Ever had that heart-stopping moment when you realized a grant deadline slipped through the cracks? You’re not alone.
Juggling multiple grant applications without a system is like trying to keep a dozen plates spinning—eventually, something crashes to the ground. If you only apply for one or two grants a year, handwritten notes and calendar reminders might work. But if you’re managing 5, 10, or 20+ applications, you need a streamlined system to stay organized.
That’s where a grant-tracking pipeline comes in. It keeps everything in one place, ensuring you never miss a deadline again.
In this guide, we’ll walk you through:
By the end, you’ll have a system that works—so you can focus on winning more grants (and sleep easy at night). Let’s dive in!
Grant tracking is more than just remembering deadlines—it’s about managing every piece of the grant lifecycle, from initial research to final reporting. Without a structured system, keeping track of multiple applications, funding sources, and compliance requirements can quickly become overwhelming.
At its core, a grant tracker helps you stay organized by tracking key details such as:
There are two primary ways to track grants: manually (such as using spreadsheets) and through grant tracking software.
Manual tracking typically involves spreadsheets or documents where you record information such as:
While this method can work for organizations managing only a few grants, it becomes inefficient as the number of applications grows. Spreadsheets require constant updating, can be prone to human errors, and don’t offer automation or reminders.
Grant tracking software, on the other hand, automates key tasks such as deadline reminders, centralized document storage, and real-time collaboration. Instead of manually checking spreadsheets, the software provides a streamlined system that reduces administrative burden and increases efficiency.
If you’re considering the advantages and disadvantages of different methods, this comparison between spreadsheets and grant tracking software highlights the essential differences to assist you in determining the best option.
Managing grants is a multi-step process that goes far beyond submitting an application. A well-structured grant pipeline ensures that every stage—from research to reporting—is handled efficiently.
Here’s how the process typically unfolds:
1. Research and Identify Opportunities
Before applying for grants, organizations need to identify funders whose priorities align with their mission, geographic focus, and funding requirements. Researching eligibility criteria, deadlines, and funding priorities is critical to ensuring that time and resources are spent on high-potential opportunities.
2. Develop and Submit the Proposal
Once a grant is selected, crafting a strong proposal is the next step. This includes outlining project goals, budget details, impact measures, and required supporting documents such as:
Missing key documents or deadlines can derail the entire process.
3. Manage Grant Follow-Ups and Compliance
After submission, funders may request clarifications, additional documents, or follow-up conversations before making a decision. If awarded funding, organizations must carefully track spending, comply with reporting requirements, and ensure the grant is used as intended.
4. Track and Report Outcomes
Most funders require regular reporting on how grant funds are used and the impact achieved. Tracking deadlines, financial expenditures, and program outcomes is crucial to maintaining good funder relationships and increasing the likelihood of future funding.
A strong grant tracking system isn’t just about staying organized—it’s essential for effectively securing and managing funding. Without one, important tasks can easily slip through the cracks, leading to missed deadlines, compliance issues, and lost funding opportunities.
Here’s what grant expert Arnisha Johnson says:
“The biggest mistake I’ve seen organizations make when managing several grants is letting important tasks fall through the cracks. This can easily happen when there is disorganization of information possibly due to overload or overwhelm. These important tasks could be deadlines, documents meant to upload, follow-ups required, or even late reports - all things that can cause the missed opportunity for grants. It’s important to stay on top of all these things and in a well-organized manner or hire someone to help manage it.”
Here are some of the biggest reasons why grant tracking is critical:
Grant expert Sarah Lange advises,
“If you don’t already have systems in place to keep you organized, invest the time and energy (and money!) to set them up. This will make your grant writing efforts infinitely more efficient!”
Now that you know why grant tracking is so important, let’s dive into how to set up an effective system to streamline your workflow and maximize funding opportunities.
A grant tracking pipeline provides a clear, structured way to monitor funding opportunities, application statuses, and reporting deadlines.
Below, we’ll walk you through five simple steps to create your own grant tracking system using Instrumentl.
The first step to creating a grant tracker is to sign up for your 14-day free trial of Instrumentl. (No credit card required!)
Now, let’s create a new project so you can start tracking your grants.
Create Your First Project
To get started, select the ‘+ Project’ button at the top left of your screen.
Specify Your Location
Next, you’ll enter some basic information about your nonprofit, including your location. You can select an entire state, or dial down to specific counties within a state. If your organization operates globally, you can choose that option.
Here, you’ll also enter in your organization’s fiscal year so that Instrumentl can align grant deadlines with your yearly calendar.
On the next page, you will name your project and choose your Project Type.
The name can be anything that will help you distinguish your project; in the example below, the project is “Dropout Prevention,” a project to support programs that help prevent at-risk youth from dropping out of school.
For the purposes of grant tracking only, you will select the “Tracking” option under “Project Type”.
Invite Your Team Members
After you enter all of your project information and select your project type, you can add your teammates to your project and review your tracking information together.
Download and Fill in the Grant Tracking Spreadsheet
Once you’ve entered your team members into the previous screen, you can start entering your existing grants into Instrumentl.
Don’t worry—our platform will save you hours of manual data entry by allowing you to upload your existing grant spreadsheet!
To do this, simply enter your existing grant data into this template and click “Upload Your Spreadsheet”, as you can see on the below screen.
Note: It can take up to a week for your grants to finish uploading into Instrumentl, especially if you have a lot of them in your spreadsheet. Please be patient!
Manually Add Your Most Important Grants
Keep in mind that you can add your grants to Instrumentl manually if you prefer to do it that way, or if you don’t have very many to enter. Instrumentl makes it super easy!
First, you’ll enter in the funder’s name or EIN number in the field where it says “Type Funder Name or EIN.”
As you do this, Instrumentl will populate funders and opportunities that match the keywords you’ve typed in.
Simply click on the correct one—in this case, the New York Life Foundation—and then choose the specific funding opportunity that you are interested in.
Once you’ve chosen the correct opportunity, you can add a status as well as any relevant notes.
Last—click “Save” when you’re done.
Once you add your grants to the tracker, you’ll see them all organized on your screen.
The grant tracker is a great grant project management tool that’s baked right into Instrumentl.
It lays out all the relevant info about your saved grants, all in one place. At the top, you get a high-level overview of how you’re tracking toward your fundraising goals.
As you apply to grants, the “STATUS” window will update accordingly. Likewise, you can set goals for how much you want to raise.
Review Grants in Your Tracker
Below, you’ll see all your grant opportunities and their details broken down into an easy-to-read table.
The table includes:
Outline Your To-Do’s for Each Grant
To stay on top of your to-do list for each opportunity, you can add tasks that need to be completed. Simply navigate to the grant and click “+ Add Task.”
A modal will pop up with details for your task, asking you to fill in the following information:
Likewise, you can add notes as reminders for each grant by simply typing them into the “Notes” column.
Add Custom Fields to Your Tracker
You can also add additional columns to your tracker to include the information you and your team want to see.
You might want to consider adding columns for things such as:
Add a custom field by clicking “Edit Columns” on the left-hand side of your tracker.
You can toggle Instrumentl’s default fields on and off; to add your own custom field, click “+ Add Custom Field.”
Then, follow the instructions to add your field: add a FIELD NAME, a TYPE, and where the field will appear.
Update Your Grants as You Submit Applications
To change the status of a grant, all you have to do is click on the little carrot next to the current status, and a new menu of status options will appear. Simply select the correct status from the list.
Once you enter all your grants into your tracker—or upload them—you’re ready to begin discovering even more good-fit funding opportunities!
Scroll to the bottom of your Tracker and click the “Enable Matches” button to get started.
After you click that button, you’ll be taken to the “Edit Your Project” page.
Under “Project Type” click the “Matches & Tracking” option to enable new grant recommendations.
Select the Kinds of Grants You Want to Be Matched With
Then, you’ll navigate through the “Matches Setup” page. The first pieces of information that you’ll need to provide are your applicant type and whether you’d like to see opportunities specifically for faith-based organizations.
Select Your Field of Work
Following that, you’ll enter in the geographic areas that your project will serve, as well as the fields of work that your project falls within.
Pro Tip: When you’re entering in your fields of work, you can either type into the field or browse all of the existing categories. We recommend choosing anywhere from 2-5 categories to get the most accurate list of results.
Specify the Funders You’re Looking For
Instrumentl will also ask what size grants you’re looking for (in USD). You can leave these fields blank if you have no minimum or maximum amounts.
You’ll also need to select what you’re using the funds for. You can check all of the options that apply to your specific project.
Lastly, you’ll choose what kinds of funders you’d like to see opportunities from. Again, you can select all that apply to you. See the above screenshot for an example of what this looks like.
Once you plug in all this info, Instrumentl will search its comprehensive database to generate a list of good-fit funding opportunities for your project or program.
Now it’s time to review the grants you’ve been matched with!
When you first start reviewing your matches, you’ll notice that Instrumentl resembles your email inbox. Your matches are on the left; when you click on one, the details will populate to the right.
Scan For Relevant Grants
The “FUNDING OPPORTUNITY” tab provides you with a more detailed overview of the opportunity, letting you quickly review potential grants to see if they’re relevant.
Save Good-Fit Opportunities
If a grant looks like it’s worth looking into more, you can save the opportunity in your project tracker by clicking the “Save” button.
Handling multiple grants at once can feel overwhelming, but a strong grant management process can make all the difference. From compliance tracking to smart budgeting, these tips will help you keep everything running smoothly—while setting your organization up for long-term funding success.
Here’s the bottom line: An organized system matters.
Manually managing grants may be feasible for organizations applying for only one or two grants per year. However, as the number of applications grows, spreadsheets and manual tracking can lead to missed deadlines, compliance issues, and lost funding opportunities. Implementing a structured grant tracking system ensures that every step of the pipeline is organized, efficient, and scalable.
With automated tracking, funder insights, and collaboration tools, Instrumentl streamlines the entire grant process, saving time and reducing stress.
Ready to take your grant tracking to the next level? Sign up for your 14-day free trial of Instrumentl and see how it can help you find, track, and manage your grants—all in one place.
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