How should I treat emergency reserve buffers in my cash runway?

Financial advisors recommend segregating 15% to 25% of your total cash balance as a protected emergency reserve. Your "usable runway" should only be calculated against the unreserved operating capital to prevent sudden liquidity insolvency.

How does cash runway differ from accounting profit?

Profit is an accrual concept that recognizes revenue upon delivery regardless of when cash is collected. Cash runway tracks strictly cleared bank deposits and real cash outflows. A profitable company on paper can still run out of cash due to delayed customer receivables.

Liquidity & Emergency Buffer Forecaster

Cash Runway Calculator

Calculate how many months your liquid cash reserves will support your company. Factor in emergency buffers and model zero-revenue survival windows.

Cash Position & Cash Flow Inputs

Available Liquid Cash Balance ($)

Gross Monthly Cash Outflows / Expenses ($)

Monthly Cash Inflows / Collections ($)

Emergency Reserve Buffer (20%)$30,000 set aside

0% (No cushion)20% (Standard)50% (Conservative)

Cash Runway Status

8.3 mo

Strong liquidity: 8.3 months of total cash runway.

Net Monthly Burn:$18,000/mo

Usable Cash Runway6.7 moExcluding 20% buffer

Zero-Revenue Runway5 moIf all revenue ceases

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Cash Runway Frequently Asked Questions

Everything you need to know about cash runway, burn rates, and financial planning.

Cash runway is the amount of time in months that a business can continue paying its operational expenses before running out of money, calculated by dividing available liquid cash balance by the net monthly cash burn.