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Startup Runway Calculator

Project how long your cash will last, accounting for revenue growth and expense changes over time.

Inputs

$
$
$
5% / month
2% / month

Scenario Modeling

0%
0% / month

Results

Months of Runway

16

Cash runs out August 2027

Cash-Zero Date

August 2027

Current Net Burn

$35,000

per month

Cash at Month 6

$292,493

Cash at Month 12

$97,005

Cash Balance Projection

Month 1603681114171922Months$-20k$94k$208k$322k$436k$550k

How it works

Runway is the number of months until your business runs out of cash, accounting for both revenue and expenses. Unlike a simple 'cash ÷ burn rate' calculation, this tool models revenue growth and expense changes over time, giving you a much more realistic projection.

The formula

Simple Runway = Cash Balance ÷ (Monthly Expenses - Monthly Revenue) With Growth: Month N Cash = Cash₀ - Σ(Expenses × (1+g)ⁿ - Revenue × (1+r)ⁿ) Runway = first month where Cash ≤ 0

Why it matters for your business

Runway determines when you need to fundraise, cut costs, or become profitable. Most startups that die do so because they run out of cash — not because the idea was bad. Knowing your runway with realistic growth assumptions is the difference between a planned pivot and a panic.

Pro tip

Most founders calculate runway with flat expenses, but expenses creep up 3-5% monthly as you hire and grow. Use the expense growth slider to model this — the difference in runway can be 2-3 months. That's often the difference between closing a funding round and running out of money.

Get deeper insights with James FP&A

These calculators are just the start. Connect your accounting data and get automated financial analysis, forecasting, and real-time dashboards.