Finance Lab
Runway and amount to raise
Work out how long the money lasts and how much the plan needs.
Net burn = cash out − cash in. Runway = cash held ÷ net burn. Amount needed = net burn × months to fund + buffer.
Step 1 · Enter your figures
Every box starts with an example figure. Replace each one with your own — the result updates as you type. Nothing you type is sent anywhere or stored.
Available cash today.
Collections from customers in a typical month.
Everything paid out in a typical month.
How far ahead the raise should carry the business.
Contingency added on top of the funded period.
Step 2 · Read the result
Net monthly burn
$60,000
- Runway on current cash
- 4.2 months
- Cash needed for the funded period
- $1,296,000
- Amount to raise after cash on hand
- $1,046,000
- Runway on current cash4.2 months
- Cash needed for the funded period$1,296,000
- Amount to raise after cash on hand$1,046,000
What this answer rests on (7)
- Cash on hand$250,000
You entered this
Available cash today.
- Monthly cash in$80,000
You entered this
Collections from customers in a typical month.
- Monthly cash out$140,000
You entered this
Everything paid out in a typical month.
- Months you want funded18.0 months
You entered this
How far ahead the raise should carry the business.
- Buffer20.0%
You entered this
Contingency added on top of the funded period.
- Cash in and cash out are treated as flat each month; a seasonal business should test its worst months separately.
The calculator applied this
- The buffer is the percentage you entered and covers timing slippage, not a change in plan.
The calculator applied this
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Save to my workspaceWhat this means for you
How many months the money lasts at your current burn, and what the plan actually needs.
How to read it
- Runway is cash on hand divided by net monthly burn.
- The amount to raise covers the months you want to buy, plus the buffer you set.
Watch out for
- Using an average burn that hides a rising trend.
- Leaving no buffer. Raising takes months, and it takes longer when you are nearly out.
Assumptions behind this result
- Cash in and cash out are treated as flat each month; a seasonal business should test its worst months separately.
- The buffer is the percentage you entered and covers timing slippage, not a change in plan.
General information only. This calculator does not take your circumstances into account and is not financial, tax, legal or investment advice. Confirm every rate, threshold and figure with your own adviser before acting.
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Take this further
Members run this calculator on their own recorded figures, save the workings to their workspace, export them to Word or Excel, and read the lessons that teach the thinking behind the result.