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RunwayCalculator
Venture & Seed Stage Financial Engine

Startup Runway Calculator

Calculate how many months your venture money will last. Model compound revenue growth, employee payroll burn, and one-time upcoming capital expenses.

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Liquid reserves
Gross Burn
Estimated Cash Runway
Profitable / Default Alive
Sustainable / Infinite

You are generating positive net cash flow of $37,000/month. Your cash balance is growing.

Estimated Cash Depletion:Indefinite
Net Burn:$37,000/mo
Net Monthly Burn
$37,000
Expenses − Revenue
Gross Burn (Expenses)
$55,000
Total monthly outlays
Current Cash
$600,000
Liquid reserves balance
Break-Even Target Revenue
Monthly sales required to eliminate cash burn entirely: $55,000/month
Gap: +$37,000/mo

Projected Cash Remaining

Based on trajectory
After 3 Months$490,113
After 6 Months$385,100
After 12 Months$203,923

Projected Cash Trajectory (24-Month Horizon)

Real-time projection showing monthly cash reserves over time.

Cash Balance
Zero Cash Threshold
$0$208k$416k$630kM1M4M7M10M13M16M19M22M24
Hover or tap any month marker to inspect exact projected cash balance, revenue, and burn for that period.

“What If?” Scenario Modeling

Test how cutting burn, expanding sales, or raising capital extends your survival timeline.

Reduce expenses by 5%Sustainable

Save $2,750/mo (new expenses: $52,250/mo)

Runway:
SustainableSustainable / Infinite
Reduce expenses by 10%Sustainable

Save $5,500/mo (new expenses: $49,500/mo)

Runway:
SustainableSustainable / Infinite
Reduce expenses by 20%Sustainable

Save $11,000/mo (new expenses: $44,000/mo)

Runway:
SustainableSustainable / Infinite
Financial Calculation Methodology & Transparency

How the Runway Calculator Works: Mathematical Model & Assumptions

1. Static Cash Runway Formula

For businesses with steady revenue and predictable overhead, runway is determined by dividing liquid cash reserves by net monthly cash deficit:

Runway (months) = Available Cash ÷ Net Monthly Burn

2. Gross Burn vs. Net Burn

  • Gross Burn: Total cash disbursed each month (payroll, contractors, hosting, rent, utilities).
  • Net Burn: Gross monthly expenses minus total monthly cash revenue collections.
  • Break-Even: When Net Burn $\le$ $0$, cash runway is mathematically sustainable or infinite.

3. Dynamic Growth Projections & Interpolation

When revenue growth or expense inflation rates are enabled, the engine calculates month-by-month compound flows up to 60 months:

Ending Cash(m) = Beginning Cash(m) + Revenue(m) - Expenses(m)
Fractional Month = Beginning Cash(depletion) ÷ Monthly Net Burn

We linearly interpolate the exact day/fraction when cash reaches $0, avoiding arbitrary rounded whole months.

4. Client-Side Privacy Guarantee

Every financial computation executes exclusively inside your local browser runtime. No financial balances, revenue figures, or payroll numbers are sent to any remote server or database.

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Startup Runway Frequently Asked Questions

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

VC-backed startups should ideally target 18 to 24 months of runway following a funding round. This gives founders 12 to 18 months to reach critical traction milestones (e.g. $1M ARR or proof of PMF) plus a mandatory 6-month window to pitch and close their next round.