Why do debits and credits make no sense in accounting?
Debits and credits feel counterintuitive because they mean different things depending on the type of account, making it hard to see why transactions balance or how to write journal entries. Without a clear handle on what increases and decreases, students get stuck on practical problems and cannot move forward with ledgers or exams.
What the numbers show
Counted from the threads quoted below. How we count
- People have been saying this in most months since September 2026.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
Found another way around this?
Share your steps and trade-offs so fellow engineers don't have to reinvent the wheel. No account required.
Why do debits and credits make no sense in accounting?
- 1asking questions on online forums like RedditDid this help you?
- 2relying on personal intuition regarding account increases and decreasesDid this help you?
- 3Accepting failure on the mid-term exam and aiming for a comeback in the finalsDid this help you?
- 4Asking experienced practitioners for rules of thumb or tips to differentiate buying versus selling transactions.Did this help you?
- 5Thinking of cash up or down to understand the other side of the balance sheet accountDid this help you?
- 6Recing out cash everyday to stay on top of thingsDid this help you?
- 7Asking questions and observing what other people doDid this help you?
- 8Doubting whether the degree is feasible and considering dropping the courseDid this help you?
In their words
Unedited, grouped by where they were said, most upvoted first within each place, each linked to the thread it came from.
“I get confused sometimes knowing which one to use, like I understand the definitions but on problems involving T charts and such idk what to use.”source ↗
“I'm really struggling to understand the logic behind how certain aspects are decided in general journals, ledgers etc, and how to be able to decide (differentiate?) On how to classify entries.”source ↗
“For example, if you're entering info on a bookkeeping expense for a business, how do you know if its accounts payable or just cash at bank? This isn't information provided in the question.”source ↗
“I want to be able to look at something and know that ok, that is this specific expense, liability, etc, and its corresponding entry is this specific CR, DR, etc.”source ↗
“Yeah, it’s the adjusting entries part of account recs that’s tripping me up I don’t know which gl accounts to debit and credit”source ↗
“When it comes to journal entries, you're making debits and credits. I really don't understand this.”source ↗
“Most importantly, I thought journal entries were supposed to even out. How do they balance?”source ↗
“What's the point of even bookkeeping there, if the transaction is just cancelling out?”source ↗
“hi, I am 11th class student and I can’t understand accounting.”source ↗
“Tomorrow is my accounts half yearly exam, I can’t do practical like I don’t know what is credit and debit, what increase decrease, journal, ledger.”source ↗
“For me accounts is very hard and I know I have to do it because If I didn’t learn 11th accounts, 12th grade accounts will become a nightmare.”source ↗
Where this came up
People with this problem also raised
- 31Why do debits and credits make no sense?
- 9How do you do account reconciliation when departments are split up?
- 4How do credit card interest and statement balances work?
- 5How to do accrual accounting homework adjusting entries
- 2Where do translation adjustments post in NetSuite?
- 2Why is my car rental hold higher than expected?