Ever since introducing the new Budget and Forecast tools, we’ve been hard at work to provide finance teams with the most powerful, flexible versions of these tools. We introduced scenario planning, rolling forecasts, automated VAT/GST handling, custom AR/AP schedules, and category-level growth assumptions — and teams loved it.
But you kept asking for one thing more: the ability to bring your own spreadsheet.
Today, that's a reality. New budgets and forecasts in Syft now support uploads via Spreadsheet Link, using Microsoft Excel or Google Sheets.
Build it your way, then bring it in
We know that for many finance teams, the spreadsheet isn't going away — and it shouldn't have to. Whether you've got years of forecasting logic baked into an Excel model, or you simply prefer to build your assumptions in a familiar environment, you can now do exactly that and seamlessly import the results into Syft.
The best part? You don't have to choose between Syft's powerful infrastructure and your preferred way of working. Use formulae, build dynamic models, apply your own logic — Syft reads the resulting values and links them directly to your budget or forecast.
How it works
Getting started is straightforward:
Create your budget or forecast in Syft with the relevant settings and population options selected.
Navigate to Spreadsheet Link > Upload data > Budgets (or Forecasts) and select your entity and the relevant budget or forecast.
Choose Profit and Loss or Balance Sheet, then click ‘Generate template’. This produces a pre-filled worksheet with the correct accounts and period columns already set up.
Fill in your values (or use formulae — Syft reads the computed results either way).
Click ‘Validate’ to catch any issues before they become problems.
Click ‘Upload’ to save your data and link it to the budget or forecast.
That's it. Your uploaded values become the baseline for that budget or forecast, and everything in Syft — Dashboards, Visualize, KPI Scorecards, Financials, Ledgers — will reflect them.
A few things worth knowing
Formulae are fully supported. You don't need to paste values or strip out your logic before uploading. Build your budget dynamically in Excel, and Syft will capture the computed figures correctly.
The Balance Sheet balances itself. When uploading Balance Sheet data, Syft automatically handles the bank account — it derives the bank balance from your other uploaded movements, so you never have to manually calculate it to keep things in balance.
Upload P&L and Balance Sheet together. If you're uploading both, generate the P&L template first, upload it, and then regenerate the Balance Sheet template before uploading it. This ensures the Balance Sheet template reflects the updated P&L values and validates cleanly.
Removing an upload is easy. If you ever want to revert to standard population logic, you can remove an upload from a forecast without recreating it from scratch. In forecast edit settings, simply untick "using uploaded values for population" — and if you've uploaded both P&L and Balance Sheet, each can be removed independently.
Rolling forecasts work seamlessly. If you're using a rolling forecast, actual values will automatically replace forecast values as time moves forward — just as they do with standard population. Your uploaded values represent the forecast baseline, and you can compare them against actuals in Syft as usual.
Note 📝: Protected default accounts (Bank, VAT/GST, Retained Earnings, AR/AP, Net Income) cannot be modified in an upload — validation will reject any changes. Bad debts is the exception: uploaded values are additive on top of Syft's calculation, not a replacement.
Visible everywhere you work
Once uploaded, your budget or forecast is fully integrated into Syft. The budget/forecast dashboard will indicate that it's populated with uploaded values, and the data will flow through to every area where you compare performance — so there's no disconnect between the numbers you built and the insights Syft surfaces.
This is just the beginning
This feature is the first step in a broader vision of making Syft the bridge between the tools you already use and the financial intelligence you need. We're excited to see how teams put it to work — and as always, we're listening to what you need next.