How Costvanta Calculates and Sources Data
Every number Costvanta shows is either taken from an official source, entered by you, computed by a versioned engine, or clearly labeled as an estimate.
Four kinds of data
- Official Data
- Published by authoritative bodies (fee schedules, tariff schedules). Each value carries its source and effective date.
- User Inputs
- Your own numbers — quotes, contracts and volumes. Calculations are only as good as these inputs.
- Calculated Values
- Computed by a versioned engine from official data plus your inputs. Formulas are disclosed on the per-domain methodology pages.
- Estimated / Benchmark Data
- Where no official figure exists, estimates are labeled as such and never silently mixed with official data.
How every value is described
- Source
- Where the value came from — a named official source or "provided by user".
- Observed At
- When Costvanta last saw and verified the value.
- Effective Date
- The period the value officially applies to.
- Confidence
- Official, user-provided, calculated, or estimate.
- Engine Version
- The exact calculation engine version that produced a result — recorded in every calculation snapshot.
- User Override
- Where you can replace a default with your own real number.