Mastering the Art of Nonprofit Budgeting: Key Principles & Best Practices GoFundMe Pro

This sample budget for nonprofits is a template for an organizational budget for a fiscal year. This includes program expenses, staff salaries, an operating budget and other expenditures. Once finalized you can create the nonprofit budget template in excel to make it easy for you to update next year. For organizations that experience significant fluctuations in income or expenses at different times of the year, ACCOUNTS provides the ability to create detailed month-by-month budgets.

• A well-formulated nonprofit operating budget allows for the best use of limited nonprofit resources and focuses on the primary goals and objectives of the organization.
• Whether it’s a one-page board summary or a detailed grant submission, we’ll make sure the numbers are clear, defensible, and aligned with your plans.
• Using Excel, you can create tables that display the organization’s finances over time.
• A budget describes your project in numbers just as a proposal describes it in words.
• Pre-filled income sources — such as grants, donations, etc. — enable you to track monthly and quarterly income actuals.

Features of an Effective Nonprofit Budget

This is the budget of revenues received and expenses paid, broken down monthly to ensure cash will be there when needed. Budgeting for nonprofit organizations takes a bit of time, but planning your budget is too important to make the mistake of rushing through it. Keep adding to these tips and best practices and you’ll have the process down in no time. There are several ways to manage budgeting for nonprofit organizations. There are lots of budgeting templates available online or you could create one of your own.

Examples of Administrative Expenses

There are a few things accounting services for nonprofit organizations to consider when budgeting for expenses in a nonprofit. The first is to make sure that all of the expenses are covered by the income of the organization. The second is to make sure that the expenses are in line with the goals of the organization.

Program Expenses

We strive to provide nonprofit leaders with useful resources, tips, and tools that you can use at your organization. We’d love to hear your feedback about this content and anything else you would like to see more of from NFF. Now, we have a pretty good idea of how important budgeting is and how it’s crucial for every organization. When planned strategically, it can help your organization reach its highest potential and achieve financial sustainability. While program expenses are the core of your organization’s mission, fundraising and administrative costs also need to be properly accounted for to keep the lights on.

Make sure you set aside enough time to gather information and discuss various elements of the budget. It demonstrates your ability to responsibly manage financial resources and provides a roadmap for activities in the upcoming year. Plus, with a budget plan you’ll be better able to manage operations with limited funds. Understanding what a budget is and its importance is crucial for every organization because it can https://nerdbot.com/2025/06/10/the-key-benefits-of-accounting-services-for-nonprofit-organizations/ be a way to achieve financial sustainability. With these easy steps, you’re well on your way to creating a workable, up-to-date budget to help your organization thrive. Work to identify potential risks to your operations and create basic contingency plans that can make dealing with problems more straightforward when they occur.

• This will give you an idea of how much money the organization brings in from donations, grants, and other sources of revenue.
• Work to develop lasting relationships with any vendors, suppliers and partners as this will save you time, energy, and even money!
• Looking to create a well-crafted budget for your nonprofit organization?
• If you have a special project in mind, create a separate budget for it.
• While each of the previous tips offers specific guidance for your nonprofit budget, bringing them together into a cohesive financial management system takes careful orchestration.
• For example, if your nonprofit is a food pantry and you want to add shelving, don’t guess how much those shelves will cost.
• Track costs and revenue to analyze your return on investment (ROI) for each fundraiser and campaign.

If you want your new nonprofit to grow successfully and fulfill its mission, a budget is not optional. Stakeholders, such as staff, volunteers or community representatives, count on the board to monitor the budget and proactively manage it. They’re looking for assurance that your board is making wise and prudent decisions over spending and investing.