In accounting, the acronym COS could indicate either cost of sales or cost of services.

The income statements of many retailers and manufacturers use the phrase cost of sales instead of cost of goods sold. In other words, for these corporations COS is the same as COGS.

The income statements of some service companies will use COS to mean the cost of services. Other service companies choose to report cost of revenues, while others will include their cost of services as part of operating expenses.

Learn more about Inventory and Cost of Goods Sold.

About the Author: Harold Averkamp (CPA) has worked as an accountant, consultant, and university accounting instructor for more than 25 years.

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