This template gives you one list for all your contracts, works out the notice deadline for each one and highlights the deadlines coming up in the next 90 days. It is an Excel file that also opens in Google Sheets and Apple Numbers.
Download the contract tracking template (.xlsx)
It contains three invented example rows to show the format. Replace them with your own contracts.
What each column is for
- Contract and Counterparty: what the contract is and who it is with, for example “Office lease” with “Kingsway Properties”.
- Type: a dropdown with common types such as software, lease, telecom, insurance and client.
- Owner: the person who decides whether to renew, renegotiate or end the contract.
- Signed on, Start date and End date: the end date is the end of the current term, not the date it was signed.
- Notice (months): the notice period as a number of months.
- Notice deadline: worked out from the end date and the notice period. This is the last day your notice can arrive.
- Days left: the number of days until the notice deadline.
- Auto-renewal and Renews on: whether the contract renews by itself, and the date of the next renewal.
- Contract value and Payment terms: what it costs and when you pay, so expensive renewals get attention first.
- Notes: anything else worth knowing, such as a price increase rule or the number of licenses.
How the deadline is worked out
The Notice deadline column uses the formula =EDATE(End date, -Notice (months)). EDATE counts calendar months back from the end date and keeps month ends as month ends, so December 31 less three months gives September 30.
When the deadline is less than 90 days away, both deadline columns turn amber. Once it has passed, they turn red.
Some contracts give the notice period in days or business days. For those, overwrite the deadline with =WORKDAY(End date, -days) for business days, or simply the end date minus the number of days. The notice deadline calculator works out a single date, and how notice periods are counted explains the rules in detail.
How to fill it in
- Start with the five contracts that would cost you most if you got them wrong. For most businesses that is the lease, insurance, the main software, phones and the largest client.
- Take each date from the signed contract and its latest amendment or renewal confirmation, not from memory.
- Give every contract an owner.
- Put a reminder in the owner’s calendar 30 to 90 days before each notice deadline.
- Work through bank statements, email and shared drives to add the rest.
How to track contract renewal dates covers finding contracts and setting reminders in more detail.
Keeping it current
A tracking spreadsheet needs regular updates. Three habits keep it current:
- Add new contracts the day they are signed, including ones that arrive by email.
- Update the end date when a contract renews, and move the calendar reminder with it.
- Check the dates again when a contract is amended, since an amendment can change the term or the notice period.
When you need more than a spreadsheet
A spreadsheet works well while one person looks after a manageable number of contracts. It gets harder when several people sign contracts, new ones arrive by email every week, or you need to find a clause rather than a date. The template does not read your contracts, so every date has to be typed in by hand, and reminders depend on calendar entries someone has to create.
ContractSorted takes over those parts. It reads each contract, finds the dates, notice periods and obligations with the sentence they come from, works out the deadlines and reminds the owner ahead of each one. The column names in this template match ContractSorted’s spreadsheet import, so if you move later, you import the file under Contracts > Import spreadsheet instead of typing everything again.