Simple Bookkeeping Spreadsheet for Small Business: What to Track
Simple books need one list of transactions, a short list of categories, and a monthly summary. Everything else is optional until your business grows.
One row per transaction
Record every sale and every expense with a date, a description, a category and an amount. Enter money in as positive numbers and money out as negative numbers.
| A: Date | B: Description | C: Category | D: Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 1 | Online sales | Sales | +$1,420 |
| Oct 3 | Shipping supplies | Supplies | −$86 |
| Oct 8 | Booth fee | Marketing | −$120 |
Keep categories few
Ten or fewer categories is plenty: Sales, Supplies, Shipping, Marketing, Software, Fees, Rent, Travel, Owner pay, Other. Put them in a dropdown so every entry uses the same spelling.
Monthly totals with SUMIFS
Total for one category in October 2026:
=SUMIFS(D:D, C:C, "Supplies", A:A, ">="&DATE(2026,10,1), A:A, "<"&DATE(2026,11,1))Net for the month is the same formula without the category condition. Copy it across twelve columns for a full-year summary.
Habits that keep the books clean
- Use a separate bank account for the business.
- Enter transactions weekly, not at tax time.
- Save a photo of every receipt and note its date in the description.
Skip the setup: Small Business Bookkeeping Starter
A simple set of books for money in, money out and where it all goes. Ready to use in Google Sheets and Excel, $6.99.
Get the templateGet every sheet with membership