Skip to main content

Materiality

Materiality is the threshold above which an omission or misstatement could influence users' decisions; information is material if its size or nature means that failing to disclose or correctly state it would affect investor judgements.

ByHoang TruongUpdated

FrameworkAccounting concepts

See it move

Loading infographic...

A gauge fills to 5%, labelled materiality threshold. Firms often start with 5% of profit before tax, or 1% of total assets, as a rough guide: cross it and an omission is presumed material. The threshold is not purely mechanical, though — a small item can still be material if its nature, not its size, would change a reader's judgement.

Where it fits
SubjectFinancial AccountingCoreTopicThe Financial StatementsCoreTopicAccrual Accounting & RecognitionCore
Materiality — Edlintics Glossary