Set up a balance sheet
A balance sheet shows your business assets (what you own) and liabilities (what you owe) on a particular date. Use our template to set up a balance sheet and understand your business's financial health.
Why you need a balance sheet
The balance sheet provides a picture of the financial health of a business at a given moment in time. It lists all of your business's assets and liabilities. You can then find out what your net assets are at that time.
A balance sheet can also help you work out your:
- working capital – money needed to fund day-to-day operations
- business liquidity – how quickly you could pay your current debts
Create your balance sheet
Download our template to create your balance sheet.
Completing your balance sheet
For each year, you'll need to fill in actual or estimated figures against each of the below items. If you use estimated costs, make sure to label them clearly.
You’ll also need to clearly state on your balance sheet whether your figures are GST inclusive or exclusive.
Current assets
Current assets are assets that can be converted into cash within one year or less. This includes:
- cash
- petty cash
- inventory
- pre-paid expenses
Fixed assets
Fixed assets are long-term assets that a company owns and uses in its operations. This includes:
- leasehold
- property and land
- vehicles
- equipment and tools
- furniture and renovations
Total assets
Calculate total assets by adding all current and fixed assets.
Current/short-term liabilities
Current liabilities/short-term liabilities are liabilities that are due and payable within one year. This includes:
- credit cards payable
- accounts payable
- interest payable
- accrued wages
- income tax.
Long-term liabilities
Long term liabilities are liabilities that are due after a year or more. This includes loans.
Total liabilities
Calculate total liabilities by adding all short-term and long-term liabilities.
Net assets
Calculate net assets by subtracting total liabilities from total assets.