Budget

The Budget sheet compares your forecast to your actual results. Prebuilt into the Standard Financial Model. If you're using the model with your historical financials, budget variances appear automatically as you link actuals into the Forecast sheet.

More about how to pull in your actual financials from Quickbooks, Xero, or any accounting software and create rolling forecasts at Actual Financials →

How to use

The key in using this sheet is mapping the revenues and expenses in the forecast section to a set of categories that are mapped to a similar set of revenues and expenses from the chart of accounts from your export of accounting financials. Rarely do the lines used to create a forecast match the lines used to track the actual results, so mapping them to similar categories is important for making the analysis useful.

How it works

The sheet uses the actuals and the forecast directly from the categories on Forecast. If you input actual financial results by linking into the Actuals section on Forecast, the model will automatically update the financials used in Statements, Key Reports, Summary, Breakdown, and all reports, but since the model will still keep the forecast in the forecasted revenues and expenses on Forecast, it can then pull in the forecast to compare to the actuals.

The sheet will display the budget (or forecast), actuals, variance, and % variance in their own columns. The analysis is done covering one period, defined by the dates input into the sheet. The model will only draw in the forecast that covers the same period represented in the actuals; meaning, if you've pulled in Jan and Feb of 2020, the model will display the forecast for Jan-Feb 2020. This is done so the comparisons are on the same base.

Inputs

At the top of the sheet are inputs for two dates, these define the start and end of the period used to create the Budget sheet.

Common Modifications

The sheet is not commonly edited unless the revenue and expense categories used on Forecast were expanded or contracted, in which case editing this sheet is required for it to display the correct information.

• Edit the revenue and expense categories on this sheet to match any changes on the Forecast sheet. Changing category names does not matter - they will update automatically - but if you add or delete categories and insert or delete rows on Forecast, you'll need to match that here. Insert rows in the category section to match the relative category rows on Forecast, select the row above or below the empty rows, and copy the formula into the blank rows. All formulas will adjust automatically. Confirm the categories match the order used on Forecast.
• A second common modification is to replicate the analysis to cover additional periods. You can duplicate the sheet and change the dates, or copy the columns and paste to the right, and then change the dates, and repeat the same steps to create as many different analyses as desired.

This sheet can be hidden or deleted with no impact on the rest of the model.

Reforecasting

Every forecast is wrong. The useful question: how fast can you update it, and what do you do with the variance?

Reforecasting isn't rebuilding. It's dropping actuals into the model, letting variance surface on Budget, and re-projecting forward from the new starting point. If you're rebuilding every quarter, your model isn't built right.

Budget is fixed: the plan you locked in at the start of the cycle. Forecast is updated. Don't use them as synonyms. (See budget v. forecast for the distinction.)

Where actuals live on Forecast

The Forecast sheet has three stacked sections. Forecast by Category at R99-R162 is the calculated forward projection, aggregated into standard P&L categories. Actuals by Category at R165-R228 is where you paste historicals. Actuals + Forecast at R231-R294 is the merged view that flows into Statements.

Paste actuals into R165-R228 for the months that have closed. The model handles the switch: closed months use actuals, future months use the forecast. The merged rows feed the income statement, balance sheet, and cash flow statement automatically. No rebuilding, no pasting across sheets.

What to do each period

1. Paste actuals. Drop closed-month numbers into Forecast R165-R228. Revenue, COGS, operating expenses, salaries, capex. The model handles depreciation, revenue recognition, and working capital.
2. Read the variance on Budget. Actual minus plan, line by line. Don't explain every row. Focus on the lines that moved the P&L.
3. Categorize each delta. Timing (self-correcting), volume (might be a trend), price or efficiency (often permanent), one-time (exclude from forward projection).
4. Update drivers, not outputs. If volume is tracking 20% ahead, change the Growth Units row on Get Started (R26/D26 for month-1 units, R28/D28 for initial growth rate, R29/D29 for deceleration). If churn jumped, change R46/D46-E46. If CAC moved, change R34/D34. For line items tracking a different ratio to revenue than you assumed, use the driver columns K-X on Forecast: column N sets the driver type ("% of", "# per", "% change"), column Q references the driver row. Never type over a formula.
5. Check runway. Forecast R309-R387 holds net burn, runway months, and a cash projection matrix. If the reforecast moves your zero-cash month, that's the headline.
6. Check the key metrics. MRR and ARR build at R651-R674. Unit economics (LTV, CAC, payback) live on the Unit Economics sheet. Valuation roll-ups at R676-R688.

What not to reforecast

Historical actuals are actuals, done. Tax rates, WACC, and long-term growth rate live on Get Started; revisit them annually, not monthly. And don't reforecast every line item. Focus on what's material and what's changed. A 2% miss on office supplies isn't a reforecast.

Cadence

Monthly if you're early-stage, growing fast, or burning hard. Runway changes month to month; you need to see it. Quarterly for most companies, aligned with board meetings. Annually for stable businesses with predictable cash flow. And event-driven any time: major customer win or loss, funding round, strategic pivot, market shift.

What to tell the board

Three things, not the whole spreadsheet:

1. What moved. "Revenue is 15% ahead of plan, driven by faster new customer adds; opex is 8% ahead, driven by pulling two hires into Q3."
2. What it means. "Runway extends from 14 months to 16. We can invest an additional $200k in growth without moving the raise timeline."
3. What you're deciding. "We're increasing the Q1 hiring plan by two roles and holding the Series A timing."

Numbers for context. Decisions for the headline.