Free Maintenance Log Template
Keep the running history of one asset in one place: every service, repair and inspection with the date, the work done, the parts, the hour meter or odometer reading, the labor, the cost, who did it and when it is next due. Add a simple PM schedule if you want the next due dates worked out, then print the log for the clipboard by the machine, save it as a PDF or download a CSV.
A template for your records, not a compliance program. Follow the manufacturer's manual and the rules that apply to your equipment or vehicles.
What the maintenance log template covers
Asset details
Asset name, asset ID or unit number, location, make and model, serial number or VIN, year, and the owner or department responsible for it.
One row per job
Date, type (preventive, corrective, inspection or other), the work done, the parts used, the meter or odometer reading, labor hours, cost, who did it and when it is next due.
Totals
Number of entries, total cost, total labor hours, the last meter reading and the period the log covers, worked out as you type.
PM schedule (optional)
Recurring tasks with an interval in days, weeks, months or meter units and when each was last done. The next due date or reading is last done plus the interval, flagged overdue or due soon.
A printout for the machine
Landscape, oldest entry first, with blank rows and an initials column so the next jobs can be written in by hand and typed up later.
CSV with the asset on every row
Download one sheet per asset, or stack several assets in one spreadsheet: the asset name and ID repeat on every row.
How to keep a maintenance log
Start one log per asset: a compressor, a forklift, a truck, a rooftop unit, a pump. Fill in the details that identify it for good, the make, model, serial number and year, so the record still points at the right machine after it moves or changes hands. Then add an entry every time someone works on it, the same day, with the reading on the hour meter or odometer.
Write the work done in plain words, what was found as well as what was done, and list the parts with quantities. That is the line the next technician reads before they start, and what a warranty claim or a buyer will ask for. A corrective entry that keeps coming back on the same asset is the sign that the PM interval or the part is wrong.
For vehicles, US motor carriers are told what to keep: 49 CFR 396.3(b) asks for the vehicle's identification (company number, make, serial number and year), a means to show the nature and due date of the inspection and maintenance operations, and a record of the inspection, repairs and maintenance showing their date and nature. Under 396.3(c) the records are kept where the vehicle is housed or maintained for one year, and for six months after it leaves the carrier's control. This template has a field for each of those.
Writing up a single visit for a customer? Use the service report template and log the job here afterwards.
Need to send someone to do the work? Raise it with the work order template.
Maintenance log, work order, service report and inspection checklist
- Maintenance log
- This page: the running history of one asset, every job on it in date order, with the totals and what is due next.
- Work order
- The instruction to do one job: who asked, what to do, who is assigned, then the hours and parts. When it is done, it becomes one line in the log.
- Service report
- What a technician leaves with the customer after one visit: findings, work done, recommendations and a signature.
- Inspection checklist
- A list of items checked on one inspection, like a pre-trip vehicle inspection. The result goes in the log as an inspection entry.
Tips for a log people keep up
Log it the same day
The reading, the parts and what was found are gone from memory by the end of the week. Keep the printout on a clipboard at the machine and type it up later.
Always take the reading
Hours or miles turn a list of dates into a usage history, and they are what most manufacturers set the service intervals by.
Take the intervals from the manual
The manufacturer's manual gives the service intervals for the machine. Put them in the PM schedule rather than guessing, and shorten them when the asset works hard.
Read the corrective entries
Count the repairs per asset each quarter. The one with the most breakdowns or the highest cost is the one to look at first.
More for people who sell to and service equipment: MRO sales, equipment rental sales.
Sources (read 2026-10-31)
Talk through the job at the machine
Most technicians would rather say what they did than write it. Talk through the job as you finish it and ParrotNotes records it; the transcript and summary give you the work done and the parts in your own words, ready to copy into this log.
Get Started FreeRelated tools
- Work Order TemplateFill in a work order with the customer, job site, tasks, labor, parts and sign-off, then print it or save it as a PDF.Open the tool
- Service Report TemplateFill in a field service report with the job, work done, parts, time and sign-off, then print it or save it as a PDF for the customer.Open the tool
- Vehicle Inspection ChecklistCheck a company or personal vehicle before a trip with a ready checklist, note defects, and print or save the signed record.Open the tool