For which of the following accounts is the normal balance a debit?
James Olson
Updated on February 11, 2026
Assets, expenses, losses, and the owner’s drawing account will normally have debit balances. Their balances will increase with a debit entry, and will decrease with a credit entry. Liabilities, revenues and sales, gains, and owner equity and stockholders’ equity accounts normally have credit balances.
Is the normal balance of accounts receivable a debit?
Normal Balances of Accounts. All accounts will normally have a balance on their increase side. Accounts Receivable will normally (In your class ALWAYS) have a debit balance because it is an asset.
Is an expense a debit or credit?
Assets and expenses have natural debit balances. This means positive values for assets and expenses are debited and negative balances are credited. For example, upon the receipt of $1,000 cash, a journal entry would include a debit of $1,000 to the cash account in the balance sheet, because cash is increasing.
What is meant by the normal balance?
noun. (Accounting: Financial statements) The normal balance of an account is the side of the account that is positive or increasing. The normal balance for asset and expense accounts is the debit side, while for income, equity, and liability accounts it is the credit side.
What is the normal balance of rent expense?
Debit balance is the normal balance of a rent expense account. Asset accounts normally have debit balances.
What does it mean to have a normal balance on an account?
A normal balance is the expectation that a particular type of account will have either a debit or a credit balance based on its classification within the chart of accounts . It is possible for an account expected to have a normal balance as a debit to actual
Which is an example of a normal balance?
Example 1: SN Accounts Types of Accounts Normal Balance 13 Profit Owner’s Equity Credit 14 Provision for bad debts Contra Account Receivable Credit 15 Cash in hand Asset Debit 16 Mark up (Cr) Revenue Credit
Can a debit account have a normal balance?
It is possible for an account expected to have a normal balance as a debit to actually have a credit balance, and vice versa, but these situations should be in the minority. The normal balance for each account type is noted in the following table.
What’s the normal balance of a contra revenue account?
Contra expense normal balance: An expense is normally a debit balance so a contra expense account such as purchase returns is normally a credit balance. Contra revenue normal balance: Revenue is normally a credit balance so a contra revenue account such as sales returns is normally a debit balance.