount is the ending inventory reported on the December 31, 2020 balance sheet. The purchases information for the first half of 2021 is available from the company's records or its suppliers. The amounts that are available are shown in italics in the following partial income statement:

We will fill in the rest of the statement with the answers from the following calculations. The calculation amounts in italics come from the statement above. The calculation amounts in bold will be used to complete the above section of the income statement:

Inserting this information into the income statement yields the following:

Next, we need to compute the ending inventory amount. This is done by subtracting the cost of goods sold from the cost of goods available as shown here:

Below is the completed partial income statement with the estimated amount of ending inventory at $26,200. (Note: Always recheck the math on the income statement to be certain you computed the amounts correctly.)

Estimating Inventory: Retail Method

Another method for estimating inventory is the retail method. This method can be used by retailers who have their merchandise records in both cost and retail selling prices. A very simple illustration of using the retail method for estimating the cost of ending inventory (using hypothetical amounts unrelated to earlier examples) is shown here:

Notice that the cost amounts are presented in one column and the retail amounts are listed in a separate column. The Goods Available amounts are used to compute the cost-to-retail ratio. In this case the cost of goods available of $80,000 is divided by the retail amount of goods available of $100,000. Therefore, the cost-to-retail ratio, or cost ratio, is 80%. The estimated ending inventory at cost is the estimated ending inventory at retail of $10,000 times the cost ratio of 80% equals $8,000.

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AccountingCoach helped me during the times I had trouble remembering accounting concepts. It is a very useful website encompassing a broad area of accounting and finance. Definitely the best go-to place for accountants like me. Thank you so much!
-Cynthia A.

As a European I studied the accounting system used in my particular country. I always wondered how accounting was done in the U.S. AccountingCoach has taught me everything I wanted to know. I've learned a lot about the terminology and the differences between accounting methods from the other side of the pond.
-Pedro R.

I strongly believe that AccountingCoach is the best education program from a practical accounting point of view. Every tool like the accounting dictionary, crossword puzzles, word scrambles (I love it!) and so on explains difficult technical words with the most proper and simplest words Visual learning programs and Q&A archives are especially effective for non-native English speakers to understand current and practical usage methods of accounting terms.
-Ishino K.

Right after graduating from university and getting my bachelor's degree in accountancy, I didn't manage to land a job in the accounting field, instead I got a job in banking. While the pay was a little bit higher than what many other fresh graduates would get in the accounting field, I didn't particularly enjoy what I was doing. So I decided to give what I was most interested in to begin with another shot. Unfortunately, I wasn't feeling very confident in my ability and knowledge in accounting because there was a particularly long lapse of time where I wasn't exposed to accounting. Thankfully I discovered this website, which explains the basics of what you need to know about accounting in a very concise and rather layman way. I also really appreciate that the administrator of the website tries to improve and add more content to the site instead of stagnating after getting my money. I can definitely recommend this site if you need to refresh yourself with accounting, or even just to help you with your study if you're still in the process of getting your degree.
-Leonard L.

I am so impressed by AccountingCoach. I happened to stumble upon it when I was checking for an explanation on impairment. Ever since then my life has become uncomplicated and all these accounting books thrown out the window. It truly is the best! I could not believe it? I run my own accounting, bookkeeping practice and I am still today amazed about the way they have simplified things! I love it! Job well done to the team at AccountingCoach! I am your biggest fan! Thanks so much.
-Eleanor M.

I am a Granny of 67 years old, a South African National, studying for an undergraduate degree in Accounting. Coming across AccountingCoach was the best gift I ever received throughout my education pursuits. AccountingCoach is pleasantly user-friendly and a great study tool for senior citizens and those who study part time because of their busy work schedules. Even South African University students who are presently facing funding challenges in South Africa can use AccountingCoach as a study tool. Thank you.
-Jane N.

I am an experienced businessman now semi-retired and I guest lecture to senior managers in major UK companies and at academic institutions including some internationally famous business schools on topics such as Business Performance Measurement; Business Decision-Taking; and Assessing and Managing Risk. Although I understand business finance well, I never trained as an accountant. But to maintain high credibility when delivering my courses I need to be aware of and keep up to date with certain key international accounting standards and current accounting definitions and practices. I have found AccountingCoach to be an excellent way to do this and fantastic value for money.
-Ray O.

I am a small business accountant and tax preparer. A lot of my clients are do-it-yourself bookkeepers for their small business. Most of them, if not all, use bookkeeping software to keep track of their business. Although software programs are great at what they do and are "easy" for the user, the double entry accounting method is still occurring in the background. Accounting concepts and terms are not "easily" explained to a small business owner who doesn't understand why reports look the way they do. To help them, I always direct them to AccountingCoach to learn the concepts and terms. The tutorials, glossary, and web topics are presented in the best way that anyone can understand accounting. It's the best source on the web!
-Kathleen F.

Just want to let you know that I have learned so much from AccountingCoach PRO. I have had so many issues resolved simply by referring to AccountingCoach PRO when it comes to doing my everyday bookkeeping work. I am so glad that I discovered you and look forward to referring to this website a lot in the future...keep up the great work.
-Peggy M.

I teach Accounting and this is the first website I give my students. I too, purchased the lifetime membership because it is a valuable resource for them and for anyone desiring to learn and understand Accounting. I even do the crossword puzzles, word scrambles, etc. to keep my skills sharp! Plus, it's fun! It's a challenge to keep my lectures interesting, and AccountingCoach helps tremendously. Thanks!
-Crystal C.

I love, love, love your website, it has helped me to succeed in all the bookkeeping I have done off and on throughout the years. Whenever I had doubts I could easily access the website and find my answers quick and I love the videos. Very educational, accurate and reliable. The lifetime unlimited access was one of the best investments I have ever made a few years ago! Makes learning fun and I would suggest this to others in a heartbeat, business owners, employees won't be disappointed. Even those who do occasional bookkeeping will definitely be satisfied with any membership purchase. Thank you AccountingCoach for all that you have helped me with!!! Amazing site!!
-Brenda L.

I am not an accountant, nor a bookkeeper, but I need to be aware of what's happening financially. Being able to consult AccountingCoach on a specific topic relating to our books has been a tremendous help to me. I very much appreciate your service!
-Brian P.

I don't have enough words to express how great the AccountingCoach is. I have been using it since the first day I became a member and it's incredibly good.
-Manny S.

AccountingCoach assisted me with training my team on the profit and loss statements. It helped me put the 'why' behind the terminology used. I would highly recommend AccountingCoach as a good resource for all levels of users!
-Carolyn C.

AccountingCoach has helped me a lot with my work as a manager. It has given me confidence in reading and looking at spreadsheets and budgets as well as giving me the tools to interpret our financial status and forecast future expectations at my work. A great idea to have it readily available for all of us managers and professionals that need to brush up on their accounting knowledge or learn to enhance their professional standings and job status. Thank you for the videos and cheat sheets, as I appreciate a great effort on your part to all of us that need to learn and revise their accounting and finance information and knowledge.
-Samih B.

I bought a small Accounting, Bookkeeping & Payroll business and had very little knowledge of accounting principles and felt I was way over my head. I was looking online for free training or help with just the basics. After a few website that did not help, I found AccountingCoach and signed up and it has helped me a great deal! I am not sure if my business would be as successful if I did not pick up the lessons so easily. AccountingCoach really makes learning easy and interesting, which is hard to do when it comes to accounting. I have recommended it to friends & family and I will continue to do so. Thank you AccountingCoach!!!
-Jennifer L.

As a high school accounting teacher I have used the resources on AccountingCoach PRO to enhance my understanding of accounting concepts and make my explanation of concepts clearer for my students. I recommend AccountingCoach PRO to students pursuing higher level accounting after high school and to anyone teaching accounting classes---the money spent on this resource will be one of the best investments in professional development you'll make in your career.
-Sharon M.

The PRO membership allows me to provide great explanations to my coworkers who are not versed in accounting without me spending a lot of time finding examples they may understand. I use my membership to review topics that I don't use very often and it has been one of the best investments I've made for my work and it costs less than my Accounting textbook!
-John B.

AccountingCoach has helped tremendously while I was studying for accounting and I strongly believe that my grade would not have been in the 90's had it not been for the AccountingCoach. I will always keep the AccountingCoach in my favourites list even though I have completed my courses as I will no doubt make reference to it when I second-guess myself. It has helped with all aspects of accounting from the very beginning to the very end. Whomever decided to create AccountingCoach was a genius because it is designed in a way that anyone from an amateur to a PRO can follow along. I recommend it to everyone. It has become my new limb. Cannot boast enough about it. Well worth it.
-Tammy

Becoming a member of AccountingCoach was hands down a great decision for me. I have been in bookkeeping for over 16 years and all the training I had was from the CPA that I worked for. While I felt I had a good foundation and years of experience, once I took the leap and branched out with my own bookkeeping practice I felt the need to brush up on my skills. AccountingCoach actually not only helped me brush up on my knowledge, but has helped me pinpoint my strengths and weaknesses which allowed me to focus on those areas that I was lacking knowledge. It was also a great boost to see how much knowledge I already had. I think it was a great investment and I love knowing that when I second-guess myself I can easily log in and review the information needed. Worth every penny!
-Judith G.

Thank you AccountingCoach! As an auditor, I frequently encounter government and private financial transactions that I vaguely remember from my college years. The information and ease of finding the right accounting procedures to those instances has been an enormous help to me in my job. This has definitely been a good decision to be a member.
-Enrique E.

I came across AccountingCoach some years ago and since then it has been my go-to solution for all and any problems or issues that arise in my day-to-day work. Whenever I come across a situation I have not faced before I sign in, read up on the related data, of which there is plenty, and solve another problem. I think of AccountingCoach as my personal library where I can look up information on any aspect of my business. My clients are always impressed with the results I provide. Thank you AccountingCoach.
-Joseph C.

I started using AccountingCoach when I found myself unemployed and looking to brush up on my cost accounting skills. It was a wonderful tool and I found it easy to use and contained all the information I would need to get familiar with the topic, all while not having to go back to my college books or my CPA review materials. It is affordably priced and well worth investing in. I am now employed and the materials I studied helped me to prepare for questions I received in the interview process regarding topics I needed to brush up on.
-Karen B.

In my roles as a business owner, member of senior management teams and as a business consultant, I frequently deal with accounting-related issues. While I have a solid grasp of a wide range of accounting practices and methods, I still find that there are times when I want to refresh or investigate aspects of accounting that I either seldom visit or have not had the opportunity to work with. When those circumstances arise, I turn to AccountingCoach which I find covers not only a wide range of topics but usually in enough depth and detail that you can use it almost like a condensed primer on any given topic. The information and examples are complete enough that I find I can apply what is shown to the task at hand and have the result be equal to what I would get from an accounting professional. It is not an exaggeration to state that it has saved both time and cost on numerous occasions. Highly recommended!
-James F.

Living in a small tourist rural town, there are limited choices in the job market. I knew if I bumped up my skills, I would become eligible for a bookkeeping position locally. AccountingCoach has helped me do that. Such a small investment for a HUGE return. Thank you so much for making this available!
-Pam P.

I would like to say thank you very much for your support. I am a student of Accounting at George Mason University in Virginia. I found your website some time ago, and I have been a PRO member ever since. From the moment I found AccountingCoach, I recognize the value, quality and effort of your work. Currently, I am taking Financial Accounting. I confess I was scared because it has been awhile since I took accounting classes. Thankfully, AccountingCoach helps me to not just refresh my mind on basic accounting terminology, but also helps me to understand new terminology in plain English.
-Desire S.

I found AccountingCoach online about 2 years ago. It has helped me tremendously to brush up on knowledge and information about accounting that I don't have time to go to school for. I have been an accountant for many years and don't plan on going back to college at this point; I have a Bachelor’s degree already. I use AccountingCoach to study for a job in accounting if I am not familiar with the work or to understand something like cash flow statements when prepping for a job interview. Recently, I used the online exams extensively to study for a city accounting job; with great success. Thank you Harold!
-Mary B.

I have been using AccountingCoach in my bookkeeping business for a few years now and love it! There are times when I need an answer to some accounting situation that baffles me and always have been able to find the answers I need on your website. I particularly like the clear and concise way the material is presented so I can quickly get results.
-Cheryl N..

I enrolled in an accounting course online. I was sent textbooks and a workbook in the mail and that was it. I was on my own to figure out the rest. It was difficult trying to match the course and workbook together to do the lessons and exercises and the explanations left too many gaps and questions. I knew I needed extra support. I stumbled upon AccountingCoach in an internet search and from the little I was able to read, I gained a far better understanding than the college-level textbook I had been studying for months. I signed up for PRO and it got even better. I'm able to do more exercises and gain extra studying tools and more detailed explanations to ensure my understanding of the accounting process. Truthfully, I've learned more through the AccountingCoach Pro than the college textbook and it cost sooo much less! It has been a life saver. I don't think I could have continued without it. Thank you for creating such an amazing experience and giving me the confidence I needed to keep working towards my goal.
-Crystal C.

AccountingCoach is a simply fantastic self-learning source. The way it explains various accounting concepts in such a simple and self explanatory manner is really commendable. Being an engineering student, with no past accounting background, AccountingCoach has been a great saviour in my MBA accounting module. The Balance Sheets, Statement of Cash Flows, and Income Statement all have been explained very beautifully. Thank you AccountingCoach. Keep up the good work.
-Amber A.