difference of business plan and budget

How to Master the Fine Art of Business Planning and Budgeting

Updated on: 5 January 2023

Starting a business is a challenging thing: you have to work hard and do your best to ensure its success. However, the work doesn’t end even when your business actually becomes operational. You still have to do so much more to ensure that it will keep on track.

Of course, it could be hard, especially for the beginners. It seems that you have to keep an eye on so many things and focus on so many urgent tasks every day that there isn’t any time left for business planning and budgeting. However, it is very important to find that time, because business planning and budgeting are actually one of the most important things for business success.

Why so? Because a plan allows you to get a better understanding of how you see your business, how you want to develop it, and so on. When you create a plan, you set targets that you want to achieve as well as define the ways of evaluating the success of your business.

Basically, planning gives you all the necessary tools that you can use to improve your business in the nearest future. However, this happens only when planning is done correctly.

What to Include in Your Annual Plan?

If you want to create a perfect business plan, you have to know what has to be included in it and how big it will be. Of course, there are no strict limitations to a size of a business plan as each business is different. However, if you are doing it for the first time, I recommend starting with a yearly plan: it is not too big and not too short.

A good annual plan has to include the following things:

• an executive summary
• a list of products and services you offer (or plan to offer this year)
• a detailed description of your target market
• a financial plan
• a marketing plan as well as a sales plan
• milestones and metrics
• a description of your management team

In order to write it in the best way possible, you need to spend some time thinking about the current status of your company as well as how it should look like by the end of the year. Describe your target market, think about the goals that have to be achieved this year, about the products and services that have to be launched.

Visualize the information to make it easier for you to see the whole picture (this is especially important for those, who don’t have much experience in planning). You can use charts, and different diagram types such as mind maps to visualize and organize your ideas and plans.

Try choosing a few main goals for your company and add them to the annual plan being as specific as possible: for example, if you want to increase your earnings, you should specify by how much (10%, 15%, etc.). It’s also good to think about the obstacles you might face and come up with some ways to minimize the potential risks that could occur.

Remember that while a business plan has to be specific and detailed when you write it, it shouldn’t remain static by the end of the year. No business is predictable enough for this to happen: you should understand it and prepare to act quickly, adding changes to a business plan if something unexpected happens.

Business Planning Cycle

As I said, typical business planning isn’t a static thing – actually, it’s a cycle that usually looks like this:

• You take some time to evaluate the effectiveness of your business. In order to do so, you should compare its current performance with the last year’s one – or with targets set earlier this year.
• Then you have to think about opportunities that might appear as well as the threats you might face.
• Remember about both successes and failures your business experienced throughout last year. Analyze them and think what can be done to repeat/avoid them.
• Think of the main business goals you would like to achieve and be sure to add them to the new annual plan (or edit the old one according to them).
• Create a budget.
• Come up with budget targets.
• Complete the plan.
• Be sure to review it regularly (every month, every three months, etc.), making changes if necessary.

Repeat the whole cycle.

Business Planning and Budgeting

When a business is still small and growing, it might seem unnecessary to plan its budget. However, it’s crucial if you want to avoid financial risks and be able to invest in opportunities when they appear.

Moreover, with the rapid growth of your business, you might find yourself in a situation where you aren’t able to control all the money anymore. Expansion of the business usually includes the creation of different departments responsible for different things – and each of these departments needs to have its own budget.

As you see, the bigger your business becomes, the more complicated it gets. While it’s okay to not control every cent by yourself, it is still up to you to make sure that your business keeps growing instead of becoming unprofitable. That’s why it’s so important to create a budget plan that allows you to understand the exact income your business brings by the end of the month and the amount of it, you are able to save or spend on different things.

It is important to remember that a business plan is not a forecast in any way. It doesn’t predict how much money you’ll make by the end of the year. Instead, it’s a tool for ensuring that your business will remain profitable even after covering all the necessary expenses.

Moreover, a business plan also ensures that you’ll have the opportunity to invest money into future projects, fund everything that has to be funded this year, and meet all of the business objectives.

Benefits of a Business Budget

The whole budget planning has a lot of benefits:

It allows you to evaluate the success of your business: when you know exactly how much profit your business gave you at the beginning of the year, you are able to compare it with the profit by the end of the year, understanding whether your financial goals have been met or not.

It allows managing money effectively: for example, if you save money for predicted one-time spends, you won’t be caught by surprise by them.

It helps identify the problems before they actually happen: for example, if you evaluate your budget and see that the income left after covering all the expenses is quite small, you’ll understand that you need to make more profit this year.

It helps make smarter decisions, by only investing money that you can afford to invest.

It allows you to manage your business more effectively, allocating more resources to the projects that need them the most.

It helps in increasing staff motivation.

Basically, when you have a budget plan ready, you have your back covered.

How to Create a Budget?

There are so many articles written on how to create a perfect business budget, but most of them narrow down to these 5 simple things:

• Evaluate your sources of income. You have to find out how much money your business brings on a daily basis in order to understand how much money you can afford to invest and spend.
• Make a list of your fixed expenses. These ones repeat every month and their amount doesn’t change. Some people forget to exclude the sum needed to cover these expenses from the monthly income, but it’s important to do so in order to get a clear understanding of your budget.
• Don’t forget about variable expenses. These ones don’t have a fixed price but still have to be paid every month. Come up with an approximate sum you’ll have to pay and include it in your budget.
• Predict your one-time expenses. Every business needs them from time to time, but if you plan your budget forgetting about these expenses, spending money on them could affect it greatly and not in a positive way.
• When you list all the income and expense sources, it’s time to pull them all together. Evaluate how much money you’ll have each month after you cover all these expenses. Then think of what part of that sum you could afford to invest into something.

While a whole process of budget creation might seem too complicated, you still should find time to do it. It’s totally worth the effort – moreover, such a plan could help you not only throughout the next month but also throughout the next year (if your expense and income sources won’t change much).

Of course, it’s still important to review it from time to time, making changes when necessary. However, the review process won’t be as complicated as the creation of a budget plan from scratch.

Key Steps in Drawing up a Budget

If you’ve never created a budget plan before, you could make some budgeting mistakes . However, when it comes to financial planning, the smallest mistake could have a negative impact. The following tips can help you easily avoid most mistakes, making your budget plan more realistic.

• Try to take it slow

The more time you spend on budgeting, the better it is for you. It’s hard to create a flawless budget plan quickly: there’s a big chance you might miss something. That’s why it’s vital to make sure that you’ve listed all the sources of your income and expenses, and are prepared well.

• You can use last year’s data

Last year’s data could help you see the whole picture better: you can compare it with this year’s data, finding out whether your income has increased or decreased. However, you should use it only for comparing and as a guide. You have new goals and resources this year, and the environment you’re working in has changed too, so your current planning and strategies should differ from the ones you used last year.

• Make sure that a budget is realistic

The most important thing about a budget plan is that it has to cover not only predictable expenses but also less predictable ones. Of course, making predictions is hard but using previous data along with some other business plans as examples could make the whole process easier.

A budget also has to be detailed: the information it contains has to allow you to monitor all the key details of your business, be it sales, costs, and so on. You could also use some accounting software for more effective management.

• It’s okay to involve people

If your business is big enough, you probably have some employees responsible for a part of the financial operations. It’s good to involve them in a budget creation process too, using their knowledge and experience to predict some expenses, for example. If the people you involve are experienced enough, the combination of their professionalism and your knowledge will make a budget more realistic and effective.

• Visualizing helps

Various charts and diagrams are so popular in business for a reason: they allow tracking your incomes and expenses easily. For example, you can create one chart based on your plan and another chart based on an actual budget and compare them during planned revisions to see whether your budget plan works just as expected or not.

As I mentioned above, it’s easier to control finances when you are running a small business. Such business needs only one budget that is created for a certain period – in most cases, for a year. Larger businesses, however, require something else. They have various departments, so it is better to create several budgets at once, tailoring each of them to a certain department’s needs.

Don’t Forget to Review!

I’ve already mentioned that a review is an important process of every business planning and budgeting. No matter how good your plan is, it is impossible to predict everything with 100 percent accuracy. Your business will grow and the environment around it will change, so the quicker you’ll react to such changes, the better it is for you.

That’s why you should schedule budget reviews from time to time. I recommend starting with reviewing it every month and then switching to a more comfortable schedule. Every month review can help you notice the flaws of your plan (which is especially important if you don’t have much experience in this kind of thing) as well as understand how stable your business is.

If you see that you don’t have to make changes often, you could start reviewing your plan every three or six months (however, I recommend doing it more often).

You can use various common diagrams to help you . The best thing about diagrams is that they help visualize data well, which is very important when you need to see the whole picture more clearly – and this happens often during budget planning. For example, a diagram or a chart of your company’s income can show you how much your finances have grown during a certain period. Moreover, if you notice certain downfalls in a chart (that aren’t predicted), you’ll be able to react to it quickly, fixing things that went wrong.

What do you need to consider during the whole review process? First, your actual income. Probably it will be different each month: every business has its own peak sales periods and drop sales ones, and you have to find them and remember them for more effective planning next year. It is important to check whether the income matches the one you predicted or not: if not, you have to find out why it happened.

Second, you have to evaluate your actual expenses. See if they differ from your budget, how much do they affect it, why they exceed your expectations (if they do), and so on.

Probably the best thing about reviewing is that it allows you to react to all the unexpected situations quickly, saving your business from the potential troubles and downfalls. So be sure not to skip it.

As you see, writing a business plan is a complex process. You have to be very attentive, to plan everything, starting with your goals and ending with your expenses, to consider so many things and to involve other people in planning if possible. Moreover, you also have to learn all the time, reviewing your plans, making changes, finding the ways to react to unexpected situations.

But while this might look like a tough thing to do, it is very convenient for everyone who wants to manage their business successfully. The planning takes a lot off your shoulders and makes the whole business running process easier. You are able to evaluate the effectiveness of your business by looking at the monthly income increase, at the goals you wanted to achieve, and so on. You are also able to predict the potential downfalls of your business and to use the tools you have to minimize all the risks.

You are able to evaluate the effectiveness of your business by looking at the monthly income increase, at the goals you wanted to achieve, and so on. You are also able to predict the potential downfalls of your business and to use the tools you have to minimize all the risks.

I hope that this guide will help you create strong and realistic budget and business plans, and successfully implement them in running your business. If you have some tips on business and budget planning that you want to share, please do so in the comment section below!

Author’s Bio:

Kevin Nelson started his career as a research analyst and has changed his sphere of activity to writing services and content marketing. Apart from writing, he spends a lot of time reading psychology and management literature searching for the keystones of motivation ideas. Feel free to connect with him on Facebook , Twitter , Google+ , Linkedin .

Join over thousands of organizations that use Creately to brainstorm, plan, analyze, and execute their projects successfully.

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Updated: September 29, 2023 |

What’s the difference between a plan, a budget, and a forecast?

Jake Ballinger is an experienced SEO and content manager with deep expertise in FP&A and finance topics. He speaks 9 languages and lives in NYC.

“Remind me, what’s the difference between the plan and the forecast?” is something we often hear from executives looking for clarity.

While a company’s plan, budget, and financial forecast are often discussed in the boardroom, these terms’ functions are not always precise.

Finance leaders commonly use the three terms in conjunction with one another, allowing each model to inform the others. 

So...are they interchangeable? No.

In fact, financial forecasting, budgeting , and planning each serve a unique purpose. A plan serves as the foundation, a budget guides how to allocate cash, and a forecast projects the financial future of the business.

CFOs understand that each is a standalone piece of the company’s financial puzzle.

Jake Ballinger

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Generally, a financial “plan” aims to define the financial direction and vision of the organization within the context of a broader business plan.

Leaders ask themselves how the business will stack up in the next 1, 5, or even 10 years. The “plan” answers that question by outlining the company’s operational and financial objectives. Executives build out teams and infrastructure based on this plan and the defined goals. 

Colloquially, the “plan” is sometimes used interchangeably with the most recent budget or forecast, and can be broadly considered the budget or forecast that is the most likely “version of truth”.

Because of the long-term nature of a financial plan, it allows for more flexibility and creativity. In the case of a financial plan (versus a budget, for example), the means are less important than the end. Ultimately, a good financial plan provides a top-down operational framework to explore various scenarios.

Because an organization's future is undefined, financial planning is a perpetual process. Despite this, a plan is more static—more of a roadmap than a document updated daily. The plan relies on historical performance data and subjective financial analysis, so it can never be fully accurate. 

Businesses, but most commonly, the Finance team, compile a budget to determine how the company will spend its capital during the next period—a month or quarter, but typically a fiscal year.

The budget’s primary goal is determining what resources to allocate to each part of the company, from salaries to office supplies. The focus of a budget revolves around cash position, including expected revenues and expenses, to create specific financial goals for the foreseeable future.

Most businesses create a budget annually and implement it from the start of the fiscal year.  The budget is also commonly considered “unmovable” and is used to gauge performance of actuals or forecast data versus the planned budget.

A thorough budget offers clear guidance on how a company should be spending its resources by providing a line item for any expense imaginable. Budgets also create accountability for departmental spending because overages are apparent and gaps in appropriate funding become clear as the year unrolls.

Teams should review the budget regularly and compare it with actuals, making each department responsible for any variances that occur.

A budget aligns expectation with reality when it comes to revenue and expenses.

Budgeting can be a difficult process because of the kind of involvement it takes across departments, including meetings and negotiations with department leaders to determine the amount of cash they will need to accomplish business goals over the budget. Since budgets are generally made to last an entire year, a budget might constrain necessary spending (or saving) if any unexpected situations in cash flow arise.

Essentially, expense allowances are built not to exceed budget limits, while income projections are the minimum needed to balance the budget. Financial analysts need to calculate the variances between the two figures to evaluate the budget's efficacy and the organization's fiscal health.

A forecast is a financial snapshot of the future as it is best understood today.  When creating a forecast , teams must examine possible financial outcomes based on the most up-to-date drivers and assumptions . The result is a view of how the business is trending so that the leaders can determine whether or not adjustments should be made to the existing budgets or plans.  

For example, the budget might assume that the business will hit a $10M revenue target, but the forecast shows that the business is on target to only achieve $8M.  Given the difference between the forecast and the budget, the business might adjust the variable costs associated with lower revenue, while simultaneously adjusting the expense plan in order to hit cash targets.

A company’s financial forecast is updated regularly, such as monthly or quarterly. The forecast’s undefined nature allows it to be used for both short- and long-term projections and adapt to recent performance data. In this way, executives can make changes in real-time, adjusting their operations, such as production, marketing approach, and staffing. 

Forecasting can be a time-consuming process that not all businesses are able to stay on top of regularly.  Because of this, many businesses update their forecast data periodically, such as quarterly or biannually.  It’s considered a best practice to build a rolling (ongoing) forecast to make these adjustments in real-time.

Conclusion: Plan vs. budget vs. forecast

All three terms reflect expectations and estimates of financial objectives. Financial planning lays the foundation for budgeting, suggesting that a financial plan must precede the budget so that company leaders have an idea of what they are budgeting for. Meanwhile, a forecast projects how far over or under expectations a company may be.

A financial plan is a strategic, long-term tool, while a budget is tactical and short-term. A financial forecast is an updated reflection of the future. In a way, the forecast bridges the gap between the business plan and the budget. 

The most financially disciplined businesses leverage all three tools in planning and operations. Financial modeling software like Cube can help companies build multiple plan scenario types, including budgets, forecasts, and even what-ifs, in a way that allows leaders to visualize data, analyze past performance, and calculate how decisions may affect future goals.

Want to see how Cube can accelerate your financial planning? Get a demo today. 

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A How-To Guide for Creating a Business Budget

Amanda Smith

Reviewed by

September 23, 2022

This article is Tax Professional approved

Most business owners know how important a business budget is when it comes to managing expenses and planning for the future—but in a challenging economic environment like the one we’ve been experiencing, your business budget takes on even greater significance.

With inflation running rampant and the possibility of a recession looming, business owners need to be able to forecast their cash flow, manage their expenses, and plan for the future. Creating a detailed business budget is the first step.

Whether you want to revamp your budgeting method, or you’ve never created a business budget before, this guide will walk you through the process.

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What is a business budget?

A budget is a detailed plan that outlines where you’ll spend your money monthly or annually.

You give every dollar a “job,” based on what you think is the best use of your business funds, and then go back and compare your plan with reality to see how you did.

A budget will help you:

• Forecast what money you expect to earn
• Plan where to spend that revenue
• See the difference between your plan and reality

What makes a good budget?

The best budgets are simple and flexible. If circumstances change (as they do), your budget can flex to give you a clear picture of where you stand at all times.

Every good budget should include seven components:

1. Your estimated revenue

This is the amount you expect to make from the sale of goods or services. It’s all of the cash you bring in the door, regardless of what you spent to get there. This is the first line on your budget. It can be based on last year’s numbers or (if you’re a startup ), based on industry averages.

2. Your fixed costs

These are all your regular, consistent costs that don’t change according to how much you make—things like rent, insurance, utilities, bank fees, accounting and legal services, and equipment leasing.

Further reading: Fixed Costs (Everything You Need to Know)

3. Your variable costs

These change according to production or sales volume and are closely related to “ costs of goods sold ,” i.e., anything related to the production or purchase of the product your business sells. Variable costs might include raw materials, inventory, production costs, packaging, or shipping. Other variable costs can include sales commission, credit card fees, and travel. A clear budget plan outlines what you expect to spend on all these costs.

The cost of salaries can fall under both fixed and variable costs. For example, your core in-house team is usually associated with fixed costs, while production or manufacturing teams—anything related to the production of goods—are treated as variable costs. Make sure you file your different salary costs in the correct area of your budget.

Further reading: Variable Costs (A Simple Guide)

4. Your one-off costs

One-off costs fall outside the usual work your business does. These are startup costs like moving offices, equipment, furniture, and software, as well as other costs related to launch and research.

5. Your cash flow

Cash flow is all money traveling into and out of a business. You have positive cash flow if there is more money coming into your business over a set period of time than going out. This is most easily calculated by subtracting the amount of money available at the beginning of a set period of time and at the end.

Since cash flow is the oxygen of every business, make sure you monitor this weekly, or at least monthly. You could be raking it in and still not have enough money on hand to pay your suppliers.

6. Your profit

Profit is what you take home after deducting your expenses from your revenue. Growing profits mean a growing business. Here you’ll plan out how much profit you plan to make based on your projected revenue, expenses, and cost of goods sold. If the difference between revenue and expenses (aka “ profit margins ”) aren’t where you’d like them to be, you need to rethink your cost of goods sold and consider raising prices .

Or, if you think you can’t squeeze any more profit margin out of your business, consider boosting the Advertising and Promotions line in your budget to increase total sales.

7. A budget calculator

A budget calculator can help you see exactly where you stand when it comes to your business budget planning. It might sound obvious, but getting all the numbers in your budget in one easy-to-read summary is really helpful.

In your spreadsheet, create a summary page with a row for each of the budget categories above. This is the framework of your basic budget. Then, next to each category, list the total amount you’ve budgeted. Finally, create another column to the right—when the time period ends, use it to record the actual amounts spent in each category. This gives you a snapshot of your budget that’s easy to find without diving into layers of crowded spreadsheets.

See the sample below.

Pro tip: link the totals on the summary page to the original sums in your other budget tabs . That way when you update any figures, your budget summary gets updated at the same time. The result: your very own budget calculator.

You can also check out this simple Startup Cost Calculator from CardConnect. It lays out some of the most common expenses that you might not have considered. From there, you can customize a rough budget for your own industry.

Small business budgets for different types of company

While every good budget has the same framework, you’ll need to think about the unique budgeting quirks of your industry and business type.

Seasonal businesses

If your business has a busy season and a slow season, budgeting is doubly important.

Because your business isn’t consistent each month, a budget gives you a good view of past and present data to predict future cash flow . Forecasting in this way helps you spot annual trends, see how much money you need to get you through the slow months, and look for opportunities to cut costs to offset the low season. You can use your slow season to plan for the next year, negotiate with vendors, and build customer loyalty through engagement.

Don’t assume the same thing will happen every year, though. Just like any budget, forecasting is a process that evolves. So start with what you know, and if you don’t know something—like what kind of unexpected costs might pop up next quarter— just give it your best guess . Better to set aside money for an emergency that doesn’t happen than to be blindsided.

Ecommerce businesses

The main budgeting factor for ecommerce is shipping. Shipping costs (and potential import duties) can have a huge impact.

Do you have space in your budget to cover shipping to customers? If not, do you have an alternative strategy that’s in line with your budget—like flat rate shipping or real-time shipping quotes for customers? Packaging can affect shipping rates, so factor that into your cost of goods sold too. While you’re at it, consider any international warehousing costs and duties.

You’ll also want to create the best online shopping experience for your customers, so make sure you include a good web hosting service, web design, product photography, advertising, blogging, and social media in your budget.

Inventory businesses

If you need to stock up on inventory to meet demand, factor this into your cost of goods sold. Use the previous year’s sales or industry benchmarks to take a best guess at the amount of inventory you need. A little upfront research will help ensure you’re getting the best prices from your vendors and shipping the right amount to satisfy need, mitigate shipping costs, and fit within your budget.

The volume of inventory might affect your pricing. For example, if you order more stock, your cost per unit will be lower, but your overall spend will be higher. Make sure this is factored into your budget and pricing, and that the volume ordered isn’t greater than actual product demand.

You may also need to include the cost of storage solutions or disposal of leftover stock.

Custom order businesses

When creating custom ordered goods, factor in labor time and cost of operations and materials. These vary from order to order, so make an average estimate.

Budgeting is tricky for startups—you rarely have an existing model to use. Do your due diligence by researching industry benchmarks for salaries, rent, and marketing costs. Ask your network what you can expect to pay for professional fees, benefits, and equipment. Set aside a portion of your budget for advisors—accountants, lawyers, that kind of thing. A few thousand dollars upfront could save you thousands more in legal fees and inefficiencies later on.

This is just scratching the surface, and there’s plenty more to consider when creating a budget for a startup. This business startup budget guide from The Balance is a great start.

Service businesses

If you don’t have a physical product, focus on projected sales, revenue, salaries, and consultant costs. Figures in these industries—whether accounting, legal services, creative, or insurance—can vary greatly, which means budgets need flexibility. These figures are reliant on the number of people required to provide the service, the cost of their time, and fluctuating customer demand.

Small business budgeting templates

A business budget template can be as simple as a table or as complex as a multi-page spreadsheet. Just make sure you’re creating something that you’ll actually use.

Create your budget yearly—a 12-month budget is standard fare—with quarterly or monthly updates and check-ins to ensure you’re on track.

Here are some of our favorite templates for you to plug into and get rolling.

• The Balance has a clear table template that lists every budget item, the budgeted amount, the actual amount, and the difference between the two. Use this one if you’re looking to keep it simple.
• Capterra has both monthly and annual breakdowns in their Excel download. It’s straightforward, thorough, and fairly foolproof.
• Google Sheets has plenty of budget templates hiding right under your nose. They’re easy to use, and they translate your figures into clear tables and charts on a concise, visual summary page.
• Smartsheet has multiple resources for small businesses, including 12-month budget spreadsheets, department budget templates, projection templates, project-by-project templates, and startup templates. These templates are ideal if you’re looking for a little more detail.
• Scott’s Marketplace is a blog for small businesses. Their budget template comes with step-by-step instructions that make it dead simple for anyone.
• Vertex42 focuses on Excel spreadsheets and offers templates for both product-based and service-based businesses, as well as a business startup costs template for anyone launching a new business.

Budgeting + bookkeeping = a match made in heaven

Making a budget is kind of like dreaming: it’s mostly pretend. But when you can start pulling on accurate historical financials to plan the upcoming year, and when you can check your budget against real numbers, that’s when budgets start to become useful.

The only way to get accurate financial data is through consistent bookkeeping.

Don’t have a regular bookkeeping process down pat? Check out our free guide, Bookkeeping Basics for Entrepreneurs . We’ll walk you through everything you need to know to get going yourself, for free.

If you need a bit more help, get in touch with us. Bookkeeping isn’t for everyone, especially when you’re also trying to stay on top of a growing business—but at Bench, bookkeeping is what we do best.

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The Complete Guide To Business Budgeting and Budget Management

Running a business without a budget opens oneself up to a host of financial problems, including failure. But what is a business budget and what does budgeting mean?

At its core, a business budget lets companies know how much money they have, how much they’ve spent, and how much they need for future initiatives. With budgeting, business owners can stay out of debt, reduce costs, earn profits, and make decisions aimed at growing their business. This is true for both large and small businesses.

This article takes a deep dive into business budgets, types of budgets, the meaning of budgeting and why it is essential business practice. 

What is a business budget?

A budget is a detailed, formal spending plan for a business for a specified time period (a month, quarter, or year). It is a forward-looking document estimating a company’s expenses and revenue within that period. A budget provides the necessary information for a business to fund and fulfil its commitments and make a profit while making sure it has money left over for unexpected expenses and future ventures.

Components of a budget

Understanding a business budget requires a clear understanding of its components: ‍

‍ This is the projected income from sales, investments, or other sources. This estimate is usually based on past financial records or, in the case of a new business, from the revenue of rival companies. While estimating revenue, it is important to take note of lean periods when business and revenue are down and factor in a financial cushion to tide over them. ‍

2. Expenses

‍ This component is split into:

• Fixed costs , or expenses that remain constant, such as rent, lease, utilities, salaries, insurance, legal and accounting fees.   
• Variable costs , or production-dependent fluctuating expenses, such as raw material prices, labour costs, packaging charges, shipping and transportation fees.  
• One-time expenses , such as money spent on a new building, furniture, equipment, software, or product patent.

‍ This is what is left after subtracting estimated costs from revenue. Profit is key to making  investment decisions. ‍

4. Cash flow

This is money that flows in (income) and out (expenses) of a business and helps companies predict future earnings. It is important to know not only how much money is coming in or going out but also when (peak and lean seasons) to make the right projections.

Some people might confuse a business budget with a cash flow statement because both track how money travels in and out of a company. The difference is that a cash flow statement is a summary of the movement of money while a budget serves a greater purpose as a tool for decision-making.

Types of budgets

There are different types of budgets in use, depending on the size, resources, and market position of businesses. A company typically has a Master Budget , which presents a broad overview of its finances. Within the Master Budget are multiple lower-level budgets.

Budgets might be specific to a department, subsidiary, or project. Depending on the time frame, they can also be long-term or short-term. Annual budgets are the norm but many companies also have monthly and quarterly budgets. Similarly, a business can use a long-term budget to plan financial goals three, five, or even 10 years down the line.

Then there are static and flexible budgets. With fixed revenue and expense estimates, a static budget isn’t affected by ups and downs in sales. It is mostly used by organisations with fixed funds, such as government agencies and non-profits. A flexible budget, on the other hand, adjusts to changes in production and sales volumes or external economic factors. It is ideal for businesses that are new or seasonal or have varying income.

What does budgeting mean?

A search online will result in various budgeting meanings. But to put it simply, budgeting is the process of preparing and using a budget. It is also called budget management or spend management . Budgeting means analysing data specific to the business as well as historical and current market trends to make informed business decisions. These decisions can range from the marketing strategies to be deployed for a venture to plans to expand the business into overseas markets. For small businesses, intelligent budgeting helps them use their modest financial resources to make the most of a business opportunity.

Five stages of budget management

1. financial analysis.

‍ Budget planners must have keen analytical skills to ensure projections are accurate and goals realistic. By researching company records and market conditions, they must accurately determine the company’s financial health and use that knowledge to make good business decisions.

2. Financial forecasting

‍ Financial forecasting helps companies predict their performance in a pre-determined future by providing valuable insights into, say, areas where they might incur extra expenses or where investments should be added or removed altogether. ‍

3. Budget preparation

‍ At this stage, a company determines its revenue, expenses, and profit, breaking these down by month, quarter, and year. It also sets goals and takes important decisions (such as identifying high-priority goals and projects that require maximum funding). It is good practice to set aside an emergency fund to account for unexpected challenges.

4. Budget implementation

‍ Many businesses fail to do this as they find their budgets restrictive. However, they must remember that a budget improves financial control. If a company struggles to implement its budget despite having the will to do so, it might be because the spend management plan has shortcomings that need to be examined.

5. Budget evaluation

‍ Companies mustn’t forget to go back to their budgets periodically to check if the actual numbers match the projections. This will lead to necessary revisions and keep the budget relevant. Regular reviews also ensure budgets change with the way a business evolves.

Components of a growing company’s budget

At the top is the Master Budget, which has two components, the Operating Budget and the Financial Budget. These, in turn, are broken down into sub-budgets:

1. Operating Budget

‍ It presents an overview of a company’s projected income for a period, usually up to a year. Its objective is to set financial goals and check the results. An operating budget can be created every month or quarter and relies on the following sub-budgets:

Sales Budget

‍ It lists the expected product units, per unit price, and total revenue expected from their sale. To arrive at these estimates, budget planners depend primarily on feedback from salespeople and to a lesser extent on other information sources such as the state of the economy and pricing policies. The Sales Budget – also called a Sales Forecast or Revenue Budget – is the first step in preparing the Master Budget.   ‍

Production Budget

‍ The next step is to determine the number of product units to be produced, taking into account the number of units already in stock and the final number that is needed. This is the only budget to be stated in unit terms instead of dollar terms. Companies use the Production Budget to adjust production levels. 

Direct Materials Purchases Budget

‍ Next comes the materials purchase budget, which states how much additional raw material is required to produce the projected number of items and how much this will cost.

Direct Labour Budget

‍ Production requires manpower and the labour budget specifies the number of work hours and workers required and their cost.

Overhead Budget

‍ Excluding direct materials and direct labour expenses, the Overhead Budget accounts for all other production-related costs – for use of machinery, equipment and factory premises; for indirect materials such as machine parts and safety devices for workers; for indirect labour such as supervisors and security wages; and compliance charges related to government regulations on safety, emissions, and hazardous material.

Administrative Expenses Budget

‍ It details the administrative expenses related to the production and sale of goods, such as employee salaries and benefits, taxes, expenses associated with buying office supplies and hiring professional advisors and consultants, and so on.

Ending Finished Goods Inventory Budget

‍ It helps set the per unit product price based on material, labour, and overhead costs.

Cost of Goods Sold Budget

‍ This budget details direct expenses incurred on producing a company’s goods. It includes direct costs for raw materials and labour and excludes indirect expenses such as those associated with distributing the goods or hiring sales personnel to sell them.

Budgeted Income Statement

‍ Combining information provided in the eight sub-budgets, this is a statement of a company’s net income – the earnings left after deducting the cost of goods sold, other expenses, taxes, and interests – for the budget period.

2. Financial Budget

‍ The second component of the Master Budget, the Financial Budget serves as a strategic plan for managing a company’s assets, liabilities, income, expenses, cash flow, and investments. It helps companies arrive at their net profit (earnings minus operating costs, taxes, and interest) at the end of the budgeting process. The Financial Budget is mostly used by larger firms to carry out long-term plans, but it can be invaluable to small and growing businesses as it presents a clear view of their financial resources, which can greatly help in decision-making. Like the Operating Budget, the Financial Budget is split into sub-budgets:

Capital Expenditures Budget

‍ It is a list of expenses incurred on the purchase and maintenance of fixed assets such as machinery, equipment, and plants. Most small and growing businesses don’t own their own factories and, therefore, have conservative capital expenditures. A typical Capital Expenditures Budget for a growing business might include money spent on buying software or leasing equipment.

Cash Budget

‍ This is of special interest to small and medium businesses, which typically operate on cash. Usually prepared on a monthly basis, a Cash Budget tells companies how much money they have (net working capital) at the month-end. They also pinpoint areas where the company might be overspending or underspending. 

Budgeted Balance Sheet

A statement of expected assets and liabilities at the end of the budget period. It is drawn from information provided in the Capital Expenditures, Cash, and Operating Budgets.

Additionally, many growing businesses have department-specific budgets such as an IT budget (hardware, software, personnel, outsourcing costs), HR budget (recruitment, training, learning and development, salaries and benefits), and a marketing budget (advertising, social media, and website development).    

Develop your business budget with our monthly budget Excel template

Now that we’ve covered the components of a business budget, learn to make one for your small business. This monthly budget Excel template is the perfect place to start. Input your own data into the budget template to turn it into a customised spend plan for your future endeavours, whether it is increasing sales or launching a new product. Need a marketing budget template on the double? This easy-to-use Excel template can be your guide to creating the perfect business budget. 

5 budgeting benefits for small businesses

1. meeting financial goals.

‍ All companies have financial goals – from cutting costs to increasing investments. Attaining its financial goals means a company has succeeded. But without a budget, it might not know if these goals were fulfilled at all. Another way budgeting helps businesses set and achieve goals is by replacing guesswork with accurate information and insights, maybe about opportunities waiting to be explored that they didn’t know about.

2. Ready for emergencies

‍ In business as in life, one must plan for the unexpected. Budgeting does just that. Take the Covid-19 pandemic, which saw scores of businesses shut shop. Those that survived probably had a little fund cushion to fall back on. As previously mentioned, setting aside a contingency fund is crucial in budget management. It can help companies tide over emergencies like economic recessions and even the general unpredictability of running a small business.

3. Planning ahead

‍ Running a business without a budget is like flying blind. Not knowing where its money is coming from or going can make companies incapable of making long-term commitments to customers/suppliers or taking advantage of opportunities. It can also deal a death blow to expansion dreams. Surely, no small business wants to stay small forever. ‍

4. Being debt-free

‍ With few financial resources, small companies rely on external funding to keep the business running. Failure to pay their debts can lead to loss of reputation and shut down funding avenues. To avoid this fate, businesses must meet monthly or quarterly repayment obligations and set these in their budget management plans.

5. Better decision-making

‍ To make any business decision, an organisation needs to know how much money it can allocate for that purpose. For instance, can it afford to offer employees a raise or hire advisors to improve productivity? With the clarity a budget provides, such decisions aren’t that difficult to make. From wise allocation of resources to knowing the right time to scale up operations, small businesses have much to gain from the improved decision-making budgeting brings.

5 risks of not having a budget

1. spending money you don’t have.

‍ Budgets help businesses forecast spending, keep up with payments, manage cash flow smoothly, and inject efficiency into expense management (employee-initiated expenses). Without a budget, a company might be spending money it doesn’t have, resulting in debt and worse.

2. Denial of funding

‍ Banks and other financial institutions won’t lend to a company unless it has a budget detailing where the funds will be invested and how revenue will be raised to repay the debt. For the same reason, investors won’t put their money in a business unless they see a spend management document. For small businesses, a lack of funding doesn’t just put the lid on expansion plans. It could very well put the survival of the business on the line. 

3. Poor product pricing

‍ Companies price their products on the basis of what they need to spend to produce them. Without the accurate cost estimates budgeting provides, they might not be setting optimal prices for profitable products. Or, they might be wasting their resources on products with insignificant profit margins.

4. Failed commitments and unhappy clients

‍ Without proper spend management, small businesses may run out of funds and fail to deliver on their commitments, leading to unhappy clients who won’t think twice before moving to more competent rivals. Such a loss of reputation can be permanently damaging for small companies and start-ups. 

5. Helpless in changing conditions

‍ Doing business is fraught with challenges and changes. It isn’t possible to predict every change but a budget gives businesses the flexibility to adjust quickly – perhaps, by cutting costs in the face of a sudden dip in sales. On the other hand, the absence of a budget makes businesses less agile and incapable of adapting to change.

How budgeting works – the methods

Are you a start-up, a small business, or a large corporation? The size of a business is one of many factors determining what budgeting methodology works best for you. Others include spend patterns, sales performances, and scale of resources.

• Incremental budgeting: This involves adjusting your previous budget by an increment or percentage to arrive at your current budget. It suits established businesses with historical data and companies whose funding patterns aren’t subject to sudden changes. Incremental budgeting is easy, uncomplicated, and common practice. But it can promote unnecessary spending and doesn’t account for external factors (changing market conditions). ‍
• Zero-based budgeting: Here, a business creates a fresh budget from scratch, assuming it begins at zero. Each dollar requested must therefore be justified. Zero-based budgeting is ideal for companies of all sizes, but particularly for those that want to focus on specific goals. It ensures resources are allocated efficiently and unnecessary expenses curbed. However, the process can be time-consuming. ‍
• Value proposition budgeting: This method lies midway between incremental and zero-based budgeting. It determines whether the value created from a product for the company and its stakeholders, including customers, justifies the cost of producing it. By helping companies prioritise products with high customer value, it helps reduce unnecessary expenses. As such, it is considered a good fit for small businesses. ‍
• Activity-based budgeting: It analyses activities – any activity that incurs a cost – to predict expenses. With activity-based budgeting, companies can pinpoint where each dollar goes, making it easier to cut costs where feasible and predict how much profit can be earned. On the flip side, this type of budgeting is time-consuming, expensive, and requires expert analysts. It is commonly used by large companies with considerable revenue. ‍
• Cash flow budgeting: As the name suggests, this method estimates how much cash flows in and out of a business over a specific period. This insight helps businesses use allocated funds wisely, ensuring there is enough to maintain day-to-day operations and also a little left over at the end of the budget period. Cash flow budgeting is suitable for all businesses, but it might be difficult for companies with thin profit margins. ‍
• Surplus budgeting: This comes into play when the estimated revenue exceeds total expenditure, resulting in a surplus. Surplus budgeting helps companies make prudent use of this surplus – for example, should it be used to grow the business or put aside for use during an emergency?

Budgeting methods can also vary according to the type of accounting used:

• Cash accounting: This method records income only after it has been received in the company bank account and expenses after the money has left the account. ‍
• Accrual accounting: Here, revenue is recorded when it is earned, not when it enters the bank account. Similarly, expenses are recorded when they are billed, not when money leaves the account.

Principles of successful budgeting

To come up with a well-thought-out budget, business owners must stand by these principles:  

Be realistic

‍ Set goals that can be reasonably achieved. Similarly, make sure the company doesn’t overestimate its projected income. Inaccurate projections not only cause operational problems but also harm a company’s credibility.

Be flexible

‍ Running a business can be unpredictable and budgets should be built to adapt to changing conditions. Whether it is an unexpected spike in raw material prices or a sudden shortage of shipping containers (which much of the world witnessed in 2021), make sure your budget has the elbow room to account for the unexpected. Again, earmarking savings for an emergency fund should be a golden rule of budgeting, if it isn’t already.

Be accurate

‍ A budget must be accurate when it comes to tracking expenses – especially purchases made in cash, which are often the biggest source of budget leaks. A budget that doesn’t account for every dollar will present a distorted expenditure estimate, which can endanger the entire budgeting process.

Be inclusive

‍ When a company holds its employees responsible for results, it should also include them in budget preparation and seek their opinion at the goal-setting stage. By incorporating their work experience and knowledge in the budget, employers can significantly increase their chances of success and boost their commitment to work.

Hold regular reviews

‍ Weekly, monthly, quarterly or yearly, a company’s financial goals and budgets must be revisited periodically to ensure the results match the projections. The review process should be standardised and a team set aside for it. Evaluations require manpower, time, and effort, but they are the only way to ensure the budget is fulfilling its function.

Be a budgeting pro with Aspire

Budgeting for business can be difficult, but Aspire can help you take effective control of your company spend. In tune with the industry best practices stated in this article, our budgeting solutions include:

• Spend limits and notifications to prevent overspending
• Real-time visibility into all company expenses
• Delegation of budget owners within teams for better accountability
• Automated receipt reminders, seamless uploading, and easily available transaction records
• Integrated accounting software for error-free transactions
• Interest-free credit for all those times you need ready cash. 

Click here to get started or to speak with an expert.

‍ Download this article as an e-book:  The Complete Guide to Business Budgeting and Budget Management

Frequently Asked Questions

How to create a business budget

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Key takeaways

• A business budget is a financial plan that helps estimate a company's revenue and expenses, making it an essential tool for small businesses
• The steps to creating a business budget include choosing budget and accounting software, listing expenses and forecasting revenue
• If a business finds itself in a budget deficit, strategies such as cutting costs, negotiating with suppliers and diversifying revenue streams can help

As a small business owner, keeping your finances organized through a business budget is crucial to running a successful company.

Business budgeting involves creating a financial plan that estimates future revenue and expenses to make informed financial decisions, which can ultimately move the needle on your business’s financial goals and help it grow in profitability.

What is a business budget?

A business budget is a financial plan that outlines the company’s current revenue and expenses. The budget also forecasts expected revenue that can be used for future business activities, such as purchasing equipment. It sets targets for your business’s revenue, expenses and profit and helps you determine if you’ll have more money coming in than you pay out.

A business budget is an essential tool that helps you make wise business decisions. Without it, it’s difficult to gauge your business’s financial health.

What is the difference between a cash flow statement and a business budget?

A cash flow statement  (CFS) is a financial document that summarizes the movement of cash coming in and going out of a company. The CFS gauges how effectively a company manages its finances, including how it manages debt responsibilities and funds day-to-day operations.

It’s similar to a business budget in that you can see expenses and revenue. But while a budget gives a moment-in-time snapshot of your business’s financial performance compared to forecasts, the cash flow statement focuses on the actual inflows and outflows of money through your business.

Follow these steps to ensure a well-developed budget, from understanding your expenses to generating revenue and adjusting expenses to balance the budget.

1. Choose a budget and accounting software

First, you’ll want to store your expense and revenue information with accounting software to help you track your numbers and generate reports. Some software may also help you assign categories to the transactions, identify tax deductions and file taxes. Quickbooks is an example of accounting software.

Some business bank accounts also have accounting software built in, helping you stay organized by keeping your accounting and banking in one place.

2. List your business expenses

The next step in creating a small business budget is to list all your business expenses. Here are the types of expenses you want to include in your budget:

• Fixed expenses: Fixed expenses cost a fixed amount monthly or within the assessed period. Those costs include rent, insurance, salaries and loan payments.
• Variable expenses: Variable expenses can change monthly or over time, making them trickier to budget. This might include materials, direct labor, utility bills or marketing expenses.
• Annual or one-time costs: Some costs only occur a few times per year, while others you’ll only pay for as needed, such as buying new equipment. You still want to budget for these expenses by allocating a portion of your weekly or monthly budget toward one-time expenses.
• Contingency funds: Unexpected business costs can throw a wrench in your budget if not planned for. Such costs could include emergency repairs, necessary equipment purchases, sudden tax increases or unforeseen legal fees. To plan for these costs, you can create a contingency or emergency fund that’s separate from your operational budget.
• Maintenance costs: To allocate funds for maintenance costs, begin by including regular inspections and maintenance in your budget. Then, make sure to leave room for changes and unexpected maintenance costs.

3. Forecast your revenue

To estimate your future revenue, start by deciding on a timeline for your forecast. A good place to start is the previous 12 months. Your accounting software may also include revenue forecasting as one of its features, which can automate this step for you.

The timeline and your recent past growth can help you understand how much revenue you’ll generate in the future. Consider external factors that could drive revenue growth, such as planned business activities like expansion, marketing campaigns or new product launches.

You’ll also want to think about anything that might slow your growth. Many businesses experience seasonal fluctuations, which can impact your budget if you don’t plan for it. To account for these changes, list the minimum expenses required to keep your business running. Use your financial statements to understand these costs, and consider averaging out irregular expenses over the year to avoid surprises.

Ideally, your business should build a cash reserve during profitable periods to cover expenses during slower seasons. If necessary, consider various financing options, such as a business credit card or line of credit, that you can draw from to manage cash flow during peak or off times.

4. Calculate your profits

The next step in creating a business budget is to calculate your business profits. You can look at your total profits by calculating revenue minus expenses. That way, you see how much money you have to work with, called your working capital .

You should also understand your profit margins for each of your products and services, which can help you set prices or decide whether to offer a new product or service.

How to calculate your profit margins

To find out your gross profit margin, you’ll first need to calculate the gross profit. To calculate your business’s gross profit, subtract the cost of goods sold (COGS) from your total revenue. COGS includes all the expenses related to producing your products and services.

Once you have the gross profit, use the gross profit margin formula: (Revenue – COGS) / Revenue x 100. This will give you a percentage that shows how much profit you gain from that particular product after accounting for the product’s costs.

5. Make a strategy for your working capital

Knowing what to do with extra revenue, which is your working capital, is crucial for managing your business finances and growth. Here’s how to get started with a financial strategy that propels your business goals forward:

• Set spending limits for different categories in your budget. When listing your expenses, you should have set a dollar amount for each category. You can estimate this by a monthly average or a general forecasted amount.
• Set realistic short- and long-term goals. These goals will motivate you to stick to your budget and guide your spending decisions.
• Compare your actual spending with your net income and priorities. Look at the areas you’re spending and consider whether you need to reallocate money to different categories. Consider separating expenses into business needs and extras.
• Adjust your budget and actual spending. Adjust your spending to ensure you do not overspend and can allocate money towards your goals. If you need to cut spending, consider the categories that are extras, such as types of marketing that you don’t know will generate a return on investment.

6. Review your budget and forecasts regularly

Finally, review your budget regularly. By frequently checking in on your budget, you can identify any discrepancies between your planned and actual expenses and adjust accordingly. This allows you to proactively handle any financial issues that may arise rather than reacting to them after they’ve become a problem.

Regular reviews also allow you to refine your budgeting process and improve its accuracy over time. Keep in mind that your budget is not set in stone but rather a tool to guide your financial decisions and help you achieve your business goals.

What to do if you have a deficit in your business budget

Finding a deficit in your small business budget can be alarming, but there are several strategies you can employ to handle this situation.

• Do a cash flow analysis. Begin by doing a cash flow analysis to review what your business is earning and spending money on. Identify potential problems and adjust the budget as needed to prevent overspending.
• Cut nonessential business costs. Cutting spending may involve eliminating nonessential costs and transferring funds from other categories to overspent categories. Your goal is a balanced or profitable budget.
• Negotiate with suppliers. Be transparent in your communications with suppliers and explain your quality standards and why you’re seeking cost reduction. Explore options for cost reduction that do not compromise quality, such as process improvements or ordering in larger quantities.
• Create a lean business model. By removing anything that doesn’t benefit your customer, your business can potentially save time and resources. Lean business models focus on continually improving processes and customer experience without adding additional resources, time or funds.
• Add revenue and diversify revenue streams. Raising revenue requires a realistic plan with measurable goals to increase sales and overall business income. You can also consider other products and services you could offer that would make your business profitable.
• Use financing to cover temporary gaps. Applying for a small business loan can help pay bills during an unplanned shortfall. Since this will add an expense to your budget, make sure you can handle the loan repayments and your regular expenses.
• Plan for a deficit. In some cases, a planned budget deficit might be a strategic decision, such as investing in new opportunities that promise long-term benefits.

Bottom line

Having a well-developed business budget is crucial for making informed decisions. You can effectively manage your small business’s finances by tracking and analyzing your business’s inflows and outflows, forecasting your expected revenue and adjusting your budget to stay balanced.

Even in the face of a budget deficit, there are various strategies you can use to keep your business profitable, including negotiating costs with your suppliers, assessing your business operations and offering new products and services.

With a solid business budget in place, you can confidently navigate financial challenges and drive long-term success for your small business.

Frequently asked questions

What are the benefits of a business budget, what are the components of a business budget, how do you calculate fixed and variable costs in a business budget.

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What Is a Business Budget?

Definition & Examples of a Business Budget

Susan Ward wrote about small businesses for The Balance for 18 years. She has run an IT consulting firm and designed and presented courses on how to promote small businesses.

How a Business Budget Works

Do i need a business budget, example of a business budget template.

A business budget estimates an organization's revenue and expenses over a specific period of time.

Learn more about how a business budget works and get an example of one.

A business budget provides an accurate picture of expenditures and revenues and should drive important business decisions such as whether to increase marketing, cut expenses, hire staff, purchase equipment, and improve efficiencies in other ways. It also outlines your organization's financial and operational goals, so it may be thought of as an action plan that helps you allocate resources, evaluate performances, and formulate plans.

The basic process of planning a budget involves listing your business's fixed and variable costs on a monthly basis and then deciding on the allocation of funds to reflect goals.

Businesses often use special types of budgets to assess specific areas of operation. A cash flow budget, for example, projects your business's cash inflows and outflows over a certain period of time. Its main use is to predict your business's ability to take in more cash than it pays out.

Most businesses have fixed costs that are independent of sales revenue, such as:

• Building or office eases or mortgage costs 
• Loan payments (if using debt financing )
• Vehicle leases (or loan payments if the vehicle is purchased)
• Equipment (machinery, tools, computers, etc.)
• Payroll (if employees are on salary)
• Utilities such as landline phone and internet charges 

Variable costs increase or decrease according to the level of business activity. Examples include:

• Contractors ' wages or commissions (for salespeople)
• Utilities such as electricity, gas, or water that increase with activity 
• Raw materials
• Shipping and delivery costs
• Advertising (can be fixed or variable)
• Maintenance and repair of equipment

It is important to be realistic with your budget projections. If in doubt, be conservative and overestimate your expenses and underestimate your revenues. It is particularly difficult if you are starting a new business and have no previous year's budget figures to guide your estimates. In this case, it is typically much easier to estimate expenses than revenues.

As the budget year progresses the estimates should be updated monthly with actual figures, enabling you to check the accuracy of your forecasts. Note that there often are radical differences between actual and projected revenues and expenses due to unforeseen business circumstances and/or changing business and economic cycles, such as:

• Gaining or losing a major client
• Having to purchase or replace expensive equipment
• An increase in rent
• Hiring employees
• An increase in competition
• Changes in the tax code

If you own a business, then you need a budget.

A budget is an essential part of a  business plan and is necessary for starting a new business . It plays an important role in determining your start-up and operating costs. Once your business is established, budgeting becomes a regular task that normally occurs on a quarterly or annual basis.

Without a budget, you may not know how your business is performing.

Having a comprehensive budget is a requirement for obtaining business loans from financial institutions or seeking equity funding from investors .

A simple business budget template includes expenses common to most small businesses. You can use and modify a template as required to suit your own business, filling out your own information where applicable. Your completed budget might look something like this:

Many budgets also include actual figures going back several quarters or years as a comparison for what is being projected for the upcoming quarter or year. Most accounting software has options for budgeting/forecasting.

Key Takeaways

• A business budget estimates an organization's revenue and expenses over a specific period of time and drives important business decisions. 
• Businesses often use special types of budgets to assess specific areas of operation. 
• Budgets help companies understand start-up and operating costs and track performance.
• Most budgets include fixed and variable income and expenses.

Business Budget: What is it & Why is it important?

According to a survey conducted by Clutch , 61 percent of small businesses have not created a formal budget. Without a budget, you may not understand how your business is performing.

Creating a budget helps you understand how much money you have, how much you have spent, and how much money you will need in the future. A budget can drive important business decisions like cutting down on unwanted expenses, increasing staff, or purchasing new equipment. If you end up with insufficient money, the budget can guide you in altering your business plan or prioritizing your spending on activities.

With the right budgeting plan, you can keep your business out of debt or find ways to reduce the debt it is currently facing.  A comprehensive budget can even be used for obtaining business loans from banks or other financial institutions.

In this guide, you will learn about the importance of a business budget, the components of a good budget, and the different types of budgets.

So, what exactly is a business budget?

A business budget is a spending plan for your business based on your income and expenses. It identifies your available capital, estimates your spending, and helps you predict revenue.

A budget can help you plan your business activities and can act as a yardstick for setting up financial goals. It can help you tackle both short-term obstacles and long-term planning.

Different types of budgets

Your final budget is usually a combination of inputs from several other budgets that are prepared at a departmental level. Let’s look at the different types of budget and how they contribute to drafting a business plan.

1. Master budget

A master budget is an aggregation of lower-level budgets created by the different functional areas in an organization. It uses inputs from financial statements, the cash forecast, and the financial plan. Management teams use master budgets to plan the activities they need to achieve their business goals. In larger organizations, the senior management is responsible for creating several iterations of the master budget before it is finalized. Once it has been reviewed for the final time, funds can be allocated for specific business activities.

Smaller businesses often use spreadsheets to create their master budgets, but replacing the spreadsheets with efficient budgeting software typically reduces errors.

2. Operating budget

An operating budget shows a business’s projected revenue and the expenses associated with it for a period of time. It’s very similar to a profit and loss report. It includes fixed cost, variable cost, capital costs, and non-operating expenses. Although this budget is a high-level summary report, each line item is backed up with relevant details. This information is useful for checking whether the business is spending according to its plans.

In most organizations, the management prepares this budget at the beginning of each year. The document is updated throughout the year, either monthly or quarterly, and can be used as a forecast for consecutive years.

3. Cash budget

A cash flow budget gives you an estimate of the money that comes in or goes out of a business for a specific period in time. Organizations create cash budgets using inferences from sales forecasts and production, and by estimating the payables and receivables.

The information in this budget can help you evaluate whether you have enough liquid cash for operating, whether your money is being used productively, and whether there is and whether you are on track to earn a profit .

4. Financial budget

Businesses draft this budget to understand how much capital they’ll need and at what times for fulfilling short-term and long-term needs. It factors in assets, liabilities, and stakeholder’s equity—the important components of a balance sheet , which give you an overall idea of your business health.

5. Labor budget

For any business that is planning on hiring employees to achieve its goals, a labor budget will be important. It helps you determine the workforce you will require to achieve your goals so you can plan the payroll for all of those employees. In addition to planning regular staffing, it also helps you allocate expenses for seasonal workers.

6. Static budget

As the name suggests, this budget is an estimate of revenue and expenses that will remain fixed throughout the year. The line items in this budget can be used as goals to meet regardless of any increases or decreases in sales. Static budgets are usually prepared by nonprofits, educational institutions, or government bodies that have been allocated a fixed amount to use for their activities in each area.

Components of a budget

If you are starting a new business, the first budget you create might be a challenge, but it is a good learning experience and a good way to understand what works best for your business. The best place to start is getting to know your budget components. Initially you may need to make several assumptions to get your budget started.

1. Estimated revenue

This is the money you expect your business to make from the sale of goods and services.  There are two main components of estimated revenue: sales forecast and estimated cost of goods sold or services rendered. If your business is more than a year old, then your experience will guide you in estimating these components. If your business is new, you can check the revenue of similar local businesses and use those figures to conservatively create some estimated revenue numbers. But whether your business is new or old, it is important to stay realistic to avoid over-estimating.

2. Fixed cost

When your business pays the same amount regularly for a particular expense, that is classified as a fixed cost . Some examples of fixed costs include building rent, mortgage/utility payments, employee salaries, internet service, accounting services, and insurance premiums. Factoring these expenses into the budget is important so that you can set aside the exact amount of money required to cover these expenses. They can also be a good reference point to check for problems if your business finances aren’t going as planned.

3. Variable costs

This category includes the cost of goods or services that can fluctuate based on your business success. For example, let us assume you have a product in the market that is gaining popularity. The next thing you would like to do is manufacture more of that product. The costs of the raw materials required for production, the distribution channels used for supplying the product, and the production labor will all change when you increase production, so they will all be considered variable expenses.

4. One-time expenses

These are one-off, unexpected costs that your business might incur in any given year. Some examples of these costs include replacing broken furniture or purchasing a laptop.

Since it is difficult to predict these expenses, there is no certain way to estimate for them. But it’s wise to set aside some cash for this category to stay prepared.

5. Cash flow

This is the money that travels in and out of the business. You can get an idea of it from your previous financial records and use that information to forecast your earnings for the year you’re budgeting for. You’ll want to pay attention not only to how much money is coming in, but also when. If your business has a peak season and a dry season, knowing when your cash flow is highest will help you plan when to make large purchases or investments.

The final budget component is profit, which is a number you arrive at by subtracting your estimated cost from revenue. An increase in profit means your business is growing, which is a good sign. Once you have projected how much profit you are likely to make in a year, you’ll be able to decide how much to invest in each functional area of your organization. For example, will you use your profit to invest in advertising or marketing to drive more sales?

A budget is a road map for your business. It helps you predict cash flow, identify functional areas that need improvement, and run your operations smoothly. Successful businesses invest a lot of time and effort into creating realistic budgets, because they’re an efficient way of tracking the extent to which the business has achieved its goals. Creating a budget can get a bit overwhelming for new businesses as there are no previous figures to guide their budget estimates, but with some estimates based on the performance of competitors and an understanding of the components of a budget, you can complete your first budget and have a good road map for future budgets.

Related Posts

• Cash Flow Statement - Definition and Importance
• How to Create a Business Budget for Your Small Business
• Income statement - Definition, Importance and Example

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may I have more materials for budgeting?

Hey Patricia,

While we appreciate suggestions from our readers, we just wanted to let you know there’s more coming up on budgeting. However, besides this article, there’s another one on – How to create a business budget for your small business. Hope it’s insightful.

Has helped me learn a few things about types of budgets

I love this article. It is very helpful. I am interested in knowing which budgeting softwares are efficient when you say,” Smaller businesses often use spreadsheets to create their master budgets, but replacing the spreadsheets with efficient budgeting software typically reduces errors.” I am looking for one software for my company!

Thank you. Respectfully,

Hi Nilamba!

Budgeting is one of the important features in Zoho Books.

A few key highlights of Zoho Books include: 1. Management of vendors and customers. 2. Creating Estimates, Sales orders and Invoices. 3. Managing your Expenses, Bills, Purchase Orders. 4. Collaborative Client Portal through which your clients can easily view all their transactions and also make payments. 5. Integrations with other Zoho apps. 6. Integrations with Online payment gateways 7. Automated Bank feeds. 8. Exhaustive Reports and much more… It is available as a mobile app on Android, iOS and Windows as well. Please do write to us at [email protected] and we will be happy to explain how Zoho Books will be a great fit for your business.

Thanks you for the level of understanding on this topic but I need new materials as technology advance.

Thank you for the information, it’s great help.

Excellent and easily elaborated..

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Budget vs. Forecast: Key Differences You Need to Know

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For businesses, it’s critical to have an accurate budget and an accurate forecast. This is especially true of small businesses where a single accounting oversight can leave a business owner strapped for cash or, worse, having to let an employee go.

Are you scratching your head right now? If you have always thought of your business budget and your business forecast as one and the same, you’re not alone. Forecasts and budgets are two different, yet equally important, financial animals. Here's what you need to know.

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What's the difference between a budget vs. a forecast?

The difference between a budget and a forecast is that a business's budget is a plan that its management sets to determine how they want to grow the company. A budget doesn't predict what will happen but sets a plan for what the business owner wants to happen. A forecast, on the other hand, estimates the future financial progress and outcomes of the business. Management teams use historical data and growth rates to forecast what the business's financials will look like in the future.

Business budgets 101

A budget sums up a business's goals for the upcoming year. Think of it as a plan of action over a certain amount of time. In a budget, costs and revenue are input into a spreadsheet.

When it comes to creating a budget, remember that a budget should:

Consider the expected demand for products and services.

Take a company’s highest priorities and arrange the appropriate resources to cover those priorities.

Show potential problems early enough that a company can take action.

Have a baseline to show against the actual results.

Different types of budgets include:

Sales budget.

Production budget.

Marketing budget.

Project budget.

Why should you create a budget?

A budget is a key management tool for small business owners. When you think of budgets vs. forecasts, think of a budget as a plan: It helps you map out where you want to be in the next one, two, or five years.

You set your business budget with the help of your forecast (after all, you don't want to budget for financial growth that won't really happen based on historical performance), execute on your plan and compare your actual progress against what you planned for in your business budget.

Setting and sticking to a budget is a great way to make sure that your team is always investing in the things you've decided will make you successful and make real progress to that goal.

Forecasts 101

Forecasts are more abstract in the sense that they are working from historical data to project or predict what might happen in the future. They also look at current and future possibilities as a way of safeguarding a business.

Like we mentioned above, a budget uses these predictions in order to fiscally prepare should they happen. Following a budget is an obligation for a small business, while they are not obligated to follow a forecast. People divide forecasting into two different types:

Judgment forecasting —Judgment forecasting utilizes only your intuition and experience to surmise what might happen in the near future. It is best used when there is no historical data to work from like for new product launches.

Quantitative forecasting —This type of forecasting uses large amounts of data to derive the most likely situations that a small business might face. It relies on repeated patterns in order to come to its conclusions.

Using both judgment forecasting and quantitative forecasting allows a small business to get the most accurate take on what the fiscal year might bring.

We also recommended that you use at least two, ideally three forecasts. These different forecasts should account for the best possible growth, the worst possible growth and "okay" growth. Looking at this can help you understand just how fast you're growing.

Why should you use a forecast?

As we mentioned above, you don't want to waste time budgeting for financial and business growth that will never really happen. A forecast helps you ground your predictions in reality by taking past financial growth and projecting that growth in the future.

A forecast also helps you react to change in a way that a budget does not. For instance, if your business typically has a slow month, a forecast will show you that in the numbers. Or, if you have forecasted your growth based on retaining a large client and that client for some reason is no longer using your services, you can quickly adjust your forecast to compensate for the loss.

This article originally appeared on Fundera, a subsidiary of NerdWallet.

Jennifer Dunn also contributed to this article.

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10 Types of Business Budgets to Keep Track of Your Company’s Cash

Your small business budget is an important tool for your company. It guides your spending habits throughout the year, helps you avoid overspending, and helps you make important financial decisions. But, budgets aren’t one-size-fits-all. Every business’s budget looks a little different. And, there are a number of different types of business budgets to keep on your radar.

10 Types of business budgets

Business budgets are kind of like snowflakes. Each business has its own unique budget that they need to stick to. And, some businesses may have a set of different business budgets to keep track of. So, what are the types of budgets in business? Find out for yourself below.

1. Operating budget

An operating budget , or operational budget, consists of all expenses and revenues your business expects to use for its operations. Your operating budget outlines the funds your company needs to operate efficiently.

Generally, operating budgets break down things like fixed and variable costs , revenue, and other expenses. Like with all budget types in business, operating budgets can vary depending on the business and its operations.

In most cases, your operating budget is a combination of a few other budgets, including:

• Direct materials
• Direct labor
• General and administrative expenses

2. Cash flow budget

One of the biggest components of business budgeting is managing and forecasting cash flow . Your cash flow , or cash, budget gives you a prediction of the money that comes in or goes out of a business during a certain period of time (e.g., a year).

Your cash flow budget can help you make important financial decisions, detect issues, and prevent overspending.

The goal of your cash budget is to ensure there is enough money coming in to cover any money that goes out. If you don’t have enough money to offset expenses, you could wind up in negative cash flow territory.

3. Financial budget

To understand how much money you need to reach short- and long-term needs, draft a financial budget. A financial budget factors in assets, liabilities, and equity (aka components of your balance sheet ).

Your business’s financial budget can give you an overall idea of your company’s health and stability. This type of budget can be especially helpful if you’re seeking funding or considering an initial public offering .

4. Sales budget

Another type of budget you may want to consider establishing is a sales budget. A sales budget projects your sales revenue and expenses and how much you’ll sell in a specific period of time.

Creating a sales budget allows you to plan and make adjustments to your spending. To make your sales budget, you need to:

• Make a list of your business’s offerings
• List out each offering’s price point
• Review last year’s (or period’s) sales figures to create a projection

Having an accurate sales budget ensures you have plenty of materials and inventory on hand to keep up with customer demand. And, your sales budget helps lay the foundation for your…

5. Production budget

Your production budget tells you how much of each product to produce to meet sales needs and inventory requirements. This type of business budget helps determine operating aspects like:

To put together a production budget, you need the expected number of units to be sold (based on last period’s data), required level of ending inventory, and number of units in your beginning inventory (if applicable).

Your production budget helps determine the cost of production, and in turn, helps decide the price of the product.

Keep a close eye on your production budget. If sales and demand increase or decrease, adjust your production budget accordingly.

6. Labor budget

If you have employees or plan on hiring employees, consider creating a labor budget. Use a labor budget to determine how many employees you need to achieve a certain level of production. Your labor budget also helps you plan payroll costs.

In addition to helping you plan out staffing, a labor budget can assist you when it comes to allocating expenses for seasonal workers .

7. Capital budget

A capital budget can help you plan for purchases of large assets , such as:

A business’s capital budget lays out the cost of the asset, the expected payback period, and the asset’s potential return on investment. Your capital budget can tell you whether or not the purchase would be a good investment.

8. Static budget

Some businesses with predictable sales and expenses may create a static budget. A static budget doesn’t change throughout the year. You can use a static budget to spot differences and evaluate sales performance.

A static budget is not impacted by sales volume or any other changes in the business. Some types of expenses in a static budget may include:

• Contractor fees
• Subscription fees
• Warehouse rent
• Supply costs

Include any expenses that remain unchanged (or fixed) throughout the period in your static budget.

On the other hand, if you have expenses that constantly change, use a flexible budget. A flexible budget fluctuates with changes in sales and production.

9. Overhead budget

An overhead budget includes fixed and variable overhead costs for a specific period.

Variable costs vary based on your sales activity (e.g., commissions). Fixed costs stay the same, no matter what happens to your sales. Fixed costs are the expenses you must pay to run your business (e.g., rent).

Outline all of your variable and fixed overhead costs in your overhead budget.

10. Master budget

A master budget is a combination of all of your business’s individual budgets. Your master budget gives you a complete financial picture of your company. And, it can show you where certain income and expenses fit in overall in the business.

Master budgets are more common for larger businesses. However, small businesses can also use a master budget to break down their finances by category or department.

Use your master budget to plan what you need to do to reach business and financial goals. Your master budget may consist of a number of different budgets, including:

Preparing any type of business budget

Your business budget acts as a roadmap for your company’s finances. To ensure your budget keeps your finances on track, follow these steps when creating a budget for your business:

• Add up income
• List out variable costs
• Determine variable costs
• Account for additional and unexpected expenses
• Analyze your cash flow
• Outline your budget
• Tweak when necessary

Once you establish whichever types of business budgets your heart desires, revisit them from time to time to ensure that they’re up-to-date and accurate.

Are you on track with your business budget? Patriot’s online accounting software helps you record transactions and keep your books up-to-date. Plus, we offer free, USA-based support. What are you waiting for? Try it for free today!

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Planning, budgeting and forecasting is typically a three-step process for determining and mapping out an organization’s short- and long-term financial goals.

• Planning  provides a framework for a business’ financial objectives — typically for the next three to five years.
• Budgeting  details how the plan will be carried out month to month and covers items such as revenue, expenses, potential cash flow and debt reduction. Traditionally, a company will designate a fiscal year and create a budget for the year. It may adjust the budget depending on actual revenues or compare actual financial statements to determine how close they are to meeting or exceeding the budget.
• Forecasting  takes historical data and current market conditions and then makes predictions as to how much revenue an organization can expect to bring in over the next few months or years. Forecasts are usually adjusted as new information becomes available. 

The process is usually managed by a chief financial officer (CFO) and the finance department. However, the definition can be expanded to include all areas of organizational planning including: financial planning and analysis , supply chain planning , sales planning , workforce planning and marketing planning .

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Basic business accounting practices date as far back as the 1400s, when Venetian investors kept track of their Asian trade expeditions using double-entry bookkeeping, income statements and balance sheets. The word “budget” is from the old French word “bougette,” meaning “small purse.” The British government began to use the phrase “open the budget” in the mid-1700s, when the chancellor presented the annual financial statements. Businesses began to regularly use the term “budget” for their finances by the late 1800s.

Modern business forecasting began in response to the economic devastation of the Great Depression of the 1930s. New types of statistics and statistical analyses were developed that could help business better predict the future. Consulting firms emerged to help companies use these new prediction tools.

Accounting and forecasting were difficult in the early 20th century because they depended on laborious hand-written equations, ledgers and spreadsheets. The emergence of mainframe computers in the 1960s and personal computers in the 1980s sped up the process. Software applications such as Microsoft Excel became widely popular for financial reporting. However, Excel programs and spreadsheets were prone to input errors and cumbersome when various departments or individuals needed to collaborate on a report.

By the start of the 2000s, companies gained access to ever-growing operational data sources, as well as information outside corporate transaction systems — such as weather, social sentiment and econometric data. The vast amounts of available data for forecasting created a need for more sophisticated software tools to process it.

Numerous planning software packages emerged to handle this data complexity, making planning, budgeting and forecasting faster and easier — both for processing and collaboration. With predictive insights drawn automatically from data, companies could identify evolving trends and guide decision making with foresight, not just hindsight.

Today, cloud-based systems are becoming the standard, providing more flexibility, security and cost savings — helping organizations generate accurate predictions and budgets with fewer errors.

But despite these advancements, businesses are still quite dependent on traditional spreadsheets. 1   Seventy percent of businesses say they rely heavily on spreadsheet reporting, with only 16 percent using on-premise specialist software — and only ten percent using cloud software for planning.

Many businesses still base their strategy on annual plans and budgets, which is a management technique developed over a century ago. But in today’s more competitive environment, organizations are realizing that plans, budgets and forecasts need to reflect current reality — not the reality of two, three or more quarters ago. Continuous planning and rolling forecasts are becoming widely used methodologies to update plans, budgets and forecasts frequently throughout the year, on a quarterly or even monthly basis. These approaches help managers spot trends before their competitors — helping them make better informed, more agile decisions about pricing, product mix, capital allocations and even staffing levels.

Creating and implementing a sound planning, budgeting and forecasting process helps organizations establish more accurate financial report and analytics — potentially leading to more accurate forecasting and ultimately revenue growth. Its importance is even more relevant in today’s business environment where disruptive competitors are entering even the most tradition-bound industries.

When companies embrace data and analytics in conjunction with well-established planning and forecasting best practices, they enhance strategic decision making and can be rewarded with more accurate plans and more timely forecasts. Overall, these tools and practices can save time, reduce errors, promote collaboration and foster a more disciplined management culture that delivers a true competitive advantage.

Specifically, companies are able to:

• Quickly update plans and forecasts in response to new threats and opportunities, identifying risk areas early enough to rectify issues before they are serious.
• Identify and analyze the impact of changes as they occur.
• Strengthen the links between operational and financial plans.
• Better plan and predict cash flows.
• Improve communication and collaboration among plan contributors.
• Consistently deliver timely, reliable plans and forecasts, plus contingency plans, for a range of possible events.
• Analyze variances and deviations from plans and promptly take corrective action.
• Create a budget specifically for growth and having confidence in how much can be spent.
• More accurately manage sales pipelines while tracking performance against targets.
• Make more confident strategic decisions based on hard data, instead of hopes or guesswork.
• Provide evidence of an organization’s future trajectory to potential investors and lending institutions based on multiple data sources and sophisticated analysis.

Budgeting, planning and forecasting software can be purchased as an off-the-shelf solution or as part of a larger integrated corporate performance management (CPM) solution.

Advanced software solutions enable organizations to:

• Measure and monitor performance through interactive, self-service dashboards and visualizations.
• Examine root-causes with high-fidelity analysis of dimensionally rich data.
• Evaluate trends and make predictions automatically from internal or external data.
• Perform rapid what-if scenario modelling and create timely, reliable plans and forecasts.

Planning is easier and more effective when practitioners follow well-established best practices. Software solutions that support these practices can enhance the timeliness and reliability of information and increase participation by key people throughout the organization; especially those at the front lines.

Leading companies have moved to solutions that address the full planning cycle — data collection, modeling, analytics and reporting — on a common planning platform with lean infrastructure requirements. Such platforms can handle a diverse range of business functions, from budget-focused finance tasks to, for example, supply chain-focused planning for retail environments with thousands of SKUs (stock keeping units).

Companies like IBM offer holistic, integrated software solutions to streamline the planning, budgeting and forecasting process. The logic is that to adapt to today's quickly changing business conditions, an organization needs one solution that creates a single source of truth and visibility into all its data. These solutions can extend well beyond the financial aspects of the business, becoming a powerful forecasting engine across the enterprise. With these agile planning and exploratory analytics software solutions — whether in the cloud or on-premises — companies can perform planning, budgeting and forecasting with greater speed, agility and foresight.

Evaluating and selecting planning, budgeting and forecasting software is a complex task. It requires careful consideration of the software’s functionality, its value to the planning process and its ability to support planning best practices. There are also factors such as vendor reliability and support, user community connections and commitment to customer success once the sale is complete.

IBM Analytics  recently published a guide to help organizations evaluate planning, budgeting and forecasting software — identifying key qualities to look for:

• Adaptive . Can you rapidly change models and re-forecast frequently, based on input from business units? Can you update plans as often as necessary?
• Timely . Is your information always current because users contribute directly to a central planning database? Are your consolidations and rollups done automatically to easily meet deadlines?
• Integrated . Do your planning, analysis, workflow and reporting functions reside on one common platform, reducing the need to maintain “shadow” planning systems?
• Collaborative . Is your solution web-based? Does it enable participation anytime, from anywhere with a secure connection?
• Self-service . Are users able to access data and perform complex analysis without the assistance of IT? Are you able to use a familiar spreadsheet interface for faster user adoption and accelerate time to value?
• Enterprise-scale data capacity . Is your solution capable of handling very large data volumes without limiting cube size? Some solutions do not handle “data sparsity” well — forcing data to be split into multiple cubes for analysis, causing version control issues.
• Efficient . Are your managers able to spend less time managing data and more time managing the business?
• Relevant . Do you have the ability to customize views for different user roles, to help increase adoption and process ownership? Do you have formula capabilities that enable modeling of all relevant business drivers?
• Accurate . Do your plans contain errors because of broken links, stale data, improper rollups and missing components?

The key is not just evaluating product features and capabilities, but also evaluating how those features will be implemented by different users within the organization. It’s important to test any planning solution that will be used by a large variety of stakeholders such as finance, operations, HR and sales.

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What is a Budget and What is Budgeting?

Budgeting is the process that leads to a budget. A budget is a financial plan and forecast for the company's economic events.

How Budgeting Works

The budget is typically linked to a time period (such as a fiscal year) and is often built based on the organisation's departments or business areas. The budget is a plan for the organisation's expected outcomes during the period it covers. The budget includes both revenues and costs, but it can also include investments and cash flow.

Budgeting also correlates with key performance indicators ( KPIs ) and goals set for various parts of the operation. These goals are tied to the company's strategy and business plan, and the allocation of the budget should help the business reach its objectives.

A budget consists of three parts that need to be budgeted:

1. The performance budget  is most commonly what is budgeted and thus often what is referred to as "the budget". The income budget consists of the company's revenues and costs. The purpose is to calculate and control the company's revenues and costs.

2. The liquidity budget (cash budget) deals with the company's liquidity (liquid assets). The liquidity budget reflects the company's payment ability over a period. This means that the liquidity budget shows whether the company has "actual money" to pay out and what is coming in.

3. A budgeted balance sheet shows how assets, equity, and liabilities are expected to evolve over the period that is budgeted.

Main Budget, Sub-Budget, and "A single source of truth about costs"

Income, liquidity, and budgeted balance sheets are main budgets and are built up of sub-budgets that are summarised. Examples of sub-budgets include budgets built up per department or business area, such as a sales budget. The total budget consists of all sub-budgets. Other examples of sub-budgets are cost budget, staff budget, overhead budget, and capital budget.

According to a minor survey by McKinsey , the majority of managers (57 percent) are dissatisfied with the transparency of administrative and general costs.

Of those who are satisfied (43 percent), the main source of satisfaction was advanced software that served as a single source of truth about costs . Does this resonate with your experience?

Different Budgeting Methods

In the budgeting process, there are many methods to choose from, where factors such as the type of business, corporate culture, and previous experiences can come into play. Examples of different budgeting methods include:

Account-Based Budget: In the Account-Based Budget, the structure of the planning work is based on the chart of accounts, which is the list of all the accounts the company uses for its accounting. This is the traditional way of conducting Financial Planning.

Driver-based budget: With a driver-based model, the company plans based on concepts close to operations. This can involve factors like the number of products sold, occupancy rate, or volume. The key is that the 'drivers' are concepts important to the operation and that the employees can understand and adopt.

Rolling Budget (Rolling Forecast) : Gives you a continuous picture over the forecast's time window (the period you're looking at). The budget/forecast "rolls" forward while a traditional forecast ends at a specific point in time (usually the end of the fiscal year).

When the budget is reworked, you instead look (for example) 12 months ahead. Rolling forecasts are more flexible than other forms of budgeting and help companies look ahead, based on where they stand today.

Top-Down Budget: Management develops an overall budget for the entire company based on the company's business goals and possibly previous budgets. The budget is then distributed, for example, among the company's departments.

Bottom-Up Budget: The budget is built from the bottom up and compiled into a total budget. This could be based on the organisational structure where different departments set their own budget. Management approves the budgets and may request adjustments until a final budget is in place. This can mean that several versions of the budget are created and processed before a final budget is approved.

Zero-Based Budgeting: Here, departments must continuously justify their budget (and their costs). Nothing is assumed to be included for the next budget period. The idea is for the company to become more cost-conscious and for managers to start from what is necessary for the upcoming budget period.

Some of these methods are grouped under concepts like ' Beyond Budgeting ', also known as 'budgetless control', where work is done more agilely and based on a collection of management processes and principles. Often, this involves working with a rolling forecast.

Budgeting and Financial Control

Budgeting is closely linked with Financial Control and Strategic Planning because money is a prerequisite for what the company does, and the distribution of money is thus a way to manage and influence the operation.

Budgeting also provides financial information to stakeholders about the company's financial position. It can thus be a control tool that contributes to security, motivation, and transparency.

The data and insights you have related to your company's financial position should be quality assured, accessible to everyone involved in the budgeting, and ideally visualised in a way that facilitates understanding.

Actively monitoring how the operation performs relative to the budget (budget follow-up) allows you to see if goals are being met (how it turned out), and cash flow calculations ensure that you have enough money. It's also a good idea to work with scenario planning in your budgeting process, and your work is facilitated if you have software in place that can handle this.

Budget as a Tool

In financial control work, it's advantageous to continuously analyse the operation in relation to the budget, in order to identify and act on any deviations (the difference between budget and outcome).

View budgeting as a tool that supports decision-making and economically follows up on business results. Follow up on budget outcomes, liquidity, profitability, solidity, and act on deviations.

Also, bear in mind that a budget that is too detailed can become cumbersome and thus less useful as a tool. The budget should be prepared at the lowest possible level, thereby staying close to the operations.

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Financial Management – Methods and Tools

Financial Management is the process of translating strategies and business plans into actions that will help achieve the company's financial goals. In this process, you aim to align the goals of employees with those of the company by implementing control, measurement, and follow-up.

Rolling Forecast and Rolling Budget

Rolling Forecasts are a type of forecast that, instead of focusing on the calendar year, always base themselves on a set period going forward, such as 12 or 18 months. Rolling Forecasts are carried out continuously and are a support to the company management, but can also be used to, for example, forecast sales.

Project Budget: How to Do Project Budgeting

A project budget is a plan for how much money will be spent on a project. The project budget plays a crucial role as it helps ensure that the project stays within budget and that adequate resources are available to complete the project.

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Business plan vs. forecast vs. budget.

Is your head spinning from all the stress & time spent on business plans, forecasts and budgets?  Remember,   planning is not a science…it’s an exercise…that should refresh you, keep you agile, and make you feel in control of your destiny!    Is that how you feel?     As we enter into this year’s budget and forecast season, try to   challenge yourself and your team to become more efficient and to create better standards for planning and budgeting.  In turn, you will be less likely to reinvent the wheel each year.  This article is a practical overview of each process (Business Planning, Forecasting & Budgeting), how to connect them, and have them add value to your business.

So why is planning so stressful?  Take a look what a planning calendar can look like: February-April prepare business plan, July-September prepare forecast, October-November prepare Budget, Feb start over again.  The larger the company, the more planning that takes place.  People get nervous about the process, don’t know where to start, fear they will be judged, and think a lot of time is wasted.  In small companies planning often gets overlooked because of time constraints or lack of interest.  If you understand the differences between each planning tool, the impact they have on one another, and on your business, you will be more inclined to use the information properly.  Here is an overview of how to control the planning exercise and get the most out of it.

What is a Business Plan?

A   business plan   is a written description of your strategy going forward.  It outlines the direction of your overall business and each function of the business supporting that overall direction.  It details market share changes & assumptions that are charted out over the time period such as economic assumptions, competitors, pricing, costing assumptions, new product releases, retired product plans, new facilities, reductions in some areas and investment plans in others. 

When creating a business plan you need to understand where your company is today, and where you want it to be during a time period, in one year, two years, three years.  Also, what happens to the market around you when you make your changes, how will the market/competitors react, what are the anticipated risks?

The benefit of a business plan is to get everyone on the same page as to where the company is going.  It shapes all the decisions going forward; a litmus test for decision making and planning.  It is also a good reference point for assumptions.  If assumptions change, so should the business plan. 

The problem with business plans is when they remain static documents; they shouldn't be.  They should be updated throughout the year, just like a budget-to-actual analysis.  Things change and evolve, so should your litmus test. Always maintain a record and comparison versus the original to maintain as a “baseline” so that you can evaluate your assumptions and take away lessons learned for the next business cycle.

Your business plan should be communicated throughout your organization.  You do not need to share   all   of the details, especially if there are workforce reductions or other sensitive assumptions.  However, you should take a broad view of the business plan and share it.

Share the vision: where are you today, where do you plan to be

Share the mission: macro scope actions the company must to take to get there

Share the expectations: quarterly or other time frames to accomplish the mission

What is a Forecast?

A forecast is financial trend that mirrors the business plan period.  If you develop a five-year business plan, you should create a five-year forecast.  Forecasts should be rolling.  That means each month they should be updated (actual data replacing estimates).  Forecasts should be fluid, linked to changes in the business plan. Forecasts should be updated each year, not reinvented.  Current year forecast should represent a macro level budget.  Forecasts should be macro product line level, not SKU/Customer level..  The basic components of a forecast are sales, costs and investments….in that order.  Don’t forget to estimate personnel required to deliver the volumes in the plan as part of your costs.

Sales Forecast

In a spreadsheet list each product line.  Add last year’s actuals by month for volume, price and revenue.  Project current year results by month using actuals that exist and projections for each month going forward. Do the same for the next two to four years.  Each year determine and incorporate the following assumptions:

Value of the dollar over each year.  It is fine to assume no change for the sake of planning, but state that is the case.

New product lines coming on line

Old product lines going away

Pricing strategy

Key account strategy…accounts you are targeting for growth and those you may walk away from.

You should try to transition low margin business for new higher margin accounts.

You should have a baseline conservative projection in line with your business plan strategy, and then a second line that accounts for risk and opportunity.  This is important to determine what investments you   NEED , and which ones may be necessary.  It is easier to get funding for non-budgeted investments if they are based on exceptional growth.

There is no science here…if you can explain blips and dips in the previous year, you can project or eliminate them in future years.

Your forecast should not look like a hockey stick…conservative first year then dramatic growth the following years.  By having a realistic story and a separate story for risk and opportunity, you can create a real document that your company can use. 

Costs & Investments

Once the sales forecast is complete, the operations group evaluates the sales volumes, determines any investments that need to be made to meet volumes or new products.  They determine directional estimates on raw materials, and workforce requirements.  Once complete the accounting team takes this information and builds the forecast model, determining projected profits and losses.  Consider the following assumptions:

Are facility expansions or capital equipment expenditures required?

What inventory levels will be necessary for the plan, are they different than previous years?  Is more space required, less space?

Anticipate cost reductions due to production & logistics efficiencies; incorporate efficiency programs into the plan.

Be realistic in your assumptions, not too conservative on costs.  Your objective is to reduce overall costs and improve efficiencies.  If they remain the same over time you should be prepared to explain the assumptions that raw materials are going up but your programs are maintaining cost levels…what are those programs and what time periods will they be impacting the plan.

Be sure to incorporate any marketing plans into your cost structure.  Will there be new packaging, new services, etc.…

What is a Budget?

A budget is a micro level analysis of the upcoming year.  You typically finalize the budget by November if you are planning a calendar year budget (Jan-Dec).  In comparison to the product line level forecast, a budget breaks the numbers down to the customer and product SKU level.  Your budget should mirror year one of your forecast.  If something changes during this process and the totals differ…take the time and update your forecast while the information and rational is fresh in your mind.  Otherwise you run the risk of starting over again next year.  Everything should be linked, and changes should be made consistently.  Here are some things to consider for your budget process:

• Consider your time frame for: personnel additions, new customers coming on line, and cost changes.
• Do you plan any price increases or cuts?  Your timing should line up with profit adjustments.
• Do you have purchasing contracts in place?  Try to settle these prior to finalizing your budget.  The more accurate the data, the better.
• Can you negotiate sales contracts with key accounts prior to the budget process in order to reduce price and volume risk?
• All departments of the organization incorporate their spending assumptions in the budget process.  Use current year actuals as a base, then justify increases or decreases each month, taking into account any explanation for dips and peaks that occurred in the current year.
• Make sure your budget is also a rolling document.  Every month, as you start, and throughout the year, it should be updated with actual results (on a separate line).  Do not forget your budget assumptions…learn from them and compare your actual to budget figures.  What changed, and do these changes impact future months?

Whether your are leading an organization, managing a department, or providing an individual contribution to the planning, forecasting or budgeting process…you should have an understanding of the big picture and how things relate to one another. 

Here are some final   DO's   and   DON'Ts  of planning exercises:

DO use old information to plan for the future.

DON'T forget to account for dips and peaks in the past… make a decision   to either incorporate them or not into future planning.

DO tell as story with your data.  You should add comments to your spreadsheets.

DON'T forget why you put figures into your planning, or where they came from.

DO account for rainy day funds, miscellaneous costs & margin of error.

DON'T hide this information in your figures, put it a separate line that is visible.   If everyone hides extras/padding, the entire budget will be skewed and this could make for bad business decisions.

DO be honest, direct & candid throughout all aspects of planning exercises.  If you are leading the exercise, create an environment where people can be honest with you.

DON'T create a useless document that brings no value to the business besides looking good during a presentation….followed by endless explanations for failure throughout the year.

DO create and include a tactical plan into your figures that is linked with the business plan mission.  What are you doing to achieve the mission on time?  What are the costs associated and the cost reductions/new business results that are generated from your efforts?

DON'T separate the business plan from the forecast or the budget.  Always revisit, revise and learn.

DO communicate, communicate, communicate, the plans and the results, as well as the story of what the company is learning from the process.

DON'T create documents that get put away until they are reinvented the next year.

It really does help to take a full picture view of planning, have a well rounded understanding of your business and the needs of each functional area.  Understand how things connect, and how together, they can make the company stronger and more agile.  If your business is a service provider, or a project management entity, these principles still apply.  The difference is that instead of calculating volumes & pricing, you calculate timing and cash flows.

Think about your own planning experiences.  Does your company do a good job?  Do you feel like a part of the process, or just a micro contributor?  Consider using this training article in your organization to get everyone on the same page, working together with the same direction and purpose.

If you are looking for a business plan template, ManagingAmericans.com has one avalilable.  Use this   t emplate   and   guidebook   to organize your thoughts and develop insight into important areas you may not have even considered.

If you haven’t done so already, please j oin our community  to receive professional development updates from experts who are here to help you grow, learn, and experience professional success.

Written by  Lisa Woods ,  President & CEO ManagingAmericans.com

Lisa, a thought leader in Business Management and Leadership, founded ManagingAmericans.com in 2011 after 20+ years successfully leading and driving growth in the corporate world. Her objective is to help mentor and develop professionals to be better leaders, managers, team players and individual contributors in a “do-it-yourself” learning environment using unique & practical tools to support the process. Lisa’s career spans from Global Sales & Marketing to General Management of Multinational Conglomerates. Today she continues to consult small business owners through her private practice. Lisa's publications include: • 4 Essential Skills for Leaders, Managers & High Potentials © 2013 • The Cross Functional Business: Beyond Teams © 2015 • Action Item List: Drive Your Team With One Simple Tool © 2016 • Small Business Planning Made Simple: What To Consider Before You Invest © 2017

Do you have a question for Lisa?  Please visit our Executive Leadership Community , she will be happy to help:  Ask an Expert

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Financial Forecasting

Key differences, special considerations.

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Budgeting vs. Financial Forecasting: What's the Difference?

Budgeting vs. Financial Forecasting: An Overview

Budgeting and financial forecasting are tools that companies use to establish a plan for where management wants to take the business —budgeting—and whether it is heading in the right direction—financial forecasting.

Although budgeting and financial forecasting are often used together, distinct differences exist between the two concepts. Budgeting quantifies the expected revenues that a business wants to achieve for a future period. In contrast, financial forecasting estimates the amount of revenue or income achieved in a future period.

Key Takeaways

• Budgeting is the financial direction of where management wants to take the company.
• It helps quantify the expectation of revenues that a business wants to achieve for a future period.
• Financial forecasting tells whether the company is headed in the right direction, estimating the amount of revenue and income that will be achieved in the future.
• Budgeting creates a baseline to compare actual results to determine how the results vary from the expected performance.
• Financial forecasting is used to determine how companies should allocate their budgets for a future period.

A budget is an outline of expectations for what a company wants to achieve for a particular period, usually one year. Characteristics of budgeting include:

• Estimates of revenues and expenses
• Expected cash flows
• Expected debt reduction
• A budget is compared to actual results to calculate the variances between the two figures.

Budgeting represents a company's financial position, cash flow , and goals. A company's budget is typically re-evaluated periodically, usually once per fiscal year , depending on how management wants to update the information. Budgeting creates a baseline to compare actual results to determine how the results vary from the expected performance.

While most budgets are created for an entire year, that is not a hard-and-fast rule. For some companies, management may need to be flexible and allow the budget to be adjusted throughout the year as business conditions change. 

Financial forecasting estimates a company's future financial outcomes by examining historical data. Financial forecasting allows management teams to anticipate results based on previous financial data. Characteristics of financial forecasting include: 

• Used to determine how companies should allocate their budgets for a future period. Unlike budgeting, financial forecasting does not analyze the variance between financial forecasts and actual performance.
• Regularly updated, perhaps monthly or quarterly, when there is a change in operations, inventory, and business plan
• Can be created for both the short-term and long-term. For example, a company might have quarterly forecasts for revenue. If a customer is lost to the competition, revenue forecasts might need to be updated.
• A management team can use financial forecasting and take immediate action based on the forecasted data.

Financial forecasting can help a management team make adjustments to production and inventory levels. Additionally, a long-term forecast might help a company's management team develop its business plan. 

A financial forecast is usually limited in scope, focusing on expense line items and major streams of revenue.

There are critical differences between budgeting and forecasting. For example, budgets are created to meet a goal, such as quarterly growth. Financial forecasting examines whether the budget's target will be met or not throughout the proposed timeline. The content of a budget and financial forecast is different—the former contains specific goals like the number of items to sell or the amount of money to earn. The latter shows the expectations of how the budget will be met.

A budget is made for a specific period and is usually based on past trends or experiences of the company. A financial forecast examines a company's current financial situation and uses the information to forecast whether or not a budget will be met. Financial forecasting may be done frequently while a budget is set for a specific time period and may not be done more than once, twice, or quarterly.

A budget outlines the direction management wants to take the company. A financial forecast is a report illustrating whether the company is reaching its budget goals and where it is heading in the future. 

Budgeting can sometimes contain goals that may not be attainable due to changing market conditions. If a company uses budgeting to make decisions, the budget should be flexible and updated more frequently than one fiscal year, which is a relationship to the prevailing market.

Budgeting and financial forecasting should work in tandem with each other. For example, both short-term and long-term financial forecasts could be used to help create and update a company's budget. A budget may not always be necessary during a fiscal year, although many companies make them. However, a financial forecast is relevant because of the information it provides because it can highlight the need for action. In contrast, a budget may contain targets that cannot be accomplished if the budget is an overreach.

How Can a Budget Help With Financial Planning?

A budget can help set expectations for what a company wants to achieve during a period of time such as quarterly or annually, and it contains estimates of cash flow , revenues and expenses, and debt reduction. When the time period is over, the budget can be compared to the actual results.

What Comes First, a Budget or a Forecast?

Typically a budget is created before a financial forecast. A budget reveals the shape or direction of a company's finance, while the forecast tracks whether or not the company is meeting its financial goals as outlined in the budget. Long-term financial forecasting may be done without first having a budget, but it would likely use past key indicators from previous budgets.

What Are the Steps of Financial Forecasting?

When a company creates a financial forecast report, it will decide on a time frame for the forecast and then gather all past financial documents and necessary paperwork around the time frame. The report will document, monitor, and analyze critical data such as cash flow and income statements, and balance sheets.

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Business plan or budget, what are the differences.

First, let’s see what the budget and the business plan have in common.

There are two things in common between a business plan and a budget.

The first common point is that both are the result of a reflection on the future of the company.

The second point in common is that both include a financial forecast developed by the management of the company. For the budget as for the business plan, the financial forecast constitutes an objective taken by the management towards the financial partners of the company (banks and investors).

Now let’s see what the differences are.

Differences Between Budget And Business Plan

There are three basic differences between a budget and a business plan: scope, time horizon, and level of detail.

The budget is limited to the financial forecast while the business plan includes a reflection on the market, the organization, and the strategy of the company for the years to come. The scope of the business plan is therefore much broader than that of the budget.

The time horizon

The time horizon of the two documents is also very different: the budget is a short-term financial forecast, usually over 12 months, while the business plan contains a medium-long-term financial forecast, usually over 3 or 5 years.

The last difference between the two documents is the level of detail.

The budget is very detailed, each planned expense is listed in detail. The business plan is much more vague: it focuses on the broad masses.

This is partly explained by the difference in time horizon between the two documents.

Indeed, with the exception of new companies, the visibility on the future of the company at 12 months is generally quite good: the management can use the results of the previous year as a starting point and simply add the effects of inflation and the commercial action plan planned for the new year.

The visibility on the future of the company in 3 or 5 years is on the other hand much more vague. Market demand can change, competitors can change their commercial positioning, regulation can change, etc. In this context, it is impossible to predict with precision what will be the financial performance of the company.

This is why the financial forecast of the business plan generally consists of the budget for the next year and an extrapolation of the trend over the coming years.

There you go, now you know the difference between a business plan and a budget.

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Business Plan vs. Business Proposal

The terms “business plan” and “business proposal” are sometimes used interchangeably, however, they are very different. The main difference between a business plan and a business proposal is that a business plan documents your growth strategy while a business proposal is a specific ask for someone to take an action you desire (e.g., buy your product/service, invest in your company, partner with you, etc.).

In this article, we will define a business plan and a business proposal and give you examples of when each is appropriate for you to use.  

What is a Business Plan?

Download our Ultimate Business Plan Template here

Business Plan Structure

Typically, the business plan structure contains the following 10 components:

• Executive Summary
• Business Description & Overview
• Market Research & Analysis
• Customer Analysis
• Competitive Analysis
• Marketing Strategy & Plan
• Operations Plan
• Management Team
• Financial Projections & Plan

It is recommended that a business plan is updated annually to adjust for changes in the industry trends and the business itself.  

What is a Business Proposal?

In terms of what you are asking from them, it can be anything that involves funds and time on their end including cash investment, product development assistance, and even employees if they have applicable skill sets.  

Business Proposal Structure

An invited business proposal is written in response to an RFP. A request for proposal (RFP) is a document that invites potential suppliers to submit business proposals. How to write a business proposal depends on the format requested and the questions included in the RFP.

The following are the components that usually make up a business proposal:

• Brief description of your company’s services/products as the proposed solution to the goals of the RFP
• Reiteration of the scope of the particular project
• Responses to questions asked in the RFP
• Cost of the project, including drafting services, materials, tools, labor, delivery and other expenses

An unsolicited business proposal is essentially the same format, but it will solicit the client’s business while anticipating the clients’ concerns and issues. A business proposal is more of a marketing document than an offer because it attempts to persuade the potential client to do business by demonstrating your value proposition and a call to action.  

So, What’s the Difference Between a Business Proposal vs. a Business Plan?

In a business proposal, company representatives typically work with the customer to tailor a business proposition that is attractive to both parties. This usually comes in the form of a written document detailing the services and cost associated with fulfilling an offer or request but can also include electronic contracts.

In contrast, a business plan is a description of your company on the executive and operational levels aimed at investors for raising financial support or other stakeholders in order to facilitate long-term growth. For example, an investor will want to know about how different departments within your business interact with one another, while somebody who will be implementing your product probably only needs more limited information such as design specs because they are not going into production themselves.

A business proposal may provide you with more details of the project, but it does not include information about your company’s operations or future plans.  

Examples of Business Plans vs. Business Proposals

• When you give a potential investor your business plan which includes all sorts of information about how we will achieve your goals together as well as the amount of money it’s going to take. The business proposal is for them to write you a check in return for interest/principal payments or a percentage of your company.
• You might be getting partners involved in your business who will help with product development and distribution. You are offering them a business proposal to work together. However, they may request to see your business plan to better understand your goals, potential profitability, and how you plan to reach these goals before deciding to work with you.
• Your existing business has been so successful that you decide to outsource the social media marketing efforts to a freelancer to free up more of your time. The freelancer would provide a business proposal stating their terms and conditions along with the agreed-upon pay arrangement for their services. This change in organizational structure may be noted in your business plan to demonstrate expansion and financial stability to continue growth.
• In your business plan , one of your goals is to grow your client base by 5% each month. You identify potential clients in need of your services or products and send an unsolicited business proposal to demonstrate how your products or services can benefit them in order to develop a new prospective client list.

The business plan is a roadmap for your company’s present and future, while the business proposal has to do with what you are asking someone else for money.  Applying this difference into practice can be difficult at times because business plans are often marketed as business proposals. However, it is important to be able to identify the difference between a business plan and business proposal in order to maximize their effectiveness and importance with potential investors or partners.

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Difference Between a Business Plan and a Business Proposal

Table of contents

It’s natural to get confused between a business proposal and a business plan if you are planning to turn your idea into reality. While business proposals and plans may sound similar on the surface, they have differences — such as distinct purposes and formats. 

A business plan describes your business goals, strategies, and financial projections. A business proposal, on the other hand, proposes a specific solution to a problem or opportunity and helps you persuade the relevant stakeholder to invest in your business. 

However, writing a business proposal or a business plan can be challenging, especially if you are confused about their purpose. In this blog, we will explain the difference between a business plan and a business proposal and its major components.

Business Plan

A business plan tells the investors how you plan to ship your product to enough people to clock revenue. It’s about the strategies that will make you the first buck. 

A business plan keeps your team on the same page — you can use it as a guiding light. It can help you track the progress of your business, give you a roadmap, and help you make decisions about your business’s future.

Plus, it can be helpful when it comes to pitching your business idea to a third party, for example, when seeking a loan.

Components of a Business Plan

A business plan is majorly divided into three sections, which include an executive summary, a sales and marketing strategy, and a financial plan. 

An executive summary is a brief, clear, and compelling overview of your business. It is usually the first section of the document, and it contains the most important information, such as your strengths. 

These can be further broken down into the following sections:

• Description of products and services, including mission, vision, and objectives of the business
• Target market
• Competitive advantage
• Industry and Competitor Analysis
• Marketing strategy
• Operating plan
• Team structure and qualifications
• Internal business analysis
• Management introduction 
• Financial analysis
• Cash flow statement or sales forecast
• Break-even analysis

Business Proposal

A business proposal is a separate written document that outlines a specific business opportunity, project, or idea and presents it to potential clients. 

It intends to persuade them to take action, such as accepting a business deal or entering into a partnership, thereby helping you get new customers or partners. 

A business proposal should be customized to the needs and interests of the receiver. A generic proposal will rarely help you meet your business goals. 

At the same time, ensure your proposal is well-organized, persuasive, and creative. Check out these free business proposal templates to impress your clients. 

Solicited and Unsolicited Business Proposals

Proposals are solicited from you, or you send them on your initiative. 

You write a solicited proposal in response to a prospect’s or customer’s request for a product. They may ask you verbally, or they may issue a written request for proposals (RFP). A solicited business proposal contains a detailed description of the product, service, or solution that you offer to solve the customer's problem or need. It’s generally easier to write because you know what the customer wants or expects. 

But if you’re writing the proposal on your own, which is the case with unsolicited business proposals, then you’re convincing the receiver to work with you or buy from you. Such proposals are often challenging to write because you have to convince them they have a problem and you have a solution.

Components of a Business Proposal

The following are the key components of a business proposal :

• Executive summary
• Introduction
• Problem statement
• Scope of work
• Benefits of Return on Investment (ROI)
• Call to Action (CTA)

Business Plan vs. Business Proposal

While a business plan outlines your goals and explains how you will achieve them, a proposal sells your product to potential customers.

In the following table, we have summarized the main differences between a business plan and a business proposal:

Streamline the proposal creation process

To wrap up, a business proposal is a document that pitches your products or services to a potential client, while a business plan outlines your goals, strategies, and financial projections for your business. 

With business management software like Cone, you can easily streamline and automate your proposal creation while ensuring your proposals are bespoke and customized. Sign up for free and experience the seamless proposal creation process for yourself. While you’re at it, check out other business proposals and management resources we have for you.

Budgeting Vs Spending Plan — Are They Different From Each Other?

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Table of Contents

There’s a lot of confusion out there about the difference between a budget and a spending plan. After all, they both involve tracking your income and expenses, right? While it’s true that both budgets and spending plans can help you get a handle on your finances, there are some key differences between the two. Let’s take a closer look at the difference between a budget and a spending plan.

How does a Budget work?

A budget is created by allocating a certain amount of money to specific expenses over a period of time. This could be done on a monthly, quarterly, or yearly basis. The goal of a budget is to ensure that you do not spend more money than you have coming in.

To create a budget, you will need to track your income and expenses over a specific time so that you can get an accurate picture of where your money is going. Once you have this information, you can start to allocate funds to specific categories like housing, food, transportation, etc.

It is important to remember that a budget is not static; it will need to be updated as your income and expenses change. For example, if you get a raise at work, you may need to adjust your budget accordingly.

How does a Spending Plan Work?

A spending plan is less about numbers and more about making informed choices about where to spend your money. It begins with understanding your values and setting financial goals that align with those values. For example, if one of your values is family, you may want to set a goal to spend more quality time with your loved ones instead of working overtime at the office.

Once you have identified your values and set financial goals, you can begin to make informed decisions about your spending. This means being mindful of every purchase you make and asking yourself whether or not it aligns with your values and goals.

It is also important to remember that a spending plan is not static; as your values and goals change over time, so will your spending decisions.

Which One Is Right For You?

Most experts recommend using some form of budgeting or spending plan to get your finances under control. But which one is right for you? It really depends on your personal financial situation and what your goals are. If you’re looking to get an idea of where your money is going each month, then a budget may be all you need. But if you’re trying to get out of debt or save up for a major purchase, you may need the structure and discipline that comes with a spending plan.

So, what’s the bottom line?

Both budgets and spending plans can help get your finances under control. The key is to find the method that works best for you and your unique financial situation. If you’re not sure where to start, try creating a simple budget to get started. Then, you can decide if you need to move to a more detailed spending plan.

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How do business plans differ from business proposals?

Despite the terms being close, business plans and business proposals are two very different things. Their objectives, structure, and content differ vastly.

This guide helps you decipher all of the key differences between the two documents whilst highlighting some of the similarities that cause some entrepreneurs to confuse them. It also outlines what tools you should use to create either type of document. Ready? Let’s get started!

In this guide:

What is a business plan?

What is a business proposal, business plan vs. business proposal: what do they have in common, business plan vs. business proposal: what are the differences, what tools can you use to write a business plan, what tools can you use to write a business proposal.

A business plan is a document providing detailed information about your business and its objectives for the years to come (usually 3-5 years).

To keep it short and simple, a business plan consists of two parts: 

• A financial forecast which provides information about the expected growth and profitability of your business, your potential funding requirements, and cash flow projections.
• A written part which provides the context and details needed to assess the relevance of the forecast: company overview, description of products and services, market analysis, strategy, operations, etc.

Formal business plans are usually written: to secure financing, to get buy-in from stakeholders (board members, investors, business partners) on the plan of action for the coming years, to convince suppliers to do business with the company, or to communicate the company's vision to staff members.

Financial savvy businesses regularly track their actual financial performance against the forecast included in their business plan and re-assess their progress against what was planned, and update their plans as needed.

Need a convincing business plan?

The Business Plan Shop makes it easy to create a financial forecast to assess the potential profitability of your projects, and write a business plan that’ll wow investors.

Business proposals have a completely different objective to business plans: their goal is to convince prospective buyers to buy products or services from your company.

They focus on what the company is offering and how it meets client needs. They include details of products and services offered, including engineering schematics, if applicable, service staff, and other details as or if requested by potential buyers.

Types of business proposals include:

• Request for Information (RFI)
• Request for Proposal (RFP)
• Request for Quotation (RFQ)
• And invitation for Bid (IFB)

All of these reflect various stages of a proposal and contain information relevant to that stage. The RFQ, for example, covers the pricing factor for the product.

Business proposals can be solicited or unsolicited:

• Solicited proposals involve companies requesting other businesses to submit their proposal (often as part of a tender) and then a decision is made as to who to go with,
• Unsolicited proposals, however, are sent by the selling company to potential buyers.

While they are both different concepts, there are some similarities between the two. These include:

Decision-making tools

Business plans and business proposals are both used as decision-making tools. They provide essential information regarding business operations, and this is used to make important decisions about the business.

For example, a business plan may help a potential investor decide if they want to invest in their business. Similarly, business proposals help clients decide whether or not they are interested in a particular product or service to help meet their business needs.

Intended to convince the audience

Since both are decision-making tools, their primary purpose is to convince the reader to make a particular decision. This decision often relates to the audience’s involvement with the business, for example, as an investor, supplier, or buyer.

Both types of documents are intended for external use - meaning they are presented to stakeholders to convince them that the business is worth “getting involved in”.

Cover business strategy

Both documents cover specific elements of a business and as a result discuss strategy in one way or another.

A business plan, for example, explains how a business is set up, how it plans to maintain operations and create revenue streams.

A proposal often focuses on how buying the product or services will help the buyer achieve its on strategy.

Need inspiration for your business plan?

The Business Plan Shop has dozens of business plan templates that you can use to get a clear idea of what a complete business plan looks like.

The terms may sound close, but the two documents are very different in application. Here are a few key differences:

One-time use vs. long-term use

Business proposals are intended to be used once as they are created in response to one-time requests or for a single proposal to a potential buyer.

Business plans, however, are used to monitor business performance, and its forecasts are closely followed and regularly updated to ensure that the business is on track to achieve its goals.

Timing differences

The two types of documents are created for different purposes at different times. A business proposal is likely made at a time when a business is looking to expand by adding to its clientele.

A business plan, on the other hand, is often first drafted before a business is even started, as it provides direction for how the business should operate. And then regularly updated every couple months.

Length differences

Whilst business plans usually span between 15 and 30 pages, business proposals vary in length, based on what information the client has requested.

10 pages is usually a good starting point for a business proposal and not many will eclipse this number. This means that a business proposal has fewer pages than a business plan, which makes sense because the latter covers the entire business strategy.

Content variations

The two documents vary greatly in the kind of information that is included in them.

A business proposal, will focus on the fit between the product or service being pitched and the buyers requirements, and the return on investment for the buyer. Based on the requested specifications, the business proposal may go into deep detail regarding product schematics.

A business plan is higher level as it encompasses the business operations. It will typically include a full set of financial statements, as well as forecasts. Such information is typically absent from a proposal, which may, at most, include information regarding product manufacturing costs, pricing, and return on investment for the buyer.

Different audiences

Business plans and business proposals are intended for different audiences. Business plans are often shared with potential suppliers, investors, lenders, or even key hires, to give them a sense of what the business is about.

On the other hand, a business proposal is meant for potential customers to convince them to engage in business with that organization.

In this section, we will review three solutions for writing a professional business plan:

• Using Word and Excel
• Hiring a consultant to write your business plan
• Utilizing an online business plan software

Create your business plan using Word or Excel

Writing a business plan using Word or Excel has both pros and cons. On the one hand, using either of these two programs is cheap and easy to learn.

However, using Word means starting from scratch and formatting the document yourself once written - a process that can be quite tedious. There are also no templates or examples to guide you through each section.

Creating an accurate financial forecast with Excel is also impossible for a business owner without expertise in accounting and financial modeling. And as a result, investors and lenders are unlikely to trust the accuracy of your forecast.

Ultimately, it's up to you to decide which program is right for you and whether you have the expertise or resources needed to make Excel work.

Hire a consultant to write your business plan

Outsourcing a business plan to a consultant or accountant is another potential solution.

Consultants are used to writing business plans, and accountants are good at creating financial forecasts without errors.

This means that they will be able to create an effective business plan with accurate financial estimates without much effort.

However, accountants often lack the industry expertise to accurately forecast sales, and hiring either consultants or accountants will be expensive.

You probably need to budget at least £1.5k ($2.0k) for a complete business plan, more if you need to make changes after the initial version (which happens frequently after the initial meetings with lenders).

For these reasons, outsourcing your business plan to a consultant or accountant should be considered carefully, weighing both the advantages and disadvantages of hiring outside help.

Ultimately, it may be the right decision for some businesses, while others may find it beneficial to write their own business plan using an online software.

Use an online business plan software for your business plan

Another alternative is to use online business plan software . There are several advantages to using specialized software:

• You are guided through the writing process by detailed instructions and examples for each part of the plan
• You can be inspired by already written business plan templates
• You can easily make your financial forecast by letting the software take care of the financial calculations for you without errors
• You get a professional document, formatted and ready to be sent to your bank
• The software will enable you to easily track your actual financial performance against your forecast and update your forecast as time goes by

If you're interested in using this type of solution, you can try our software for free by signing up here .

Simple software such as Word or Powerpoint can be used to create a business proposal.

You could use pre-made templates to create your own proposal, using the layout and content as a guide to what you should and should not include in the proposal.

For solicited proposals in particular, client requirements are the most important attribute. A well-written proposal will cover what the client has requested in-depth and that information will usually be prioritized in the table of contents. You could then move onto other aspects that may not have been specifically requested but that you feel are important to share.

Specialist proposal software can also be used. You can find a list in this article from Hubspot . The main benefit of using proposal software is that they usually integrate directly in your CRM and include eSignature technology making the overall sales process easier and faster.

Also on The Business Plan Shop

• How investors analyse business plans
• Business plan vs budget: what's the difference?

Know someone confused about the difference between business plan and business proposal? Share this article and help them out!

Founder & CEO at The Business Plan Shop Ltd

Guillaume Le Brouster is a seasoned entrepreneur and financier.

Guillaume has been an entrepreneur for more than a decade and has first-hand experience of starting, running, and growing a successful business.

Prior to being a business owner, Guillaume worked in investment banking and private equity, where he spent most of his time creating complex financial forecasts, writing business plans, and analysing financial statements to make financing and investment decisions.

Guillaume holds a Master's Degree in Finance from ESCP Business School and a Bachelor of Science in Business & Management from Paris Dauphine University.

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N.J. school funding winners and losers: See how your district fared under new plan

• Updated: Apr. 25, 2024, 4:33 p.m. |
• Published: Apr. 24, 2024, 7:18 a.m.
• Katie Kausch | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

New Jersey has fully implemented its revamped public school funding formula with the announcement of proposed state aid for the 2024-25 academic year . But, you might not like what that actually means for your school district.

Some districts will see major increases in state funding under the plan, while others can expect far less.

Why the difference?

Stories by Katie Kausch

• Tractor trailer crashes into North Jersey pharmacy
• N.J.’s top high schools ranked by latest state scores. See the full list.
• Somerset County’s school funding winners and losers

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South Carolina Senate wants accelerated income tax cut while House looks at property tax rebate

South Carolina Senate Finance Committee Chairman Harvey Peeler, R-Gaffney, talks about the Senate’s budget plan on Thursday, April 18, 2024, in Columbia, S.C. (AP Photo/Jeffrey Collins)

South Carolina Senate Finance Committee Chairman Harvey Peeler, R-Gaffney, right, talks to Quentin Hawkins on the committee about the Senate’s budget plan on Tuesday, April 23, 2024, in Columbia, S.C. (AP Photo/Jeffrey Collins)

South Carolina Sen. Mike Fanning, D-Great Falls, prays before the start of the Senate session on Tuesday, April 23, 2024, in Columbia, S.C. (AP Photo/Jeffrey Collins)

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COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — The South Carolina Senate started debating a budget Tuesday that accelerates a planned income tax cut instead of the House plan to use $500 million to give homeowners a one-time property tax rebate.

Once the spending plan passes the Senate, a group of three House members and three senators — likely including the leaders of each chamber’s budget committee — is going to have to sort out the differences over the next month or so with the tax break and other items in South Carolina’s $15.4 billion spending plan for next budget year.

Republican Senate Finance Committee Chairman Harvey Peeler has called the competing tax breaks a wonderful problem to have in the 2024-25 fiscal year budget, which again left lawmakers with a substantial pot of additional money to spend.

But Peeler has left little doubt he thinks spending $100 million to knock the income tax rate most people pay in the state from 6.3% to 6.2% is the right move, saying it lasts forever compared to a one-year drop in property tax. The state is in the middle of a five-year effort to cut its top income tax rate from 7% to 6%.

The money involved comes from an account meant to provide property tax relief. Sales tax goes into the fund, and a boom in spending during and after the COVID-19 pandemic has left the account flush with cash.

The House budget suggested giving the money back as a property tax rebate. But county officials worry property tax bills will snap back next year and homeowners will be angry at them.

Along with $100 million in income tax cuts, the Senate plan spends the $500 million on roads and bridges, local water and sewer system repairs, and other items.

Another item the budget conference committee will have to resolve is how much of a raise state employees get. The Senate plan would give state employees making less than $50,000 a raise of $1,375 a year. Workers making more than that would get a 2.75% boost in pay. The House plan gives a $1,000 raise to workers making less than $66,667 and a 1.5% raise to those who make more.

Last year, there was a monthlong showdown over the differences in the budget about how much money should be given to start work on a new veterinary school at Clemson University. It led to a tense meeting and accusations of who cared about people and education more before a compromise was reached in early June.

One point both chambers agreed on is raising teacher pay. Both spending plans set aside about $200 million. Every teacher would get a raise and the minimum salary for a starting teacher would be increased to $47,000 a year. The budget also would allow teachers to get a yearly raise for each of their first 28 years instead of their first 23.

Other items in the Senate plan include $36 million to the Department of Juvenile Justice for security and prison improvements, as well as $11 million to put technology to find unauthorized cellphones in maximum security prisons and have providers block those numbers likely being used by inmates.

There is $175 million to finish work on the new school for veterinary medicine at Clemson University and $100 million for a new medical school at the University of South Carolina.

Senators set aside nearly $5 million for a forensic audit and other help to determine where $1.8 billion in a state Treasurer’s Office account came from and where it was supposed to go.

There is $11.5 million to protect the integrity of the 2024 election and $12.5 million to upgrade election systems.

The Senate budget is “balanced not only in arithmetic; it’s balanced on the needs of the state of South Carolina,” Peeler said. “First tax relief, second public education and third infrastructure.”

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With time running short, Missouri Senate set to debate $50 billion state budget next week

The freedom caucus, a faction of republicans, has vowed to debate the budget in detail and attempt to cut hundreds of millions in spending. that could push final votes on spending past the constitutional deadline of may 10, by: rudi keller - april 25, 2024 2:08 pm.

Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Lincoln Hough, center, takes notes as members vote on budget bills Wednesday after two days spent amending the spending plan. Hough is flanked by Sen. Tony Luetkemeyer, left, vice-chairman, and Sen. Lauren Arthur, right, a Kansas City Democrat. (Rudi Keller/Missouri Independent)

The Missouri Senate’s budget plan approved in a committee Wednesday has more money for workers who help people with developmental disabilities , more to help low-income families afford child care and more for counties to defray the cost of holding people convicted of felonies .

There are also big new road projects and a boost to higher education funding.

The committee did make some cuts to House-approved items, including slashing $2.5 million for schools to install artificial intelligence gun detection equipment and $10 million for medical research with psilocybin mushrooms to treat mental illness.

Over two days, the Senate Appropriations Committee dug through thousands of individual lines as it prepared a spending plan for floor debate. Totals were not immediately available but the additions mean the Senate plan will be closer to Gov. Mike Parson’s $52.7 billion proposal than the $50.8 billion spending plan the House approved.

The budget will be on the Senate floor next week. Final approval could prove difficult with the six-member Freedom Caucus promising extended debate by digging into every item added to the budget for the coming year.

Republicans on the committee also injected a new issue into the budget at the end of Wednesday’s hearing – a provision, targeting Kansas City, that punishes any city declaring itself a sanctuary for undocumented immigrants with the loss of all state funding.

Among the larger items added during the markup session are:

• $171 million to increase pay to at least $17 an hour for people helping adults with developmental disabilities in their daily lives. There is also $9 million to pay a $2 differential for night work.
• $80 million for reconstructing U.S. Highway 67 in Butler County. There is also $30 million for road improvements near a beef processing plant in Wright City and $48 million for improvements to U.S. Highway 65 between Buffalo and Warsaw.
• $5 million to increase payments to counties for jail time served by inmates who are later convicted of felonies and sent to state prisons. With $5 million added by the House, it would increase the per-day rate to $27.31 from the current $22.58, an amount that has not been increased since fiscal 2017. State law in effect since 1997 allows up to $37.50 per day but it has never been funded.
• Restored $52 million cut from child care subsidies for lower income families and set new rates based on the latest rate study. The House directed that a rate study produced for the 2021-22 fiscal year be used.
• Restored cuts the House made to Medicaid budget lines that pared back the amount set aside for anticipated cost increases. 

The restored money in Medicaid lines, and in other places in the budget, is to make sure departments can function until lawmakers can pass a supplemental spending bill next year, said state Sen. Lincoln Hough, a Republican from Springfield and chair of the appropriations committee

“I don’t want any of those things running out of money while we’re not here,” he said.

The money for developmental disability services will help diminish a waiting list, said Val Huhn, director of the Department of Mental Health. A boost in pay last year helped recruiting and the waiting list stopped growing, she said.

“Our waitlist is kind of stagnant, but we’re not seeing an increase,” she said.

Hough said he was disappointed last year that the full boost wasn’t possible.

“It’s one of those things that takes a long time, and we ended up kind of with half of what I really wanted to do,” Hough said. “This was finishing off, more or less, a commitment from last year.”

Another change made in the budget that won’t add costs is to take one employee from each of the state’s prisons and assign them to a centrally directed investigations unit. Their job will be to improve interdiction of contraband coming into the prisons.

That has proven difficult and arrests of corrections officers in recent years for carrying drugs into prisons illustrates the issue. In one instance, a corrections officer brought drugs in soda cans and another brought rolls of paper soaked in synthetic cannabinoid .

Trevor Foley, director of the Department of Corrections, said contraband gets into prisons in a variety of ways and catching it will also require a variety of approaches.

“There’s prevention, there’s perimeter security, there’s searches, there’s body scanners, there’s pushing our perimeters back, there’s drone monitoring,” he said. “There’s staff reviews, there’s visitor reviews, there’s vendor and delivery screenings.”

A wrongful death lawsuit filed earlier this month over a prisoner suicide describes the ease at which items can move from cell to cell even in the administrative segregation unit. Prisoners run strings that can move items as heavy as bed sheets from cell to cell. Sometimes goods are moved between floors, the lawsuit says, based on video obtained from the department.

It is very difficult to catch those types of activities, Foley said.

“I would need to triple my staff to have eyes watching every camera, even splitting them up by floors,” he said.

As of Friday, there will be two weeks left for lawmakers to finish a budget before the constitutional deadline. The deadline has only been missed once, and legislative leaders expressed confidence they can meet it again, although it will be close.

“Time is of the essence,” House Budget Committee Chairman Cody Smith said Thursday. “We do have enough time but certainly we are on the countdown.”

Smith said he needs time to study the changes made by the Senate to determine which he can accept.

‘I will reserve judgment until I understand what’s in the legislation,” Smith said. “I don’t think I really have a clear understanding of that.”

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Rudi Keller

Rudi Keller covers the state budget and the legislature. A graduate of the University of Missouri School of Journalism, he spent 22 of his 32 years in journalism covering Missouri government and politics for the Columbia Daily Tribune, where he won awards for spot news and investigative reporting.

Missouri Independent is part of States Newsroom , the nation’s largest state-focused nonprofit news organization.

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How much is sling tv.

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What is Sling TV like to use?

Is sling tv worth it, the bottom line, sling tv review: essential cable channels for cord-cutters on a budget.

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Sling TV is one of the best live TV streaming services you can sign up for without breaking the bank. With plans starting at $40 a month, it's an excellent midrange option with a healthy assortment of popular channels and features that cord-cutters crave. 

But Sling isn't the only live TV option out there, and there are some areas where it falls behind more expensive services. To help you decide if Sling TV is the right choice for you and your household, we've broken down everything you need to know, including our thoughts on what it's like to use and how it stacks up to its main competitors.

For just the essentials without any extra fluff, Sling TV is the streaming service you're looking for. It's more customizable than other plans, with three options you can choose from, so you pay for only what you need. New members get their first month for $25 off.

• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Two affordable base plans to choose from
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Options with sports or local networks
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Sling is a live TV streaming service that offers access to many popular cable and satellite channels via an internet connection. That means no bulky cable boxes or tricky contracts, and you can get Sling for a fraction of the cost of most traditional pay-TV providers. 

The service offers two primary plans geared toward different types of programming: Sling Orange leans toward sports, and Sling Blue toward news and entertainment. You can also combine both plans to get access to all of their channels, and there are add-on packages you can buy to unlock even more networks and premium stations, like Starz and Showtime.

Sling TV offers three primary plans, with prices starting at $40 a month. All Sling plans include 50 hours of DVR storage, but members can pay $5 a month extra to unlock DVR Plus with 200 hours. 

Here's how much each of Sling TV's three main plans cost:

*Sling Blue and Orange + Blue pricing and total channel offerings vary depending on location. Local NBC, Fox, and ABC stations are only available in select cities. Members must pay an extra $5 in areas that include all three local stations.

What channels come with Sling TV?

Both Sling Orange and Blue start with the same selection of 25 channels, including popular cable networks like CNN, HGTV, Food Network, and more. But in addition to this base lineup, each plan has its own unique assortment of additional channels.

Orange has seven exclusive sports and family channels, including ESPN, Disney Channel, and Freeform. Meanwhile, Blue has 17 exclusive news and entertainment channels, including Discovery Channel and TLC, and local stations from ABC, Fox, and NBC in supported markets. On the downside, there is no option to stream your local CBS channel. 

Sling TV also offers several add-on packages that you can purchase for an additional cost to unlock even more channels. Bundles like Sports Extra, Entertainment Extra, News Extra, and Kids Extra cost an extra $6 to $11 a month, each including anywhere from six to 14 additional channels. The Sports Extra add-on, for example, includes ESPNU, MLB Network, NBA TV, and more for $11 a month.

Many of these extra channels are included with base offerings from more expensive competitors like YouTube TV , Hulu + Live TV , and Fubo , but some viewers may prefer how Sling TV lets you save money by offering these networks as optional add-ons.

Check out our Sling TV channels guide for a full breakdown of networks and features included with each plan and add-on.

Does Sling TV offer a free plan?

Sling TV does offer a free streaming option called "Freestream" that anyone can watch without an account. Though this plan does not include any traditional cable or local networks, it does feature access to over 400 ad-supported live internet TV channels. 

Some of these stations are offshoots of major networks that broadcast select content from their libraries. For instance, you can watch channels like AMC Thrillers and VH1 I Love Reality.

These free internet channels aren't a substitute for true cable or satellite TV offerings, but they're a nice option for cord-cutters who aren't ready to commit to a paid subscription.

How do I stream Sling TV?

The Sling TV app is supported on several media players and mobile products, including all of the best streaming devices from Apple, Roku, Fire TV, and Chromecast, as well as iOS and Android phones, Xbox Series X|S, web browsers, and more. The app is also available directly through many of the best TVs from brands like Samsung, LG, Sony, Hisense, Vizio, and TCL. 

Check out a full list of every supported device on the Sling website .

After testing Sling on a web browser, smart TV, and Roku Ultra, we found the service to be intuitive and easy to use, an important characteristic for subscribers making the switch from cable. In our experience, streaming is stable and without interruption, but your results may differ based on your network connection quality. 

Sling's interface lets you access a traditional channel guide where you can sort channels by their name or genre, and you can see which networks you've most recently watched. Once you choose a program and start watching live TV, you can press down on your remote to toggle an overlay on the bottom of the screen, which lets you see details about the program or jump into other content. 

You can also press up on your remote to easily return to the full-screen guide from any live channel. The program you were watching keeps playing on a small pop-up screen in the lower right corner until you select another channel.

Outside the guide, Sling has a menu on the left side of the screen that lets you access a homepage with content recommendations, your DVR recordings, on-demand content, and settings. This is all simple to navigate, and there are no glaring omissions. 

Sling is an excellent live TV streaming option for viewers who don't want to spend much money but still want more than the bare minimum. It lacks some perks that come with Hulu's pricier live TV service, like unlimited DVR and a complimentary Disney Plus subscription, but it includes some key networks that cheaper services, like Philo , are missing.

One of Sling's most attractive features is how it lets you choose between two affordable base plans to keep costs low. If you don't care about watching sports on ESPN networks, opting for Sling Blue at only $40 a month saves you a great deal of money compared to signing up for a service like Fubo, which costs double the price and forces you to pay for channels you might not want. Sling Blue even includes local channels in big cities, which is something that Philo's less expensive service lacks.  

However, if you're looking for a live TV streaming solution to suit a big household with varied viewing needs, Sling may not be for you. Though you can customize a comprehensive plan with options for many different tastes by subscribing to Sling Orange + Blue and tacking on packages like the Sports Extra plan and DVR Plus, the cost adds up quickly. To get a fully inclusive Sling TV package with a channel selection and set of features that rivals Hulu + Live TV or YouTube TV's base offerings, you'll end up paying about the same or, in some cases, even more than those services charge.

Sling is ultimately best for people who just want an Orange or Blue plan to get the essentials of cable TV but don't want to pay extra for all the other channels that come with more expensive services.

Starting at $40 a month, Sling TV is a competitive option for subscribers who want an affordable live TV streaming service that provides popular news, sports, entertainment, and family programming. 

It's considerably cheaper than most competing live TV streaming services, and it offers more sports and news channels than Philo, Sling's top budget competitor. Though Philo is even cheaper at just $25 a month, Sling has plans that include stations like ESPN, NFL Network, CNN, ABC, NBC, and Fox, which are all missing from Philo.  

Ultimately, Sling TV cements itself as a unique midrange option that rests between Philo's true budget pricing and the more common $65-$75 starting prices of other live TV services. Options like Hulu + Live TV remain a better fit for people willing to pay more for additional channels and extra perks like unlimited DVR, but in an age of rising prices, Sling TV's lower costs provide a nice streaming solution for first-time cord cutters switching over from cable or satellite TV.

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