Overview
Budget reports help management compare what the business planned against what actually happened. They are useful for annual planning, monthly review meetings, branch review, and project budget follow-up.
Where to find them: These reports are usually available from the Report Center or the accounting and project reporting menus, depending on the report.
Related guides: Use this guide together with Financial Statements Guide, Cash Flow Reports Guide, and Job / Project Profitability Reports Guide.
Reports Covered
| Report | Use It For |
|---|---|
| Assets Budget Report | Review planned asset balances and compare them with actual movement where budgets are maintained. |
| Cash Budgets Report | Review expected cash inflow and outflow for planning and funding decisions. |
| Current Assets Budget Report | Review short-term asset budgeting such as receivables, inventory, and other current assets. |
| Current Liability Budget Report | Review short-term liability planning, including payables and other current obligations. |
| Expenses Budgets Report | Review expense budgets and compare budgeted cost against actual cost. |
| Income Budget Report | Review budgeted income levels and compare performance against target revenue. |
| Liability Budget Report | Review non-current and overall liability budgeting. |
| Profit Loss Budgets Report | Review monthly profit-and-loss performance against budget, including variance and variance percentage. |
| Job Budget Performance Summary Report | Review planned versus actual job performance when budgets are maintained at project or job level. |
Common Filters
| Field Or Option | What It Means |
|---|---|
| Year | Select the financial year to review. Budget reports are usually reviewed one year at a time. |
| Budget | Select the budget version or budget file you want to compare against actuals. |
| Store / Location | Focus the review on one branch or compare branches separately where supported. |
| Display Type | Some reports let you switch between list and graph view for easier review. |
| Graph Type | Where graph view is available, choose the visual style that is easiest for management review. |
| Job | Used by job budget reports to focus on one project or review all jobs. |
Suggested Workflow
- Start with the year and budget version that management approved.
- Review Profit Loss Budgets first when the goal is overall operating performance.
- Move into income, expense, asset, liability, or cash budgets when you need more detail.
- Use branch or store filters if management reviews performance by location.
- Use Job Budget Performance when the question is about project delivery rather than the company overall.
Best Practice
- Keep the same year and budget version across related reports when comparing results.
- Use variance and variance percentage together. A small amount may look large in percentage terms, and the reverse is also true.
- Use graph view for presentation, but use list view when you need exact figures.
- Review unusual variances against the underlying financial statements before making decisions.
Important: Budget reports are only as reliable as the budget file and account mapping behind them. If a result looks unusual, confirm the budget version and the reporting period first.