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Cash Runway Calculator

Use this cash runway calculator to compare net burn, adjusted expenses, monthly position, and runway before hiring, revenue, or fundraising decisions.

Planning estimate

Live calculator

Cash runway

Runway9.4 months

Months before cash reaches zero at this burn rate.

Net burn$80,000

Cash consumed each month.

Monthly position-$80,000

Adjusted expenses: $145,000.

Planning comparison only. Check estimates, omitted costs, timing, and constraints before making an operating decision.

What it calculates

Cash Runway Calculator uses cash balance, monthly revenue, monthly expenses, and expense change % to estimate adjusted expenses, net burn, monthly position, months of runway, and default alive status before cash-flow, hiring, or fundraising decisions.

Formula

Runway formula

Runway = cash balance / (monthly expenses - monthly revenue)

If monthly revenue is greater than expenses, the business is default alive at the current run rate.

How to use

Steps

  1. Enter the current cash balance.
  2. Enter average monthly revenue.
  3. Enter average monthly expenses.
  4. Adjust the expense change percentage up or down if hiring, cuts, or vendor changes will change burn.
  5. Review months of runway, adjusted expenses, net burn, and monthly position together.

Example

Sample calculation

Cash balance$750,000
Monthly revenue$65,000
Monthly expenses$145,000
Expense change0%
Adjusted expenses$145,000
Net burn$80,000/month
Monthly position-$80,000
Runway9.4 months

Calculator use

Best for

  • Estimating how many months current cash lasts at a given net burn rate.
  • Testing hiring, expense cuts, revenue changes, or fundraising timing with visible inputs.
  • Comparing base, conservative, and optimistic cash-flow scenarios before a planning meeting.
  • Explaining runway assumptions to a teammate, advisor, investor, or operator.

Before relying on it

Check first

  • Mixing cash balance with booked revenue, accounts receivable, or accounting profit.
  • Leaving out payroll taxes, contractors, payment fees, refunds, annual tools, or delayed collections.
  • Assuming revenue and expenses stay flat when hiring, churn, seasonality, or pricing changes are likely.
  • Waiting until runway is almost gone before making operating or fundraising decisions.

Details

What to know before using the result

Cash balanceUse actual available cash

Runway should start from cash that can actually be spent, not booked revenue, pipeline, accounts receivable, or invoices that may collect later than expected.

Scenario planningModel expense changes explicitly

Use the expense change percentage for hiring plans, vendor cuts, payroll changes, or planned operating increases before deciding whether the current runway is enough.

Default aliveRevenue covers expenses

If monthly revenue is greater than monthly expenses, the calculator reports a positive monthly position instead of finite runway.

Next decisionCash flow, burn, revenue, terms, or profitability

After checking runway, review small-business cash flow, burn multiple, MRR, net payment terms, and client profitability before changing hiring, fundraising timing, or expense plans.

Source notes

References used for this calculator

U.S. Small Business AdministrationLists available cash, accounts receivable, accounts payable, payroll, and bank reconciliation as finance areas to manage.

Benchmarks

How to read the result

0 - 6 months: Tight.

Usually requires immediate fundraising, cuts, or revenue acceleration.

6 - 12 months: Watch.

Enough to operate, but decisions should be made before the window closes.

12 - 18 months: Healthy.

Often gives a team time to improve metrics before raising or scaling.

18+ months: Flexible.

Creates room for strategy, experiments, and cleaner fundraising timing.

Calculator accuracy

Methodology and assumptions

Formula, inputs, limitations and review record
Formula

Runway = cash balance / (monthly expenses - monthly revenue)

Inputs used

Cash balance, Monthly revenue, Monthly expenses, Expense change %

Limitations

Business results depend on contracts, accounting treatment, taxes, payment timing, refunds, collections, and operating assumptions.

Review record

Catalog QA baseline on June 6, 2026. This date marks the catalog-wide automated and editorial QA baseline, not a tool-specific expert review.

Cite this page

Toolkit Shelf. Cash Runway Calculator. https://toolkitshelf.com/tools/startup-runway-calculator

FAQ

Common questions

What is cash runway?

Cash runway is the number of months a business can keep operating before cash reaches zero at the current or projected burn rate.

What is net burn?

Net burn is monthly expenses minus monthly revenue. If revenue is greater than expenses, the business is not burning cash.

How often should runway be recalculated?

Most teams should recalculate runway monthly, and again after major hiring, pricing, or revenue changes.

Should accounts receivable count as cash runway?

Only count accounts receivable after thinking through delayed collections and payment risk. Cash runway is safest when it starts from available cash, then uses a separate cash-flow view for receivables and payables.

How should hiring or fundraising plans be modeled?

Use the expense change percentage for planned hiring or cuts, then compare the result with fundraising timing, revenue growth, burn multiple, and cash-flow timing before changing the operating plan.