Burn Rate Calculator
Work out how fast you are really spending: net burn per month, gross burn, and the runway left in the bank.
Net burn per month
$50,000
Gross burn per month
Add revenue to see
Runway left
10.0 months
Net burn = (starting cash minus ending cash) ÷ months, i.e. how fast cash actually left the bank. Gross burn = net burn plus revenue, your true monthly cost of running the company. Runway = ending cash ÷ net burn.
Educational estimate, not legal or financial advice.
How it works
Measure your burn in 3 steps
Enter your cash at the start and at the end of a period.
Enter the number of months in that period.
Add your monthly revenue to see your gross burn as well.
Worked example
$800K to $500K in 6 months
Inputs
- Starting cash
- $800,000
- Ending cash
- $500,000
- Months
- 6
- Monthly revenue
- $20,000
Result
- Net burn
- $50,000/mo
- Gross burn
- $70,000/mo
- Runway
- 10 months
Gross burn shows your true monthly cost; net burn shows how fast cash leaves.
How we got there
Your bank balance went from $800,000 to $500,000 over 6 months. Your net burn is $50,000 a month. With $20,000 in monthly revenue, your gross burn is $70,000 a month, and your $500,000 gives you 10 months of runway.
Reading your result
Is your burn rate healthy?
Good sign
Burn your growth can justify, with 12 or more months left.
Red flag
Net burn rising faster than revenue.
Net burn shows how quickly your bank balance is falling. Gross burn shows the true monthly cost of running the company. Investors ask for both.
Using real bank balances instead of your budget shows what actually happened, including the surprises a budget misses.
FAQ
Burn rate questions
The amount of cash your startup spends each month. It is usually shown as net burn (after revenue) and gross burn (total spend).
There is no single number. A good burn rate is one your growth justifies and your runway can support for at least 12 months.
Gross burn is your total monthly spend. Net burn is gross burn minus revenue.
Every month. Averaging the last 3 months smooths out one-off payments.
It shows how disciplined you are with cash and how long their money will last.