Distinguish

Branches Of Accounting
SR NO BASIS Financial Accounting
1. Meaning FA , branch
of accounting that keeps
track of a
company's financial transact
ions. Using standardized
guidelines, the transactions
are recorded, summarized,
and presented in
a financial report
or financial statement such
as an income statement or a
balance sheet.
Cost accounting
CA, examines
the cost structure of a
business. It does so by
collecting information
about the costs incurred by
a company's activities,
assigning selected costs to
products and services and
other cost objects, and
evaluating the efficiency
of cost usage.
Management accounting
MA, is the process of
analyzing business costs and
operations to prepare
internal financial report,
records, and account to
aid managers' decision
making process in achieving
business goals.

2. History 2nd & 3rd century 14th century 20th century

3. Aim Profitability of business Record & reduce Costs Analyze, plan & co-ordinate
4. Users Generally External Internal & External Internal users
5. Scope Wide Narrow Wider
 Branches Of Accounting
SR NO BASIS Financial Accounting Cost accounting Management accounting
6. Report Annually, Half yearly & Continuous Basis Continuous basis but more
frequent
interval Sometimes quarterly

7. Legal Mandatory under company Purely voluntary Purely voluntary

necessity law
8. Principles AS(ICAI) CAS(Guidance ICMAI) Not bound
&
Standards
9. Nature of Historical Historical & futuristic Futuristic & Analytical
data
10. Estimate Actual facts & figures Actual + estimated Approximation of figures