Template · Finance close · Opening soon
Budget vs actual template
Line up your budget with what happened, by account and month, with the variance in money and percent. Actuals refresh from your accounting system.
You bring
Budget30 rows
AccountMonthBudget
Actuals106 rows
Actual accountActual dateActual
Mammoth does the work
You get
One table30 rows
Budget, actual and variance for every account and month.
AccountMonthBudgetActualVarianceVariance %
- Not a spreadsheet to fill inIt is a ready-made workflow in Mammoth. You bring the files, and it does the work.
- Your files, as they areUpload a file or connect a source. Your column names do not have to match.
- Runs again by itselfWhen new data arrives, every step runs again and the result updates.
What you get back
The real result of this template, run on sample data.
Budget vs actual: the resultSample data30 rows
| Account | Month | Budget | Actual | Variance | Variance % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Marketing | 2026-04-01 | 18,686.84 | 16,120.94 | -2,565.90 | -13.7 |
| Rent | 2026-04-01 | 4,342.64 | 4,251.10 | -91.54 | -2.1 |
| Revenue | 2026-04-01 | 4,151.30 | 4,221.16 | 69.86 | 1.7 |
| Salaries | 2026-04-01 | 24,170.92 | 23,708.37 | -462.55 | -1.9 |
| Software | 2026-04-01 | 27,957.91 | 47,052.47 | 19,094.56 | 68.3 |
| Marketing | 2026-05-01 | 16,412.76 | 13,349.94 | -3,062.82 | -18.7 |
| Rent | 2026-05-01 | 17,416.76 | 18,953.31 | 1,536.55 | 8.8 |
| Revenue | 2026-05-01 | 9,052.53 | 5,706.11 | -3,346.42 | -37 |
What is a budget vs actual report?
A budget vs actual report compares planned figures with real results for each line and period, so overspends and shortfalls show up early.
How it works
How to use the budget vs actual template
- 1Bring your dataConnect a source, or upload a file.
- 2Check the columnsMammoth matches each column the template needs and asks only when it is unsure.
- 3Choose where it goesA table, a sheet, or a dashboard. It rebuilds on every refresh.
See the exact columns and steps ›
What it needs
A budget by account and month, and your actuals (2 tables)
Budget
- Account
- Month
- Budget
Actuals
- Actual account
- Actual date
- Actual
The steps it runs
- 1Match columns: Budget
- 2Match columns: Actuals
- 3Total actuals by account and month
- 4Total budget by account and month
- 5Line up budget and actuals
- 6Variance
Every step is an ordinary Mammoth step you can open and change.
Budget vs actual: questions
My budget has a column per month. Does that work?
Turn it into rows first with the Unpivot wide data template, then use that table as the budget.
Does it update by itself?
Yes. The template becomes an ordinary workflow in Mammoth. When your data refreshes, from a connector, a scheduled pull or a new file, every step runs again and the result table updates.
Can I change the steps?
Every step is an ordinary Mammoth step you can open and edit. Mammoth remembers which steps came from the template, so an update never overwrites your changes.
Do my column names have to match?
No. You point the template at your columns once. Mammoth suggests a match for each one and asks only when it is unsure.
Get early access to this template
Bring your data, check the columns, and the result rebuilds on every refresh.
More finance close templates
Consolidate entities, compare budget to actual, build a trial balance, review month-on-month moves and work out commission.
- Vendor spend analysisEach supplier's spend over the last 12 months, its share, and the change on the 12 beforeSee the template
- Multi-entity consolidationEvery entity's balances in one currency, by accountSee the template
- Flux analysisEvery account's last month against the month before, with moves over your limits flaggedSee the template
- Price-volume-mix analysisThe change in revenue for each product, split into price, volume and mixSee the template
- Trial balanceEvery account's debit or credit balance at the period endSee the template
- Sales commissionEach rep's sales and commission by month, with an accelerator above quotaSee the template