Products & Services · Cost
Services — Cost
International Business Machines Services — Cost increased by 4.8% to $5.24B in Q1 2026 compared to the prior quarter. Year-over-year, this metric grew by 4.8%, from $5.00B to $5.24B. This increase may warrant attention — for this metric, lower values are generally preferred.
Analysis
StatementSegment
CategoryEfficiency
SignalLower is better
VolatilityModerate
First reportedQ1 2016
Last reportedQ1 2026
Rolls up toTotal Cost of Revenue
How to read this metric
A decrease relative to revenue suggests improved operational efficiency or better labor utilization, while an increase may indicate rising wage inflation or higher costs of service delivery.
Detailed definition
This metric captures the direct expenses incurred to deliver IT services, including personnel costs, subcontractor fees,...
Peer comparison
Comparable to cost of services or cost of revenue reported by IT outsourcing and consulting peers.
Metric ID:
ibm_segment_services_costHistorical Data
14 periods
| Q2 '21 | Q3 '21 | Q1 '22 | Q2 '22 | Q3 '22 | Q4 '22 | Q1 '23 | Q2 '23 | Q3 '23 | Q1 '24 | Q2 '24 | Q3 '24 | Q1 '25 | Q1 '26 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Value | 7.9B | 7.8B | 5.3B | 5.4B | 5.2B | 5.1B | 5.3B | 5.3B | 5.2B | 5.2B | 5.1B | 5B | 5B | 5.2B |
| QoQ Change | — | -1.3% | -31.2% | +0.9% | -4.3% | -0.4% | +3.2% | -0.3% | -1.5% | +0.4% | -2.2% | -1.5% | -0.9% | +4.8% |
| YoY Change | — | — | — | -31.4% | -33.5% | — | -0.7% | -1.9% | +0.9% | -1.3% | -3.2% | -3.2% | -4.5% | +4.8% |
Range5B – 7.9B
CAGR-11.7%
Avg YoY Growth-7.4%
Median YoY Growth-2.6%
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Frequently Asked Questions
- What is International Business Machines's services — cost?
- International Business Machines (IBM) reported services — cost of $5.24B in Q1 2026.
- How has International Business Machines's services — cost changed year-over-year?
- International Business Machines's services — cost increased by 4.8% year-over-year, from $5.00B to $5.24B.
- What does services — cost mean?
- The total direct costs associated with delivering IT and consulting services to customers.