6600expenseNormal balance: Debitbusiness6600 — Utilities
Utilities covers the basic services that keep a business location running — electricity, gas, water, internet, and phone service billed to the business, along with trash or waste service for a shop or office.
As an expense, it carries a normal debit balance. A personal cell phone used partly for business is a judgment call worth handling deliberately: only the business-use portion genuinely belongs here, and only if that split is actually tracked — otherwise the whole bill is personal.
Someone working from a home office faces a different calculation entirely. A portion of home utilities may be deductible as part of a home-office expense, but it is figured differently than simply moving a straight utility bill into this account — that split depends on the specific home-office method used, which is worth confirming with an accountant rather than guessing.
What belongs here
- electricity, gas, and water billed to a business location
- internet and phone service billed to the business
- trash or waste service for a shop or office
- a dedicated business landline separate from any personal phone
What does not belong here
- a personal cell phone used partly for business, unless the business-use percentage is specifically tracked and split out
- home utilities for someone working from a home office — a portion may be deductible, but it is calculated differently than a straight utility bill; ask an accountant
- internet or phone service the business prefers to group under Software & Subscriptions (6400) instead — either works if applied consistently
Where it shows up
Shows on the income statement as an operating expense. On Schedule C, this maps to line 25, Utilities.
Common questions
- Can I put my home internet bill here?
- Only the business-use portion, and only if you track that split. A home-office situation is generally calculated differently than a straight utility bill — an accountant can help apply the right method.
- Should my business phone bill go here or under Software & Subscriptions?
- Either is defensible — what matters is applying the same rule consistently rather than moving it back and forth month to month.