How can you create a nonprofit budget using Excel?

Creating a nonprofit budget is a crucial step in planning and managing your organization's finances. A budget helps you track your income and expenses, allocate your resources, and communicate your goals and priorities. However, creating a budget can also be challenging, especially if you don't have a lot of experience or tools. Fortunately, you can use Excel, a widely available and versatile software, to create a simple and effective nonprofit budget. In this article, we will show you how to create a nonprofit budget using Excel in six steps.

1 Choose a template

The first step is to choose a template that suits your needs and preferences. Excel offers several budget templates that you can use as a starting point, or you can create your own from scratch. To access the templates, go to File > New and search for "budget" in the search box. You will see a variety of options, such as "Nonprofit budget overview", "Nonprofit program budget", or "Nonprofit fundraising budget". Select the one that best matches your purpose and click Create. Alternatively, you can use a blank workbook and design your own layout and formulas.

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Akiyo KOTCHONI

Je forme les dirigeants et cadres associatifs à maîtriser leur gestion financière pour pérenniser leurs projets et maximiser leur impact ❇️ Contrôle de gestion ❇️ Certifié Qualiopi ❇️ Financement OPCO possible.
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La meilleure option de mon point de vue est de : - s'inspirer de différents modèles existants sur Excel ou ailleurs - puis de concevoir son propre modèle à partir d'un classeur vierge. En procédant ainsi, l'on n'est pas enfermé dans un modèle pré-existant et l'on construit le modèle personnalisé qui correspond le mieux à sa structure.

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2 Enter your income sources

The next step is to enter your income sources, such as grants, donations, fees, or sales. Depending on the template you chose, you may have different categories and subcategories for your income sources, or you may have to create them yourself. To enter your income sources, go to the cells that correspond to the income categories and type the names and amounts of your sources. You can also use formulas to calculate the totals and percentages of your income sources. For example, if you want to calculate the total income for the year, you can use the formula =SUM(B2:B10), where B2:B10 is the range of cells that contain your income amounts.

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Akiyo KOTCHONI

Je forme les dirigeants et cadres associatifs à maîtriser leur gestion financière pour pérenniser leurs projets et maximiser leur impact ❇️ Contrôle de gestion ❇️ Certifié Qualiopi ❇️ Financement OPCO possible.
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Il faut rester vigilant sur la saisie des sources de financement dans un budget. En effet, dans un souci de prudence budgétaire, il est recommandé de minimiser les produits incertains pour aller vers un budget au plus réaliste.

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3 Enter your expense items

The third step is to enter your expense items, such as salaries, rent, utilities, supplies, or travel. Similar to the income sources, you may have different categories and subcategories for your expense items, or you may have to create them yourself. To enter your expense items, go to the cells that correspond to the expense categories and type the names and amounts of your items. You can also use formulas to calculate the totals and percentages of your expense items. For example, if you want to calculate the percentage of your rent expense to your total expenses, you can use the formula =C2/SUM(C2:C10), where C2 is the cell that contains your rent amount and C2:C10 is the range of cells that contain your expense amounts.

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Michelle Chapman, MSA

Finance Professional
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I start with the event calendar and calculate all direct expenses by event and event category. Once direct expenses are complete, I look at operating expenses based off of historical or national/local averages by expense type.

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4 Compare your income and expenses

The fourth step is to compare your income and expenses and see if you have a surplus or a deficit. A surplus means that your income exceeds your expenses, while a deficit means that your expenses exceed your income. To compare your income and expenses, you can use formulas to calculate the difference and the ratio between them. For example, if you want to calculate the difference between your income and expenses, you can use the formula =B11-C11, where B11 is the cell that contains your total income and C11 is the cell that contains your total expenses. If you want to calculate the ratio between your income and expenses, you can use the formula =B11/C11, where B11 and C11 are the same as above.

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Akiyo KOTCHONI

Je forme les dirigeants et cadres associatifs à maîtriser leur gestion financière pour pérenniser leurs projets et maximiser leur impact ❇️ Contrôle de gestion ❇️ Certifié Qualiopi ❇️ Financement OPCO possible.
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Cette phase d'arbitrage est évidemment essentielle. C'est ici qu'il faudra aligner le budget avec le projet associatif, la plan stratégique et le modèle socio-économique. Certains choix seront fonction.des priorités financières, d'autres seront fonction des priorités d'actions et d'impact sur la communauté. Il faut trouver le juste équilibre qui convient à chaque association.

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5 Adjust your budget as needed

The fifth step is to adjust your budget as needed based on your comparison and your goals. If you have a surplus, you may want to allocate some of it to savings, investments, or new projects. If you have a deficit, you may want to reduce some of your expenses, increase some of your income sources, or seek additional funding. To adjust your budget, you can change the amounts or formulas in the cells that correspond to your income and expense items. You can also add or delete rows or columns as needed. Excel will automatically update the totals and percentages based on your changes.

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6 Review and finalize your budget

The final step is to review and finalize your budget and make sure it is accurate, realistic, and clear. You can use Excel's features to check for errors, format your data, and create charts and graphs. To check for errors, you can use the Error Checking tool under the Formulas tab. To format your data, you can use the Number, Alignment, Font, and Border tools under the Home tab. To create charts and graphs, you can use the Insert tab and choose the type of chart or graph you want. You can also customize your chart or graph with titles, labels, colors, and styles. Once you are satisfied with your budget, you can save it, print it, or share it with your team or stakeholders.

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7 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?

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Akiyo KOTCHONI

Je forme les dirigeants et cadres associatifs à maîtriser leur gestion financière pour pérenniser leurs projets et maximiser leur impact ❇️ Contrôle de gestion ❇️ Certifié Qualiopi ❇️ Financement OPCO possible.
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Le budget est la retranscription financière du projet associatif et du plan stratégique. Ce sont des indispensables à ne pas manquer.

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How can you create a nonprofit budget using Excel?

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1 Choose a template

2 Enter your income sources

3 Enter your expense items

4 Compare your income and expenses

5 Adjust your budget as needed

6 Review and finalize your budget

7 Here’s what else to consider

Nonprofit Management

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How can you create a nonprofit budget using Excel?

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

1 Choose a template

2 Enter your income sources

3 Enter your expense items

4 Compare your income and expenses

5 Adjust your budget as needed

6 Review and finalize your budget

7 Here’s what else to consider

Nonprofit Management

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