Project Budgeting & Cost Control – Essential Skills for PMs

Name: Project Budgeting & Cost Control – Essential Skills for PMs
Rating: 4.4 (228 reviews)

Master the essential skills to determine and manage budgets. Gain 3 PDUs

Created byTim Fairley

Last updated 1/2026

English

English [Auto],

What you'll learn

Over 25,000 students
94% of Students say we helped grow their careers
Manage project costs
Understand the role of project cost management
Determine a budget
Estimate project costs
Control project costs
Ensure your project comes in under budget
Prepare for the PMP exam

Course content

4 sections • 24 lectures • 2h 52m total length

Introduction3:51
Explore fundamentals of project cost management, linking PMBoK concepts to real-world budgeting, estimation, and cost control, with earned value and earned schedule insights, tailoring for infrastructure projects.
What is project cost management?9:56
Explore project cost management, the set of processes to plan costs, estimate, budget, finance, and control expenses to deliver more value than it costs.
Context10:12
align cost management with scope, schedule, quality, and procurement to show how all project functions interact and influence the budget, applying earned value management during planning and control.
Why is project cost management important?6:34
Learn how project cost management ensures value exceeds cost by guiding investment decisions, estimation of costs, and contract-based delivery, while managing risk, contingency funds, and stakeholder confidence.
What skills does a great estimator have?5:39
How to keep your project under budget6:28
Ensure the budget is sufficient and costs are estimated correctly, then monitor spend, manage changes, and track variance to keep the project under budget.
Excel estimating template0:04
Keen to learn how to prepare construction estimates?
I've attached an estimating spreadsheet that uses some fancy macros to help you prepare high-quality construction estimates.
You can learn how to use it here (if not, just skip this section!):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yUXiOvXwSAY

Section 2 - Introduction1:53
Plan Cost Management8:08
Plan cost management establishes how to estimate, budget, monitor, and control project costs through the cost management plan, tying scope, schedule, earned value management, and risk together with software tooling.
Estimate Costs17:05
Learn to convert project scope and drawings into an estimated cost using inputs, tools, and techniques like analogous, parametric, bottom-up, and three-point estimates, with a basis of estimate.
Determine Budget14:50
Control Costs8:24
control costs by monitoring expenditures against the cost baseline, analyzing variances, and issuing change requests to keep the project under budget using earned value management and the cost management plan.
Understanding Earned Value Management19:20
Earned Schedule - What is it?3:36
discover how earned schedule extends earned value management to reveal schedule performance by comparing earned value to the original plan, indicating ahead or behind schedule and the schedule variance.
Learn to see money5:15
See money across direct and indirect construction costs; track spending with a cost-tracking system; apply the 80/20 rule to drive improvements in drivers like rates and productivity.

Section 3 - Introduction0:48
Tailor project cost management concepts from the PMBoK to real-world construction projects, exploring life-cycle applications across different infrastructure types and finishing with a case study.
Tailoring Project Cost Management7:43
Construction Cost Control16:43
Master construction cost management from estimating costs to monitoring and controlling them. Turn estimates into budgets and deliver projects for less than budget through design, procurement, and change control.
Applications to Infrastructure Projects5:58
Case Study - Construction Project9:34
Explore cost management across a solar farm project by turning an initial $45 million EPC estimate into a real-time budget tracked with control accounts and integrated procurement and design improvements.

Bonus - Launch your dream career0:32
Struggling to get ahead in the construction industry? Want to boost your salary and land your dream job?
Section 4 - Introduction0:17
Practice PMBoK exam questions on project cost management and reinforce how to effectively manage costs during projects.
Cost Management Practice Exam Questions
Apply Project Management7:50
Understand PMBoK theory, apply it to real construction projects, and iteratively learn from mistakes to improve procurement planning, scheduling, and selection of subcontractors and suppliers.
Conclusion1:34

Requirements

Basic understanding of project management

Description

So far, we've helped over 25,000 students accelerate their careers in construction and project management by mastering the fundamentals.

Learn how to quickly and accurately estimate costs and manage project budgets.

The course is:

Proven - taken by thousands of students with satisfied results. Over 94% of students surveyed believed our construction management courses supported their career progression.
Practical - developed in consultation with industry experts to teach you exactly what you need to know to succeed in the real world
Fast - we know you are busy, so we developed the course with that in mind and cut out every second of unnecessary information.
Packed with Downloadable Resources - we offer students a body of different resources to help them on their journey

And we are always improving. We want to hear your feedback and we are committed to helping you on your journey. We will always respond to questions, queries, or feedback suggestions.

We are super excited to have you enroll in our Project Cost Management Course

Learn the fundamental skills required to accurately estimate construction costs to help grow your career or run your construction business.

The course is broken down into four sections:

Section 1 - Introduction and basic concepts around project cost management
- What is cost management
- How cost management fits in with the other knowledge areas
- Why does cost management matter
- The skills you need to successfully manage construction costs
- How to keep projects under budget made simple
Section 2 - Project Cost Management according to the PMBOK
- Plan cost management
- Estimating
- Determining the budget
- Cost Control
- Earned Value Management
- Earned Schedule
Section 3 - Applications of Project Cost Management
- Tailoring project cost management
- Construction cost management
- Applications to infrastructure projects
- Case Study
Section 4 - Summary
- Practice exam questions
- How to get better at project management

Who this course is for:

Professionals across industries exposed to projects

Project Budgeting & Cost Control – Essential Skills for PMs

What you'll learn

Explore related topics

Course content

Introduction7 lectures • 43min

Section 2 - Core Concepts8 lectures • 1hr 19min

Section 3 - Applications5 lectures • 41min

Section 4 - Conclusion4 lectures • 10min

Requirements

Description

Who this course is for: