Budgeting & Forecasting | Budget vs Actual
Variance the day it happens, not in the month-end pack.
Budget, actual and variance sit side by side by account and by dimension. Actuals read live from the operating ledger, so the gap updates the moment a journal posts. Drill from a red cell to the journal entry, and from there to the source bill or invoice.
What the system does
Capability, input, output.
| Capability | Input | Output |
|---|---|---|
| Side-by-side BvA grid | Approved budget + posted journal actuals | Budget, actual and variance by account and period |
| Dimension slice | Cost centre, project or region tag on each transaction | Variance view scoped to any dimension combination |
| Drill to source | A variance cell | Journal entries behind it, then the source bill or invoice |
| Threshold alerts | Materiality thresholds set per account or category | Flagged lines when variance exceeds the threshold |
| Line commentary | Finance team notes per budget line | Variance narrative captured alongside the numbers |
| Live actuals sync | Operating ledger, updated as journals post | No import step, no period-end reconciliation |
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Side-by-side BvA grid
- Input
- Approved budget + posted journal actuals
- Output
- Budget, actual and variance by account and period
-
Dimension slice
- Input
- Cost centre, project or region tag on each transaction
- Output
- Variance view scoped to any dimension combination
-
Drill to source
- Input
- A variance cell
- Output
- Journal entries behind it, then the source bill or invoice
-
Threshold alerts
- Input
- Materiality thresholds set per account or category
- Output
- Flagged lines when variance exceeds the threshold
-
Line commentary
- Input
- Finance team notes per budget line
- Output
- Variance narrative captured alongside the numbers
-
Live actuals sync
- Input
- Operating ledger, updated as journals post
- Output
- No import step, no period-end reconciliation
Standards + connections
Variance analysis wired to the ledger that runs the period.
Actuals come from the same chart of accounts your statutory reports use. There is no separate BvA file to reconcile against the books at month end.
Regulations we work within
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Chart-of-accounts aligned
Budget lines map to your operating chart of accounts, so the BvA view and the P&L reconcile without a remap.
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Dimension-consistent reporting
Cost centre, project and region tags flow from the transaction into the variance view, consistent with how the ledger tags them.
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Audit trail to source document
Every variance drills to a journal entry with its posting date, reference and the originating bill or invoice.
Connects to
- General Ledger Actuals read live as journals post
- Accounts Payable Bills and payment runs feed cost actuals
- Accounts Receivable Invoices and receipts feed revenue actuals
- Budget Management Approved budgets become the comparison baseline
Budget vs Actual FAQ
What buyers ask.
How current are the actuals in the BvA view?
Actuals are read directly from the operating ledger and update as journals post. There is no nightly import, no manual refresh and no period-end close required to see the current variance. If a bill is posted this morning, it appears in the BvA view this morning.
Can we slice variance by cost centre, project or region?
Yes. Any dimension tag applied to a transaction, whether cost centre, project, region or a custom tag, flows through to the BvA view. You can filter to a single dimension or combine them to see variance for a specific project in a specific region.
What happens when I click on a variance figure?
The drill path goes from the variance cell to the individual journal entries behind it, each with its posting date and reference. From any journal line you can open the source document, the bill, invoice or expense claim that generated the entry. There is no export step and no pivot table to rebuild.
How do we flag variances that need explanation?
Materiality thresholds can be set per account or category. Lines that exceed the threshold are highlighted so reviewers know where to focus. Commentary is captured per line and travels with the view, so the explanation sits next to the number rather than in a separate email thread.
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Budget vs actual on the ledger that ran the period.
Connect your books and the first BvA view runs on your own accounts, your own dimensions and your own actuals. No CSV, no manual tie-out, no separate planning file to reconcile.