Investopedia contributors come from a range of backgrounds, and over 25 years there have been thousands of expert writers and editors who have contributed. Charlene Rhinehart is a CPA , CFE, chair of ...

Steven Nickolas is a writer and has 10+ years of experience working as a consultant to retail and institutional investors. Somer G. Anderson is CPA, doctor of accounting, and an accounting and finance ...

Budgets are important tools for helping companies analyze their costs and pinpoint ways to maximize their profits. Some companies follow static budgets, which remain constant regardless of sales ...

What Is the Difference Between the Different Cost Types? Fixed costs, variable costs, and total costs all sound similar, but there are significant differences among the three. The main difference is ...

In a business, there are two types of costs: fixed and variable. It’s important to understand the difference between these two types of costs, which costs fit into each category, and how to account ...

Being able to survive and thrive as a business owner has as much to do with managing costs as it does with generating revenue. Like the chief financial officer of any company, you have to be concerned ...

In accounting, contribution margin actually refers to the difference between sales revenue and variable costs. Contribution is also known as gross profit. The contribution is the first profit level ...

Small-business owners must keep a close eye on cash reserves and both fixed and variable expenses. Even if you don't have a vision of expanding into a multinational corporation with thousands of ...

Budgeting, quite simply, is the act of spending your money efficiently. The importance of budgeting cannot be overemphasized, and whether you’re looking at your individual finances or running a ...

Fixed expenses are consistent and expected bills you pay each month, such as a mortgage or rent, a cellphone bill and a student loan payment. Car insurance, home insurance and life insurance are also ...

Cost structures (the ratio of fixed to variable costs) vary across and within industries. Hospital managers and policymakers can make better decisions when they under-stand cost structures, including ...