Job cost report template
A job cost report compares each cost code's budget with committed and actual cost, then projects where the job will finish. Download this template as a CSV for Excel or Google Sheets, or print it for the weekly cost review.
A job cost report template shows, line by line, whether a job is making or losing money. Each row is a cost code. It starts with the budget, adds approved changes, then compares committed cost and actual cost to date against it. The last two columns are the ones that matter: projected final cost and the variance against the revised budget. The template below gives you that layout for one job.
Accounting systems can spit out a job cost report, but most only show what has been spent. The projection, the estimate of what is still coming, lives in the PM's head unless a sheet like this forces it onto paper.
What the job cost report is for
Use it in a weekly or biweekly cost review with the PM and superintendent. Say drywall is 60 percent installed and 75 percent of its budget is spent. That is a problem with weeks left to fix it, not a surprise at closeout. The same sheet feeds the estimated total cost on your WIP report, so a sloppy job cost report means a sloppy WIP.
Read the sheet from right to left. Start with the variance column, find the codes that are negative, and ask the PM what changed. Then look at committed cost against projected final cost on those codes. Most overruns show up first as a gap between what was bought out and what the field now thinks it will take.
How to fill in each column
- Cost code: your code for the work, such as 09-250 for drywall. Use the same codes the estimate and accounting system use.
- Description: a short name for the code.
- Original budget: the estimate carried into the job at buyout. Do not change it later; that is what the next column is for.
- Approved changes: budget added or removed by signed change orders.
- Revised budget: original budget plus approved changes.
- Committed cost: subcontracts and purchase orders issued for the code, whether invoiced yet or not. See committed cost.
- Actual cost to date: labor, material, equipment, and sub invoices posted to the code.
- Estimated cost to complete: what the PM expects to spend from here. Build it from remaining quantities and open commitments, not from budget minus actual.
- Projected final cost: actual cost to date plus estimated cost to complete.
- Variance: revised budget minus projected final cost. A negative number is a projected overrun.
Common mistakes
- Computing cost to complete as budget minus actual. That just assumes the budget is right, which is the thing you are trying to test.
- Leaving committed costs out, so a $54,000 concrete sub shows as $51,200 spent and the remaining exposure disappears.
- Coding costs to whatever line has budget left. It hides the real overrun and corrupts your estimating data.
- Ignoring labor burden. Raw wages understate labor cost; see labor burden.
- Updating the report only when the job is already in trouble.
Related forms and guides
Run the review itself with how to run a weekly job cost review and catch slipping jobs with how to find margin fade. To keep commitments current, see how to track committed costs before invoices arrive. The projected final cost rolls into the WIP report template, and the original budget usually starts from the construction budget template.
Smart Business Automator tracks budget, commitments, and actual cost by cost code on each job and flags codes trending over budget. See job costing and WIP automation.
Job cost report by cost code
| Cost code | Description | Original budget | Approved changes | Revised budget | Committed cost | Actual cost to date | Estimated cost to complete | Projected final cost | Variance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01-100 | General conditions | 42,000.00 | 0.00 | 42,000.00 | 6,500.00 | 24,800.00 | 18,900.00 | 43,700.00 | -1,700.00 |
| 03-300 | Cast-in-place concrete | 58,000.00 | 2,400.00 | 60,400.00 | 54,000.00 | 51,200.00 | 6,100.00 | 57,300.00 | 3,100.00 |
| 06-100 | Rough carpentry | 37,500.00 | 1,990.00 | 39,490.00 | 12,000.00 | 28,750.00 | 13,400.00 | 42,150.00 | -2,660.00 |
| 09-250 | Gypsum board assemblies | 92,000.00 | 0.00 | 92,000.00 | 88,000.00 | 55,200.00 | 32,800.00 | 88,000.00 | 4,000.00 |
| 26-000 | Electrical | 74,000.00 | 943.00 | 74,943.00 | 74,943.00 | 37,000.00 | 37,943.00 | 74,943.00 | 0.00 |
- Sample data only. Replace the example cost codes and amounts with your own job.
- Revised budget = original budget + approved changes. Projected final cost = actual cost to date + estimated cost to complete.
- Variance = revised budget minus projected final cost. Negative variance is a projected overrun.
- Committed cost includes the full value of issued subcontracts and purchase orders, invoiced or not.
- Add a total row. Total projected final cost becomes the estimated total cost on your WIP report.
Frequently asked questions
What is a job cost report in construction?
It is a report that compares budgeted, committed, and actual costs for a job by cost code, and usually projects the final cost and variance for each code.
What is the difference between committed cost and actual cost?
Committed cost is what you have agreed to pay through subcontracts and purchase orders. Actual cost is what has been invoiced or paid and posted. Committed cost shows exposure before the bills arrive.
How often should I update a job cost report?
Weekly or every two weeks on active jobs is common. At minimum, update it before each month-end WIP so the estimated total cost is current.
Can I use this job cost template in Excel?
Yes. Download the CSV and open it in Excel or Google Sheets, then add formulas for revised budget, projected final cost, and variance.
