Rex says
Money math without the spreadsheet headache. Plug in your numbers and I'll show you exactly where the dollars land.
Try a scenario
Click to load — tweak from there.Inputs
Result
Total grant request
$228,390
Fringe benefits cost
$33,600
Indirect cost recovery
$29,790
Personnel share of total
67.3%
Amount over funder's cap
$0
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One click, a permanent link with your numbers baked in.
How to use this
- 1Enter personnel salary total ($).
- 2Enter fringe benefit rate (%).
- 3Enter non-personnel direct costs ($).
- 4Enter indirect cost rate (%).
- 5Enter funder's max award (0 = none) ($).
- 6Read your total grant request on the right — it updates as you type.
- 7Hit Share to keep the scenario or send it to someone.
About this calculator
Reviewers reject grant budgets for the same handful of math errors every cycle: fringe left out entirely, indirect calculated on the wrong base, or a total that doesn't match the narrative's requested amount. This builder takes your personnel cost, fringe rate, non-personnel direct costs, and indirect rate, and produces a clean total that separates the pieces the way a program officer expects to see them. It also flags what share of the total request goes to personnel versus program delivery, since many funders cap admin-heavy budgets or ask why personnel dominates a request. Run it before you finalize the proposal narrative, not after, because the numbers should drive what you promise to deliver, not the other way around.
Worked example
Using the values the calculator loads with:
Inputs
- Personnel salary total: 120000 $
- Fringe benefit rate: 28 %
- Non-personnel direct costs: 45000 $
- Indirect cost rate: 15 %
- Funder's max award (0 = none): 250000 $
Results
- Total grant request: $228,390
- Fringe benefits cost: $33,600
- Indirect cost recovery: $29,790
- Personnel share of total: 67.3%
- Amount over funder's cap: $0
What each field means
Inputs
- Personnel salary total ($)
- The personnel salary total used in the calculation, measured in $. Starts at 120000 $ so you have a working example on load.
- Fringe benefit rate (%)
- The fringe benefit rate used in the calculation, measured in %. Starts at 28 % so you have a working example on load. Accepted range: 0–60 %.
- Non-personnel direct costs ($)
- The non-personnel direct costs used in the calculation, measured in $. Starts at 45000 $ so you have a working example on load.
- Indirect cost rate (%)
- The indirect cost rate used in the calculation, measured in %. Starts at 15 % so you have a working example on load. Accepted range: 0–50 %.
- Funder's max award (0 = none) ($)
- The funder's max award (0 = none) used in the calculation, measured in $. Starts at 250000 $ so you have a working example on load.
Results
- Total grant request
- Returned as a money amount in US dollars and shown as the headline result. It recalculates instantly whenever you change an input, so you can compare scenarios without reloading.
- Fringe benefits cost
- Returned as a money amount in US dollars. It recalculates instantly whenever you change an input, so you can compare scenarios without reloading.
- Indirect cost recovery
- Returned as a money amount in US dollars. It recalculates instantly whenever you change an input, so you can compare scenarios without reloading.
- Personnel share of total
- Returned as a percentage. It recalculates instantly whenever you change an input, so you can compare scenarios without reloading.
- Amount over funder's cap
- Returned as a money amount in US dollars. It recalculates instantly whenever you change an input, so you can compare scenarios without reloading.
FAQ
Why calculate fringe separately from salary?
Most funders want to see fringe broken out as its own line so they can verify you're using a real rate, typically 20-35% depending on health coverage, retirement match, and payroll taxes, rather than folding it invisibly into salary and inflating the number without explanation.
What if my personnel share looks too high?
Funders get nervous above roughly 70-75% personnel share for program grants, since it can look like the grant funds staff rather than services. If you're over that line, look for opportunities to shift some line items to non-personnel direct costs like materials, travel, or subcontracted services.
Should indirect be calculated on total direct cost or MTDC?
Almost always MTDC, which excludes big equipment purchases and the portion of subawards over $25,000. Calculating indirect on total direct cost including a $50,000 equipment purchase would overstate your indirect recovery and get flagged in a federal audit.
What do I do if my total is over the funder's cap?
Cut non-personnel costs first since they're easiest to trim without changing your staffing model, then consider phasing the project over two grant cycles, or reducing scope so the narrative still matches a smaller, fully-fundable budget.
Accuracy and limitations
- Results are estimates before tax, fees, and inflation unless an input explicitly covers them.
- Rates are treated as fixed for the whole period — variable-rate products will drift from this projection.
- This is educational maths, not financial advice. Check anything contractual with the lender or your accountant.
Related tools
Cite this calculator
Writing about this topic? Grab a citation — every link helps keep these tools free.
RevenueLab. (2026). Grant Proposal Budget Builder. Retrieved from https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/grant-budget-builder
<p>Source: <a href="https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/grant-budget-builder" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Grant Proposal Budget Builder — RevenueLab</a> (2026).</p>
Source: [Grant Proposal Budget Builder — RevenueLab](https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/grant-budget-builder) (2026).