What does a CPI below 1 mean?

Each unit of money spent has earned less than one unit of budgeted work, so the work is costing more than planned.

Is percent complete the same as percent spent?

No. Earned value uses work physically completed, not money spent or time elapsed.

Which units should I use?

Any, as long as BAC, PV and AC share the same currency or hours.

How to calculate earned value, CPI and SPI

Earned value is the budget at completion multiplied by the percentage of work actually complete. Divide it by actual cost for CPI and by planned value for SPI.

Skip the maths and use the earned value calculator

The formula

EV = BAC × % complete; CV = EV − AC; SV = EV − PV; CPI = EV ÷ AC; SPI = EV ÷ PV.

Step by step

Take the budget at completion (BAC) from the baseline.
Measure physical percentage complete at the status date.
Multiply to get EV, then compare with actual cost (AC) and planned value (PV).

Worked example

BAC 100,000, 40% complete, PV 50,000, AC 45,000

EV = 100,000 × 0.40 = 40,000
CV = 40,000 − 45,000 = −5,000; CPI = 40,000 ÷ 45,000 = 0.889
SV = 40,000 − 50,000 = −10,000; SPI = 40,000 ÷ 50,000 = 0.80

The project is over cost (CPI 0.889) and behind schedule (SPI 0.80).

Common questions

Calculators for this

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APA

Free Calculator. (n.d.). How to calculate earned value, CPI and SPI. https://freecalculator.tech/guides/how-to-calculate-earned-value

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"How to calculate earned value, CPI and SPI." Free Calculator, https://freecalculator.tech/guides/how-to-calculate-earned-value.

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How to calculate earned value, CPI and SPI — Free Calculator, https://freecalculator.tech/guides/how-to-calculate-earned-value