Split payroll costs by program or grant (n8n)

Combine payroll totals with timesheet percentages to draft a payroll allocation journal entry.

n8nPayroll prepAdvancedHuman check: High

Tools
n8n: Google Sheets, Code

Time saved
~3-5 hrs/month (estimate)

Difficulty
Advanced

Steps

Manual Trigger after each payroll run.
Google Sheets → Get Rows from your payroll log and from a time-and-effort tab (employee, program, %).
Code node: multiply each person's wages and benefits by their program percentage. Make sure the percentages add up to 100%.
Google Sheets → Append Row to a draft JE tab (debit by program/class, credit the clearing account).

Keep a human check here: High risk

Allocations charged to federal grants need time-and-effort documentation (2 CFR 200.430). Have a person review and sign off before you book the entry.

Node and module names match n8n's docs as of Oct 2026. Apps rename triggers and actions sometimes, so check yours in the editor. Try it with test data or a sandbox company first.

Build it

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