Introduction to Debits & Credits

Welcome to the world of accounting, simplified with COUNT! Diving into accounting concepts can feel overwhelming, especially when they seem different from how you manage your personal finances. Don't worry — we're here to walk you through the basics, starting with debits and credits.

When you're reviewing your reports in COUNT and something doesn't quite match your expectations, it helps to understand how debits and credits work. The good news is that COUNT handles most of this automatically when you connect your bank account, upload a statement, or enter transactions manually.

If you ever want to double-check a transaction, go to the Reports section and click Account Transactions (General Ledger). From there, you can filter by specific bank accounts to review individual transactions.

What Are Debits and Credits, Exactly?

At their core, debits and credits are just the two sides of every accounting entry — think of them as "left" and "right" columns that must always balance out. Every transaction affects at least two accounts: one gets a debit, and the other gets a credit, and the two always add up to the same total.

What a debit or credit actually means depends on the type of account involved:

• For asset accounts (like your bank balance), a debit increases the balance and a credit decreases it.
• For liability accounts (like loans or credit cards), it works the other way around: a credit increases what you owe, and a debit decreases it.

This might feel backwards at first, especially since we often use "credit" casually to mean "money coming in." In accounting, it simply depends on which account you're looking at. Once you see a few examples, the pattern becomes second nature — and COUNT applies these rules automatically, so you rarely have to think about it day to day.

How Debits & Credits Work in Asset Accounts

Asset accounts include things like your checking or savings account.

• Deposits are recorded as debits. In COUNT, these appear as green transactions.
• Withdrawals are recorded as credits. In COUNT, these appear as black transactions.

How Debits & Credits Work in Liability Accounts

Liability accounts include loans and credit cards.

• Payments you make (paying down a balance) are recorded as debits. In COUNT, these appear as green transactions.
• Expenses or purchases are recorded as credits. In COUNT, these appear as black transactions.

How Do Transfers Work?

Moving money between your own accounts — for example, paying off a credit card from your checking account — is treated as a transfer in COUNT. The same debit and credit rules still apply: the money leaving your checking account is a debit, and the payment landing on your credit card is a credit.

Quick Recap

And there you have it — a simplified overview of debits and credits in COUNT. With these basics under your belt, you'll navigate your financial data with more ease and confidence.

Updated on: 19/08/2026