Comprehensive Guide
Learn more in our Business & Tax Guide.
How it works
startup runway calculator takes your inputs and produces runway (months), net monthly burn, months to break-even. Calculate how many months your startup can survive at current burn rate with your remaining funds. You provide 4 inputs: Current Cash Balance (currency, in dollars) (default: 200000 dollars); Monthly Revenue (currency, in dollars) (default: 15000 dollars); Monthly Expenses (currency, in dollars) (default: 30000 dollars); Revenue Growth %/month (percent, in percent) (default: 10 percent). The calculator returns 3 outputs: Runway (months) (a secondary output); Net Monthly Burn (a secondary output); Months to Break-even (the primary result). Business tax and finance calculations combine multiple moving parts — revenue, expenses, depreciation, tax brackets, and timing — in ways that make back-of-envelope estimates unreliable. This calculator handles the interaction of those variables precisely, so your business decisions rest on real arithmetic. With the default values, months to break-even is computed from the interaction of every input field — change any one of them and the result updates immediately, so you can stress-test different scenarios without re-entering the whole form. Adjust the inputs to match your real financial situation. The defaults are realistic starting points, but every person's circumstances differ — your actual income, expenses, rates, and timelines will produce a different answer. Use the tool iteratively: start with the defaults, then change one variable at a time to see which factor has the largest impact on your outcome.Tips
- Start with the default values to see a baseline result, then change one input at a time to understand which factor matters most for your outcome.
- Replace every default with your actual number — estimates and rules of thumb produce estimates, not answers. Pull your real figures from pay stubs, statements, or account dashboards.
- Run the numbers quarterly, not annually. Tax brackets, revenue, and expenses shift throughout the year, and adjusting early is far cheaper than correcting at year-end.
Frequently asked questions
How much runway should I have?
Minimum: 12 months. Ideal: 18-24 months. Investors look for 12-18 months runway. Below 6 months = emergency mode.
What does the startup runway calculator calculate?
It takes current cash balance, monthly revenue, monthly expenses, revenue growth %/month as inputs and computes runway (months), net monthly burn, months to break-even. The primary output is months to break-even. Calculate how many months your startup can survive at current burn rate with your remaining funds.
How accurate are the calculator results?
The math is exact — the same formulas a financial professional would use by hand. The precision of the output depends entirely on how realistic your inputs are. Use your actual numbers rather than estimates when possible. The defaults are reasonable starting points, but your real income, rates, and timeline will produce a different result.