A budget for non-profit organizations must account for timing differences between revenue and expenses. Direct program costs include staff salaries and benefits, materials and supplies, dedicated facilities, transportation, marketing, participant materials, and essential equipment. A budget for non-profit organizations must plan beyond immediate operational needs.

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The capital budget can also be used for construction and other big, one-time spending projects that often take more than a fiscal year to pay for. Capital fundraising via capital campaigns can help you secure the funds for these projects. Relay is an online business banking and money management platform that offers no-fee business checking and savings accounts. We’ve already talked about managing your budget with Relay, but we know nonprofit financial management doesn’t stop there. Ultimately, remember that your budget should categorize revenue by different funding sources and your expenses by program vs. overhead costs. We’ve compiled the most useful free project budget templates for project managers, professional services teams, accountants, and other project budget stakeholders.

Determine timeline

• The main budget you’ll create is your operating budget, which details the costs you’ll incur and the revenue you’ll generate over the next year.
• For each source, write down the amount that will be provided and the status (secured, requested/planned, will request/implement).
• Beyond the monthly subscription cost, factor in implementation fees, training expenses, and any per-user charges.
• While you’ll create your nonprofit’s operating budget from scratch once a year, budgeting shouldn’t be a one-and-done event.
• This fully customizable template helps you determine your organization’s monthly, quarterly, and yearly net income so that you can gauge the financial health of your nonprofit’s budgeted operations.

If the board has feedback (or pushback), you will likely need to incorporate those changes into a second draft and re-present the budget for approval. Here are some tips and tools to help ease the pain of building your next budget. For more skill development, coaching and tools, check out StriveTogether’s upcoming courses.

Planning a nonprofit budget: Example and best practices

• It also breaks down the nonprofit’s operating expenses and overall costs.
• When we discuss budgeting here, we are typically referring to an operating budget, the budget of income and expenses to operate the nonprofit.
• 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, the rent for your office is likely a fixed expense due to your contract with the building’s management company.
• Funds raised may come from ticket sales, membership fees, proceeds of auctions, galas, sales of goods or services, or other fundraising activities.
• Start with setting clear goals and bringing in key stakeholders—such as program managers and department heads—who can provide detailed estimates of expected costs and revenues.
• In their first year, as they build new fundraising programs, the return on that investment might be $100k.

Long-term planning is more complex for nonprofits due to restricted funds and limited resources. For nonprofits, detailed tracking of every dollar spent is essential to maintain credibility among donors and stakeholders. At Plante Moran’s 2023 Nonprofit Summit, nonprofit leaders cited predicting future funding as the top challenge they face. This underscores why budgeting is crucial to the success of nonprofit organizations. The good people at the Wallace Foundation offer a comprehensive, free template to create a nonprofit operating budget. Also known as a balance sheet, a statement of financial position is an excellent financial tool.

• Review your spending regularly to ensure it aligns with your strategic goals and keeps your nonprofit financially healthy.
• Smartsheet provides a better way to unify collaboration and automate workflows so you can spend more time on the work that matters.
• This guide is designed to help nonprofits of all sizes master the art of budgeting.
• Involve key leadership to contribute guidance and details from the start.
• Once the budget has been created, it is important to monitor actual expenses and income on a regular basis.
• This grant proposal budget template caters to nonprofits seeking funding for their organizations.

Crowdfunding Platforms for Nonprofits

Effective integration allows data to flow automatically between systems, ensuring that information such as revenue, expenses, and donor contributions is updated in real-time across all platforms. It can also consolidate financial data from multiple sources into a single dashboard, providing a comprehensive view of the organization’s financial health. Integration capabilities are a cornerstone of modern budgeting software, providing nonprofits with the ability to connect their financial systems. Managing grants, tracking restricted funds, and meeting nonprofit compliance requirements can all make nonprofit budgeting feel difficult and time-consuming. But when donors want to know exactly where their money goes, you need precise numbers—fast.

Program expenses