Fixed assets — also called property, plant, and equipment (PP&E) — are long-term physical assets a company uses to run its operations. They are not meant to be sold as part of normal business activities.
Examples include buildings, machinery, vehicles, computers, and furniture. A delivery company's trucks, a factory's machines, and an office building are all fixed assets.
Fixed assets are recorded at purchase cost and depreciated over their useful life. Depreciation spreads the cost across the years the asset generates value, rather than expensing it all at once.