Overview
Drum allows you to add costs or expenses directly to your projects just as you can allocate time to them. This feature is especially useful when you need to track:
Subcontractor invoices
Travel and accommodation costs
Material purchases or disbursements
Any other project-related expenses
There are two ways to add a cost to a project in Drum:
Manually entering the cost details using the Add Cost button
Dragging and dropping a supplier invoice or receipt (PDF or image) onto the Costs area.
Before you begin To approve a cost you need (1) a valid Supplier linked to the cost and (2) a Task within the project to allocate to. Set these up before approving. |
Method 1: Add a Cost Manually
Use this method when you want to enter cost details directly, without uploading a document.
Step 1. Go to the Project's Costs Tab
Open the relevant project in Drum and click on the Costs tab at the top of the project page.
Step 2. Click the Add Cost Button
Click the blue Add Cost button to open the cost entry form.
Step 3. Enter the Cost Details
Fill in the required fields, Supplier, Task, cost type, and total amount. You can also mark whether this is a billable, non-billable or "direct to client" cost.
The example below shows how costs can be manually created within the system.
Step 4. Save the Cost
Click Save and Edit to save your entry. The cost will now appear in your project's Costs area as a draft.
Step 5. Add an Attachment (Optional)
If you have a supporting document such as a receipt or invoice, you can attach it to the cost record at this stage.
Step 6. Approve the Cost
Once all details are confirmed, change the status of the cost by clicking on the status indicator in the top-right corner of the cost page and changing the status to "Approved".
A cost will only impact the parent project's financial figures once approved.
This example shows that once all details are confirmed, you can click the Approve (✓) button to finalise the cost against the project, which will update the project budget and WIP figures.
Helpful note When you save a cost it appears as a draft (darker grey on the budget bar). Costs planned from the proposal budget convert to Planned costs on the project (Work tab and Project Health). That warns a planned or draft cost exists even if not yet approved. |
Method 2: Upload a Supplier Invoice or Receipt
Use this method when you have a PDF or image of a supplier invoice or receipt. Drum will automatically read the document and pre-fill the cost details for you.
Step 1. Go to the Project's Costs Tab
Open the relevant project in Drum and navigate to the Costs tab.
Step 2. Drag and Drop the Document
Drag your supplier invoice or receipt (PDF or image file) and drop it onto the Costs area of the project.
Step 3. Wait for Drum to Process the Document
Drum will process the file and automatically extract and populate the cost details such as the supplier name, line items, and amounts.
Step 4. Review and Verify the Details
Always review the auto-filled information carefully. Check the supplier, line items, amounts, and whether the figures are tax-exclusive or tax-inclusive before proceeding.
Step 5. Allocate the Cost to a Task
Select the appropriate Task within the project that this cost relates to. This is required before you can approve the cost.
Step 6. Approve the Cost
Once everything looks correct, follow the approval steps to approve the cost. This will post it against your project budget.
Important: Always Check Auto-Filled Details Drum reads your uploaded document automatically, but it's not always perfect. Always verify the supplier, line items, amounts, and tax treatment before approving. An incorrectly approved cost can impact your project's budget and financial reporting. |
Understanding Budget Indicators
Once a cost is added to a project, Drum reflects it on the project's budget bar. Here's what the colours mean:
Indicator | What It Means |
Dark Grey Bar | A draft or planned cost exists on this project. The cost has not yet been approved. |
Approved Cost | The cost has been approved and is now fully applied to your project budget and WIP. |
Syncing Costs to Xero
For a supplier invoice already received, use the bill integration on the approved cost. To place an order before a supplier cost exists, create a purchase order using Drum’s purchase-order workflow.
Creating a Xero Bill from an Approved Cost
After approving the cost, additional options will appear, including the Xero bill integration.
Click Create Xero Bill.
Assign a Chart of Accounts category (e.g. Subcontractors) to the cost. line items Xero requires this before the bill can be created.
Set the Bill Issue Date and Due Date as applicable.
Set the bill status to Draft or Approved, depending on your workflow.
Click to send the bill to Xero. You can then view the linked bill directly from your Xero account.
If Xero rejects the bill (for example an archived supplier contact, or a line-item account or tax error), Drum shows the Xero error messages and does not keep a draft or approved bill status or Xero bill id on the cost. Fix the issue in Xero or on the cost, then try again. See If a supplier bill will not push to Xero.
Helpful note on Xero workflows Drum is the source of truth for project costs while talking to Xero when appropriate. Common workflows: Choose the workflow that matches the business. |
Allocating Costs to a Client Invoice
Just like time entries, costs can also be allocated to a client invoice in Drum. This allows you to charge project expenses directly to your client or simply capture "actuals" against a fixed price project.
For a full walkthrough of this process, refer to the Invoicing section of the Drum video guide library.
Quick Reference Summary
Task | How To Do It |
Add a cost manually | Project → Costs Tab → Blue Add Cost button → Fill in details → Save |
Upload a supplier invoice | Project → Costs Tab → Drag & drop PDF or image onto the Costs area |
Approve a cost | Open the cost → Confirm supplier & task are set → Click Approve (✓ (or change the status).) |
Create a Xero Bill | Approve cost → Click Create Xero Bill → Set account & dates → Send to Xero |
View draft/planned costs | Check the dark grey indicator on the project budget bar |
On-charge costs to a client | Refer to the Invoicing guide to allocate costs to a client invoice |
Video: companion walkthrough in the Drum video guide library: https://vimeo.com/1135641480/a032caf79a
Who can upload cost files
Uploading a supplier invoice or receipt (on a project Costs tab or the unallocated upload on Expenses) needs Create Costs in Settings → Roles, plus a project you can open.
Roles with Update Costs but not Create Costs can no longer upload cost files. Give those people Create Costs if they should keep uploading.
Editing a cost that belongs to an expense claim
When a project cost comes from an expense claim item or staff allowance, Drum keeps the claim as the source of truth for some fields. If you open that cost from the project Costs tab (or use inline edit) and try to change a claim-owned field, Drum refuses the save and shows a message that the cost belongs to an expense claim — change the claim instead.
Edit these on the expense claim (not on the project cost): name, description, supplier, status, tax rule, and total. For a staff allowance cost, markup is claim-owned too.
You can still edit on the cost page: reference, cost type, billable, dates, task, and — for a claim item cost — fixed or percentage markup.
Invalid amounts and dates on the cost form
If you enter an amount or date the form cannot read (for example letters in a money field, or a date that is not a real date), Drum refuses the save and keeps the previous values. It does not quietly turn the field into zero or blank. Fix the value and save again.
Need Help?
If you have any questions or run into issues while tracking costs against a project, Drum, our team is available to help.
Contact support Use live chat bottom-right in Drum. |