a t-account is an accounting tool used to track changes within a given account changes are tracked through debits and credits and the net change after all debits and credits are tallied up represent the difference between the beginning balance and the ending balance in that account by tradition and for no other reason debits are on the left and credits are on the right in the context of double-entry accounting debits and credits do not carry the same meaning as their colloquial use for example in a bank statement there might be withdrawals on the left and deposits on the right up until now you may have associated debits as negative change in credits as a positive change if you continue thinking of debits and credits in these terms you will find double-entry accounting confusing similarly keep in mind that debit cards and credit cards are not similar to debits and credits in accounting it is important to let go of traditional users of the words debits and credits in everyday life as they are not the same as debits and credits in the accounting world for this reason and only insofar as accounting is concerned it may help you to start thinking of debits simply as left and credits simply as right accountants do not think in terms of positive or negative numbers but in terms of increases and decreases which translates to debits and credits in a traditional transaction two things are exchanged for example a person gives another person a goat which is a decrease to the first person's number of goats and an increase to the second person's number of goats the second person gives the first person a Seco green which is a decrease to the second person's grain and an increase in the first person's green the first person cannot have negative sacks of grain and the second person cannot have negative goats of course the example of bartering goats and grains is somewhat antiquated in a complex economy transactions do not typically involve physical items but this example demonstrates the mechanics of double-entry as one thing is given another is received as one thing increases another decreases T accounts are a form of shorthand that accountants can scribble on a piece of paper before they make an actual entry to the accounting books the impact of a debit or credit and whether a debit indicates a decrease or increase in a particular T account depends on the type of account for example in asset accounts such as cash or accounts receivable a debit indicates an increase while the credit indicates a decrease the opposite is true for a revenue account where debits indicated decrease and credits indicate an increase