Free Burn Rate Calculator

See how fast your business is spending its cash and how many months of runway you have left. Enter your starting balance, ending balance, and the number of months. Free, and no signup needed.

Burn rate per month$0
Cash runway0 months

Want to keep this? Email the result to yourself.

One email, just this result. No account needed.

Keep your cash flow clear with clean, professional invoices.

Start Invoicing Free

Why use a burn rate calculator?

Knowing your burn rate gives you a clear picture of your finances so you can plan instead of react.

How to calculate burn rate

Burn rate is the average amount of cash your business spends each month. The formulas are:

Burn Rate per Month = (Starting Balance - Ending Balance) / Number of Months Cash Runway = Ending Balance / Burn Rate per Month

The calculator does both for you. Enter your three numbers and it returns your monthly burn rate and your cash runway in months.

Understanding burn rate and cash runway

A few related numbers give you a fuller picture of your cash health:

Dealing with a high burn rate

A high burn rate is a warning sign. If yours is climbing, here is where to start:

How to reduce your burn rate

Sort expensesSplit every cost into essential and not essential.
Cut dead spendDrop spending that does not contribute to revenue.
Avoid lock-insSteer clear of non-critical long-term commitments.
StreamlineTidy your workflow and remove inefficiencies.
Grow revenueNew sales channels, adjusted pricing, and similar.
NegotiateGet better terms from your vendors.

Tips to manage burn rate like a pro

Know your runway? Keep your books just as clear.

Track what you invoice and what you are owed in one place. A free Billbooks account keeps your cash flow easy to see.

Try Billbooks Free

Free to start · No credit card needed

Runway is the output of a budget, and the freelance budget calculator builds the inputs. If borrowing is the way you bridge a gap, the business loan calculator shows what the repayments do to it.

FAQs

Subtract your ending cash balance from your starting balance, then divide by the number of months in the period. That gives your average burn rate per month, which is exactly what this calculator does.

Gross burn rate is your total monthly cash spend. Net burn rate subtracts any revenue you bring in, so it is gross burn minus monthly revenue. Net burn shows how fast your cash is actually falling.

Cash runway is how many months your business can keep operating before it runs out of money at the current burn rate. Divide your remaining cash by your monthly burn rate to get it.

There is no single safe number, it depends on your cash on hand and your revenue. A common rule of thumb is to keep at least six months of runway, so your burn rate should leave you at least that much cushion.

Cut non-essential spending, delay large or long-term commitments, negotiate better terms with suppliers, and focus on the work that brings in revenue. Small recurring savings extend runway more than one-off cuts.

A negative burn rate means your business brought in more cash than it spent over the period, so your cash balance grew. That is a healthy sign that you are cash-flow positive.

List your expenses, separate essential from non-essential, and cut what does not drive revenue. Control variable costs first, avoid non-critical long-term commitments, and review the numbers regularly.

A high burn rate with a short runway means you have limited time before you need more cash. Treat it as a prompt to cut non-essential spend, protect revenue-driving activity, and plan your next funding or growth step early.

Built for every trade

Every trade bills differently. See how Billbooks fits yours:

Handyman

Several small jobs a day, labor and materials on one invoice.

Electrician

Deposits, materials markup, and job line items, handled right.

HVAC

Keep the diagnostic fee separate from the repair cost.

Construction

Progress billing, retainage, and change orders.

Auto Repair

Labor and parts priced right, plus a fair shop supply fee.

Every Profession

See how Billbooks fits your specific trade or business.

Explore our other FREE tools

Free Invoice Generator Create and download professional invoices online. Free Quote Generator Build and send polished quotes in minutes. Free Receipt Generator Create and download receipts online. Free Credit Note Generator Correct an invoice you already sent, without deleting it. SKU Generator Generate consistent SKU codes for your products. Email Signature Generator Create a professional email signature and copy it into Gmail or Outlook. What Should I Charge? Find your hourly rate: a market range plus your own break-even rate. Profit Margin Calculator Work out your margin, markup, and profit. Freelance Budget Calculator Plan your freelance income and expenses. Business Loan Calculator See your payment, interest, and amortization schedule. Registered Agent vs Virtual Address 3-question quiz: registered agent, virtual address, or both? Late Fee Calculator See the late fee and total amount owed on an overdue invoice. Manual Invoicing Cost Calculator See what invoicing by hand costs you in hours and money each year. Invoice Payment Fee Calculator See what card and bank fees take out of an invoice, and what you receive. Invoice Number Generator Generate a sequential batch of invoice numbers and export as CSV. Pressure Washing Estimate Calculator Get an instant, itemized price estimate for any pressure washing job. House Cleaning Price Calculator Get an instant, itemized price estimate for any house cleaning job. Interior Design Estimate Calculator Get an instant, itemized estimate for any interior design project. Painting Estimate Calculator Get an instant, itemized price estimate for any interior or exterior paint job. Lawn Care Estimate Calculator Get an instant, itemized price estimate for any lawn care or mowing job. Commercial Cleaning Estimate Calculator Get an instant, itemized price estimate for any office or janitorial cleaning job. Snow Removal Estimate Calculator Get an instant, itemized price estimate for any plowing, shoveling, or de-icing job. Junk Removal Estimate Calculator Price by item, cubic yard, or truck load for an instant, itemized junk removal estimate. Moving Cost Estimate Calculator Price a local move hourly by crew or flat by home size for an instant estimate. Invoice Due Date Calculator Enter your invoice date and terms (Net 15, 30, 60) to see the exact due date. Electrical Load Calculator Estimate the amp service a home needs. Billable Hours to Invoice Calculator Turn hours and your rate into invoice line items. Mileage Deduction Calculator Multiply your miles by the IRS rate to get your deduction or reimbursement.

Noticed this page loading quicker? You are not imagining it. Billbooks now runs on a global edge network, so this page and your invoices, estimates and clients are all served from close to wherever you are.