what is highest in first out hifo 
highest in first out hifo is an inventory distribution and accounting method in which the inventory with the highest cost of purchase is the first to be used or taken out of stock this will impact the company s books such that for any given period of time the inventory expense will be the highest possible for the cost of goods sold cogs and the ending inventory will be the lowest possible hifo usage is rare to non existent and is not recognized by gaap understanding highest in first outaccounting for inventories is an important decision that a firm must make and the way inventories are accounted for will impact financial statements and figures companies would likely choose to use the highest in first out hifo inventory method if they wanted to decrease their taxable income for a period of time because the inventory that is recorded as used up is always the most expensive inventory the company has regardless of when the inventory was purchased the company will always be recording the maximum cost of goods sold companies may occasionally change their inventory methods in order to smooth their financial performance contrast this with other inventory recognition methods such as last in first out lifo in which the most recently purchased inventory is recorded as used first or first in first out fifo in which the oldest inventory is recorded as used first lifo and fifo are common and standard inventory accounting methods but it is lifo that is part of generally accepted accounting principles gaap meanwhile hifo is not often used and is furthermore not recognized by gaap as standard practice some highest in first out implicationsa company could decide to use the hifo method to reduce taxable income but there are some implications to be made aware of including 