Budgeting 101: Income, Expenses, and Cash Flow

Three Numbers Run Your Season

Every team budget comes down to:

• Income — money coming in (sponsorships, grants, fundraisers, dues).
• Expenses — money going out (registration, parts, travel).
• Cash flow — when that money actually hits and leaves your account.

Write the budget before Kickoff, not in week four when a gearbox grenades and you realize there's nothing left to buy a new one.

Income: Where FRC Money Comes From

Most teams stitch together several sources:

1. Corporate sponsorships — local shops up to big engineering firms. Usually the largest line.
2. Grants — from FIRST, NASA, and sponsor employee-match programs.
3. Fundraisers — car washes, restaurant nights, crowdfunding.
4. Member dues — a modest per-student amount, with quiet waivers so cost never keeps a kid off the team.

Expenses: Fixed vs. Variable

Sort every cost into two buckets, because it tells you what you can actually cut.

Fixed costs don't move. Your FRC season registration is $6,500, and it includes the Kit of Parts plus your first events — one regional, or two district events, depending on your area. You pay it whether the robot weighs 60 pounds or 120.

Variable costs scale with your choices: extra aluminum and polycarb, replacement motors, more event travel. This is where your real decisions live. You can't skip registration, but you can decide whether to add events — and they add up fast: a second regional runs about $3,200, a District Championship about $4,000, and the FIRST Championship about $6,000, none of which covers hotels, food, or fuel.

Cash Flow: The Trap That Catches Good Teams

A budget can balance on paper and still sink you. Picture this:

• A sponsor pledges $8,000 — but the check won't clear until April.
• Your $6,500 registration is due in fall, months earlier.

On paper you're fine. In reality, you can't pay the bill when it's due. That's a cash-flow problem: the money is real, it's just not there yet. Teams handle it by tracking when income lands, locking in early sponsors before the big bills hit, and keeping a reserve — a cushion that carries you between a pledge and its check.

End Every Year With a Cushion

A team that spends down to exactly zero every season is one dead gearbox from a crisis. FIRST's own guidance tells teams to finish with a surplus to seed the next year. Fund the needs first (registration, core parts), then the wants (upgrades, team shirts), and deliberately bank whatever's left so next season's rookies aren't starting from nothing.

The Bottom Line

Estimate income and expenses, separate fixed from variable, watch the timing of cash, and leave a reserve. Do that and you'll never be robot-rich and bank-broke.