Film and TV budgeting that shows its working.
A free, open-source desktop app for production budgets: topsheet, fringes, globals, charges, versions and cost reports. Your budgets are open files on your own computer, the grid is built for the keyboard, and every total can tell you exactly where it came from.
No account, no subscription, no cloud. The Mac app is out; Windows and Linux builds are on the way.
Screenshots
The app at work
Screenshots of the Mac app. The budgets in them were made up for these pictures: the titles, the people and every figure are invented.
Method Budget 0.1.0
The first release of Method Budget: a film and TV budgeting app that keeps every budget as a plain file on your own computer, with no account and no cloud.
- Topsheet, accounts and detail lines. Every total rolls up as you type, to the cent.
- Fringes, globals, groups, charges and credits. Fringes with cutoffs and ranges, globals in any amount, rate or quantity, groups you can leave out for a what-if, and contractual charges and credits on the topsheet.
- A keyboard-first grid. Type-ahead for units, currencies, sets, locations and globals, with new ones added on the fly, and the shortcuts long-time budgeters expect.
- Numbers that match the industry standard. Rounding, fringe cutoffs, ranges, charges, credits and above and below the line work out the way producers expect, checked figure by figure against real budgets. Exact decimal math is one setting away.
- Explain this number. Trace any total down to the lines, fringes and rounding steps that make it up.
- Autosave, recovery and backups. Changes go into the file a few seconds after you make them, a budget not saved yet keeps a recovery copy, and earlier versions of each file are kept as backups.
Features
Everything a production budget needs
All of this is built and in the app today. Open a group to see what is in it; the dashed box at the end is what comes next.
Budgeting engine 8
- Topsheet, accounts and detail lines The familiar three levels, with every total rolling up live as you type.
- Money to the cent Every amount is kept in whole cents and rounds the way production budgets have always rounded, with an exact mode if you want one.
- Formulas and globals Amount, quantity and rate cells take formulas and named globals; change a global and every line that uses it follows.
- Currencies Any line can be in its own currency, converted to the budget's base currency at rates you set.
- Groups and what-ifs Tag lines into groups, leave a group out of the total to see a what-if, and get back to the exact cent when you put it back.
- Explain this number Trace any total down to the lines, fringes, cutoffs, ranges and rounding steps that make it up.
- Overtime helper Work out a day or a week of straight time, overtime bands and sixth and seventh days, then write the pay into the line.
- Fast on big budgets An edit recalculates in about 5 ms on a 5,000-line budget.
Fringes, globals, charges and credits 6
- Fringes with cutoffs and ranges Percent and flat fringes, cutoffs per earner, fringe ranges across several lines, unit-hour flats and four ways to post them.
- Globals with details Give a global a description, a unit and decimals, show it by name in cells, and see the formulas behind a selection.
- Contractual charges Percent and flat charges with exclusions, a live preview while you type, and the percent shown on the topsheet if you want it.
- Credits Credit rows show gross, excluded fringes, net and how far you are from a cap.
- Apply panel Select lines, then tick fringes, groups, sets and locations on or off, with live totals for the selection.
- In-use counts Every setup list shows how many lines use each item and what they cost, warns before you delete one in use, and finds them in a click.
Editing, split view and history 9
- Keyboard-first grid Drill in, climb out, step between accounts, fill down and move rows without touching the mouse; a shortcut sheet lists every key.
- Type-ahead and add on the fly Units, currencies, sets, locations and globals complete as you type, and a new one can be added right from the cell.
- Never lose work Autosave into the file, recovery copies for untitled budgets, rolling backups and a restore after a crash.
- Budget tabs and split view Open several budgets as tabs, each with its own undo, and put two side by side in one window.
- History list Every undo step is listed by name and time; click one to go back to it, or save it as a version.
- Find and replace Search descriptions, account numbers, fringes, globals, groups, notes and formulas, then replace only in the results you tick, as one undo step.
- Copy rows with everything on them Rows keep their fringes, groups, notes, style and ranges when copied, even between budgets, with a review of what the paste will change.
- Notes Dated notes on lines, accounts and categories, and a notes list that works as a review checklist.
- Signed and notarized Mac app The Mac app is signed and notarized by Apple, so it opens like any other app with no extra security step.
Versions, compare, diff and merge 7
- Named versions Save, rename, annotate and restore versions, all kept inside the budget file.
- Compare up to 16 budgets Versions or other files side by side at topsheet and account level, with sum, average and variance columns, down to detail lines.
- Original and variance columns Keep a locked baseline and see each account's change from it right in the grid.
- What changed A plain-words diff of two budgets or versions: every changed line, field and setup item, with the money it moved.
- Three-way merge Two copies that changed apart merge on their own where they touched different things; real clashes are listed for you to pick.
- Share-ready copies Save a dated snapshot, optionally without notes or private info, that opens read-only and compares back against the original.
- Small version history Versions can be stored as compact patches, so ten versions of a large budget take about the space of one.
Actuals and cost reports 2
- Import actuals Bring in transactions from CSV, tab-delimited or Excel accounting exports with a column mapping, duplicate checks and a review of unknown accounts.
- Cost report Budget, actual to date, estimate to complete and variance by account, with each account's estimate method your choice.
Reports, PDF and spreadsheets 6
- Reports saved in the budget Pick sections, accounts and layout, save them as named presets with header and footer fields, and print straight to PDF.
- Live preview The setup dialog shows the printed pages as you change them, with page navigation and a jump list of sections.
- More than the topsheet Category summaries, account detail, setup tables, chart of accounts, group totals, budget information and a notes list.
- Spreadsheet export One Excel workbook with topsheet, accounts, detail and setup tables, plus CSV and tab-delimited files for accounting.
- Spreadsheet import Turn any department's Excel, CSV or tab-delimited sheet into budget lines with a column mapping and a line-by-line check of the totals.
- Import from other budgeting apps Open a budget from another program's JSON, XML, Excel or tab-delimited export, with a line-by-line check against that program's own totals.
Setup library and templates 6
- Start from another budget Import setup items from any budget, with what they depend on, or start a new budget from a template.
- Personal setup library Keep your fringes, globals, groups and the rest in a library file of your own and copy them in and out with a conflict review.
- Tag presets and line blocks Save a set of tags or a block of lines once and apply or insert them anywhere.
- Rename everywhere Rename a fringe, global, group or unit and every reference follows, formulas included, as one undo step.
- Renumber accounts Change the account numbering pattern and preview every old and new number before it applies.
- Sub-budgets Make a filtered copy by categories, accounts, groups, sets or locations, for a department or a unit.
Command line and git 4
- Open file format Budgets are
.mthdfiles: plain, documented JSON that diffs cleanly and that any tool can read. - Scriptable command line
methodchecks budgets, prints totals, draws reports as PDF, HTML or CSV, and exports and imports spreadsheets, with no window and no network. - Batch edits
method setandmethod applyrun edit scripts all or nothing, with a dry run that shows what would change. - Git merge driver Keep budgets in git and let
method merge-drivermerge edits to different lines, flagging only real conflicts.
On the roadmap
- Windows and Linux, tested Installers for both are built today; printing, keys and file types still need a hands-on check.
- Review files A reviewer marks up a read-only copy, and their comments come back in a small file you merge.
- Incentive modeling Qualified spend by location, several programs side by side, caps and what-ifs, from rules you enter yourself.
- Schedule-linked quantities Read day counts from a schedule's export and let them drive your globals.
- Accessibility and translations A full accessibility pass and the app in more languages.
- Work on a budget together Several people in one budget at once, through a shared Dropbox or iCloud folder or a live link, with who changed what and undo that only takes back your own edits.
- Rate card lookup Pick a union classification and fill in the rate from public rate cards, with the source and effective date shown.
- New project window Start a budget from one window with its title, chart of accounts, schedule, currency and rate setup, ready to fill in.
Why open files
Your budget is a file you own
A budget is the record of months of decisions. It should outlive any app, any subscription and any company, including this one.
- Plain, documented JSON. Budgets are
.mthdfiles with a published specification. Any tool can read them, today or in twenty years. - Exact money. Amounts are whole cents and rates are written as typed, so the same budget always produces the same bytes.
- Made for version control. Files diff line by line, and a git merge driver combines two people's edits to the same budget.
- On your disk, not ours. Save a budget wherever you keep your work. Nothing is uploaded, and the app works with no connection.
// one detail line, as written in the file
{
"id": 1042,
"description": "Director of photography",
"amount": "PREP_WKS + SHOOT_WKS",
"unit": "Weeks",
"rate": "4850",
"fringes": ["HP", "PT"],
"groups": ["Main unit"]
}Formulas are stored as typed, and fields left at their default are left out, so a change to one line is a change to a few lines of the file.
Keyboard first
Hands stay on the keys
Budgeting is typing. Drill into an account, climb back to the topsheet, step to the next account, fill down and move rows without reaching for the mouse.
Type-ahead completes units, currencies, sets, locations and globals as you type, and a new one can be added right from the cell. A shortcut sheet lists every key.
Shown with Mac keys. On Windows and Linux, Ctrl takes the place of Command and Alt the place of Option.
| Return | Open the category or account |
|---|---|
| CommandUp arrow | Up a level |
| CommandShiftUp arrow | Go to the topsheet |
| CommandRight arrow | Next account (with Left arrow, the previous one) |
| CommandShiftD | Fill down |
| OptionUp arrow | Move the selected rows up (with Down arrow, down) |
| CommandE | Explain the total under the cursor |
| CommandShiftF | Find and replace |
| Command? | Every shortcut, on one sheet |
Command line and coding agents
The same engine, without the window
The method command reads and writes budgets with no window
and no network, so budgets fit into scripts, build steps and automated checks.
$ method show my-film.mthd # the topsheet
$ method check my-film.mthd # recalculate, report problems
$ method totals my-film.mthd --json # every total, in cents
$ method explain my-film.mthd net # how a total is made up
$ method diff old.mthd new.mthd # what changed, in plain words
$ method report my-film.mthd -o budget.pdf # a PDF reportCommand line
Check budgets, print totals, draw reports as PDF, HTML or CSV, export and import spreadsheets, and run batch edits all or nothing with a dry run first. A git merge driver merges edits to different lines on its own. Every command
Coding agents
An MCP server lets Claude Code and other agents open, read and edit budgets through the same engine, with the same exact arithmetic. It only touches the folders you allow and nothing is sent anywhere. How to connect
Download
Get Method Budget
Download the Mac app, or build it from source in a few minutes with nothing but Rust.
Mac app
For Apple silicon and Intel, signed and notarized by Apple so it opens like any other app. It keeps itself up to date. Windows and Linux builds are included but not tested yet.
Build from source
Install Rust, get the code, then from the checkout:
cargo run -p method-appInstallers, the command line and the one-time macOS security step are in the install guide.
FAQ
Questions
Is Method Budget affiliated with other budgeting software?
No. Method Budget is an independent, clean-room project, not affiliated with Entertainment Partners or Movie Magic Budgeting.
Can it open budgets from other apps?
It imports the open files other apps export, never their native files. Whole budgets come in from their JSON, XML, Excel and tab-delimited exports, and any spreadsheet comes in with a column mapping, each with a line-by-line check against the totals in the file.
Where does my data live?
On your own computer, in files you save wherever you like. There is no account and no cloud. The app goes online only to check for its own updates, and you can turn that off.
What does it cost?
Nothing. Method Budget is free and open source, dual-licensed under MIT or Apache-2.0, so it can't be taken away from you.
Which computers does it run on?
The Mac comes first: the app is built and used there every day. Windows and Linux installers are built from the same code and are waiting on a hands-on test.
Can I script it or keep budgets in git?
Yes. The method command line checks budgets, prints totals, draws
reports and makes batch edits, and its git merge driver combines two people's
edits to the same budget.
How can I help?
Try it, report what breaks, and send patches. Please never attach a real budget to an issue: an invented one that shows the problem is always enough. Start with the repository.