Actual vs. Budget (Power BI Report)

APPLIES TO: Generally available in Business Central 2024 release wave 2 (version 25.1).

The Actual vs. Budget report provides a clear overview of your organization's purchase performance by comparing actual purchase amount and quantity with the budget figures. Use this report to analyze and monitor purchase data by item categories and items to get a detailed view of purchase budget and variance.

How to use the report

The report helps purchase and finance teams to track actual spending against budgets.

CEOs can easily track and analyze the purchasing performance of your organization against your budget to ensure that you're meeting your financial goals. This report provides a comprehensive overview of the entire organization's purchasing performance, helping you make informed decisions when you manage your budget. With this report, you can identify areas where your organization is overspending or underspending, and adjust your purchasing budget accordingly.

Purchasing managers can use this report to analyze purchasing data and make decisions about inventory management. By analyzing the Variance and Budget Amount Variance indicators in the report, you can see how specific item categories and items are tracking against their allocated budget. This report helps you to understand which items are being purchased frequently and which ones aren't. Use this information to optimize your inventory and ensure that your organization is always stocked with the products that you need.

Purchasers can monitor the variance metrics to ensure that you're meeting your purchasing targets. Use this report to see the purchasing performance of specific item categories, and items that you purchase. With this information, you can identify opportunities to reduce cost and optimize your approach to purchasing specific items.

Data used in the report

The report uses data from the following tables in Business Central:

• Item
• Item Category
• Value Entry
• Purchase Line
• Item Budget Entry

Try the report

Try the report here: Actual vs. Budget

See also

Track KPIs with Power BI metrics
Power BI Purchasing app
Ad hoc analysis of purchasing data
Built-in purchasing reports
Purchasing analytics overview
Purchasing overview