Skip to main content
The Cost Tracker is a core feature of MainWP Dashboard. It gives you a centralized place to record expenses, monitor renewals, and review cost trends across your clients and child sites.

​
What You’ll Learn

  • Review Cost Summary widgets
  • Add, edit, and delete cost entries
  • Import multiple cost entries from CSV
  • Configure currencies, product types, and payment methods
  • Understand what the Cost Tracker Assistant add-on extends
  • Use Cost Tracker REST API endpoints

​
Prerequisites

  • MainWP Dashboard installed and activated
  • Child sites connected to your MainWP Dashboard

​
Video Tutorial

​
Cost Summary page

Cost Tracker summary page Cost Summary is a widgetized page that provides a visual breakdown of costs associated with clients and child sites. Widgets can be resized, rearranged, and disabled in Page Settings. Cost Tracker monthly totals widget Chart-based widgets can export data in SVG, PNG, and CSV formats.

​
Manage Costs page

Cost Tracker manage costs page Manage Costs is the central table for reviewing, filtering, and updating all tracked costs. Cost Tracker costs filters You can filter by Sites, Clients, subscription type, payment method, and more, then save filters as segments for reuse.

​
Adding a New Cost

1

Open Add New

Go to Costs > Add New.
2

Enter cost details

Provide the name, pricing, type, product category, payment method, and purchase dates.
3

Assign sites or clients

From the right sidebar, select related sites or clients.
4

Save the cost entry

Click Save Cost Tracking Item.
Add a new cost

​
Import Costs (CSV)

Use CSV import to add multiple cost entries in one run.
1

Open Import Costs

Go to Costs > Import Costs.
2

Prepare your CSV file

Click Download Sample, then keep the same column order in your file.
3

Upload and start import

Upload your .csv file, keep CSV file contains a header enabled if your file has a header row, then click Import Operational Costs.
4

Review results

Watch the row-by-row import log in the modal. Use Pause and Continue during import, and use Try Again after fixing failed rows.

​
CSV columns and formats

ColumnRequiredFormat
NameYesPlain text
URLNoFull URL (https://...)
TypeNosubscription or lifetime
CategoryNoplugin, theme, hosting, service, other, or a custom category slug from Cost Tracker Settings
License TypeNosingle_site or multi_site
PriceYesNumber (for example 49.00)
Payment MethodNoDefault method slug (paypal, stripe, apple, amazon, google, credit_debit, debit_card, cash) or a custom method slug
Renewal TypeNoweekly, monthly, quarterly, or yearly
Last Renewal DateNoRecommended format: YYYY-MM-DD
StatusNoactive, canceled, onhold, expired, or pending_cancelation
Select SitesNoSemicolon-separated site URLs (https://site1.com;https://site2.com)
The importer skips lines that start with # and treats them as comments.

​
Edit or Delete an Item

  1. Go to Costs > Manage Costs.
  2. Find the item and open the ellipsis menu.
  3. Choose Edit or Delete.
Edit a cost item

​
Settings page

Go to Costs > Settings to configure:
  1. Currency and currency symbol position
  2. Thousand and decimal separators
  3. Decimal places
  4. Default product categories
  5. Custom payment methods
Notification options for subscription expiration alerts are provided by the Cost Tracker Assistant add-on.

​
Widgets and table information

Cost tracker widget Cost-related widgets are available on individual site and client overview pages for quick visibility. Cost tracker table column Manage Clients and Manage Sites tables include Cost Tracker columns showing associated cost counts.

​
Cost Tracker Assistant add-on

Cost Tracker Assistant is the extension that adds extra functionality to the core Cost Tracker feature, including:
  • Subscription expiration notifications
  • Faster cost entry when installing plugins or themes from ZIP files
Learn more: Cost Tracker Assistant

​
Cost Tracker REST API

For automation and integrations, use the Cost Tracker endpoints in MainWP REST API: