Where it sits
Balance sheet.
Framework: General double-entry bookkeeping with U.S. GAAP financial-statement context where stated.
Aliases: liabilities.
Account type · General double-entry bookkeeping with U.S. GAAP financial-statement context where stated
Liability
A liability is an obligation; an expense is consumption or cost recognized during a period.
Closest contrast
A liability is an obligation; an expense is consumption or cost recognized during a period.
This distinction is part of the concept record, not a generic FAQ copied across terms.
Balanced entry or boundary
This concept is not a journal entry by itself. It classifies a resource, obligation, statement, system or control report. Use the linked transaction to see it in a balanced entry.
Learning path
Prerequisites
Dependents
Follow the term through a real event
The $1,200 credit-sale walkthrough shows source documents, balanced entries, ledger movement and statement effects. The same fictional facts are reused so numbers do not drift between pages.
Open the transaction lab