How to write a grant budget reviewers trust
Line items, justifications, indirect costs and cost share: how to build a grant budget that matches your project plan and the funder’s rules.
A grant budget is your project plan written in money. Reviewers read it to check that you understand the work, that the costs are reasonable and that every dollar supports what you promised.
Start from the activities, not the total
List each activity in your work plan, then ask what it needs: whose time, what equipment, what travel, which contractors. Price each item and add them up. Starting from the maximum award and filling it in backwards is the most common way budgets end up unconvincing.
Use the funder's categories
Most funders publish a budget form. US federal awards typically use categories such as personnel, fringe benefits, travel, equipment, supplies, contractual, other and indirect costs. Use exactly the categories and definitions in the notice, because a misplaced item can be disallowed.
Write a justification for every line
One or two sentences per item: what it is, how you priced it and why the project needs it. For staff, give the role, percentage of time and salary basis. For equipment, say why existing equipment cannot do the job.
Handle indirect costs correctly
Indirect costs (overhead) cover shared costs such as rent, utilities and administration. Some funders cap them, some exclude them, and US federal awards follow specific rules on rates and on which costs form the base. Our indirect cost guide covers the basics.
Show cost share clearly
If the program requires a match, show it as a separate column and identify whether each contribution is cash or in-kind. Only promise what you can document. See cost share explained.
Check the arithmetic and the story
Totals must match across the form, the narrative and any attachments. Then read the budget next to the work plan: every activity should have costs, and every cost should map to an activity.
Our free grant budget calculator totals direct costs, indirect costs and cost share as you type.