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Petty cash log

A log for a small cash fund kept at an office, shop or club. Each line records the date, voucher number, who was paid, the purpose, cash out, cash in and the balance left. A reconcile box at the bottom compares cash on hand and vouchers against the fund.

By Paul Gunder. Free to print for home, classroom and office use; see how our printables are made.

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Petty Cash Log1 page · US Letter

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Petty Cash LogBusiness or departmentCustodianFund amountPeriodDateVoucherPaid toPurposeCash outCash inBalanceStarting fundRECONCILE AT THE END OF THE PERIODCash on handReceipts and vouchersTotal (should equal the fund)Over or shortCustodianDateApproved byDatePrintablePal.com · free printable money templatesPetty Cash Log
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On this page

What prints

The page is headed Petty Cash Log. The first fields are Business or department and Custodian, then Fund amount and Period. The table has seven columns: Date, Voucher, Paid to, Purpose, Cash out, Cash in and Balance. The first row's Purpose cell reads Starting fund.

Under the table is a section called Reconcile at the end of the period. It has four boxes: Cash on hand, Receipts and vouchers, Total (should equal the fund) and Over or short. Two signature lines follow, one for the Custodian and one for Approved by.

The settings

  • Name at the top. Optional; a department name works well.
  • Register type. Petty cash log on this page.
  • Rows. 12 to 36 lines. The reconcile section takes space, so very high counts print with shorter lines.

Running a fund

A petty cash fund is a small pot of cash for minor purchases, like stamps, coffee or a taxi. One person, the custodian, keeps it locked up. Nobody takes money without leaving a slip or voucher, and each voucher gets a number that you copy in the Voucher column.

When the fund gets low, the custodian totals the vouchers and asks for cash to bring it back up to the fund amount. Cash in is for that top-up, or for money returned. Keep the receipts attached to their vouchers. The SBA has general advice on managing business finances, and the IRS recordkeeping page covers why supporting documents matter.

Worked example: reconciling a $200 fund

The fund is $200.00. Voucher 101 is $18.40 for stamps, leaving 200.00 - 18.40 = $181.60. Voucher 102 is $26.75 for coffee supplies, leaving $154.85. Voucher 103 is $32.00 for a courier, leaving $122.85.

At month end the custodian counts $122.35 in the box. Receipts and vouchers add up to 18.40 + 26.75 + 32.00 = $77.15. The total is 122.35 + 77.15 = $199.50. That is $0.50 less than the $200.00 fund, so Over or short reads $0.50 short. Write that amount, note it, and let the approver sign.

If the count had been $122.85, the total would be exactly $200.00 and the box would read $0.

Tips

Small differences happen, but a pattern of shortages is a sign to tighten the process. Never put personal money into the fund, and don't cash personal checks from it. This log is a control tool and not accounting advice.

Setting the fund size

Pick an amount that covers about a month of small purchases and no more. A smaller fund is easier to count and safer to keep, and it forces regular top-ups, which keeps the paperwork current.

Sources

  1. SBA: Manage your finances sba.gov
  2. IRS: Why should I keep records? irs.gov