What does over the line mean

The key difference between above and below the line is that Above the Line represents items that are shown above the value of the gross profit of the company in its statement of income during the period under consideration, whereas, Below the Line represents items that are shown below the value of the gross profit of the company in its statement of income during the period under consideration.

Above the Line vs. Below the Line Differences

Above the Line vs. Below the Line – “Above the Line” refer to the income and expenses that a company incurs due to normal operations. It is also the gross margin that a business earns. Whereas below the line is operating expenses, interest, and taxes.

This article looks at the top differences between Above the Line and Below the Line.

Table of contents
  • Above the Line vs. Below the Line Differences
    • What is Above the line?
    • What is Below the Line?
    • Above the Line vs. Below the Line Infographics
    • Above the Line vs. Below the Line  – Key Differences
    • Above the Line vs. Below the Line Head to Head Difference
    • Final Thought
    • Recommended Articles

What is Above the line?

  • It refers to costs above the line that separates operating income from other expenses. It also refers to the costs above the line that separate gross profit from other operating expensesOperating ExpensesOperating expense (OPEX) is the cost incurred in the normal course of business and does not include expenses directly related to product manufacturing or service delivery. Therefore, they are readily available in the income statement and help to determine the net profit.read more.
  • The expenses incurred by COGS are wages to labor, manufacturing cost, cost of raw material, and all expenses other than interest, tax, and operating expenses.
  • Companies in the service industry and utility companies consider expenses above the operating income line above the Line cost. We can call it a cost before operating expenses incurred while manufacturing.
  • Anything above the operating income line is ATL cost. It is COGS or equivalent accounts that we subtract from sales done by the company to compute profit.
What does over the line mean

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What is Below the Line?

  • Below the Line does not affect profit and loss accountProfit And Loss AccountThe Profit & Loss account, also known as the Income statement, is a financial statement that summarizes an organization's revenue and costs incurred during the financial period and is indicative of the company's financial performance by showing whether the company made a profit or incurred losses during that period.read more of the company; hence it tells about the real financial health of the company without artificial inflating.
  • Below the Line in accounting terms describes items other than the dividendDividendDividends refer to the portion of business earnings paid to the shareholders as gratitude for investing in the company’s equity.read more paid or received by the company and retained profit of the company. It describes items like operating expenses, interest, and tax.

Above the Line vs. Below the Line Infographics

Here we provide you with the top 5 difference between Above the Line vs. Below the Line.

What does over the line mean

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Above the Line vs. Below the Line  – Key Differences

The critical differences between Above the Line vs. Below the Line are as follows –

  • Above the Line (ATL) on the income statement is profit or income separated from other expenses. They are sales COGSCOGSThe Cost of Goods Sold (COGS) is the cumulative total of direct costs incurred for the goods or services sold, including direct expenses like raw material, direct labour cost and other direct costs. However, it excludes all the indirect expenses incurred by the company. read more cost of sales, and cost of services (COS). Whereas Below the Line in accounting is an extraordinary income or expenses the company incurs. However, these income or expenses do not repeat, nor does it affect the company’s revenue or profit.
  • ATL expenses incurred by COGS are wages to labor, manufacturing cost, and cost of raw materials, whereas BTL is operating expenses, interest, and taxes.
  •  It refers to income and expenses related to the company’s normal operations. Whereas, Below the Line in accounting is an extraordinary income or expensesExtraordinary Income Or ExpensesExtraordinary Items refer to those events which are considered to be unusual by the company as they are infrequent in nature. The gains or losses arising out of these items are disclosed separately in the financial statement of the company.read more that the company incurs. Still, these income or expenses do not repeat, nor does it affect the company’s revenue or profit.
  • It refers to the gross margin earned by the business. In contrast, the item below the gross profit is Below the Line items that include other operating expenses like tax, interest, operating expenses, and other extraordinary expenses.

Above the Line vs. Below the Line Head to Head Difference

Let’s now look at the head to head difference between Above the Line vs. Below the Line.

Basis Above the LineBelow the LineDefinitionATL on the income statement is where profit or income separates from other expenses. They are the sales costSales CostThe costs directly attributable to the production of the goods that are sold in the firm or organization are referred to as the cost of sales.read more of goods sold (COGS), cost of sales, and cost of services (COS).BTL in accounting is an extraordinary income or expense that the company incurs. This income or expense is not repeated, nor does it affect the company’s revenue or profit.Types of Expenses The expenses incurred by COGS are wages to labor, manufacturing cost, and cost of raw material.BTL is operating expenses, interest, and taxes.Income and ExpenseIt refers to income and expenses related to the company’s normal operations.BTL in accounting is an extraordinary income or expense that the company incurs. Still, these income or expenses are not repeated, nor does it affect a company’s revenue or profit.Frequency ATL is a repetitive expense.BTL is a non-repetitive expense.Also, refer to It refers to the margin earned by the business.BTL items include other operating expenses like tax, interest, operating expenses, and other extraordinary expenses.

Final Thought

Above the Line and Below the Line is a jargon we use to manage the resources available in the company to deliver a surplus result. Above the Line tells about income and expenses related to a company’s normal operations. ATL on the income statementIncome StatementThe income statement is one of the company's financial reports that summarizes all of the company's revenues and expenses over time in order to determine the company's profit or loss and measure its business activity over time based on user requirements.read more is profit or income separated from other expenses. They are the sales cost of goods sold (COGS), cost of sales, and cost of services (COS). Whereas Below the Line in accounting is an extraordinary income or expenses that the company incurred. However, these income or expenses are not repeated, nor it affects the revenue or profit of the company. Above the Line tells about income and expenses that are related tis profit or income separated from other expenses. They are the sales cost of goods sold (COGS), cost of sales, and cost of services (COS). Whereas Below the Line in accounting is an extraordinary income or expenses that the company incurred. However, these income or expenses are not repeated, nor does it affect the company’s revenue or profit. Here, we calculate the profit by subtracting expenses from revenue. If the revenue exceeds the cost, the company has booked a profit. If the cost exceeds the revenue, the company has booked a loss during an accounting periodAccounting PeriodAccounting Period refers to the period in which all financial transactions are recorded and financial statements are prepared. This might be quarterly, semi-annually, or annually, depending on the period for which you want to create the financial statements to be presented to investors so that they can track and compare the company's overall performance.read more.

This article has been a guide to the Above the Line vs. Below the Line. Here we discuss the top differences between Above the Line vs. Below the Line, along with infographics and a comparison table. You may also have a look at the following articles –

When something is over the line?

1. Beyond what is considered appropriate or acceptable.

What does beyond the line mean?

Define beyond-the-line questions as questions that can't be answered with one or two words or by referencing a single line of text, but instead are questions that arise in complex moments of the text. They are questions that ask students to make inferences.

What does above the line text mean?

Above the line or ATL consists of activities (advertising) that are not targeted at a specific customer and covers a wider territory.

What are the above the line usage?

Above the line advertising – ATL is used when the focus is on mass media promotion to reach a large audience. ATL includes media such as radio, TV, print media such as newspaper and magazines, and billboards.