Trial Balance Check
Sum a list of debit and credit account balances and check they match — the first diagnostic step before drawing up a profit and loss account or balance sheet.
Data verified · July 2026
What should I do if the trial balance doesn't balance?
Recheck each account balance for transposition or one-sided posting errors, then check whether any entry has been omitted entirely — if the difference remains unexplained, post it temporarily to a suspense account and investigate before closing the period.
Source: ICAEW — Bookkeeping and the trial balance; FRS 102/105 accounts preparation from ledger balances. · updated 2026
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Everything about Trial Balance Check
📋Overview+
Under double-entry bookkeeping, every transaction debits one account and credits another for the same amount, so the sum of all debit balances must equal the sum of all credit balances. This calculator totals your debit and credit balances (plus any additional lump-sum totals) and flags an imbalance immediately, before you move on to drawing up the profit and loss account or balance sheet.
💡 Best practices
- A trial balance that balances does not prove there are no errors — errors of omission, or posting the same wrong amount to both sides, will not show up as a difference.
- Check for common causes of imbalance first: a one-sided entry, a transposition error (e.g. 540 entered as 450), or a balance entered on the wrong side.
- Reconcile control accounts (bank, VAT, payroll) separately — a balanced trial balance can still hide an error that nets out within a single control account.
🔢 Concrete example
Debit balances of £5,000, £3,000 and £2,000 total £10,000; credit balances of £4,000 and £6,000 also total £10,000 — the trial balance is balanced.
📖User guide+
How to use this calculator
- 1
Enter your individual debit account balances (comma-separated).
- 2
Enter your individual credit account balances (comma-separated).
- 3
Add any additional debit or credit totals not captured in the lists above.
- 4
Check the difference — it should be zero (or within a penny of rounding) before you proceed to the accounts.
📚Glossary+
- Trial balance
- A listing of every ledger account balance, split between debits and credits, used to check that total debits equal total credits before accounts are prepared.
- Suspense account
- A temporary account used to hold an unexplained trial balance difference until the error causing it is found and corrected.
ℹ️Sources & updates+
Last data update
July 7, 2026
Sources and references
ICAEW — Bookkeeping and the trial balance; FRS 102/105 accounts preparation from ledger balances.
The data in this calculator is updated regularly to reflect the latest official rates. When in doubt, consult the official sources listed above.
FAQ — Trial Balance Check
What should I do if the trial balance doesn't balance?+
Recheck each account balance for transposition or one-sided posting errors, then check whether any entry has been omitted entirely — if the difference remains unexplained, post it temporarily to a suspense account and investigate before closing the period.
Does a balanced trial balance guarantee the accounts are correct?+
No — it only confirms that total debits equal total credits; errors of omission, errors of principle, or compensating errors on both sides can all leave a trial balance perfectly balanced despite being wrong.