Kostenbalans

Kostenbalans is a structured presentation of the costs associated with a product, service, project, or organizational unit, used to show how resources are consumed and how costs relate to outputs. In accounting and management practice, it supports costing, budgeting, and managerial decision making.

The kostenbalans typically organizes costs into categories such as direct costs (traced to a specific product or service) and indirect costs (not easily traceable to a single item), with further division into fixed and variable costs. Overhead and shared costs are allocated to cost objects using cost drivers or allocation bases. The result is a clear picture of total costs over a period and how these costs relate to activities and outputs.

Applications of kostenbalans include setting prices, evaluating profitability, preparing budgets, and controlling costs. It is used in manufacturing, services, and public or non-profit contexts to identify cost drivers, monitor efficiency, and support strategic decisions such as product mix, process improvements, or outsourcing.

Construction and maintenance typically involve identifying cost centers, collecting cost data, classifying costs, allocating overhead, and calculating total cost per product, service, or project. The resulting cost balance informs performance reviews, pricing decisions, and resource planning. Sensible use requires accurate data, consistent allocation methods, and periodic updates to reflect changes in costs or activity levels.

See also: cost accounting, activity-based costing, standard costing, break-even analysis, budgeting.

References and further reading are typically found in financial accounting or managerial accounting handbooks and organization-specific policy documents.