As an auto repair shop owner, how do you keep track of multiple moving parts? From income and expenses, to repair orders, payrolls, and even inventory. There is so much to account for. Managing it all in an organized manner can help you build a thriving business. You can get accounting software of course, but many small to medium-sized companies like the ease, flexibility, and cost-effectiveness of Excel.
So today, let’s get into a few main auto repair shop accounting templates you can download. Thank us later.
Why use excel for auto repair shop accounting?
But why even consider using Excel for accounting in the first place? Here’s why:
- It is cost-effective. Accounting software is expensive and many small to medium-sized businesses might be unable to afford the monthly or yearly cost. Excel is available at little to no additional cost.
- You can customize it. You can easily tailor any template to the needs of your auto shop. Whether you need to track repair orders, monitor inventory, or analyze revenue.
- It is easy to use. Excel has a user-friendly interface. The comprehensive formula functions make it an ideal choice for beginners and experts both.
- It helps with data analysis and reporting. It has built-in tools for charts and data visualization. You can analyze financial trends and even present them in an easy-to-understand format.
- It is scalable. As you grow your business you can expand your templates for more complex financial data.
How to create accounting templates In excel
It is very easy to create an accounting template in Excel. All you have to do is open a workbook, prepare a spreadsheet for accounting, and customize the chart of accounts. You can even create a sheet for invoices and cash flow. You can format cells as currency or accounting.
But let’s get into the details of how you can create different accounting templates in Excel for your auto repair shop.
1. Income and Expense Tracker
With an income and expense tracker, you get a fair understanding of your auto shop’s financial health. You get a very clear picture of where the money is coming from and where it’s going.
Features:
- Income (labor charges, parts sales)
- Expenses (rent, utilities, parts purchases, payroll)
- Calculate net profit or loss for a given period
A list of columns you can set up:
- Date
- Description of item
- Income category
- Expense category
- Amount
- Balance
Pro Tip: You can use formulas like =SUM() to calculate totals and balances automatically. Yes, you can throw that calculator from the 80s into the bin. Place conditional formatting to highlight any values you want.
2. Repair Order Management Template
You need to track all the repair orders for your auto shop. Having an Excel sheet for this can help with smooth operations by providing a detailed record of all completed repairs. This information can come in handy later on when the customer returns.
Features:
- Add in customer details, vehicle information, and the repair services done
- Add in fields for labor hours, any parts used, and the total charges
- Calculate the total with Excel formulas automatically
Here are a few sample columns you can use:
- Customer Name
- Vehicle Make/Model
- Repair Description
- Labor Hours
- Parts Cost
- Total Cost
Pro Tip: You can even make a drop-down list of pre-defined categories of vehicle make/model and repair services.
3. Inventory Management Template
Now how will you keep track of parts and supplies? This will help you save time and prevent any delays as you won’t run out of essential parts.
Features:
- Record inventory level and reorder point
- Add in supplier information and order dates
- Keep track of inventory costs
A few sample columns to use:
- Part Name
- Part Number
- Supplier
- Quantity in Stock
- Reorder Level
- Unit Price
- Total Value
Pro Tip: You can also use conditional formatting to highlight low-stock items. Plus you can calculate the total inventory value by multiplying quantity with unit price.
4. Payroll Management Template
You need to process payroll every month. And for a few employees, you might also need to calculate daily and hourly wages. It helps to have a dedicated payroll template. You build trust with employees by processing payroll on time. Plus this also ensures you abide by labor laws.
Features:
- Add gross pay, any deductions, and then net pay
- Add tax withholding and benefits information
- Monitor any payments
Sample Columns:
- Employee Name
- Hours Worked
- Hourly Rate
- Gross Pay
- Deductions
- Net Pay
Pro tip: You can use formulas to calculate employee’s gross pay (Hours worked multiplied by hourly rate) and net pay (deductions subtracted from gross pay).
Although the whole workbook contains sensitive information, this payroll sheet contains extra confidential information. Consider locking it.
5. Budget Planning Template
A budget template is great to help your shop plan for the future. You can use it to allocate resources. With budgets pre-defined, you can closely monitor costs. Eventually, this improves the shop’s profitability.
Features:
- You can allocate monthly or annual budgets for certain expense categories
- Compare the actual spending
- Find out areas for cost savings
Sample Columns:
- Category
- Budget Amount
- Actual Amount
- Variance
- Notes
Pro tip: Use charts to see the budget performance.
5. Budget Planning Template
A budget template is great to help your shop plan for the future. You can use it to allocate resources. With budgets pre-defined, you can closely monitor costs. Eventually, this improves the shop’s profitability.
Features:
- You can allocate monthly or annual budgets for certain expense categories
- Compare the actual spending
- Find out areas for cost savings
Sample Columns:
- Category
- Budget Amount
- Actual Amount
- Variance
- Notes
Pro tip: Use charts to see the budget performance.
6. Tax Preparation Template
Now this one is very important. Tax season is stressful. But if you stay organized all year, tax season can be manageable. This also reduces the risk of errors towards the end.
Features:
- Monitor any deductible expenses
- Keep a record of sales tax collected and paid
- Calculate your taxable income
Sample Columns:
- Date
- Description
- Income
- Expense
- Tax Category
- Notes
Pro tip: You can use filters to sort data according to tax category. You can also summarize totals with pivot tables.
7. Customer and Sales Dashboard
You can also go a step further and create customer and sales dashboards. These can give you a better understanding of sales trends. This creates opportunities to enhance customer satisfaction and increase revenue.
Features:
- Keep track of your customer’s demographics and service history
- Check sales performance
- Create charts and graphs to better visualize the data
Sample Sections:
- Top Customers
- Popular Services
- Monthly Sales Trends
- Customer Retention Rates
Pro tip: Summarize key metrics with pivot tables and insert charts for any visual representation of customer and sales trends.
Maximize use of your auto shop’s accounting templates in excel
So you know your important accounting templates. Let’s give you a few best practices for Excel to help you make the most of it:
- Use formulas to automate calculations. These can be totals, averages, multiplications, and even percentages.
- Use conditional formatting to highlight any overdue payments or low inventory levels. Add color-coded alerts for easier tracking.
- Regularly save your files and back up your data to prevent any data losses.
- Make dropdown menus or predefined categories to standardize data entry.
- Review numbers weekly or monthly so you can review and update templates as needed.
- Protect and secure your files and workbooks with passwords. Limit all access to authorized staff only.
Wrapping up
Managing your auto shop’s finances doesn’t have to be extremely overwhelming. You can use these Excel templates to manage your accounting processes smoothly. These give you insights into your business performance and also help you make informed decisions.
Go ahead and explore these templates starting today. Soon you will see your auto repair shop grow.
FAQs
Is there a balance sheet template in Excel?
Yes, Excel has built-in balance sheet templates in its templates section.
Does Excel have a template for accounting?
Yes, Excel has a range of accounting templates. These include income statements, cash flow, and expense trackers.
How to do accounting in Excel for small business?
You can use Excel’s pre-made templates or even create custom spreadsheets for income, expenses, etc.
What is the basic accounting for a small business?
Basic accounting includes income, expenses, assets, and liabilities.
