How do I calculate capacity at an accounting firm?

For each person: hours a week x the weeks they actually work in a year (52 less leave and public holidays), divided by 12 for a monthly figure, x the share of their time that goes on client work. That is their client capacity for a month. The Team sheet does the sum. Accounting firm KPIs explains how capacity links to utilisation.

What share of time should go on client work?

The planner does not suggest one. Use your own timesheets, or your best honest estimate, and expect it to be lower for owners and managers, who carry admin, sales and supervision. The KPI tracker measures the real share month by month.

Does it work for fixed-fee firms without timesheets?

Yes. Estimate the hours each job takes from experience, book them on the Work sheet, and check the estimates against reality for a month or two. Capacity is about hours, whatever you bill.

Why use client codes instead of names?

So the workbook can be shared, emailed or opened in an AI tool without carrying client information. Keep the key that links codes to clients in your practice management system.

Free template

Capacity planning template for accounting firms

Most firms find out they are over capacity in the week a deadline is missed. This workbook shows it months ahead: how many client hours each person really has, what is already booked against them, and where the gaps and the overload are for the next six months. It works from your team and your jobs only.

Updated 10 November 2026 · Excel workbook (.xlsx) · Free with a firm profile

Free with a firm profile

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How to use it

How to use this template

Set the first month

On Settings, type the first day of the month you want to plan from. The Capacity sheet covers it and the next five.
Be honest about client hours

On Team, the share on client work is the number that matters. Take out admin, meetings, training and time spent managing others; owners usually have less than they think.
Book the work you know about

On Work, one row per job per month, with your estimate of the hours. Start with recurring work and deadlines, then add what is already promised. Use client codes.
Read the headroom

On Capacity, a negative number is a person with more work booked than time. Move work, change a deadline or say no to new work before that month arrives. If the overload is permanent, see how to hire your first employee or the accounting outsourcing guide.
Update it monthly

Roll the first month forward and add new work as it is agreed. Fifteen minutes a month keeps it useful.

The template

Accounting firm capacity planner

Replace everything in [square brackets].

What's in the workbook

Four working sheets after the read me: one setting, your team, the work booked, and the headroom it adds up to.

Sheet	What it does
Read me	What the workbook is for, how to use it, and where it came from.
Settings	The first month the planner covers. The Capacity sheet shows that month and the five after it.
Team	One row per person who does client work, with the hours each person has for it in an average month.
Work	The work you expect, one row per job per month: recurring jobs, one-offs and anything already promised. Use client codes, not names.
Capacity	For each person, the client hours they have in a month less the hours booked on the Work sheet, for six months from the first month you set. A negative number means more work is booked than the person has time for.

Shaded cells are yours to fill in. Everything else calculates from them. Nothing is filled in for you: no benchmark, rate, salary or fee is typed in as a default, so every result is built from your own numbers.

Sheet 1: Settings

The first month the planner covers. The Capacity sheet shows that month and the five after it.

Line	Type	How it works
First month to plan	You fill in	Type the first day of the month, such as 1 July 2026.

Sheet 2: Team

One row per person who does client work, with the hours each person has for it in an average month.

Column	Type	What it is
Person	You fill in	Name or initials. Use the same spelling on the Work sheet.
Role	You fill in	For your reference.
Hours a week	You fill in	Contracted hours.
Share on client work	You fill in	The part of their hours that goes on client work, after admin, meetings, training and managing others.
Weeks off a year	You fill in	Leave plus public holidays, in weeks.
Client hours a month	Calculated	Hours a week x (52 - weeks off) / 12 x share on client work.

Client hours a month: Hours a week x (52 - weeks off) / 12 x share on client work.
Bottom rows (Team total): totals and averages across the rows you have filled in.

Sheet 3: Work

The work you expect, one row per job per month: recurring jobs, one-offs and anything already promised. Use client codes, not names.

Column	Type	What it is
Client code	You fill in	A code, not a name.
Job	You fill in	For example monthly bookkeeping, annual accounts, tax return, advisory meeting.
Person	You fill in	Who does it, spelled as on the Team sheet.
Month	You fill in	Any date in the month the work happens.
Hours	You fill in	Your estimate of the hours it takes, from timesheets or past jobs.

Bottom rows (Hours booked in total): totals and averages across the rows you have filled in.

Sheet 4: Capacity

For each person, the client hours they have in a month less the hours booked on the Work sheet, for six months from the first month you set. A negative number means more work is booked than the person has time for.

Column	Type	What it is
Person	Calculated	Copied from the Team sheet.
Client hours a month	Calculated	From the Team sheet.
Headroom: month 1	Calculated	Client hours a month less hours booked in the first month.
Month 2	Calculated	The same for the second month.
Month 3	Calculated	The third month.
Month 4	Calculated	The fourth month.
Month 5	Calculated	The fifth month.
Month 6	Calculated	The sixth month.

Person: Copied from the Team sheet.
Client hours a month: From the Team sheet.
Headroom: month 1: Client hours a month less hours booked in the first month.
Month 2: The same for the second month.
Month 3: The third month.
Month 4: The fourth month.
Month 5: The fifth month.
Month 6: The sixth month.
Bottom rows (Firm headroom): totals and averages across the rows you have filled in.

Before you rely on it

Headroom is an estimate built on your estimates. Compare the hours you booked with your timesheets after a month or two, and adjust the share on client work or the job estimates until the planner matches what really happens.

This workbook is a starting point, not financial, tax, employment or legal advice. It only knows the numbers you give it, so check them against your own records and take advice on anything you are unsure of.

Common questions

Frequently asked questions

How do I calculate capacity at an accounting firm?: For each person: hours a week x the weeks they actually work in a year (52 less leave and public holidays), divided by 12 for a monthly figure, x the share of their time that goes on client work. That is their client capacity for a month. The Team sheet does the sum. Accounting firm KPIs explains how capacity links to utilisation.
What share of time should go on client work?: The planner does not suggest one. Use your own timesheets, or your best honest estimate, and expect it to be lower for owners and managers, who carry admin, sales and supervision. The KPI tracker measures the real share month by month.
Does it work for fixed-fee firms without timesheets?: Yes. Estimate the hours each job takes from experience, book them on the Work sheet, and check the estimates against reality for a month or two. Capacity is about hours, whatever you bill.
Why use client codes instead of names?: So the workbook can be shared, emailed or opened in an AI tool without carrying client information. Keep the key that links codes to clients in your practice management system.

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