Small Business Monthly Profit and Loss Spreadsheet

Who this is for

A month's trading on one page. Income and expenses sit in two columns of one table, with the usual categories already written in, and the summary gives the income, the expenses, the profit and the margin as a percentage.

Sole traders and small businesses that want to see each month whether the business made money, before the accountant tells them at the end of the year.

What this helps you track

• Total income for the month, by source
• Total expenses for the month, by category
• Profit or loss, and the margin as a percentage of income
• Twelve sheets side by side make the year, and show which months carry it

How to use it

1. Write the business, the month and whether you are working on a cash or accrual basis at the top.
2. Enter the month's income against each source in the income column — sales, services, other — and add lines for your own.
3. Work down the expense categories and enter the month's total for each in the expense column; add lines for categories of your own.
4. The browser and workbook versions total both columns and work out the profit and the margin. On paper, total each column and subtract.
5. Keep one sheet per month; in the workbook, copy the sheet twelve times and compare.

Formats

• Printable PDF (A4 and US Letter)
• Fillable PDF with form fields
• Fill in online, saved in your browser
• Excel / Google Sheets workbook

The printable is laid out inside a box that fits both A4 and US Letter, so the two files are identical and neither one is scaled. The fillable PDF has real form fields. The workbook uses plain formulas only — SUM, IF, COUNTIF and the like — so it opens in Excel, LibreOffice and Google Sheets without anything breaking, and every calculated cell is grey so you can see which figures it worked out.

How to print

Download the A4 or US Letter file to match the paper in your printer, open it in a PDF reader and print at 100% — not "fit to page", which shrinks the writing space. Both files leave a 14 mm margin, which clears the unprintable edge on home printers. To print the online version with your entries in it, use the Print this sheet button, which prints only the sheet and none of the page around it. More on printing.

Questions

Cash or accrual — what do I enter?

Either, but be consistent. Cash: what came in and went out this month. Accrual: what was earned and incurred this month, whether or not paid. Your accountant and the rules where you are may need one in particular for the return; this sheet works for both.

Do I include tax collected on sales?

If you charge a sales tax that you pass on, most businesses leave it out of income and out of expenses, because it is not theirs. Enter net figures and say so in the notes if in doubt.

What margin should I be aiming for?

Whatever your trade and your costs allow — there is no figure here and no benchmark. The margin is shown so you can watch it move from month to month.

Why are income and expenses in one table?

So a month fits on one page with room for your own lines. Each row carries an amount in either the income column or the expense column, never both, and the two columns total separately.

Is this the same as the income and expense spreadsheet?

That one lists every transaction through the year. This one is the monthly summary by category, which is what a profit and loss statement is.