# G05 — Effective Cost — FOCUS Specification 1.4

- Publisher: FOCUS / Joint Development Foundation
- Primary source: [Effective Cost — FOCUS Specification 1.4](https://focus.finops.org/docs/specification/v1-4/columns/cost-and-usage/effective-cost/)
- Observed: 2026-10-22 (Europe/Berlin session date)
- Publication date: unknown — no reliable date established from the read
- Updated date: unknown — no reliable date established from the read
- Read status: opened and relevant section read through web tool
- Evidence locator: 3.1.35 Effective Cost; definition and requirements
- Evidence class: primary maintainer/provider guidance; not an independent impact study

## Short evidence fragment

> Effective Cost is denominated in the Billing Currency.

## Researcher's reading note

Effective Cost includes applicable pricing adjustments and recognized portions of covering purchase charges; Billed Cost and Effective Cost can differ.

## Limits and use

FOCUS is a billing schema, not a business-outcome or complete workforce-cost accounting model. Verify actual provider export/version and coverage.

## Retention

This card preserves a short evidence fragment and an original reading note; full source text is not copied. FinOps/FOCUS adaptations should credit the FinOps Foundation / FOCUS as applicable (their pages state CC BY 4.0). Re-open mutable documentation before implementing controls.