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Payroll

Payroll budget vs actual tracker

Compare the payroll you budgeted with what you actually paid each month, and see the variance and whether you are over budget.

Payroll budget vs actual tracker template

Payroll is usually a business's biggest cost, and small overruns add up. Enter the amount budgeted for each month, the actual gross pay and the employer's statutory costs, and the workbook shows the actual total, the variance in shillings and percent and whether the month was within budget, with a running annual total.

Finance managers, business owners and accountants who control staff costs, and anyone asked to explain why payroll cost more than planned.

What is included

  • Budget against actual for every month
  • Variance in shillings and as a percentage
  • Within or over budget status
  • Annual budget, actual cost and variance at the top
  • Chart of actual cost by month

Screenshots

  • Payroll budget against actual of Payroll budget vs actual tracker
  • Actual payroll cost by month of Payroll budget vs actual tracker

How to use it

  1. Enter the budgeted payroll cost for each month at the start of the year.
  2. Each month, type the actual gross pay and the employer statutory costs.
  3. Read the variance and the status for the month.
  4. Check the annual totals at the top and the chart on the Summary sheet.

Templates are tools to help with your own records. They are not tax or legal advice. Check the figures against official sources before filing or paying.

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What the payroll budget vs actual tracker does

Payroll is usually a business's biggest cost, and small overruns add up. Enter the amount budgeted for each month, the actual gross pay and the employer's statutory costs, and the workbook shows the actual total, the variance in shillings and percent and whether the month was within budget, with a running annual total.

Who it is for

Finance managers, business owners and accountants who control staff costs, and anyone asked to explain why payroll cost more than planned.

How to use the workbook

  1. Enter the budgeted payroll cost for each month at the start of the year.
  2. Each month, type the actual gross pay and the employer statutory costs.
  3. Read the variance and the status for the month.
  4. Check the annual totals at the top and the chart on the Summary sheet.
  5. Save a copy under a new name for each month or year, so earlier records stay as they were.

What is inside

  • Budget against actual for every month
  • Variance in shillings and as a percentage
  • Within or over budget status
  • Annual budget, actual cost and variance at the top
  • Chart of actual cost by month

The workbook has these sheets: Instructions, Months, By month. The main table has the columns Month; Budgeted payroll; Actual gross pay; Employer statutory costs; Actual total cost; Variance (budget less actual); Variance %; Status. Yellow cells are for you to fill in and grey cells calculate by themselves, so leave the grey cells alone. The example rows show how it works; type over them with your own entries.

Tips for getting it right

  • Include overtime, bonuses and employer contributions in the actual cost.
  • Investigate any variance above five percent while the month is fresh.
  • Update the budget only when a decision changes it, and note why.
  • Compare with the cash flow forecast so payroll stays affordable.

Why keep this record

Staff records go wrong in small, repeated ways: a figure typed twice, a deadline forgotten, a promise that nobody wrote down. A tidy workbook that everyone uses the same way removes most of those problems. It also gives you something to show an employee, an auditor or a labour officer when a question comes up months later, and it makes the next payroll quicker because the facts are already in one place.

Questions people ask

Do I need to know Excel formulas? No. Type into the yellow cells and the rest is worked out for you. The formulas are visible if you want to see how a figure is reached.

Can I add rows or change the layout? You can add your own columns to the right and your own notes. If you insert rows inside a table, copy the grey formula cells down so the new rows calculate too.

Will it work on my phone or in Google Sheets? Yes for viewing and typing, but dropdown lists and the charts look best in desktop Excel or LibreOffice.

Keeping it safe and up to date

Payroll records are personal data and tax records at once, so keep the file somewhere only the people who need it can open, and keep each month's copy for at least five years. Statutory rates such as NSSF limits and the Housing Levy change, so check the Rates sheet against the official source before you rely on a figure.

Read how to run payroll for a small business for the wider picture. Free calculators that go with it: Paye calculator, Net to gross salary calculator. See more payroll templates or ask us for a custom one.

The workbook works in Microsoft Excel, LibreOffice and Google Sheets. It is a tool to help you work out and record figures, not tax, legal or accounting advice, and it is not affiliated with the Kenya Revenue Authority. If something does not work as described, contact us and we will put it right.

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