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How to Automate Import of Budgets from Brex to Google Sheets using Make.com

10 min

Alright, picture this: You’ve got budget data sitting in Brex, and you’re manually copying and pasting it into Google Sheets. Sounds familiar? Yeah, me too, and honestly, it’s a chore. It’s slow, it’s boring, and oh—so prone to errors. Getting your budgets automatically flowing from Brex to Google Sheets isn’t just a nice-to-have, it’s a sanity saver.

I’m gonna walk you through setting up this sweet little pipeline using Make.com, a no-code automation tool that lets you connect Brex to Google Sheets like a boss. And yes, you don’t have to know a lick of code or be some kind of tech wizard to pull this off. It’s one of those setups where the payoff really justifies the five minutes of effort you put in.

Why Bother Automating Budget Imports from Brex to Google Sheets?

No one likes drowning in spreadsheets, especially when you have to key in numbers again and again. Managing budgets manually feels a bit like doing the same puzzle over and over, except someone keeps messing up your pieces.

If you’re freelancing or running a small business, the numbers you track affect how you price projects, manage cash flow, and keep your clients happy. Brex is solid for managing corporate cards and budgets, but downloading CSVs and copy-pasting? That’s a time sink.

Automating this:

  • Saves your fingers from endless typing (thank god)
  • Slashes mistakes that creep in when you’re half distracted
  • Gives you up-to-date budget info without lifting a finger
  • Makes reporting a breeze when clients or management come knocking

From my own experience juggling financial automations, tools like Make.com really transform how easily you can keep all your budget ducks in a row. It’s like giving your spreadsheet a little jetpack.

Meet the Players: Brex, Google Sheets, and Make.com

Before we jump into the nuts and bolts, a quick intro to the three musketeers:

Brex

Think of Brex as your budget’s HQ. It’s a finance platform that caters to startups, freelancers, and growing businesses. It dishes out detailed data — budgets, expenses, card transactions — all the good stuff. Luckily, it has an API that lets us grab that data directly without pesky manual exports.

If you want to peek at their official API documentation, it’s over at Brex API Docs. Helpful if you’re curious or want to tweak things further.

Google Sheets

Good old Google Sheets—the trusty spreadsheet that doesn’t quit. Perfect for keeping your budgets visible, sharable, and flexible. It’s cloud-based, collaborative, and easy enough to use for anyone who has ever stared at rows of numbers.

Make.com

Make.com—formerly Integromat—is where the magic happens. It’s a low-code/no-code platform that lets you link apps and APIs in workflows called “scenarios.” Think of it as a recipe book where you say: “Get data from Brex, clean it up, toss it into Google Sheets.” It handles all that automatically on schedule or based on triggers.

No coding, just connect the dots visually.

Here’s How You Set It Up: Step-by-Step

Step 1: Get Your Accounts Ready

  • Make sure you have active accounts for Brex, Google Sheets, and Make.com.
  • You need API access from Brex. That usually means generating an API key or using OAuth — check their docs.
  • For Google Sheets, you need to give Make.com permission to read and update your sheets.

Step 2: Build Your Google Sheets Template

Don’t just dump data anywhere. Create a sheet with clear headers that match your budget info, like:

  • Budget Name
  • Category
  • Budgeted Amount
  • Amount Spent
  • Amount Remaining

Once set up, share the spreadsheet with the Make.com service user or email associated with your integrations so it can write data in.

Step 3: Craft Your Make.com Scenario

This part is surprisingly fun.

  1. Call the Brex API
    Use Make.com’s HTTP module to send a request to Brex’s budgets endpoint. You’ll need your API key or OAuth setup here. The response gives you the budget data in JSON.

  2. Parse the Data
    After you grab the data, you’ll want to filter and extract only what you need. You can use Make.com’s built-in tools to do this without a headache.

  3. Send to Google Sheets
    Add the Google Sheets module and configure it to either insert new rows or update existing ones. This way, you keep your sheet neat and always current.

  4. Schedule It
    Set your scenario to run daily, weekly, or at whatever interval makes sense. I usually go with daily mornings so I wake up to fresh budgets.

Step 4: Test Before Trusting It

No one likes surprises, so run the scenario with test data first. If something looks off, check the execution logs in Make.com—they tell you exactly where it stumbled.

Step 5: Keep an Eye and Tweak

Automation isn’t a “set and forget” for me. Sometimes data changes, or I realize I want extra budget details imported. So I check monthly, adjust filters, add fields, and make it better.

Why This Is a Game Changer for Freelancers & Businesses on Upwork

If you’re a freelancer or a small agency selling your skills on platforms like Upwork, this kind of automation is literally like adding a secret weapon to your toolkit. Instead of wasting hours wrestling with budget reports, you get clean, up-to-date info that helps you invoice faster and manage projects without fuss.

Plus, knowing how to build automations like this makes you stand out. Many clients want people who can not only deliver work but also streamline their finance and workflow processes. It’s a skill that pays off in proposals and long-term gigs.

A Bit About My Take on Automation Tools

I’ve been in the automation trenches with a few platforms (shoutout to n8n, which feels similar), and the biggest win is cutting out repetitive work. You don’t have to be a programmer to build these workflows—just willing to set things up visually and learn a few API basics.

Make.com’s visual builder is surprisingly friendly, and the logs help chase weird bugs when they pop up. That transparency? Must-have.

Also, sticking closely to official docs like Brex’s API and Make.com’s help articles keeps everything legit and secure. There’s no fun in building something sketchy that breaks or leaks data.

Fun Ideas to Take Automation Further

Once you’ve nailed this, you might want to push it further. Here’s a couple of neat ideas:

  • Hook budget updates to Slack or email alerts so your team never misses a beat.
  • Combine budget info with your CRM for a fuller picture of client spend and project costs.
  • Automate approvals in your expenses system by cross-checking with budget limits.

These add-ons not only boost your own workflow but also make killer extras to mention in your Upwork gigs.

Wrapping It Up

So, automating your Brex budgets into Google Sheets using Make.com isn’t just about saving time — it’s about making your life easier and your reports cleaner. You don’t need to be a coder, and once set up, it just hums along, keeping your financial data sharp and instantly accessible.

If you’re eyeing automation roles or want to add more value to your freelance offerings, this is a practical skill that pays off fast.

Go ahead, start building your Make.com scenario today. Budget tracking just went from a chore to an autopilot feature.

Oh, and if you’re gonna brag at your next virtual hangout about selling automation on Upwork, this will be your secret sauce.

Frequently Asked Questions

Make.com is a powerful automation platform that connects apps and services. It helps automate importing budgets from Brex into Google Sheets by creating workflows that transfer data automatically, saving time and reducing errors.

Yes, using Make.com, you can tailor which budget data fields from Brex are imported into Google Sheets, enabling you to focus on the most relevant financial metrics.

No coding is required. Make.com features a visual drag-and-drop interface that allows users to build automation workflows easily, even without programming experience.

Absolutely. Automating budget imports streamlines financial tracking and reporting, which benefits freelancers and businesses managing finances through platforms like Upwork.

Make.com offers tiered pricing plans. While there is a free tier with limited operations, more complex or frequent automations may require paid plans. It's important to evaluate your needs accordingly.

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