How to use Classes
Classes, while mostly used for tracking revenue and expenses, can also be used to track year-over-year progress toward a specific goal. Want to know how much the Annual Gala brought in this year compared to last year? That's easy with a class!
Learn more about how Accounts, Classes, and Tags work together.
What are Classes in my MonkeyPod?
Classes describe the why behind a transaction. You can track how funds were used by assigning the appropriate class to identify the spending purpose.
MonkeyPod uses Classes to help your organization categorize your transactions into one of four broadly based areas:
- Fundraising
- Programs and Services
- Management and General
- Shared Expenses
Shared expenses is listed as a class, but it's a little unique. It is used as a special holding pen for transactions that don't really fit neatly into the other three classes. MonkeyPod then allows you to take everything in Shared Expenses and allocate it across each of the other three classes using the Statement of Functional Expenses Report
Where do I find classes in MonkeyPod?
To find your classes select My MonkeyPod. Under the MonkeyPod Setup section, select Classes / Programs.
From here you'll see all of your organization's Classes and Subclasses
When would I create a Subclass?
Classes are for categories that are permanent(ish) parts of your organization's accounting. These are functional categories that describe the purpose of an expense or the source of revenue. Not only is this required for nonprofit accounting, but it will also make it easier for you to run reports and glean insights about spending or fundraising.
Anything that would fall under these categories may make a great case for a new subclass, such as an "Annual Fundraiser" subclass under the class Fundraising. In the screenshot below, you can see all of the subclasses under Programs and Services. These would be standing events that this organization might have year after year.
How do I add a new Class?
To add a new class, go back to your list of Classes by selecting Classes / Programs from the My MonkeyPod menu. Then, select Add a Class
From here, you will be asked to give your class a Parent Class, a Name, and a Description. Then hit Save.
Can I add a subclass directly from the main list?
Yes! To add a subclass, select the Create sub-class icon and it will bring up the same Add a new tag window as above.
How do Shared Expenses work?
Shared Expenses is a special MonkeyPod class. You can think of it as a big bucket of transactions that you can then distribute over the other three classes all at once.
For example, you may have a lot of expenses that don't quite fall under Management and General, Programs and Services, or Fundraising, but they do all fall into those categories at the same percentages.
From here, you would allocate those to shared expenses then use the Statement of Functional Expenses report to allocate the percentages!
Frequently Asked Questions
- Why can't I delete Fundraising, Management and General, Programs and Services, or Shared Expenses?
- MonkeyPod keeps these because they are directly tied to your 990. You can add and remove subclasses, but these four are here to stay!
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