---
title: "Cost Method | Financial Accounting I"
description: "Cost method records an investment in stock at purchase price, then keeps that amount unchanged unless the shares are sold in Financial Accounting I."
canonical: "https://fiveable.me/financial-accounting/key-terms/cost-method"
type: "key-term"
subject: "Financial Accounting I"
---

# Cost Method | Financial Accounting I

## Definition

The cost method records an investment in stock at its original purchase price, including any fees or commissions. In Financial Accounting I, you do not adjust the investment for market price changes unless you sell it.

## What It Is

The cost method is an accounting way to record a stock investment at what you actually paid for it, not at what the shares are worth today. In Financial Accounting I, that means you put the investment on the books at historical cost, which usually includes the purchase price plus any commissions or other direct buying costs.

After that first entry, the balance does not change just because the market price moves up or down. If the stock rises, you do not write up the asset. If it falls, you do not write it down either, as long as the investment is still being carried under the cost method. That is the part that makes it different from looking at an investment like a daily price quote.

This approach fits the historical cost idea in accounting. The point is to record the transaction based on the actual exchange that happened, not on a future estimate or a market guess. So if a company buys shares for $10,000 and pays a $200 brokerage fee, the investment is recorded at $10,200.

Dividends work differently from the investment account itself. If the company receives dividends from the stock, those dividends are recorded as dividend income. They do not reduce the carrying amount of the investment under the cost method. That separation is a common test point because many students want to treat dividends like part of the purchase price, but that is not how this method works.

The cost method shows up most often when the ownership stake is small enough that the investor does not have significant influence over the other company. In stock issuance and repurchase topics, you may also see the idea of cost come up with treasury stock, where the focus is still on the cash amount paid to buy back shares rather than on changing market value.

## Why It Matters

The cost method matters because it changes how you record stock investments and how you read the balance sheet afterward. Instead of chasing market swings, you keep the investment tied to the original transaction, which makes the accounting entry easier to trace and more consistent with the historical cost principle.

In Financial Accounting I, this helps you separate three things that students often mix together: the investment account, dividend income, and gain or loss on sale. Dividends are income when received. Market changes are usually ignored under the cost method. A gain or loss only shows up when the shares are actually sold.

That pattern also connects to stock repurchases and treasury stock problems. When a company buys back its own stock, the accounting focus is on the repurchase cost, not a new market valuation. If you can track cost cleanly, you are much less likely to misstate equity accounts or confuse common stock with treasury stock entries.

It also trains you to look at the source of each number in a journal entry. Is this a purchase cost, a dividend, or a sale result? That question shows up a lot in homework problems and quizzes, especially when the problem gives you several stock-related transactions in one scenario.

## Connections

### Dividend

Under the cost method, a dividend received from the stock investment is recorded as income, not as a reduction in the investment account. That distinction matters when you are posting journal entries, because the cash received from dividends does not change the original cost basis of the shares.

### [Market Value of Stock](/financial-accounting/key-terms/market-value-of-stock)

Market value tells you what the stock could sell for today, but the cost method does not remeasure the investment based on that number. If the market price changes after purchase, the accounting record still stays at historical cost until a sale or other required event changes the entry.

### [Par Value Method](/financial-accounting/key-terms/par-method)

This is a useful comparison when you are working with stock-related accounting. The cost method focuses on the amount paid to acquire an investment, while the par value method centers on stock issue accounting and separates par value from additional paid-in capital.

### [Outstanding Shares](/financial-accounting/key-terms/outstanding-shares)

Outstanding shares are shares that have been issued and are still held by shareholders, not repurchased by the company. That idea matters because stock repurchases change share counts and equity accounts, and you need to keep repurchased shares separate from an outside investment recorded under the cost method.

## On the AP Exam

A quiz or problem-set question usually gives you the purchase price, any commission, later dividends, and maybe a sale price, then asks for the journal entry or account balance. Your job is to keep the investment at cost, record dividends as income, and recognize a gain or loss only when the shares are sold. If the question includes a market price change, that is often there to see whether you know to ignore it under the cost method. On stock repurchase problems, you may also have to identify the cash paid to buy back shares and decide whether the difference affects treasury stock or equity accounts, not the investment account itself.

## cost method vs Par Value Method

These two are easy to mix up because both involve stock and money amounts, but they are used in different settings. The cost method records an investment in shares at what the investor paid. The par value method is used when a company issues its own stock and splits the equity entry between par value and additional paid-in capital.

## Key Takeaways

- The cost method records a stock investment at its original purchase cost, including commissions and other direct buying costs.
- Under this method, market price changes do not change the carrying value of the investment while it is still held.
- Dividends received are recorded as dividend income, not as part of the investment account.
- A gain or loss is recognized only when the investment is sold.
- In Financial Accounting I, the biggest mistake is confusing market value updates with the historical cost rule.

## FAQs

### What is cost method in Financial Accounting I?

The cost method is the way you record an investment in stock at the amount you paid to buy it. In Financial Accounting I, you keep that amount on the books unless you sell the investment, even if the market price changes.

### Does the cost method use market value?

No, not for ongoing measurement. The investment stays at historical cost, so unrealized gains and losses from market changes are not recorded under the cost method. That is one reason it is different from marking an asset to market.

### How are dividends recorded under the cost method?

Dividends are recorded as dividend income when received. They do not change the investment account balance. A lot of students mistakenly try to lower the carrying value of the investment, but that is not how the cost method works.

### What is the difference between cost method and par value method?

The cost method is used for an investment in stock and focuses on the amount paid to acquire it. The par value method is used when a company issues its own stock, and it separates par value from additional paid-in capital in equity.

## About This Document

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