# Double-Entry Bookkeeping

*Accounting & Reporting — Finicade finance glossary*

Double-entry bookkeeping records every transaction twice — once as a debit and once as a credit — so the books always balance. It's a 500-year-old error-detection system: if the two sides disagree, something is wrong, and the imbalance points at where. It's also why the balance sheet balances by construction, and why fabricating a single number in a set of accounts requires fabricating a second to match.

**Also known as:** double entry accounting, double-entry system

**Related terms:** [Debits and Credits](https://finicade.com/glossary/debits-and-credits), [General Ledger](https://finicade.com/glossary/general-ledger), [Trial Balance](https://finicade.com/glossary/trial-balance), [Balance Sheet](https://finicade.com/glossary/balance-sheet), [Journal Entry](https://finicade.com/glossary/journal-entry)

Source: https://finicade.com/glossary/double-entry-bookkeeping