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G/L accounts with standard costing and POP value-added costs

Adapted from the Leahy Consulting wall chart "How do I know what G/L accounts will be used with standard costing & POP value added costs for labor and overhead", February 2007. Redrawn from the original Visio single-sheet diagram.

Standard costing changes where the variance shows up. Under average or last cost, a difference between what you ordered and what you paid appears only when the voucher is entered. Under standard cost it appears at receiving, in a suspense account, and is cleared to a real purchase price variance account when the voucher arrives.

Stage 1Enter purchase order

The accounts to be used are captured into the P/O record and include inventory, receiving accrual and PPV cost. Accounts in the Material Cost Type/Location record for each item number supersede the defaults in I/M Setup.

These accounts are captured and stored in the P/O record when the order is created — not during receiving or A/P vouchering.

Accounting entries

No entries occur at this stage.

Stage 2Receive purchased items

The account numbers come from the purchase order record. Inventory is increased at standard cost. Receiving accrual is increased at the cost on the purchase order. The difference between the two is the purchase price variance, debited or credited as needed to balance against the inventory debit.

Accounting entries
AccountDRCR
InventoryX
Receiving accrualX
PPV suspenseX — either side

Stage 3Enter and post the vendor invoice

During A/P invoice entry most accounts come from the P/O record. For the A/P account, the Vendor Type record supersedes the default account in A/P Setup.

The entry increases A/P, reverses the earlier receiving accrual and PPV suspense, and books the real PPV to standard cost.

Accounting entries
AccountDRCR
A/P liabilityX
Receiving accrual reversalX
PPV suspense reversalX — either side
PPV costX — either side

Stage 4Print and post the A/P check

At check posting Macola® finds the cash account from the Vendor Type file for each vendor, falling back to the default in A/P Setup. Entries are created only during posting.

Accounting entries
AccountDRCR
A/P liabilityX
CashX

Stage 5Release production order

Component parts are allocated per the bill of material and quantity adjustments can be made. No entries occur unless WIP entries are specified on the order.

Accounting entries

No entries occur at this stage.

Stage 6Report production

Finished inventory is debited and component inventory credited. Standard value-added factors for labor and overhead are credited to the absorption account. If the value-added costs were changed on the order, the difference goes to the WIP variance account.

The WIP Variance account in the Material Cost Type/Location record for each item number supersedes the defaults in I/M Setup and POP Setup.

Accounting entries
AccountDRCR
Component inventoryX
Finished inventoryX
Value-added absorptionX
WIP varianceX — when value-added costs changed

A worked example

A purchase order is entered for 2 units of an item whose standard cost is $500, so the order is booked at $1,000. The receiver is entered for 2 units at $400 each.

The I/M distribution to G/L reads:

Account DR CR
Inventory $1,000
Receivings accrual $800
PPV suspense $200

Inventory takes $1,000 because there are 2 units at the $500 standard. Receivings accrual takes the $800 actually received. The $200 difference sits in suspense.

If the voucher is then entered for the same $800:

Account DR CR
Receivings accrual $800
A/P liability $800
PPV suspense $200
PPV cost $200

The suspense account is cleared and the $200 becomes a real purchase price variance, because the end result is $200 away from standard.

Now suppose the voucher is entered for $900 instead:

Account DR CR
Receivings accrual $800
A/P liability $900
PPV cost $200
PPV suspense $200
PPV cost $100

The $200 credit to PPV cost appears in the New A/P section of the distribution report alongside the A/P liability; the $100 debit appears under Expense Distributions, because the price change happened during voucher entry. The net PPV cost is $100 — $1,000 at standard against $900 actually vouchered. This is what the suspense account is for: it holds the variance until the true amount is known.

Average and last costing

Under Average and Last cost the PPV suspense account is never used, and the two methods behave identically.

  • A PPV occurs only when the cost of the item received differs from the cost on the A/P voucher.
  • The PPV account comes from PPV Cost and PPV Quantity in the Material Cost Type/Location file for inventoried items, and from I/M Setup for non-inventoried items.
  • The I/M side produces no PPV entry at all.

An order is entered for 2 units at $50 each and received as 3 at $55 each. The I/M distribution reads:

Account DR CR
Inventory $165
Receivings accrual $165

No PPV. If A/P then vouchers $240 and the quantity is changed from 3 to 4 on the second screen of voucher entry:

Account DR CR
Receivings accrual $165
A/P liability $240
PPV cost $20
PPV quantity $55

How purchase price variance is calculated in A/P covers the account sources and the remaining cases in full.

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