cost center

American  

noun

1. any unit of activity, group of employees or machines, line of products, etc., isolated or arranged in order to allocate and assign costs more easily.

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Example Sentences

It is now something closer to a fiscal cost center.

From Barron's • Apr. 24, 2026

Each trailer uses about 4,500 pounds of the lightweight metal, which is also its biggest cost center.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 2, 2026

AI ethics is “seen as a cost center, not a revenue center,” Chowdhury said.

From Washington Post • Mar. 30, 2023

As I said, we are mostly a software company, so the vast majority of our engineering payroll is effectively servicing a cost center, which is interesting.

From The Verge • Mar. 8, 2022

At another meeting a commissioner said it would be "cool" if, instead of being a cost center, the jail could be a "profit center."

From Salon • Oct. 11, 2021