What is an owner's draw?

In plain English

A draw reduces equity. It is not an expense and does not reduce taxable profit.

Corporations pay salary or dividends/distributions instead.

Why it matters

Owners often move money out of the business account informally, for groceries, a mortgage payment or a transfer to savings. If those transfers are coded as expenses, profit looks lower than it is, which can mislead you and can create problems if the return is ever questioned.

Tracking draws also tells you how much you have personally taken out compared with what the business earned, which is useful for planning estimated taxes with your preparer.

Worked example

A $3,000 monthly draw is $36,000 for the year; profit is still taxed.

How to handle it

1. Set up an equity account named for owner draws if your chart of accounts does not already have one.
2. Code every personal transfer or personal purchase from the business account to that draw account.
3. Run a year-to-date report on the draw account monthly to see your total withdrawals.
4. Close draws into owner equity at year end, or let your software do it, according to your accountant's setup.

Common mistakes

• Coding draws as wages or contract labor, which overstates expenses and understates profit.
• Taking draws when the business is set up as a corporation, where your accountant may need salary or distributions instead.
• Mixing personal card purchases into business expenses rather than recording them as draws, which makes deductions harder to defend.

Not the same as: Capital contribution

A draw is money the owner takes out, and it lowers equity. A capital contribution is money the owner puts in, and it raises equity. Neither one is income or expense. See Capital contribution.

Go deeper

• Owner Draws, Distributions and Salary Explained: Learn the difference between owner draws, distributions, fixed payments for services and wages, and how to record each in your books.
• Owner Draws vs Salary: How to Pay Yourself: How owners pay themselves depending on entity type, how draws and salary are recorded in the books, and when to ask a CPA about the split.

Related terms

• Payroll liabilities: Amounts withheld from pay or owed by the employer that have not yet been remitted.
• Petty cash: A small cash fund for minor expenses, kept with receipts and replenished to a fixed amount.
• Operating expenses: The regular costs of running a business that are not part of cost of goods sold.

Common questions

General information, not tax, legal or accounting advice. Confirm rules with the IRS, the NJ Division of Taxation or a licensed professional.