Unearned Revenue (2024)

FAQs

What is an example of unearned revenue? ›

A few typical examples of unearned revenue include airline tickets, prepaid insurance, advance rent payments, or annual subscriptions for media or software. For example, imagine that a customer purchases an annual subscription for a streaming music service. The customer pays $50 up front for the full year of service.

Unearned revenue or deferred revenue is recorded as a liability in journal entries. Upon receiving payment, a debit entry is made to the cash account, and a corresponding credit entry is made to the unearned or deferred revenue account, reflecting the revenue recognition principle.

Unearned revenue is originally entered in the books as a debit to the cash account and a credit to the unearned revenue account. The credit and debit are the same amount, as is standard in double-entry bookkeeping.

Unearned revenue is not recorded on the income statement as revenue until “earned” and is instead found on the balance sheet as a liability. Over time, the revenue is recognized once the product/service is delivered (and the deferred revenue liability account declines as the revenue is recognized).

Unearned income includes investment-type income such as taxable interest, ordinary dividends, and capital gain distributions. It also includes unemployment compensation, taxable social security benefits, pensions, annuities, cancellation of debt, and distributions of unearned income from a trust.

It is treated as a liability because the revenue has still not been earned and represents products or services owed to a customer.

Unearned revenue refers to revenue your company or business received for products or services you are yet to deliver or provide to the buyer (customer). Therefore, businesses that accept prepayments or upfront cash before delivering products or services to customers have unearned revenue.

Unearned income offers various potential benefits. It allows individuals to earn money without actively working, providing an additional income source and can increase their financial security. Moreover, unearned income could offer tax advantages, as some forms of it are taxed at lower rates than earned income.

Unearned revenue is recorded on the cash flow statement as a "deferred inflow of resources," which is a liability account. This means that the cash isn't received in the current period, but it's expected to be received in later periods as services are provided or products are delivered.

Deferred revenue, also known as unearned revenue, refers to advance payments a company receives for products or services that are to be delivered or performed in the future. The company that receives the prepayment records the amount as deferred revenue, a liability on its balance sheet.

How to calculate unearned income? ›

Calculate your monthly unearned income by starting with the total amount of money you received and dividing that by the number of months for which you've agreed to provide services. For example, if you have accepted $4800 to clean an office for six months, divide $4800 by 6 to get your monthly unearned income.

Interest and dividend income are the most common types of unearned income. Money received this way is unearned income, and the tax paid on it is considered an unearned income tax. Interest income is normally taxed as ordinary income on sources that earn income, including: Checking and savings deposit accounts.

Gift card purchases are generally classified as a deferred revenue liability. The cash received from the sale is paid upfront but does not qualify for revenue recognition as no goods or services have been exchanged.

For example, a company might provide consulting services to a client in December, but not issue an invoice until January of the following year. In this case, the company would record the revenue as “accrued” in December and recognize it as “received” in January, when the invoice is paid.

That said, unearned revenue is a liability, not an asset. It's an obligation, not a resource. Your company has made a commitment to your customers, and until you deliver on that promise—be it a service or a product—you owe them.

For instance, an airline that receives advance payment for tickets should record the transactions as unearned revenue. Professional service providers such as accounting, legal and contracting firms that accept deposits should record them as unearned revenue.