Software subscriptions. Office rent. Employee benefits. Is your business money vanishing into thin air? A business budget template puts you back in control by tracking every dollar you spend.
Whether you‘re launching a startup denmark telegram data or scaling an enterprise, you’ll spot exactly where to cut costs and where to invest for growth.
→ Download Now: Free Budget Templates
In my roles, I created budgets for whole projects and smaller writing projects.
While organizing the numbers may sound difficult, I find business budget templates make the process simple. Plus, there are thousands of business budget templates to choose from.
In this article, I share seven budget templates to help organize your finances. But first, you’ll learn about different types of business budgets and how to create one.
What is a business budget?
A business budget is a spending plan when did sberbank change its logo? that estimates the revenue and expenses of a business for a period of time, typically monthly, quarterly, or yearly. A business budget follows a set template — you fill it in with estimated revenues and any recurring or expected business expenses.
For example, say your business is planning a website redesign. You’d need to break down the costs by category: software, content and design, testing, and more. Having a clear breakdown will help you estimate how much each category will cost and compare it with the actual costs.
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Types of Business Budgets
Business budgets aren’t one size fits all. In fact, there are many types of budgets that serve various purposes. Let’s dive into some commonly used budgets.
Master Budget
A master budget brings together all the individual budgets from different parts of your company into a consolidated plan. It covers everything from sales and production to marketing and finances.
This budget includes details like projected revenues, expenses, and profitability for each department or business unit. It also considers important financial aspects, like cash flow and capital expenditures. The budget even creates a balance sheet to show the organization’s financial position.
The master budget acts as a guide for decision-making, helps with strategic planning, and gives a clear picture of your company’s overall financial health and performance. It ties everything together and helps the organization move in the right direction.
For example, imagine you run a software company. Your master budget would combine the following:
- Sales team budget ($100,000 for salaries and commissions).
- Marketing budget ($50,000 for ads and campaigns).
- Development budget ($200,000 for engineering talent).
- Operations budget ($75,000 for office space and utilities).
This merged view shows you’ll need $425,000 to run all departments for the year. You can then compare this against your projected revenue of $600,000 to see if your business plan is viable. The master budget helps you spot potential issues (like overspending in marketing) before they become problems and identify opportunities (like having enough profit to hire another developer).
Pro tip: From my experience managing various business budgets, I recommend starting with a master budget and then creating more specific budgets as your needs grow.
Operating Budget
Your operating budget shows how much money your company expects to make and spend during a specific period, usually a year. It predicts your business’s revenue and outlines expenses, like salaries, rent, bills, and other operational costs.
By comparing your actual expenses and revenue to the budgeted amounts, your company can see how it’s performing and make adjustments if needed. It keeps things in check, allowing your business to make wise financial decisions and stay on track with its goals.
For example, a small marketing agency’s monthly operating budget may look like this.
- Expected Income: $50,000 from client retainers
- Regular Expenses:
- Staff salaries: $25,000
- Office rent: $3,000
- Software subscriptions: $1,500
- Utilities: $500
- Marketing: $2,000
By tracking these numbers monthly, you can spot trends — like if client revenue drops in summer months or if software costs are creeping up — and adjust your spending before issues arise.
Cash Budget
A cash budget estimates the cash business sale lead inflows and outflows of your business over a specific period, typically a month, quarter, or year. It provides a detailed projection of cash sources and uses, including revenue, expenses, and financing activities.
The cash budget helps you effectively manage your cash flow, plan for cash shortages or surpluses, evaluate the need for external financing, and make informed decisions about resource allocation.