Glossary

Cost of goods sold (COGS)

Cost of goods sold (COGS) is the direct cost of the products or services you sold in a period — materials, stock and direct labour — subtracted from revenue to give gross profit.

2 min read

Direct costsMaterials + direct labour
Sets gross profitRevenue minus COGS

Definition

Cost of goods sold captures the costs directly tied to what you sold: raw materials, the wholesale cost of stock, and direct labour. It excludes overheads like rent and admin. Revenue minus COGS is your gross profit.

In plain terms

It tells you how much each sale actually costs to fulfil, before the fixed costs of running the business. Rising COGS quietly erodes margin.

Why it matters for your company

Watching COGS as a share of revenue shows whether your product economics are healthy. See reading your profit and loss.

Funding for UK limited companies

Credicorp lends to your company, not to you personally — short-term working capital with no personal guarantee. See what your business could access.