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Plan your annual budget. See where spending stands.

Set revenue and expense targets for your fiscal year, then compare your budget with actual accounting entries and the prior year in campai. Budget planning requires full accounting to be enabled for your organization.

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Budget plan with prior-year values, editable annual amounts, actuals, differences, and percentage reached by account
Budget plan with prior-year values, editable annual amounts, actuals, differences, and percentage reached by account

Build your plan from a useful starting point

Open Budgets under Finance and Accounting to create a plan for your fiscal year. Start with an empty plan, use the prior year’s accounting entries rounded to whole amounts, or copy the prior year’s budget. The period follows your organization’s fiscal start month. Each workspace has one budget per fiscal year.

Enter annual amounts for revenue and expense accounts. Changes save when you press Enter or leave the field. Hide columns you do not need, or select All accounts to include accounts with no plan or accounting entries.

Give each cost center its own plan

Plan revenue and expenses separately for programs or departments. Select a cost center and enter annual amounts for its accounts. Activity areas in your chart of accounts can also be included like cost centers.

Plan each account either as a whole or by cost center. The amount is locked in the other view, keeping the same funds from being planned at both levels. Accounts and cost centers used in a budget cannot be deleted.

Cost center budget with editable plan amounts and a locked amount planned as a whole account
Cost center budget with editable plan amounts and a locked amount planned as a whole account

Compare your budget with actual results

The overview shows revenue, expenses, what is left to spend, and the result, followed by a row for each cost center. The plan puts Year before, Plan, Actual, Difference, and Reached side by side. Expenses above a positive planned amount appear in red.

Choose a month to compare current accounting entries with the corresponding prior-year period. The plan remains your full annual budget. Left to spend is planned expenses minus actual expenses; it is not your bank balance.

Budget overview with revenue, expenses, remaining budget, result, and comparisons by cost center
Budget overview with revenue, expenses, remaining budget, result, and comparisons by cost center

Keep the approved plan in place

Once your organization has agreed on its budget, approve the plan in campai. Its status changes to Approved and planned amounts are locked. The budget list and reports show the approval date.

Reopen returns the budget to a draft so you can edit it. Only drafts can be deleted. Approval records the plan’s status in campai; your organization follows its own process for deciding on the budget.

Approved budget with locked plan amounts, a lock notice, and the Reopen action
Approved budget with locked plan amounts, a lock notice, and the Reopen action

Bring the numbers to your next meeting

Export a PDF, Excel, or CSV report. The cost center report groups revenue, expenses, and the remaining budget. The account report shows each account’s plan, actuals, and prior-year figures.

When multiple budgets match and no individual workspace is selected, the report starts with a combined summary and continues with a table for each workspace. Review the overall position and follow up on the details with the people responsible.

Budget report by cost center with planned and actual amounts and PDF, Excel, and CSV format choices
Budget report by cost center with planned and actual amounts and PDF, Excel, and CSV format choices

Set up your annual budget in four steps

Use your accounting records to prepare the plan and check progress throughout the year.

  1. Create the budget

    Choose a workspace and fiscal year. Start empty, copy prior-year actuals, or use the previous budget.

  2. Plan the amounts

    Enter annual revenue and expenses. Decide whether to plan each account as a whole or by cost center.

  3. Compare actuals

    Review differences by account or cost center. Choose a month to limit the accounting entries in the comparison.

  4. Approve and export

    Approve the agreed plan and share a PDF, Excel, or CSV report with the people who need it.

Facility costs are over budget

A review of individual expense accounts shows where a follow-up is needed.

ExpenseAnnual planActual through OctoberDifference
Facility costs$72,000$75,800$3,800 over plan
Program instructors$100,000$96,000$4,000 under plan
Club equipment$18,000$16,200$1,800 under plan

Difference is actual minus plan. Facility costs have reached 105% of the annual amount, rounded to a whole percent. The other accounts have budget remaining; review upcoming expenses to decide whether it will cover the rest of the year.

Frequently asked questions

What do I need to use budget planning?

Full accounting must be enabled for your organization. New organizations start without it. Owners have access; other users need the Budgets permission. Budget planning runs in the administration, including on a phone.

Can I set monthly budgets?

Planned amounts cover the full fiscal year. The month selector limits the accounting entries used in the comparison, including the corresponding prior-year period. It does not split the annual plan into monthly budgets.

Does campai forecast the year-end result?

The comparison shows your plan alongside existing accounting entries. It does not automatically project future revenue or expenses.

Can I create several budget versions for one year?

Each workspace has one budget per fiscal year. You can reopen an approved budget to edit it. This does not create parallel versions or planning scenarios.

Which accounts can I include?

Plan revenue and expense accounts, either as a whole or by cost center. Balance-sheet accounts are outside budget planning. Planned amounts and actual accounting entries appear together for comparison.

Will I receive an alert when spending exceeds the plan?

Expenses above a positive planned amount appear in red. This does not send an automatic notification. Review the budget regularly with the people responsible for spending.

Prepare your next annual budget in campai

Bring your current budget and the programs or departments you want to track. We’ll walk through budget planning with full accounting.

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