Which of the following is considered a direct cost?

• A. Field superintendent
• B. Insurance
• C. Permits
• D. Advertising

Answer: (A)

Direct costs are expenses that can be traced to a specific project. In landscaping, this includes the labor and materials used on that particular job. The field supervisor’s salary is tied to supervising that specific project, so you can assign that cost directly to it, making it a direct cost.

Insurance, permits, and advertising, on the other hand, generally support the business as a whole rather than a single job. Insurance covers risks across many projects, not just one. Advertising brings in work from multiple jobs, not just a single project. Permits are typically required for operations across various jobs and are not uniquely attributable to one site. Because of this, these costs are treated as indirect (overhead) costs rather than direct costs.