Energy Account Credit and Direct Debit Tracker

Who this is for

Whether your direct debit is keeping up with what you use. Each month, enter what you paid and what the supplier billed for electricity and gas, and the sheet keeps a running account balance from your opening figure. Set it beside the balance the supplier states, and the summary suggests the monthly amount that would bring the account back to zero.

Households paying for energy by fixed monthly direct debit who want to know whether the account is building up credit or sliding into debt before the supplier reviews it.

What this helps you track

• Every monthly direct debit paid
• Billed electricity and gas cost for each month
• Whether each month paid more or less than was used
• A running balance in credit or debit, beside the supplier's figure
• The monthly amount that would clear the balance over a year

How to use it

1. Write the supplier, account number and current direct debit amount, the review date and the account balance at the start, with credit as a plus figure and debit as a minus.
2. Each month, enter the direct debit paid and the electricity and gas costs from the statement or app.
3. The month total, difference and running balance are worked out in the browser and the workbook; on paper, take the billed total from the payment and add it to the balance above.
4. Copy the balance the supplier shows into the stated balance column and look into any month where the two drift apart.
5. Use the suggested monthly amount in the summary when the supplier proposes a new direct debit, or when you ask for a change.

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

How is the running balance worked out?

It starts from the opening balance you enter, then adds each month's direct debit and takes away that month's billed electricity and gas. A plus figure is credit on the account; a minus figure is money owed.

How is the suggested monthly amount calculated?

It takes your average billed cost per month and adjusts it so the current balance would reach zero over the next twelve months at that level of use. It is a guide from your own figures; winter months will cost more than the average.

Why does my balance differ from the supplier's?

Bills often cover periods that do not line up with calendar months, and estimated readings can be corrected later. Note the reason in the notes column; a gap that keeps growing is worth checking against your meter readings.

Should I ask for credit back?

That is your decision and depends on the time of year and your own usage. The sheet shows how much credit has built up and whether the payments are running ahead of use, so you can decide with the figures in front of you.