Photographer Bookkeeping Spreadsheet

About this template

This photographer bookkeeping spreadsheet puts your shoots, albums and invoices in the same set of books. It is for photographers who want the client list, the invoices and the numbers in one file instead of three, and it works out your profit and tax set-aside as you go.

Please read: This is a tracker tool only, not financial, tax, legal, medical or any other professional advice or advisory service. It records and calculates what you enter; you are solely responsible for checking all figures, rates, dates and results and for every decision you make. By purchasing, downloading or using it, you accept these terms (your statutory consumer rights are not affected).

Clients that add themselves up

A client is a name you type once. What they were billed, how many shoots they booked, the average job and when they last paid all calculate themselves from the ledger, so your client tracker and invoice tracker never fall out of step with the money.

One ledger, every report

You enter money in on one tab and money out on another, pick a tax rate for each line, and everything else reads those two. The monthly view, the quarterly view, the profit and loss statement, the sales tax worksheet and the dashboard all recalculate. Nothing is typed twice, and no number on a report can disagree with the ledger it came from. Your income tracker, profit and loss and quarterly tax figures all come from the same two lists.

Sixteen connected tabs

Two registers do the work and every other tab reports on them.

• Income: 500 rows, with the tax split out on every line
• Expenses: 500 rows, split the same way
• Setup: your categories, your tax rates and your set-aside percentage
• Monthly, Quarterly and Profit and Loss: all calculated
• Sales Tax: collected against paid, by rate and by quarter
• Estimated Tax: four quarterly set-asides at your own rate
• Custom Range: pick any two dates and everything follows
• Comparison: this year against last, month by month
• Balances: what each account took in and paid out
• Dashboard: six live figures and the four quarters
• Start Here: walks you through setup in a few minutes

Two years of demo data

The filled copy holds two full years of demo data, so the comparison view has something real to compare. Click through a full photography year before you enter a single wedding or portrait session of your own.

Works with

• Microsoft Excel 2016, 2019, 2021 and Microsoft 365, on Windows and Mac, and LibreOffice. No Microsoft 365 subscription needed, and no Google account needed for the Excel files.
• Google Sheets with a free Google account. You get real spreadsheet files, not a PDF with a link in it.
• No add-ins, no macros, no subscription and no bank connection

What you download

• The Excel workbook, filled with a worked example
• The same workbook, blank and ready for your own numbers
• The instruction guide, with one-click links to the Google Sheets versions (filled and blank)
• The terms of use as a PDF

Your files are ready as soon as payment clears. The template is for use in your own business; please do not share or resell the files. Questions before or after you buy? Use our contact page and we will help.

Frequently asked questions

Does it work in Excel and Google Sheets?

Yes. The Excel workbook runs in Excel 2016 or later on Windows and Mac with no Google account needed, and the instruction guide holds two one-click links to the Google Sheets versions.

Can I see what each client has paid me?

Yes. Type the client's name on each income line and billed, shoots, average and last paid calculate themselves.

Does it handle sales tax on my sessions?

Yes. Pick a tax rate per line and sales tax is split out, then netted against tax paid by rate and by quarter.

How much should I put aside for tax?

The Estimated Tax tab turns your profit into four quarterly set-asides at the percentage you choose. It is a bookkeeping tool, not tax or accounting advice.

Can I compare this year with last year?

Yes. The Comparison tab sets this year against last, month by month, and Custom Range reports on any two dates.