Sub-awards are where grant management quietly unravels: a partner’s report is late, an amount is misremembered, and the prime recipient discovers the gap during an audit. This free tracker keeps sub-awards in one private list with amounts, report due dates, and overdue flags.
What the tool does
You add each sub-award with the sub-awardee or project name, the amount, a report due date, and a status of active, reporting, or closed. The tool shows the total sub-awarded across all entries and flags any report whose due date has passed while the sub-award is not closed. Everything is stored in your browser, so the list is private and needs no account, which suits a principal investigator tracking a handful of partners without involving a finance system.
How to use it
Add a sub-award when the agreement is signed, not when the first report is due, since early entries are what make the list trustworthy. Enter amounts in one currency, set the report due date from the agreement, and update the status as reports arrive. Review the list monthly, chase overdue reports promptly and politely, and close sub-awards only when the final report and final payment are both complete, not when the work merely ends.
Worked example
A grant has three sub-awards: 50,000 to a partner university for survey work, 30,000 to a field station for sampling, and 20,000 to a data lab for analysis, totalling 100,000. The survey report is due 2026-12-31 and still active in January, so it flags as overdue, while the other two are on schedule. That single flag tells the investigator exactly which partner to contact first, instead of discovering the delay during a funder’s audit months later.
Reading the results honestly
An overdue flag means a report date passed, not that the partner failed: reports can be submitted but unrecorded, or due dates can be amended by agreement. Check with the partner before escalating, and correct the list when a due date changes formally. Equally, a list with no overdue flags is not proof of compliance; it only proves the dates you entered have not passed. Reconcile the tracker against the signed agreements and the funder’s records regularly.
Honest limits
This is a private list on one device. It does not store agreements, track payments, send reminders, or sync with finance systems, and it does not replace institutional sub-award management or funder reporting. Clearing browser data erases the list, so keep a backup of anything needed for audits. Use it for visibility over a small portfolio, not as the system of record for a large grant.
Practical tips
Set report due dates a week before the funder’s deadline for your own list, so a partner’s late report still leaves time to review it before submission. Keep a folder per sub-award with the agreement, reports, and payment records, named consistently. When a sub-award closes, write a one-line close-out note recording the final report date and final amount, which answers most audit questions before they are asked.
When a sub-award ends badly
Not every sub-award ends cleanly: a partner may deliver late, deliver less than agreed, or stop responding. When that happens, document everything in writing, refer to the agreement’s terms on reports and payments, and involve your institution’s grants office early, since they handle disputes routinely and know which remedies exist. Do not withhold payment informally or promise extensions you cannot authorise, because both create larger problems than the original delay. A calm, documented approach protects the prime grant, the partner relationship, and your ability to show the funder that the issue was managed properly and in good faith throughout.
Related tools
Spanish version: Rastreador de Contratos de Subadjudicación Gratis y Online · All free online tools.
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