Business Software Costs and Use Proportion Spreadsheet

Who this is for

See what your tools really cost the business. Every app, subscription and service gets a line with how it is billed, the annual cost and the share you use for work, and the sheet totals the business cost for the year. Subscriptions you had forgotten about tend to show up here.

Freelancers and sole traders who pay for a handful of apps and online services, some used purely for work and some shared with personal use.

What this helps you track

• Every app, tool and subscription you pay for, and what it is for
• Whether it bills monthly or annually, and what each bill is
• The annual cost of each one
• Your own business-use percentage for each
• The business cost for the year and the monthly equivalent

How to use it

1. Write the business name and the year at the top.
2. Go through your bank and card statements and list every software, app or online service that charges you.
3. Enter how it is billed, the cost per bill and the number of bills in the year.
4. Write your own business-use percentage for each: all for work-only tools, less for anything shared with personal use. Note how you judged it.
5. Annual and business costs, totals and the monthly figure are worked out in the browser and the workbook; on paper, multiply across and add down.
6. Review it before renewals, and cancel anything you no longer use.

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 do I decide the business-use percentage?

From how you actually use the tool. A design app used only for client work is all business; a phone plan or storage account shared with family is part. Note your reasoning, and check the rules where you are for how mixed use is treated.

Should I enter prices with or without sales tax?

Enter them the way you keep your books. If you reclaim sales tax, many people use the net figure; if not, the full amount paid. Keep one approach for the whole sheet.

What about tools billed in another currency?

Enter the amount that actually left your account in your own currency, from your statement, so the totals match your books rather than the list price.

Where does the monthly equivalent come from?

It is the total annual cost divided by twelve, which makes it easy to compare with a monthly budget or cash-flow forecast.