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Definition
A trial balance is a list of every ledger account's closing balance at a point in time, with debits in one column and credits in another. Under double-entry bookkeeping the two columns must total the same figure.
In plain terms
It is the checkpoint between raw bookkeeping and finished accounts: if debits do not equal credits, something has been posted wrongly. When they match, you can build the financial statements from it with confidence.
Why it matters for your company
The trial balance is where errors are caught before they reach your balance sheet and profit and loss. A balanced trial balance is the foundation of accounts a lender or auditor can trust.
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