Free Grant Tracking Templates (Excel & Google Sheets)

Not every nonprofit needs grant management software. If you manage a few grants, a spreadsheet workbook can keep you organized.

A workbook is a working schedule, not a second general ledger. Keep posted cash, receivables, liabilities, revenue, and expenses in your accounting system, and reconcile the workbook to that system on a set schedule. Use the workbook for award details, approved budgets, deadlines, commitments, allocation support, and reports in the funder's format.

Download the free grant tracking workbook. The workbook has an Instructions sheet and four tracking sheets, which are Grant Overview, Budget, Expenses, and Reporting Calendar. The tracking sheets come with sample data and formulas. If you prefer Google Sheets, upload the .xlsx file to Google Drive and open it with Google Sheets.

The sections below explain how each sheet works and how to adapt it for your organization.

When spreadsheets work

Spreadsheets work when these conditions hold:

• You have few enough active grants for a careful manual process.
• Your workbook can represent each grant's budget structure accurately.
• You have staff time for manual data entry.
• Reporting requirements are basic.
• You are just getting started with grants.

When to move beyond spreadsheets

Consider dedicated software when these conditions apply:

• The number of grants, their complexity, or the number of editors outgrows your workbook controls.
• Manual tracking takes a lot of time, or the time keeps growing.
• Reviews keep finding reporting errors, or find large ones.
• Auditors or funders find gaps in documentation or controls.
• You need budget versus actual figures refreshed automatically from your accounting data.

Template 1: Grant Overview

The Grant Overview sheet lists all your grants in one place.

Columns

Column	Description
Grant Name	A descriptive name. The Expenses and Budget sheets match on this name.
Funder	The foundation or agency
Award Amount	The approved budget the workbook tracks. If the signed award maximum differs, add a separate column for it.
Start Date	Grant period start
End Date	Grant period end
Status	e.g., Active, Pending, or Closed
Spent to Date	A formula that totals this grant's rows on the Expenses sheet
Remaining	Award Amount minus Spent to Date
% Spent	Spent to Date divided by Award Amount
Next Report Due	The next deadline
Notes	Key information

Sample data

All names, dates, and amounts in the sample data are fictional, and none of them are benchmarks or recommended thresholds. The sample grants in the workbook show these results:

Grant Name	Funder	Award	Start	End	Status	Spent	Remaining	% Spent
Youth Programs 2026	Community Foundation	$100,000	1/1/2026	12/31/2026	Active	$7,195	$92,805	7%
Education Initiative	Learning Fund	$75,000	7/1/2026	6/30/2027	Active	$1,200	$73,800	2%
Health Access	State Health Agency	$150,000	10/1/2026	9/30/2027	Pending	$0	$150,000	0%

Formulas

• Spent to Date: =SUMIF(Expenses!$E$2:$E$500,A2,Expenses!$D$2:$D$500) totals the Expenses rows whose Grant matches this row's Grant Name.
• Remaining: =C2-G2, which is Award Amount minus Spent to Date. If the award maximum differs from the approved budget, use the approved budget.
• % Spent: =IFERROR(G2/C2,0)
• You can add a Days Remaining column with a formula such as =E2-TODAY().
• If you add conditional formatting, base the warning points on the grant period, commitments, forecast, and award terms. A generic spending percentage is not a compliance threshold.

Template 2: Budget

The Budget sheet tracks budget versus actual for one grant at a time. The grant name in cell B1 selects the grant.

Columns

Column	Description
Budget Category	e.g., Personnel or Supplies. The Expenses sheet's Category dropdown uses this list.
Budgeted Amount	The approved budget for the category
Spent to Date	A formula that totals the selected grant's expenses in this category. Decide whether this means book expense, allocated expense, or eligible expense, and label it.
Encumbered	Amounts committed but not yet paid, which you enter yourself
Available	Budget minus Spent minus Encumbered
% Used	Spent plus Encumbered, divided by Budget

Sample budget

With Youth Programs 2026 selected in cell B1, the workbook's sample data shows these results:

Category	Budget	Spent	Encumbered	Available	% Used
Personnel	$50,000	$4,000	$0	$46,000	8%
Fringe Benefits	$15,000	$0	$0	$15,000	0%
Travel	$5,000	$450	$500	$4,050	19%
Supplies	$8,000	$245	$300	$7,455	7%
Contractual	$15,000	$2,500	$5,000	$7,500	50%
Other	$7,000	$0	$0	$7,000	0%
Total	$100,000	$7,195	$5,800	$87,005	13%

Formulas

• Spent to Date: =SUMIFS(Expenses!$D$2:$D$500,Expenses!$E$2:$E$500,$B$1,Expenses!$F$2:$F$500,$A4) totals the expenses that match both the selected grant and the category.
• Available: =B4-C4-D4
• % Used: =IFERROR((C4+D4)/B4,0)

The workbook has no indirect cost row. If your grant budget includes indirect costs, add a row and apply the rate in your approved agreement to the base it defines, e.g., modified total direct costs. Don't automatically apply the rate to all direct costs.

Template 3: Expenses

The Expenses sheet lists each expense charged to a grant.

Columns

Column	Description
Date	Transaction date
Vendor	Who was paid
Description	What the expense was for
Amount	Dollar amount
Grant	Which grant, chosen from a dropdown of Grant Overview names
Category	Which budget category, chosen from a dropdown of Budget categories
Reference #	Check number or other payment reference
Documentation	Y or N, to show whether the receipt is on file

Sample expenses

Date	Vendor	Description	Amount	Grant	Category	Reference #	Documentation
1/15/2026	Office Supply Co.	Program supplies	$245.00	Youth Programs 2026	Supplies	1234	Y
1/18/2026	Regional Airlines	Staff travel to conference	$450.00	Youth Programs 2026	Travel	CC-001	Y
1/22/2026	Evaluation Partners	Evaluation services	$2,500.00	Youth Programs 2026	Contractual	1235	Y
2/1/2026	Payroll	Program manager payroll	$4,000.00	Youth Programs 2026	Personnel	PR-2026-03	Y
7/10/2026	Book Vendor	Student materials	$1,200.00	Education Initiative	Supplies	1278	Y

Using the Expenses sheet

1. Import or enter grant expense detail from your accounting system. A row in the sheet doesn't prove that an item was posted, paid, allocated, or allowable.
2. Pick Grant and Category values from the dropdowns, so names match the formulas exactly.
3. Use pivot tables if you want more summaries by grant or category.
4. Let the SUMIF and SUMIFS formulas on the other sheets total the rows.

To total one grant and category somewhere else in the workbook, use a formula like this:

=SUMIFS(Expenses!$D$2:$D$500,Expenses!$E$2:$E$500,"Youth Programs 2026",
        Expenses!$F$2:$F$500,"Supplies")

Template 4: Reporting Calendar

The Reporting Calendar sheet tracks funder report deadlines.

Columns

Column	Description
Grant	Grant name
Report Type	e.g., progress, financial, or final
Period Covered	The reporting period
Due Date	The deadline
Status	Not Started, In Progress, or Submitted, chosen from a dropdown
Submitted Date	When you submitted the report
Notes	Requirements and portal details

Sample calendar

Grant	Report Type	Period	Due Date	Status	Submitted
Youth Programs 2026	Q1 Progress	Jan to Mar 2026	4/15/2026	Submitted	4/10/2026
Youth Programs 2026	Q2 Progress	Apr to Jun 2026	7/15/2026	In Progress
Education Initiative	Semiannual	Jul to Dec 2026	1/31/2027	Not Started
Health Access	Quarterly	Oct to Dec 2026	1/15/2027	Not Started

Ideas for reminders

• Add conditional formatting that marks overdue reports in red. Choose a due-soon window that leaves enough time to prepare and review each report.
• Copy the due dates into your Google or Outlook calendar.
• Add a reminder formula such as =IF(D2-TODAY()<ReviewWindow,"Due Soon",""), where ReviewWindow is a lead time you choose.

Optional outline for a funder report

The workbook doesn't include a narrative report sheet. Use this outline in the funder's required document or portal, and use the workbook's reviewed financial summary as supporting data.

1. Summary. The grant name and period, key accomplishments, a financial summary, and challenges and solutions.
2. Program progress. Activities completed, participants served, outcomes achieved, and progress toward goals.
3. Financial summary. Budget, spent, and remaining by category, taken from the Budget sheet.
4. Challenges and adjustments. Issues you encountered, how you handled them, and any budget changes.
5. Plans for the next period. Planned activities, expected spending, and upcoming milestones.

Using the downloaded workbook

In Excel

1. Download the workbook.
2. Replace the sample grants, budgets, expenses, and deadlines with your own data.
3. Copy the Budget sheet when you need a budget view for another grant, then change the grant name in cell B1.
4. Extend formulas and dropdown ranges as you add rows.
5. Protect the formula cells after you finish customizing the workbook.

In Google Sheets

1. Download the Excel workbook.
2. Upload it to Google Drive.
3. Open the file with Open with > Google Sheets.
4. Replace the sample data, and check that the formulas converted correctly.
5. Share the sheet with team members, with the right permissions for each person.

Worked example: reconcile the workbook

Before you replace the fictional data, use the downloaded workbook to check your setup. Select Youth Programs 2026 in cell B1 of the Budget sheet. Its four sample expenses total $7,195, which is $4,000 for Personnel, $450 for Travel, $245 for Supplies, and $2,500 for Contractual. The $1,200 Education Initiative expense belongs to another grant, so it must not appear in this total.

Check	Expected result with the sample data
Grant Overview, Spent to Date	$7,195
Grant Overview, Remaining	$92,805, which is the $100,000 award minus $7,195 spent
Budget, total Encumbered	$5,800
Budget, total Available	$87,005, which is the $100,000 budget minus $7,195 spent and $5,800 encumbered

Remaining and Available are different numbers, because the overview doesn't subtract commitments. Neither number is a cash balance, a reimbursement claim, or permission to spend.

To test a credit, add a fictional expense of -$125 for Youth Programs 2026 in the Supplies category, within the existing expense rows. Spent becomes $7,070, the overview's Remaining becomes $92,930, and the Budget's Available becomes $87,130. Make sure your accounting export uses the same sign for credits. Don't enter a credit twice if your imported transactions already include it.

When you switch to your own data, follow these steps:

1. Save a dated export from your accounting system, and note the grant, the reporting basis, and the period it covers.
2. Replace the sample inputs. Import each expense or allocated share once, and don't include both a full shared expense and the grant's share of it.
3. Compare the workbook's grant and category totals with the same scope in your accounting records. Investigate unmatched names, duplicate rows, credits, and timing differences before you report.
4. Record the reconciliation date, the preparer, the reviewer, and any unresolved differences, and keep them with the saved export.

The formulas total Expenses rows 2 to 500 and match on grant and category names. They don't filter by date, payment status, review status, or award eligibility. For a report that covers only one period, work from a separate saved copy that contains only that period's reviewed expenses, and use a budget for the same period. Keep the cumulative master copy as well. Before you add expense row 501 or more grant rows, extend the formulas and dropdown ranges, because copying values alone doesn't extend them.

For a fuller reconciliation method, see reconciling a grant report to the QuickBooks general ledger. For spending comparisons, see grant budget versus actual in QuickBooks.

Spreadsheet practices

Data entry

• Use the same format every time.
• Use dropdowns to prevent typos in grant and category names.
• Enter data promptly so it doesn't pile up.
• Include references, e.g., check numbers and invoice numbers.
• Track statuses separately. Posted, paid, allocated, reviewed, and eligible for the funder are different facts.

Organization

• Design the workbook around grant periods. A grant may cross fiscal years, so keep its cumulative history and add fiscal year views instead of starting over each year.
• Move completed grants to an archive instead of deleting them.
• Back up the workbook regularly, e.g., in cloud storage.
• Include the date in the file name of each saved version.

Reporting

• Reconcile before each external report, and often enough to catch errors in time. Document any timing, allocation, and eligibility differences.
• Note the reason for each variance.
• Keep copies of the reports you submit.

Minimum controls

• Assign an owner and a reviewer, and don't let the preparer approve their own reconciliation.
• Limit who can edit, protect formulas and dropdown lists, and keep version history.
• Tie each reporting period to a dated export or report from your accounting system, and keep it.
• Check for duplicate transactions, missing periods, sign errors, formula ranges, and broken links.
• Keep receipts, invoices, payroll support, the allocation method, approvals, and award amendments in your controlled document storage, not in the workbook.
• Keep donor records and acknowledgments in a separate, controlled system. An expense or grant workbook is not a donor database.

Limits of spreadsheets

Limit	Effect
Manual data entry	Takes time and causes errors
No connection to your accounting system	Actuals are only as current as your latest reconciled import
Shared editing needs controls	Several people can edit at once, but you still need clear ownership, permissions, and review
Limited change history	Version history helps, but it isn't a complete approval or accounting audit trail
Hard to scale	The workbook gets hard to manage with many grants
Manual imports	Export, import, and reconciliation work remains

When to upgrade

Consider grant management software in these cases:

• Maintaining the workbook takes a lot of time, or the time keeps growing.
• You find errors in reports.
• The number or complexity of your grants outgrows your workbook controls.
• Several people need access.
• You want a connection to QuickBooks.

If you plan to keep QuickBooks Online, compare grant accounting software for QuickBooks with a controlled workbook before you choose a grant finance tool or replace your accounting system. Measure the results of any pilot, because software doesn't automatically pay for itself or replace reconciliation and review.

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Download the free workbook for Excel and Google Sheets and replace the sample data with your grants.

How GrantLink supports this today

For a funder's own report forms, open the grant's Reporting section, choose Templates, and select Add template. You can add Excel workbooks (.xlsx or .xlsm) and fillable PDF forms up to 3 MB. GrantLink stores each template with the grant. The Assistant fills a new copy from the grant's data for your review and doesn't change the file you uploaded.

In GrantLink, you add a grant by hand or by uploading its award documents. Then, in the grant's QuickBooks section, you choose the QuickBooks records for that grant under Expenses and Money received. GrantLink automatically allocates matching QuickBooks expense activity to the grant, and you can classify or split other transactions on the Ledger page. Money received is the label for income linked to the grant, and it doesn't by itself show that cash arrived. QuickBooks Online remains your accounting system, and GrantLink is read-only toward QuickBooks by default.