cost accounting

American  

noun

1. an accounting system indicating the cost of items involved in production.

---

cost accounting British  

noun

1. Also called: management accounting.  the recording and controlling of all the expenditures of an enterprise in order to facilitate control of separate activities

---

Other Word Forms

• cost accountant
  noun

Etymology

Origin of cost accounting

First recorded in 1910–15

Example Sentences

Some programs used to evaluate their curricula on a three- or five-year cycle because foundational subjects like financial and cost accounting rarely changed.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 18, 2026

A true cost accounting approach can illuminate the need for multidimensional solutions.

From Salon • Feb. 28, 2024

Advocates of true cost accounting assert that its more nuanced approach will address shortcomings in traditional cost-benefit analysis – particularly, failing to consider social and health externalities in depth.

From Salon • Feb. 28, 2024

Once you have that completed, you will apply your preferred cost accounting method to those classifications.

From Encyclopedia.com • Jun. 26, 2018

Each separate business, the bakeries, the pool room, the meat shop, was put on a cost accounting basis and the manager knew just which one was making or losing money.

From Consumers' Cooperative Societies in New York State by Consumers' League of New York, The