Free project status report template

A project status report should let somebody make a decision without first asking you to explain the spreadsheet. What changed? Does it affect the finish date or budget? What needs approval, and by when?

This free project status report template gives those questions a place. It has four tabs, each described below: Summary, Status, Milestones and Decisions needed. Build them in Excel or Google Sheets, or start from the ready-made status report desk template in Plexii. The example follows a fictional community kitchen refit, including a delayed installation and a decision about acceleration.

For a workspace that keeps the report beside its evidence, download Plexii free. It is free forever for personal use on Mac and Windows. You can also build the workbook in your existing spreadsheet software without changing how the rest of your project operates.

Define the reporting period first

A status report is a view at a particular point, not a live promise that nothing will change. Start with the Summary tab: project, reporting period, prepared by, overall RAG, trend, headline and decision required by.

Use an unambiguous period, such as “week ending 20 November”. Make clear whether numbers are current at the end of that day or at an earlier data cut-off. If finance data closes two days before the report, say so rather than mixing dates silently.

The headline is the most important field. “Project continues to progress” does not tell the sponsor anything. The example says: “Joinery delivery moved seven days; forecast handover moves three days after using four days of float.” That gives both the change and its consequence.

Agree what red, amber and green mean

The Read me tab proposes a starting convention: Green is within agreed tolerance, Amber needs recovery or a decision, and Red is outside tolerance without an agreed recovery. Agree the actual thresholds with your sponsor before relying on the colours.

There is no universally correct number of days that makes every project Amber. Three days can be minor on one job and unacceptable on another. Use the project's commitments, not the desire to avoid uncomfortable reporting, to set the boundary.

Record trend separately. Amber and Worsening tells a different story from Amber and Improving. A project can still be within tolerance while the direction deserves attention.

Do not average colours to manufacture the overall status. One unresolved safety or approval issue can matter more than several healthy workstreams. Explain the overall judgement in words.

Work through each Status row

The Status tab covers Scope, Schedule, Budget, Risks and People. Each row has RAG, Trend, Evidence, Next action, Owner role and Due. Add a row if your project has another area that genuinely needs separate attention.

Scope. State whether the agreed work has changed. In the example, the kitchen layout is unchanged and no new requests have been accepted. A possible extra shelf is not part of scope merely because someone mentioned it during a site visit.

Schedule. Identify the change against a baseline and its effect on the finish. The installation has moved from 20 to 27 November, but handover moves from 15 to 18 December because some delay can be absorbed. Explain that relationship rather than pasting two unrelated dates.

Budget. Give the current forecast against approval. The fictional example forecasts $84,000 against an approved $86,000, before any acceleration decision. Identify the currency and treatment of tax in your real report. An unapproved option must not quietly become part of the committed forecast.

Risks. Name the uncertainty and the next check. The supplier must confirm dispatch by 23 November. That is more actionable than “supplier delays remain a risk”. If the event has already occurred, describe it as an issue and report the remaining uncertainty separately.

People. Report whether the needed roles are available for the revised plan. In the example, the installation crew can make the new date. If availability is only assumed, label the assumption and name who will confirm it.

Fill the Milestones tab without rewriting history

The Milestones tab has baseline date, forecast date, slip in calendar days and RAG. Keep the baseline as the agreed reference. Update the forecast when the evidence changes.

The slip formula subtracts baseline from forecast: with Milestone in column A, Baseline date in B and Forecast date in C, use =IF(OR(B2="",C2=""),"",C2-B2). Enter actual spreadsheet dates, not date-looking text, or the calculation may not work. A blank baseline or forecast leaves the formula blank rather than pretending there is zero slip.

For the example installation, 27 November minus 20 November is seven calendar days. For handover, 18 December minus 15 December is three. The calculation does not know about weekends, public holidays, working calendars or dependencies.

That is intentional. This is a reporting workbook, not a scheduling engine. Work out the actual delivery plan with the people doing the work, then bring the resulting forecast into the report. If you need working-day variance, add an appropriate calculation and define its calendar rather than relabelling the existing result.

Make decisions easy to take

The Decisions needed tab asks for the decision, decision maker role, required-by date, consequence of delay, recommendation and status.

The filled example asks the sponsor to approve or reject $1,500 of acceleration by 23 November. If the decision is not made, the project retains the 18 December forecast. In a real report, identify what the payment buys and the evidence behind any claimed time saving.

A decision request is not “Please advise”. Present the alternatives, your recommendation and the latest useful decision time. If the approver cannot make that time, you both need to understand the consequence before it happens.

Do not promise recovery merely because you have asked for money. The installation crew, supplier and any required checks still have to support the revised plan. Record approval and its conditions separately from the request.

To keep the status report beside its evidence on one desk, download Plexii free.

Use the filled example as a consistency test

Read the filled example from top to bottom. Overall status is Amber and Worsening. The headline, schedule row, milestone dates and decision request all refer to the same delay. The budget line makes clear that acceleration is not yet approved.

Now compare your own tabs in the same way. Does the Summary say Green while a critical decision has no owner? Does the milestone forecast assume money that has not been authorised? Is a risk described as resolved when its next check is still outstanding?

The value of a short report is that contradictions become visible. Resist adding more paragraphs until the basic story agrees across the fields. A sponsor should not have to reconcile five different versions of the finish date.

For work organised by project, the project and product management workspace shows tasks and supporting material together. The status report desk template offers another starting layout. See organising work by project for keeping the evidence close to the report.

Write for the recipient's decision

A site lead, finance reviewer and client sponsor may need different supporting detail. They should not receive different truths. Keep the reporting date, baseline and forecast consistent, then link the detail each person needs.

Use plain explanations of consequences. “Seven-day supplier delay” is an event. “Handover moves three days unless the sponsor approves a supported acceleration option” is the decision-relevant effect.

Our guide to client status updates explains how a shared view can reduce repeated explanations. If somebody else will prepare the next report, leave a handover checklist with the data sources, update order and outstanding decisions. More on this sits in the clients and teams collection.

Archive the report, then update the work

After circulation, preserve a dated copy under your organisation's retention rules. That lets you explain later what was known at the time rather than comparing only today's revised spreadsheet.

Then move the actions into the place where people actually manage them. A decision needed by Monday should not live only in an attachment from Friday. Record its owner, deadline and outcome in the project's working system.

At the next reporting period, update the evidence and forecast before polishing the headline. The report should describe the state of the project, not force the project to fit last week's reassuring sentence.

Common questions

Is this a weekly or monthly status report? Either. Set the reporting period explicitly and use a rhythm appropriate to the project. A fast-moving issue may need an update between regular reports rather than waiting for the next cycle.

Does the milestone formula count working days? No. It calculates calendar-day difference between forecast and baseline dates. It does not account for weekends, holidays or a project-specific work calendar.

Should I change the baseline when a milestone slips? Do not overwrite it just to remove variance. Preserve the approved reference. If the project is formally rebaselined, record that decision and keep the earlier baseline according to your reporting process.

How should I choose the overall colour? Use agreed tolerances and explain the judgement. Do not average individual colours. A single critical issue can determine the overall position even when other areas are healthy.

Where do I record a decision that has been approved? Update its status and retain the approval evidence in the project record. Carry any conditions into the actions people manage. Approval does not itself mean the work has been completed.

Can I send the workbook directly to a client? Yes, if it suits your agreement and confidentiality rules. Check its figures, permissions and internal-only detail first. The people and sharing guides explain workspace access options. A concise cover note should name the headline change and any decision required.