Accounts Payable vs Notes Payable: Key Differences

Many suppliers offer discounts to customers as an incentive to pay before the invoice due date. These discounts can bring annual returns on cash well above what can be earned on bank cash balances or other short-term investments. As noted earlier, when comparing accounts payable vs. notes payable, the complexity of tasks is a major difference. For accounts payable, that complexity will grow with the volume of business. As revenues grow, so will the need for additional resources to pay suppliers and creditors in an accurate and timely manner. At some point, an organization will require the structure of an accounts payable department.

1. After matching the supplier’s invoice with its purchase order and receiving records, the company will record the amount owed in Accounts Payable.
2. In larger organizations, the accounts payable function will require the further refinement of roles to support a broad set of business processes.
3. If the note is due after one year, the note payable will be reported as a long-term or noncurrent liability.
4. When a long-term note payable has a short-term component, the amount due within the next 12 months is separately stated as a short-term liability.
5. The portion of the debt to be paid after one year is classified as a long‐term liability.
6. In some organizations, supplier management is the responsibility of procurement; in others, it is the responsibility of accounts payable.

A liability is created when a company signs a note for the purpose of borrowing money or extending its payment period credit. A note may be signed for an overdue invoice when the company needs to extend its payment, when the company borrows cash, or in exchange for an asset. An extension of the normal credit period for paying amounts owed often requires that a company sign a note, resulting in a transfer of the liability from accounts payable to notes payable.

Notes payable are oftentimes confused with accounts payable, and while they are both technically company debt, they are different categories. We can think of accounts payable as very short-term debts the company might owe as payment for goods or services from another party. They are typically paid off within the span of a month, whereas notes payable could have terms as long as several years. Because they are money owed by the company, both short and long-term notes payable are considered liabilities.

As the notes payable usually comes with the interest payment obligation, the company needs to also account for the accrued interest at the period-end adjusting entry. This is due to the interest expense is the type of expense that incurs through the passage of time. The account Notes Payable is a liability account in which a borrower’s written promise to pay a lender is recorded. (The lender record’s the borrower’s written promise in Notes Receivable.) Generally, the written note specifies the principal amount, the date due, and the interest to be paid.

Examples of Notes Payable

With these promissory notes, you must make a single lump sum payment to the lender by the due date, covering both the principal borrowed and the interest accrued. A liability account recorded in a company’s general ledger is called a “Promissory Note.” It is when borrowers formally commit themselves to paying back lenders. Some promissory notes are secured, which means that if the payment terms are not met, the creditor may have a claim against the borrower’s assets. notes payable is a formal agreement, or promissory note, between your business and a bank, financial institution, or other lender. This journal entry is made to eliminate (or reduce) the legal obligation that occurred when the company received the borrowed money after signing the note agreement to borrow money from the creditor. Hence, without properly account for such accrued interest, the company’s expense may be understated while its total asset may be overstated.

Unearned revenues represent amounts paid in advance by the customer for an exchange of goods or services. Examples of unearned revenues are deposits, subscriptions for magazines or newspapers paid in advance, airline tickets paid in advance of flying, and season tickets to sporting and entertainment events. As the cash is received, the cash account is increased (debited) and unearned revenue, a liability account, is increased (credited). As the seller of the product or service earns the revenue by providing the goods or services, the unearned revenues account is decreased (debited) and revenues are increased (credited).

Another related tool is an amortization calculator that breaks down every payment to repay a loan. It also shows the amount of interest paid each time and the remaining balance on the loan after each time. In the following example, a company issues a 60-day, 12% discounted note for $1,000 to a bank on January 1. Note that since the 12% is an annual rate (for 12 months), it must be pro- rated for the number of months or days (60/360 days or 2/12 months) in the term of the loan.

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The difference between the face value of the note and the loan obtained against it is debited to discount on notes payable. The note payable issued on November 1, 2018 matures on February 1, 2019. On this date, National Company must record the following journal entry for the payment of principal amount (i.e., $100,000) plus interest thereon (i.e., $1,000 + $500).

Interest-bearing and zero-interest-bearing notes payable:

This situation may occur when a seller, in order to make a detail appear more favorable, increases the list or cash price of an item but offers the buyer interest-free repayment terms. Another entry on June 30 shows interest paid during that duration to prepare company A’s semi-annual financial statement. A low interest rate is possible for borrowers with a strong credit and financial profile. A borrower with a weak credit history and a relatively less healthy financial profile may be in for a higher interest rate. The principal of $10,475 due at the end of year 4—within one year—is current. The principal of $10,999 due at the end of year 5 is classified as long term.

The discount simply represents the total potential interest expense to be incurred if the note remains’ unpaid for the full 120 days. The $200 difference is debited to the account Discount on Notes Payable. This is a contra-liability account and is offset against the Notes Payable account on the balance sheet. It must charge the discount of two months to expense by making the following adjusting entry on December 31, 2018. Promissory notes are deemed current as of the balance sheet date if they are due within the next 12 months, but they are considered non-current if they are due in more than 12 months. Accounts payable, which often reflect materials or services acquired on credit that have been granted to you by vendors you regularly do business with, do not require written agreements.

An interest-bearing note is a promissory note with a stated interest rate on its face. This note represents the principal amount of money that a lender lends to the borrower and on which the interest is to be accrued using the stated rate of interest. The notes payable are not issued to general public or traded in the market like bonds, shares or other trading securities. They are bilateral agreements between issuing company and a financial institution or a trading partner. A business may borrow money from a bank, vendor, or individual to finance operations on a temporary or long-term basis or to purchase assets. Note Payable is used to keep track of amounts that are owed as short-term or long- term business loans.

Accounts payable can be viewed as relatively short-term debts that a business may incur to pay for goods or services received from a third party. They are normally repaid within a month, as opposed to promissory notes, which may have periods of several years. Since your cash increases, once you receive the loan, you will debit your cash account for $80,000 in the first journal entry. https://accounting-services.net/ is a written agreement in which a borrower promises to pay back an amount of money, usually with interest, to a lender within a certain time frame. Notes payable are recorded as short- or long-term business liabilities on the balance sheet, depending on their terms. In notes payable accounting there are a number of journal entries needed to record the note payable itself, accrued interest, and finally the repayment.