An asset depreciation schedule is the year-by-year table of one asset's depreciation, and a fixed asset depreciation schedule for the organisation is that table built for every line on the register and rolled up: the charge for the year across all lines is the depreciation expense in the accounts, and the sum of the closing book values is the fixed assets figure on the balance sheet. The single-asset template is the arithmetic; the roll-up is the reason the register exists. This page sets out how the schedules are built line by line, how they roll up, what changes them mid-life, and why the work belongs in the register rather than in a spreadsheet rebuilt every year.
One schedule per line, from four inputs
Every register line above the threshold carries a cost, a salvage value, a useful life and an in-service date, and from those four the schedule is fixed: the charge for each year, the accumulated depreciation and the closing book value, by the method the organisation uses for that class. The free fixed asset register worksheet on this site works one line from those inputs, straight-line and double-declining-balance, which is the schedule the register repeats for each of its lines.
The roll-up: the year's charge and the balance sheet figure
For a year, the depreciation expense is the sum of every line's charge for that year, including the partial charges for lines that entered service or were disposed of during it. The fixed assets figure on the balance sheet is the sum of every line's closing book value at the year end. The two have to reconcile to the opening figure plus additions less disposals less the year's charge, and the fixed asset schedule printed from the register is that reconciliation shown line by line.
What changes a schedule mid-life
A disposal ends it on the disposal date with a gain or loss against the book value on that day. A write-off takes the book value to salvage in one step and ends the charge. A revision of the useful life, after a repair that extends it or a decision to replace early, respreads the remaining book value over the remaining years from the date of the revision. Each is a dated row against the line with a reason, and the schedule from that date is recomputed; the history before it is not rewritten.
Why the schedules belong in the register
A spreadsheet of schedules is rebuilt every year from last year's copy, and the roll-up is a sum of cells that drift: a disposed asset still charging, an addition at the wrong cost, a revised life without a note. A register that holds each line's inputs and events computes each schedule and the roll-up for any date, and the year-end fixed asset schedule is a print. The IRS's Publication 946 sets out when depreciation begins and ends for property that qualifies; the register applies the organisation's own method between those dates.
Questions people ask about asset depreciation schedule
What is the difference between an asset depreciation schedule and a fixed asset schedule?
The depreciation schedule is one asset year by year. The fixed asset schedule is every asset for one date. The register builds the second from the first for every line.
How is a partial year handled on the schedule?
By the convention the books use: commonly a monthly proration from the in-service month, so an asset in service for four months of its first year charges a third of a full year. The register applies the convention consistently; the worksheet on this site takes years in service as a decimal for the same reason.
What happens to the schedule when an asset is sold early?
It ends on the disposal date. The book value on that date against the proceeds is the gain or loss, and the line stays on the register as closed so the year's fixed asset schedule shows the disposal.
Does the fixed asset depreciation schedule for the books match the tax schedule?
Often not. The books use the organisation's method and lives; the tax return uses the methods and recovery periods the tax rules allow. The register keeps the book schedule; the tax schedule is your preparer's.