How to Create Budgets and Sub Budgets

Mastt's budget management features allow you to create hierarchical budget structures with sub budgets. The Budget register provides a clear overview of all budget items for easy management and monitoring.

Before you start:

• Ensure you have the appropriate permissions to create and manage budgets in your project
• Have your budget data ready, either in Excel format or for manual entry
• Budgets must be set to Approved status before you can create contracts against them

Creating a Budget

Access the Add Budget Form

1. Click Cost in the left-hand navigation bar.
2. Click Budgets in the top navigation to view the Budget Register.
3. Click the + Add Budget button in the upper left corner.

The Budget Register is the main list view where you can see all your budgets, add new ones, and manage existing entries.

Choose Your Data Entry Method

You can enter your budget data in two ways:

• Copy and Paste (recommended for multiple budget lines)
• Manual entry (best for simple budgets)

Using Copy and Paste from Excel

Prepare Your Excel Data

Ensure your Excel data has columns in this order:

• Column 1: Budget Name
• Column 2: Amount
• Column 3: Status (optional – Draft, Approved, or Closed)
• Column 4: Tags (optional)

Import Your Data

1. Select and copy your data from Excel.
2. Click in the budget name field in Mastt.
3. Paste your data – the system automatically creates rows and populates all fields.
4. Review the imported data.
5. Select Status manually from the dropdown if it was not included in the import.
6. Add any relevant tags if needed.

Using Manual Entry

Enter Budget Details

1. Enter your budget details:
   • Budget Name – Enter a descriptive name for your budget item
   • Original Budget – Enter the budget amount
   • Status – Select Draft, Approved, or Closed
   • Tag – Add optional tags for filtering
2. Click + Add Budget at the bottom to add more budget lines as needed.

Adding Budget Tags (Optional)

Budget Tags are unique identifiers that simplify filtering across your dashboards. When you assign tags to budgets, you can filter Dashboard tiles (such as Big Number tiles) to display only specific budget categories at both the Project and Program level.

Add a Budget Tag

1. In the Add and Edit Budgets form, locate the Tag column on the right side.
2. Click in the Tag field for the budget you want to label.
3. Enter your tag name (e.g., "Construction", "Fitout", "Contingency").
4. Press Enter or click outside the field to confirm.

Saving Your Budget

After entering all budget data (via either method), click the blue Save button at the bottom right of the form to finalise your budget.

Result: Your budgets are now created and visible in the Budget Register, ready for contract allocation and cost tracking.

To edit and delete Budgets and Sub budgets, refer to this guide.

Creating Sub Budgets

Access the Add Sub Budget Form

1. Click Cost in the left-hand navigation bar.
2. Click Budgets in the top navigation to view the Budget Register.
3. Locate your main budget and click the Action button (three dots) beside it.
4. Select Add or Edit Sub Budgets.

Choose Your Data Entry Method

You can enter your sub budget data in two ways:

• Copy and Paste (recommended for multiple budget lines)
• Manual entry (best for simple budgets)

Using Copy and Paste for Sub Budgets

1. Prepare your Excel data with columns in this order:
   • Column 1: Budget Name
   • Column 2: Amount
   • Column 3: Status (optional - Draft, Approved, or Closed)
   • Column 4: Tags (optional)
2. Select and copy your data from Excel.
3. Click in the budget name field in Mastt.
4. Paste your data - the system automatically creates rows and populates all fields.
5. Review the imported data.
6. Select Status manually from the dropdown if it was not included in the import.
7. Add any relevant tags if needed.

Using Manual Entry for Sub Budgets

1. Enter your sub budget details
   • Budget Name – Enter a descriptive name for your sub budget item
   • Original Budget – Enter the sub budget amount
   • Status – Select Draft, Approved, or Closed
   • Tag – Add optional tags for filtering
2. Click + Add Budget at the bottom to add more budget lines as needed.

Save Your Sub Budget

After entering all budget data (via either method), click the blue Save button at the bottom right of the form to finalise your budget

Result: Your budget hierarchy is now established with parent budgets and their associated sub budgets, ready for cost tracking and management.

Troubleshooting & FAQs

Q: What if I can't add a contract against a budget?

You can only create a contract against an Approved Budget. Change the budget status to Approved in the budget form.

Q: What if the Excel paste isn't working properly?

Check that your column order matches exactly: Name, Amount, Status (optional), Tags (optional). Ensure there's no formatting or merged cells in your Excel data.

Q: What happens if I allocate more than the parent budget amount?

The system allows over-allocation but will show a negative unallocated amount. Mastt will alert you about the over-allocation but still permits saving the budget.

Q: How do I use Budget Tags to filter my Dashboard?

When configuring Dashboard tiles (such as Big Number tiles), select the Filter option and choose specific Budget Tags to display. This works at both Project and Program levels, allowing you to create focused views without duplicating dashboards.

Q: Can I add the same tag to multiple budgets?

Yes. Tags are designed to group related budgets together. Apply the same tag to all budgets you want to filter as a group in your Dashboard views.

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