Free small business ledger template (printable PDF and CSV)

A ledger is just a dated list of money in and money out. If you freelance, sell online or run a small side business, one clean page per month is enough to see where you stand and to hand an accountant or tax software later. This free one-page template does exactly that.

Download the free ledger (PDF + CSV) About the free ledger

What is in the download

• Blank PDF: US Letter, 9 income rows, 11 expense rows, three totals boxes.
• Example PDF: the same page filled in with made-up data.
• CSV template: the same columns for Excel, Google Sheets, LibreOffice or Numbers.
• Category list: ten plain-English expense categories.

How to fill it in

1. Income: write the date you were paid, who paid you, what it was for, and the amount. Tick Paid when the money has landed.
2. Expenses: write the date, vendor, category and amount for each business cost. Keep the receipt and tick Receipt.
3. Totals: add up each column. Net is total income minus total expenses.
4. File it: staple the receipts to the page, or scan both together, and start a new page next month.

Using the CSV in a spreadsheet

The CSV has the columns type, date, party, description, category, amount, paid_or_receipt, notes. Delete the rows marked EXAMPLE, then add your own. To total each type, use:

=SUMIF(A:A,"income",F:F)
=SUMIF(A:A,"expense",F:F)

These work the same in Excel, Google Sheets and LibreOffice Calc.

Habits that make a ledger useful

• Record things the same week they happen.
• Keep business and personal money in separate accounts where you can.
• Use the same category names every month so months can be compared.
• Write a note for anything odd (a refund, a client paying late, a shared cost).

About records and taxes

The IRS explains what records small businesses should keep on its Recordkeeping page, and Publication 583 covers starting a business and keeping records. This ledger is a record-keeping and planning tool. It is not tax, legal, accounting or financial advice, and it is not a substitute for official IRS forms, tax software or a qualified professional. Tax rules change; confirm current rules on official pages or with a qualified professional.