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Group budgeting and budget against actual for multiple entities

Group budgeting means one budget view across all your companies. In Finconsol each company's budget or latest estimate sits beside the group actuals, the group budget is the sum of the companies when there is no group plan, and every line shows variance and variance % marked ahead or behind, for the month and the year to date.

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Budget against actual

Compare September with the budget or with your latest estimate.

Actual revenue, costs and net profit for September 2026 are compared with a plan you choose, with the variance in thousands of dollars, as a percentage, and as ahead or behind.

LineActualPlanVarianceVariance %Against plan
Revenue 5,956 5,700 256 4.5% ahead
Costs 4,940 4,800 (140) 2.9% behind
Net profit 1,016 900 116 12.9% ahead

Actual against Budget 2026, USD thousands

Every company has a budget. The group has a pile of files.

Each company manager sends a budget in their own layout, on their own account names. The CFO needs one view: what the group planned, what it did, and where it is behind.

Then the forecast changes in July, and the question becomes which version the board is looking at.

  • Budgets in different shapes. Months across in one file, one row per month in another.
  • No group figure. The group budget is whatever someone adds up before the meeting.
  • Several versions. The original, the revised and the latest estimate, with no clear one for the board.
  • Variances redone. Actuals are pasted next to the budget each month and the differences worked out again.

How groups do it today

Budgets live in each company's spreadsheet, and the comparison with actuals is rebuilt every month. The work repeats, and a late change to one file reaches the group figure only if someone remembers.

Spreadsheets, a reporting tool and Finconsol compared for group budgeting
SpreadsheetsReporting toolFinconsol
Group budgetAdded up by handAdded up if every budget fits the same shapeThe sum of the companies, unless there is a group plan
VersionsFile names with datesUsually oneSeveral per year; one active for the board
VarianceFormulas rebuilt each monthBuilt per reportVariance and variance % on every line, ahead or behind
ActualsPasted inFrom a different set of numbersThe same group accounts the board reads

How Finconsol handles group budgeting

  1. Enter a budget or latest estimate

    For one company or for the whole group. Upload a CSV, either wide (months across) or long (one row for each line and month), using the template provided. Every row is checked. Or type it into a grid.

  2. Go as deep as the company thinks

    A company's budget can be entered per account under each group line.

  3. Start the next year from this one

    Begin from an existing plan with a growth percentage, then adjust.

  4. Choose the version for the board

    A year can hold several versions. One is active for the board, and the board summary and packs use it.

  5. Read it against actuals

    Each line shows actual, budget, variance and variance %, marked ahead or behind, for the month and the year to date.

No group plan? Then the group budget is the sum of the companies' plans, built from the bottom up. If the group does have its own plan, it can be entered for the whole group.

The year so far. A short view shows revenue, EBITDA and cash against each active plan, so the question "are we on track" has a one-screen answer.

Budget in your reports. Budget columns can be added to your own report layouts, to the board summary and to board packs, so the comparison is not a separate exercise.

Versions, and a group budget built from the companies

A year holds several budget versions: Budget 2026 v1 is set aside, Budget 2026 v2 is active for the board, and the latest estimate for September is active. With no group plan uploaded, the revenue budget for September 2026 is the sum of the companies' plans in thousands of dollars: Technologies 1,640, Inc. 2,060, UK 920, FZ-LLC 640 and Pte. 440, which makes a group budget of 5,700.

Versions of the plan

  • Budget 2026 v1Set aside
  • Budget 2026 v2Active for the board
  • Latest estimate, SeptemberActive

Revenue budget, September 2026, USD thousands

  • Technologies 1,640
  • Inc. 2,060
  • UK 920
  • FZ-LLC 640
  • Pte. 440
Group budget5,700

No group plan uploaded, so the group budget adds up the companies' plans.

What you get

  • Budget against actual for each company and for the group, line by line.
  • Variance and variance %, each line marked ahead or behind, for the month and the year to date.
  • Budget and latest estimate side by side, with one version active for the board.
  • The year so far for revenue, EBITDA and cash against each active plan.
  • Budget columns in your own reports, on the board summary and in board packs.

Try it: switch between the month and the year to date.

Budget against actual for the Manufacturing example group. In September 2026 revenue from operations was ₹48,12,15,081.21 against a budget of ₹46,03,98,000.00, ahead by ₹2,08,17,081.21 (4.5%), and cost of sales was ₹32,78,10,944.77 against ₹30,24,15,000.00, behind by ₹2,53,95,944.77. The period can be switched to the year to date, April to September 2026: revenue ₹2,54,68,00,962.95 against ₹2,49,31,14,000.00, ahead by 2.2%. Each line shows its variance marked ahead or behind.

Budget vs actuals
Budget vs actualsWhat was planned, what happened, and the gap.
Period Scope Hartwell Precision Industries Group · 4
AccountBudgetSEP 2026ActualSEP 2026VarianceSEP 2026%
Income
Revenue from operations ₹46,03,98,000.00 ₹48,12,15,081.21 +₹2,08,17,081.21 ahead +4.5%
Domestic sales ₹40,61,34,000.00 ₹42,38,72,803.02 +₹1,77,38,803.02 ahead +4.4%
Export sales ₹5,26,94,000.00 ₹5,57,65,419.71 +₹30,71,419.71 ahead +5.8%
Scrap and by-product sales ₹15,70,000.00 ₹15,76,858.48 +₹6,858.48 ahead +0.4%
Other Income ₹14,65,000.00 ₹14,49,061.97 (₹15,938.03) behind -1.1%
Interest income ₹2,30,000.00 ₹2,43,413.92 +₹13,413.92 ahead +5.8%
Export incentives ₹9,48,000.00 ₹9,24,385.27 (₹23,614.73) behind -2.5%
Miscellaneous income ₹2,87,000.00 ₹2,81,262.78 (₹5,737.22) behind -2.0%
Expense
Cost of sales ₹30,24,15,000.00 ₹32,78,10,944.77 +₹2,53,95,944.77 behind +8.4%
Raw materials consumed ₹18,41,40,000.00 ₹21,46,81,249.04 +₹3,05,41,249.04 behind +16.6%
Components and bought-out parts ₹3,11,85,000.00 ₹3,63,57,308.31 +₹51,72,308.31 behind +16.6%
Direct labour ₹2,93,95,000.00 ₹3,18,83,042.28 +₹24,88,042.28 behind +8.5%
Manufacturing overheads ₹4,50,27,000.00 ₹4,88,38,148.78 +₹38,11,148.78 behind +8.5%
Salaries & Wages ₹3,32,02,000.00 ₹3,37,45,348.31 +₹5,43,348.31 behind +1.6%
Rent ₹50,14,000.00 ₹52,14,745.48 +₹2,00,745.48 behind +4.0%

Budget: the active budget for 2026. The year to date adds up the months from April to September 2026.

Budget against actual, a four-company manufacturing group, September 2026

Good to know

  • With no group plan, the group budget is only the sum of the companies' plans. Enter a group plan if the group sets targets of its own.
  • Only one version per year is active for the board. The others are kept as versions.
  • Budgets are entered in Finconsol, by upload or in a grid, and are not written back to any company's accounting system.
  • Actuals come from the same group accounts the board reads: Zoho Books companies connect directly, and other systems upload a trial balance each month.

Questions

How do I build a consolidated budget for several companies?
Enter a budget for each company, by file upload or in a grid. If there is no separate group plan, the group budget is the sum of the companies' plans, built from the bottom up. If the group has its own plan, you can enter that for the whole group instead.
How does budget against actual work for multiple entities?
For each line you see actual, budget, variance and variance %, with the line marked ahead or behind. You can read it for one company or for the whole group, for the month or for the year to date.
Can I keep more than one version of a budget?
Yes. A year can hold several versions, such as the original budget and a latest estimate. One version is active for the board, and the board summary and board packs use that one.
What is a latest estimate?
A latest estimate is a forecast for the year, usually updated part way through it. In Finconsol it is entered and read like a budget, so you can put it against actuals line by line.
How do I load a budget from Excel?
Upload a CSV in either shape: wide, with months across, or long, with one row for each line and month. A template is provided, and every row is checked before it is used. You can also type the budget into a grid.
Can I start next year's budget from this year's?
Yes. Start a new year from an existing plan with a growth percentage, then adjust the lines that differ.
Can I budget below the group line, by account?
Yes. A company's budget can be entered per account under each group line, which is useful when the company manager thinks in the company's own accounts.

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