Budgeted Cost for Work Performed (BCWP)

Quick definition: Budgeted Cost for Work Performed (BCWP), also called Earned Value, is the budgeted value of the work actually accomplished on a project. It may be measured for a specific period or cumulative to date.

BCWP is calculated by adding up the budgets for finished Discrete Work Packages, the earned portion of Work Packages still in progress, and the applicable share of Level of Effort and Apportioned Effort budgets. It's one of the three core EVM data points, alongside BCWS (Planned Value) and ACWP (Actual Cost), that every other EVM metric is built from. The preposition in the name varies by source: the DoD EVM System Interpretation Guide writes Budgeted Cost for Work Performed, while NDIA's Planning & Scheduling Excellence Guide writes Budgeted Cost of Work Performed. Both name the same value, and both guides spell the companion term Actual Cost of Work Performed the same way. This encyclopedia follows the EVMSIG form.

Why it matters

Comparing BCWP to BCWS shows whether work is ahead of or behind schedule, and comparing it to ACWP shows whether it's costing more or less than planned. Without BCWP, cost and schedule figures on their own say nothing about how much value has actually been delivered.

See also

FAQ