overheadkosten

Overheadkosten are costs that cannot be traced directly to a specific product or service in cost accounting. They arise from the ongoing operation of a business and include items such as rent and utilities for premises, administrative salaries, depreciation and amortization of fixed assets, insurance, office supplies, IT support, maintenance, and general marketing and logistics costs. Because these costs support the organization as a whole rather than a single product, they are typically pooled and allocated to products or departments using a chosen costing method. In financial reporting, overhead costs are usually classified as part of manufacturing overhead or operating expenses and are allocated to product costs in the cost of goods sold as products are produced and sold.

Overhead can be categorized as fixed or variable. Fixed overhead remains largely unchanged within a given period, such as rent, depreciation, and certain salaries. Variable overhead varies with the level of activity, including utilities tied to production, maintenance proportional to output, and other supplies used with activity.

In cost accounting, overhead costs are allocated to products through cost allocation bases, such as direct labor hours, machine hours, or material costs. The resulting overhead rate or cost pool absorbed per unit is called overhead absorption. Some systems use Activity-Based Costing (ABC) to assign overhead more accurately by tracing costs to activities and then to products, improving the precision of product-costing.

Understanding overheadkosten is essential for budgeting, pricing, and profitability analysis. Proper allocation supports informed decision-making and helps manage capacity, control expenses, and set prices that cover both direct and indirect costs.