SAP Concur Explains the Difference Between Accrued and Accrual Accounting

Key points

• Accrued refers to expenses or revenues incurred but not yet recorded in financial statements, representing obligations or debts to recognize even if cash has not changed hands.
• Examples of accrued expenses include wages payable, utilities payable and interest payable; accrued revenues include consulting fees and rent.
• Accrual recognizes money spent and earned when it happens rather than when cash changes hands, using the matching principle to record related revenues and expenses in the same period.
• The article says GAAP prefers the accrual method, but it involves more work and higher error risk, especially without an automated system.
• SAP Concur solutions automate and manage travel and expense (T&E) and invoices, integrating with financial systems to streamline data collection and month-end close.