How would you define an accrued expense?

An accrued expense refers to an expense that has been incurred during a specific accounting period but has not yet been paid or settled by the end of that period. This concept is crucial in the accrual basis of accounting, which emphasizes recognizing expenses when they are incurred, regardless of when the cash payment is actually made.

For example, if a company receives services in December but does not pay for them until January, it must record the expense in December's financial statements to accurately reflect the costs of doing business in that period. This ensures that financial statements provide a true and fair view of the company's financial position.

Understanding the nature of an accrued expense helps maintain the integrity of financial reporting by aligning income and expenses in the correct periods, thus following the matching principle.