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A petty cash log that balances.

Date, details, in, out, running balance — the whole tin discipline on one page. Grab it as an Excel file with the formulas done, a printable A4 sheet, or a plain CSV.

Download the Excel log .xlsx · Running balance built in · No signup

Three formats, same columns.

All free, all instant. Pick where your log lives: a laptop, the counter, or Google Sheets.

Excel · .xlsx

Excel / Google Sheets log

Opening float row, frozen headers, and a balance column that computes itself. Duplicate the tab each month and the tin reconciles in seconds.

Download .xlsx
PDF · printable

Printable A4 sheet

A ruled one-pager for the drawer or the tin lid: 26 lines, a totals row, and the Friday check printed at the bottom so nobody forgets.

Download PDF
CSV

Plain CSV

Just the six columns. Import it into Google Sheets, Numbers, or whatever your accountant already runs.

Download CSV

How to keep it, column by column.

Petty cash fails from sloppiness, not complexity. Four habits keep the tin honest.

Setup

Before the month starts

  • Pick a float — RM 100 to RM 500 covers most micros
  • One person keeps the tin; their name goes on the sheet
  • New page (or new tab) every month
  • The float is the first line: money in, nothing out
Every line

When money moves

  • Date it the day it happens, not at month-end
  • Details: what it was and who took the cash
  • Write the receipt number in the ref column
  • No receipt? Log it anyway, with extra detail
The money

In, out, balance

  • Money in: the float and any top-ups
  • Money out: every spend, however small
  • In the Excel file, the balance computes itself
  • On paper, run the balance line by line as you go
Reconcile

The weekly check

  • Count the cash in the tin
  • Tin plus receipts should equal the last balance
  • Short or over? Log the difference on its own line
  • Start the new week from the counted amount

Float, log, count.

The whole system is three habits. The template just makes them hard to skip.

  1. Float

    Set the float

    Decide the standing amount, put it in the tin, write it on the first line. RM 200 is a common start for a small kedai.

  2. Log

    Log every movement

    Teh tarik for a client, parking for a delivery, stamps. Date, details, amount — straight away. Small unlogged spends are where petty cash dies.

  3. Count

    Count and match

    End of the week, count the tin. Cash plus receipts equals the balance? Done. If not, note the difference and start the new week clean.

Download the Excel log

Who keeps a tin.

Anywhere small cash moves faster than the bookkeeping does.

Kedai · F&B

The counter tin

Ice deliveries, gas refills, last-minute market runs. The log lives next to the till and takes ten seconds per entry.

Office

The runner's float

Parking, tolls, stamps, courier cash. One person holds the float; the sheet keeps everyone honest.

Workshop

Site and workshop cash

Hardware-store runs and small parts paid in cash. Ref numbers tie each line back to a receipt in the shoebox.

Events

Pasar malam & pop-ups

A float that opens and closes with every event day. Log the top-up, log the spends, count down at closing.

Common questions, short answers.

Is this actually free?

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Yes. No account, no email gate, no watermark beyond a small footer credit on the PDF. Download it, use it, hand it to your accountant.

What is a petty cash float?

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A fixed amount of cash kept on hand for small spends — RM 200 in a tin, say. You spend from it, log every movement, and top it back up to the same amount. The top-up should equal your logged spending, which is the whole check.

How much float should I keep?

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Enough to cover a week or two of small spends, and no more. Most micros land between RM 100 and RM 500. If you keep topping up mid-week, raise it; if the tin never empties, lower it.

Do I need receipts for petty cash?

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Keep every slip you can get — LHDN expects records behind business expenses, and your accountant will ask. For spends with no receipt (parking meters, pasar stalls), the dated log entry itself is your record.

The tin doesn't balance. Now what?

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Count again, check for unlogged spends, then write the difference on its own line ("cash short RM 3.20") and move on. Chasing RM 3 for an hour costs more than RM 3. A pattern of shortages is the thing to watch, not one bad Friday.

Does petty cash go into my real books?

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Yes — every line is a business expense like any other. Enter the lines into your bookkeeping, or photograph the sheet and forward it to Kiira on WhatsApp and it's booked for you.

Which format should I download?

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Excel if the log lives on a laptop, since the balance column computes itself. PDF if the tin sits at a counter and paper is faster. CSV if you're importing into Google Sheets or an existing system. Same columns everywhere.

Related templates & tools.

If this page helped, these should too.

Invoice template (Malaysia)

SST-ready, with BRN and TIN fields. Fill it in the free generator, download the PDF.

Open
WhatsApp bookkeeping

Photograph the log page or the receipt, forward it, and Kiira books it as a proper expense.

Open
Bank & CSV import

Month-end reconciliation from your bank statement. CSV in, matched transactions out.

Open
When the tin gets busy

Snap the sheet.
Kiira books it.

A photo of a full log page, or a voice note like "petty cash out, RM 40, gas refill" — either lands in your books as a proper expense entry. The tin stays; the retyping goes.

Free tier · No card · Malaysia
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