Free church accounting spreadsheet
A spreadsheet can keep a church's books when every line names its fund, so each fund's balance is worked out from the entries and never typed in. You get a Ledger tab for deposits and payments, a Fund Report for any month, and every fund's balance at each month end.
Inside your free Excel download
- A ledger of 2,000 lines, each with its fund, category and bank account
- A monthly report of every fund: opening, money in, money out, transfers, closing
- Checks that funds add up to the bank and no restricted fund is below zero
Pick every fund from the dropdown. A line with no fund is money the report can't place.
Get your church accounting spreadsheet
Download an editable .xlsx file immediately.
Six funds at the end of one month
A preview of the workbook. Your download includes the full editable template.
| Maple Grove Church, March 31, 2026 | Closing balance |
|---|---|
| General (without donor restrictions) | $32,269.39 |
| Building (with donor restrictions) | $41,650.00 |
| Missions, Benevolence, Board reserve | $15,010.00 |
| Youth (with donor restrictions) | −$110.00: below zero |
| All funds = both bank accounts | $88,819.39: Matches |
Keep your next step connected
Start with the spreadsheet. When you need your giving, spending, funds, and reports in one ledger, explore Grain.
Can a church keep its books in a spreadsheet?
Yes. The IRS tax guide for churches says "there is no specific format for keeping records," and a receipts and disbursements journal is one of the records it names. Where most church spreadsheets go wrong is the fund balances. They track categories, and someone types each fund's balance in at the end of the month. If that number is typed wrong, nothing warns you.
Put a fund on every line
Across churches on Grain so far in 2026, a typical church tracks about 6 funds, 1 in 3 tracks 10 or more, and 7 in 10 track at least one donor-restricted fund. The Funds tab holds up to 20 funds and three bank accounts. Mark each fund as with or without donor restrictions. Those are the two classes in church fund accounting. When a church asks for gifts for a stated purpose, ECFA says it is "morally bound to spend the money for the identified purpose".
The Fund Report flags a restricted fund that drops below zero. In the sample, the Youth fund ends March at minus $110. The retreat deposit went out before the youth gifts came in, so money from other funds covered it. The fix is a board decision: move general money in with a transfer, or record the gifts when they arrive. Don't retype the balance.
How to enter the lines that trip treasurers up
- A Sunday deposit for several funds. Enter one line per fund with the same date and reference. The bank sees one deposit, and each fund gets its share.
- A transfer between funds. Two lines with the category Transfer between funds: money out of one fund, the same amount into the other. The report checks that both halves are there.
- Bank fees and interest. Enter them from the statement. They go to the General fund unless your board or a donor said otherwise, even when the interest is earned in the building savings account.
- A returned gift. If a deposited check bounces, enter a money-out line in the gift's fund with the category Returned gift. Keep the original line.
- Next year. Save a copy. Each fund's December balance on the Year by Fund tab becomes its opening balance on the new Funds tab.
One deposit at the bank, three lines in the ledger
- General $4,820.00
- Building $650.00
- Missions $210.00
Reconcile it each month
Mark each line Y when it shows on the bank statement, and enter the statement's ending balance. The Fund Report adds back deposits not yet on the statement, takes off checks not yet cleared, and says whether each account matches. United Methodist guidance asks that accounts be "reconciled at least monthly by someone other than the preparer". For the board, the treasurer's report template turns the month into one page.
Where Grain takes over
The spreadsheet holds while one person keeps the books. Grain is for when more people do, or when the giving platform's deposits need matching. Gifts come in from Planning Center, Pushpay, Rock RMS or Subsplash, and bank activity through a bank feed. Each fund keeps its own balance on a double-entry ledger, with unlimited funds. Grain warns you when a bill would take a restricted fund below zero. We help move your spreadsheet over for free, and the Starter plan is free for churches with up to $20,000 a month in expenses. See fund accounting in Grain.