Explain a budget variance
See why spending is over or under budget, line by line.
Finance · When you ask · Updated
Works with
- Slack
- QuickBooks
- Xero
- Airtable
- Microsoft 365
Slack
QuickBooks
Xero
Airtable
Microsoft 365How do you explain a budget variance?
To explain a budget variance, ask Maito in Slack which team or period. It reads actual spending from QuickBooks or Xero, compares it with the budget in your spreadsheet, splits the gap into timing differences, unbudgeted costs and true overruns, and lists the biggest line items.
How it's done today
Analysts dig through transactions to explain variances.
What Maito does
- Compare actuals with budget
- Find the transactions behind big gaps
- Explain in plain words
Example
@Maito why is marketing over budget this month?
Marketing is $18,340 over for September: $96,340 spent against $78,000 budgeted. • $12,500 is Summit 2027, the annual event booking, paid in full in September. Your budget spreads it across 10 months at $1,250. • $4,800 is a new ad tool, Brightlane, started Sep 9. It isn't in the budget file. • $1,040 is smaller overruns on contractors. The event is timing, so it should correct itself. The ad tool is real new spend: $57,600 a year if it stays on this plan. Source: September transactions in QuickBooks and the marketing tab of the 2026 budget workbook in Microsoft 365.
@Maito make a one-page note for Priya with the ad tool numbers.
Attached: brightlane-spend-note.pdf. It shows the 3 charges so far and the annual cost. I haven't sent it to Priya.
Omar (2:05 PM):
why is marketing over budget this month?
Maito (2:07 PM):
Marketing is $18,340 over for September: $96,340 spent against $78,000 budgeted.
• $12,500 is Summit 2027, the annual event booking, paid in full in September. Your budget spreads it across 10 months at $1,250.
• $4,800 is a new ad tool, Brightlane, started Sep 9. It isn't in the budget file.
• $1,040 is smaller overruns on contractors.
The event is timing, so it should correct itself. The ad tool is real new spend: $57,600 a year if it stays on this plan.
Source: September transactions in QuickBooks and the marketing tab of the 2026 budget workbook in Microsoft 365.
Omar (2:12 PM):
make a one-page note for Priya with the ad tool numbers.
Maito (2:14 PM):
Attached: brightlane-spend-note.pdf. It shows the 3 charges so far and the annual cost. I haven't sent it to Priya.
How to set it up
- Set up
Nothing to set up. Ask in Slack or by email whenever you need it.
- Connect accounting software
- QuickBooks
- Xero
- Connect spreadsheet
- Airtable
- Microsoft 365
Not connected yet? Your agent sends you a link to sign in.
What it won't do
Maito explains what the numbers show. It cannot know why a manager committed spend if nothing is written down.
Questions
From a spreadsheet in Airtable or Microsoft 365. Actuals come from QuickBooks or Xero.
Yes. It flags costs paid early or spread over months in the budget, and separates them from new spending.
No. It reads the budget and suggests updates for a person to make.
