Cost codes and cost types

Cost codes and cost types are the backbone of project costing. A cost code files each budget line under a number you report on; a cost type (labor, material, and so on) classifies the kind of cost and carries defaults that apply automatically when the type is used.

Where they live

1. From the sidebar, open Cost Database.
2. Along the top, switch between the Cost Codes and Cost Types tabs.

Cost codes

A cost code has a number and a name, and codes can nest one level (a parent code with children).

1. On the Cost Codes tab, click Add Cost Code.
2. In New Cost Code, enter the Number (leave it blank to auto-assign the next one) and the Name (required), and optionally a Parent.
3. Optionally pick a Cost Type. This is the default type for lines filed under the code, not a lock. Leave it blank on a trade folder (like 100 Planning) whose children carry the real types.
4. Click Create.

These are the codes you pick in a budget line's Cost Code cell. Double-click that cell and the whole list opens — no search box; you type in the cell itself and the list filters as you go, matching the code number as well as the name.

Cost types

A cost type classifies the work and sets defaults that flow onto every line of that type.

1. On the Cost Types tab, click Add Cost Type.
2. In New Cost Type, set:
   • Name — e.g. "Equipment Rental".
   • Default margin % — a reference figure for the trade. Budget lines price against the budget's own default margin (set in Organization → Settings), so this one is not applied automatically.
   • Time-trackable — "Visible to crew on clock-in" — controls whether time can be logged against this type.
   • Taxable — "Sales tax on customer invoices" — the default taxability for lines of this type.
3. Click Create.

A budget line starts out inheriting its cost type from its cost code, so these defaults follow the code you assign. An inherited type renders grey on the sheet; a type you set yourself renders solid. You can override it per line from the budget's Cost Type cell — pick a different type, or choose Use cost code default (offered only while an override is in place) to go back to inheriting. That's what lets one "Plumbing" code carry both plumbing labor and plumbing materials.