> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://help.nops.io/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Budgets

> Set spend targets from Explorer reports, track actuals by period, and get alerted on overruns.

**Budgets** lets you set spend targets tied directly to an Explorer report, track actual spend against those targets period by period, and get notified before you go over. Unlike a standalone budgeting tool, every nOps budget inherits its dimensions and filters from an Explorer report, so what you budget for is always exactly what you're already analyzing.

<Note>
  Budgets requires the **Operate** plan.
</Note>

## Get started

1. Sign in to [nOps](https://clara.nops.io/dashboard).
2. In the sidebar, open **Operate → Budgets**, or go to [clara.nops.io/budgets](https://clara.nops.io/budgets).
3. Click **New budget**, choose an Explorer report to base it on, and configure the budget settings.
4. Review the generated budget by period, adjust as needed, and save. Saving a new budget opens its detail page so you can review the plan and configure alerts.

## Key features

### Budgets landing page

* Toggle between **Grid** and **List** view (your choice is remembered).
* **Portfolio summary** cards show totals across your filtered budgets: **Target (current)**, **Actual (current)**, **Avg % of budget**, and **Over budget** count. This is a summary of your own organization's budgets. For rolling up usage across multiple organizations you administer, see [Portfolio Portal](/portfolio/introduction).
* Search by budget name or linked report name.
* **Grid** view shows mini trend charts and over-budget badges per budget. Budgets that back AI seat tracking also show an **AI (Seats)** category badge. **List** view lets you expand rows for per-dimension breakdowns (**Budget (current)**, **Actual**, **% of budget**, **Variance**).

### Creating a budget

Every budget starts from an Explorer report:

1. Click **New budget** and select the Explorer report to link. The budget inherits that report's dimensions and filters.
2. Fill in **Budget settings**:
   * **Basics:** Name, Status (Draft or Active), Target type, Budget type.
   * **Schedule:** Period (Daily, Monthly, Quarterly, Annually), Start date, Number of periods, Lookback periods.
   * **Baseline:** Starting value (**Previous Month**, **Average Monthly Lookback**, or **Custom**), Growth rate (%), and an optional **Normalization period**.
3. Review the auto-generated **Budget by period** grid, which is live-populated as you create the budget.
4. Optionally configure **Threshold alerts** before saving.

**Target type** determines how the budget behaves:

| Type | Behavior |
| - | - |
| **Budget** | Enforceable target. Supports threshold alerts and shows over/under status. |
| **Tracking** | Monitor spend against a target without treating it as a hard limit. |

**Budget type** determines how budget values are edited:

| Type | Behavior |
| - | - |
| **Bottom Up** | Edit each dimension's target per period; totals roll up automatically. |
| **Top Down** | Edit a period's total target; it distributes proportionally across dimensions. |

### Budget by period

* Budget values are pre-populated using your **Starting value** and **Growth rate**, based on your Explorer report's spend.
* On create, edit individual cells directly or use **Refresh from lookback** to regenerate values from the linked report.
* **Download CSV** / **Upload CSV** to make bulk edits offline and re-import them.
* Once a budget is saved, a **Budget vs actual** chart tracks real spend against your plan by period.

### Change or refresh the linked report

Open a budget and use **Change Report** to link a different Explorer report, or **Update From Report** on the report card to refresh the budget by period using the current lookback data, useful after the underlying report's filters or dimensions change. **Refresh from lookback** in the Budget by period section is available during initial creation; on an existing budget, use **Update From Report** instead.

### Threshold alerts

Turn on **Enable alerts**, then configure rules from the budget's **Threshold alerts** section. Use **Manage all alerts** to view, edit, or delete multiple alerts per budget.

| Field | What it does |
| - | - |
| **Threshold type** | **Percent over budget**, **Percent under budget**, or **Amount over budget**. |
| **Threshold value** | The percentage or dollar amount that triggers the alert. |
| **Minimum spend** | Optional dollar floor. Your threshold is only checked once actual spend reaches this amount, avoiding noisy alerts early in a period. |
| **Aggregation** | **Single dimension** or **All dimensions combined**. |
| **Alert frequency** | Which period rollovers to evaluate (defaults to the budget's own period). |
| **Email recipients** | Organization members who receive the alert. |
| **Slack / Teams channels** | Optional connected chat channels for alert delivery. |
| **Dimensions to monitor** | Which dimensions the alert applies to; exclude dimensions you do not want monitored. |

Alerts are evaluated daily at **12:00 PM Eastern** for **Active** budgets only. Each alert shows **Active** or **Inactive** status; toggle **Alert is active** / **Alert is paused** when editing. Use **Test alert** or **Evaluate now** to preview delivery without waiting for the daily run.

### Share budget report

Separate from threshold alerts, use **Share report** to send a digest of a budget's status by email, Slack, or Teams:

* Opens the **Share budget report** dialog with **Send now** or **Schedule**.
* **Once** or **Recurring** (daily, weekly, monthly), in your timezone.
* Add **Email recipients**, optional **Slack / Teams channels**, a **Subject**, and an optional **Message**.

### Budget view in Explorer

Open [Explorer](/inform/explorer) and use **View By** to overlay a budget on your chart. This requires the **Inform** tier. Without it, the budget overlay is locked with an upgrade prompt.

When enabled, you get:

* A target line on the spend chart, labeled with your budget name (for example, **Production Target**).
* A **Budget Trend** stacked bar chart below the main chart, titled with your budget name.
* A **Budget Targets** table with target vs. actual by dimension, titled with your budget name.

Handy for checking spend against a plan without leaving your analysis.

### AI seat tracking

AI seat tracking is no longer set up from inside a cloud budget. It now has its own area in the sidebar under **AI**, where a seat tracking project holds your connected providers, seat roster, allocation groups, budgets, limit requests, and automation. Start at [AI](/ai/introduction), or go straight to [Set up AI seat tracking](/ai/setup) to create your first project.

A seat tracking project is still backed by a budget, so two things remain visible here:

* Budgets that back a project show an **AI (Seats)** category badge on the budgets landing page, in both **Grid** and **List** view.
* Older `?tab=ai-seats` links to a budget redirect into the matching section of the AI area, so existing bookmarks keep working.

Everything else (choosing providers, the seat table, editing seat limits, and [Automated Rebalance](/ai/automated-rebalance)) lives under **AI**.

### Deleting a budget

Only the budget creator or an organization administrator can delete a budget.

## FAQs

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="Do I need an Explorer report to create a budget?">
    Yes. Every budget is linked to an Explorer report and inherits its filters and group-by dimensions. Create or choose a report in Explorer first, then start a budget from it (or use **Create budget** directly from the Reports list).
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="What's the difference between Budget and Tracking target types?">
    **Budget** targets are enforceable. You can attach alerts and see over/under status. **Tracking** targets are for monitoring spend against a goal without treating it as a hard limit. Both types support threshold alerts in the current product.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="What's the difference between Bottom Up and Top Down planning?">
    **Bottom Up** lets you edit each dimension's target directly, and period totals roll up automatically. **Top Down** lets you set a period's total target, which then distributes across dimensions proportionally.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="How often are budget alerts evaluated?">
    Once per day, at 12:00 PM Eastern, for budgets with **Active** status. If a threshold is crossed, notifications go to the alert's email and chat recipients.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Can I bulk-edit my budget?">
    Yes. Use **Download CSV** in the Budget by period section to export a template, make your edits offline, and **Upload CSV** to bring them back in.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="How is a threshold alert different from Share report?">
    Alerts are threshold-triggered. They fire only when spend crosses a rule you define. **Share report** sends a scheduled or on-demand digest regardless of whether any threshold was crossed.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Why can't I overlay a budget in Explorer?">
    Budget overlays in Explorer require the Inform tier. Upgrade to Inform to add target lines, the Budget Trend chart, and the Budget Targets table to your Explorer view.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Where did AI seat tracking on a budget go?">
    It moved to its own area in the sidebar under **AI**. Providers, the seat roster, seat limits, limit requests, and automated rebalance are all configured on a seat tracking project instead of on a budget. See [AI](/ai/introduction).
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Which Claude Enterprise API scopes do I need for AI seat tracking?">
    At minimum: **`read:analytics`**, plus **`read:members`** and **`read:spend_limits`** for per-seat spend and limits. Add **`write:spend_limits`** only if you want nOps to change per-user Claude limits. See [Claude.ai (Enterprise)](/integrations/claude-enterprise#api-key-scopes).
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

## Related

* [Explorer](/inform/explorer): build the report a budget is based on, and overlay budgets on your charts
* [AI](/ai/introduction): track AI seat spend, allocation, budgets, and limit requests
* [Automated Rebalance](/ai/automated-rebalance): how nOps earns and keeps the right to change seat limits on its own
* [Claude.ai (Enterprise)](/integrations/claude-enterprise): connect Claude Enterprise for usage data and AI seat tracking
* [Cursor](/integrations/cursor-admin-api): connect Cursor for AI seat tracking
* [Business Unit Economics](/operate/business-unit-economics): track cost per unit from Explorer spend and business metrics
* [Reports](/inform/reports): see all budget alerts across your organization in one place
* [Dashboard](/inform/dashboard): account-wide spend summary


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