ABN and ACN: What to Display and Where

An ABN identifies a business for tax and commercial purposes, while an ACN identifies a registered Australian company. Displaying the right number consistently helps people and machines connect your website with the legal entity behind it.

Why it matters

Trust is easier to establish when your business details agree.

Acme Plumbing trades as Acme Plumbing but its registered entity is A. C. M. E. Services Pty Ltd. To a customer that difference is invisible. To anything cross-checking records, it looks like two businesses until something ties them together — and that something is the ABN.

Your website may use a trading name while official records use a company or individual name. An ABN can help connect those identities. For an Australian company, the ACN identifies the company itself.

These numbers do not make a website trustworthy on their own. They work alongside your business name, contact details, service area, licences and other public information to create a consistent picture.