Ledger > Extra: Budget |
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Budget
Go to: Ledger > Extra > Budget
Overview
A budget is an estimate of income and expenditure over a future period.
Use this screen to plan, analyse, and compare budgeted vs actual performance.
Budget Setup Options
1. Branch
Select the branch (only applicable if multiple branches are used).
2. Year Start
Defines the start of the financial period.
Example: If set to March 2026, the budget period will run from March 2026 to February 2027.
3. Statement Type
Toggle between:
•Income Statement
•Balance Sheet
4. Retrieve
Click Retrieve after selecting the above options to load the budget data.
Menu Buttons
•Save → Saves the budget data
•Print → Prints the budget report
•Print Chart → Prints the currently displayed chart
•Export to Excel → Exports data for external use
Extra Options
Set Budget to Actual in the Past
•Replaces budget figures with actual values for past periods
•Current month is excluded
•Updates data in bulk
Alternative: Use Update To Parent Accounts (Detail Tab) for selective updates.
Update All From Sub Accounts
•Updates main account totals using sub-account values
•Overwrites any existing values in the main account
Important:
Do not post directly to main accounts, as these values will be replaced.
Alternative: Use Update From Sub Accounts on the Detail Tab for individual accounts.
Columns In the Budget Form
YTD Budget → Year-to-date budget
YTD Actual → Actual income and expenses
YTD Diff % → Percentage difference between budget and actual
Year Budget → Total annual budget
Monthly Columns → Each month shows:
•Budget
•Actual
Chart Tab
Displays a visual analysis of the selected account.
Includes:
•Actual values
•Budget values
•Regression trend lines
•EMA (Exponential Moving Average) lines
You can display 12 or 24 months of data.
Detail Tab
Displays detailed monthly data for each account.
Rows:
Budget → Enter budget values
Actual → System-generated actual figures
Diff % → Variance between budget and actual
LS Prediction → Forecast based on 24 months (Least Squares Regression)
Budget Entry Methods
•Manual Entry
•Average → Uses historical averages
•Least Squares Regression → Predictive trend-based values
•Spread → Automatically distributes values between First and Last month
These tools allow flexible and efficient budgeting based on your preferred method.
Hover the mouse over the different fields on the form. If the cursor changes to a hand () , click to get more information..
The Detail Tab.
Shortcut Buttons On the Budget Form Explained |
|
Spread |
Enter values for the first and last month → Click Spread to distribute values evenly. |
Least Square Regression |
Automatically calculates budget values using trend analysis. |
Average |
Replaces budget values with the average of past actuals (up to 24 months). |
Actual |
Copies actual figures into the budget. |
Zero / 0 |
Clears all budget values. |
Make Negative (Expenses) |
Converts values to negative. |
Make Positive (Income) |
Converts values to positive. |
Update From Sub Accounts |
Updates selected account from its sub-accounts. |
Update To Parent Accounts |
Updates parent accounts based on sub-account totals. |
Important Rules
•Income values must be positive
•Expense values must be negative
•After making changes:
Always click Update To Parent Accounts
Then click Save
Drill-Down & Transaction Access
•Right-click any account to view underlying transactions
•Drill further into source documents such as:
•Invoices
•Journals
•Payments
This provides a full audit trail and verification.
