Modern daily drilling report software for oil and gas operators. Automate report generation, track NPT, analyze costs, and give your team real-time visibility into drilling operations — from the rig site to the executive office.
Daily drilling reports are the lifeblood of drilling operations. They document depth, activity, costs, NPT, and every detail that operators, investors, and management teams need to understand what's happening on the rig. Yet despite being critical to operations, most drilling reports are still created the same way they were 25 years ago: manually compiled in Excel spreadsheets, then emailed as PDFs.
Spreadsheet-based reporting creates cascading problems across drilling operations. Company men spend hours every night copying data from paper tickets into Excel. Mistakes are common — a mistyped depth, a missing cost code, an incorrect NPT category. Reports sit in email inboxes where data can't be searched or analyzed. When someone needs to find out what happened on Well 14-A three months ago, they're searching through hundreds of email threads. And when you want to analyze NPT trends across your drilling program? You're manually aggregating data from dozens of disconnected spreadsheets. It's slow, error-prone, and prevents you from making data-driven decisions about drilling performance.
The industry knows this is a problem. But many operators continue using Excel because they don't know there's a better way — or they assume drilling reporting software is too expensive, too complex, or requires too much change management.
Modern drilling reporting software isn't just a digital version of your Excel template. It's a complete data platform that captures drilling data at the source, validates it in real-time, generates professional reports automatically, and makes all that data searchable and analyzable across your entire drilling program.
Here's what operators should expect from drilling reporting software in 2026:
Company men and drilling engineers enter data directly into mobile apps from the rig site. No more paper tickets. No more end-of-day manual data entry.
Daily drilling reports are generated automatically from the data. Professional formatting, company branding, and distribution — all handled by the software.
Categorize NPT as it happens. Track trends over time. Identify the biggest sources of non-productive time across rigs and wells.
Track drilling costs in real-time against AFE budgets. See where you are vs. forecast. Identify cost overruns before they become major problems.
All drilling data stored in a central database. Search across all wells, all rigs, all time periods. No more digging through email archives.
Real-time dashboards showing drilling performance, NPT trends, cost trends, and operational KPIs across your entire drilling program.
RigReports is Mi4's drilling reporting software platform. It's been used by drilling contractors and operators across the US since 2010, processing millions of daily drilling reports across every major basin including the Permian, Eagle Ford, Bakken, DJ Basin, Haynesville, and Gulf Coast.
RigReports was built by former drilling engineers who understood the pain of manual reporting. They designed the platform to eliminate spreadsheet chaos while fitting seamlessly into existing drilling workflows.
1. Mobile Data Entry (iOS & Android)
Company men and drilling engineers use the RigReports mobile app to enter drilling data throughout the day. Depth, activity codes, bit records, mud properties, BHA components, surveys, costs, and NPT — all entered directly into the system from the rig site or office. The app works offline so data entry continues even when internet connectivity is limited.
2. Automated Daily Drilling Reports
RigReports automatically generates professional daily drilling reports from the captured data. Reports include all standard sections: well summary, 24-hour activity breakdown, bit records, mud properties, BHA diagrams, surveys, directional data, costs, and NPT. Reports are branded with your company logo and formatting standards.
3. NPT Tracking & Categorization
Track non-productive time as it happens. Categorize NPT by type (stuck pipe, waiting on equipment, weather, etc.), assign cost impacts, and add detailed notes. RigReports maintains a complete NPT history for every well and provides analytics to identify the biggest sources of lost time.
4. Drilling Cost Management
Track drilling costs in real-time. Compare actual costs against AFE budgets. See cost trends by well, rig, or drilling program. Identify cost overruns early and forecast final well costs based on current performance.
5. Well Diagrams & Activity Logs
Automatically generated well diagrams showing casing strings, bit depth, and BHA configuration. Complete activity logs documenting every operation from spud to TD. Visual representations make it easy to understand well status at a glance.
6. Distribution & Workflow
Automated report distribution to stakeholders. Set up distribution lists so daily reports automatically go to the right people — operators, investors, management, service companies. Customizable approval workflows if reports need review before distribution.
7. Searchable Database
All drilling data stored in a central database. Search across wells, date ranges, and data fields. Need to know what mud weight you ran on a specific well? Search for it in seconds instead of hunting through email archives.
8. Analytics & Dashboards
Real-time dashboards showing drilling performance across your program. See rig status, current depth, days drilling, NPT totals, cost status, and other KPIs. Custom dashboards can be built for different user roles — executives get high-level summaries, drilling engineers get detailed operational data.
RigReports serves multiple user groups across drilling operations:
Drilling Contractors: Drilling contractors use RigReports to create professional daily drilling reports for their operator clients. The software streamlines data entry, ensures consistent report formatting, and makes it easy to deliver timely, accurate reports to multiple operators simultaneously.
Oil & Gas Operators: Operators use RigReports to manage drilling programs across multiple rigs and wells. The platform provides visibility into all active drilling operations, tracks costs against budgets, and generates analytics to improve drilling performance over time.
Company Men: Company men are on the front lines of data entry. RigReports' mobile app makes it easy to record drilling activity throughout the day instead of manual data entry at midnight. The result: better data quality and company men who get home to their families earlier.
Drilling Engineers: Drilling engineers use RigReports to analyze drilling performance, identify NPT sources, benchmark wells against offsets, and make data-driven recommendations for future drilling programs.
Operations Managers & Executives: Leadership teams use RigReports dashboards to monitor drilling programs in real-time. See rig status, cost vs. budget, and NPT trends without waiting for end-of-week reports.
Use Case 1: Multi-Rig Drilling Programs
An operator running 5-10 rigs simultaneously across the Permian Basin needs visibility into all drilling operations. RigReports provides a unified dashboard showing status of every well: current depth, days drilling, NPT, costs vs. AFE, and forecasted completion dates. Management can see the entire program at a glance instead of waiting for individual rig reports.
Use Case 2: NPT Reduction Initiatives
A drilling contractor wants to reduce NPT across their fleet. RigReports tracks all NPT events with detailed categorization and cost impacts. The company analyzes NPT data across all rigs, identifies that "waiting on equipment" is their largest NPT category, and implements targeted improvements. Six months later, RigReports data shows NPT reduced by 18% and quantifies the cost savings.
Use Case 3: Investor Reporting
A small E&P company needs to provide weekly drilling updates to investors. Instead of manually compiling updates from multiple Excel files, they use RigReports to generate automated drilling summaries showing progress, costs, and timelines. Investors receive consistent, professional updates with minimal effort from the operations team.
Use Case 4: Historical Data Analysis
A drilling engineer is planning wells in a new area and wants to understand offset well performance. RigReports' database allows them to search historical drilling data, analyze NPT trends, review BHA configurations, and benchmark drilling performance from similar wells. This analysis informs the drilling plan and helps avoid known issues.
Modern drilling reporting software doesn't just replace Excel — it transforms how drilling data flows through your organization. Company men save hours every day. Operations managers get real-time visibility. Engineers can analyze performance across programs instead of individual wells. And everyone works from the same accurate, up-to-date data instead of hunting through email for the latest report version.
Implementing RigReports typically takes 2-4 weeks from contract signing to first daily report. The process includes:
Most companies run RigReports in parallel with their existing Excel process for the first few reports to build confidence. Once they see the time savings and data quality improvements, they fully transition to RigReports.
RigReports is available as a cloud-hosted SaaS platform or can be deployed on-premise for companies with specific security requirements. Pricing is based on the number of active rigs and users.
Cloud deployment provides automatic updates, 99.9% uptime SLA, and access from anywhere with internet connectivity. On-premise deployment gives you complete control over your data and infrastructure.
View pricing details → or schedule a demo to discuss your specific requirements.