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Burn Rate Calculator
Measure how fast cash is going out from two bank balances, and how long the rest lasts at that pace.
Monthly burn from your opening and closing cash over a period, and the runway left at that pace.
Free to run · to save projections to your live dashboard
Enter values and click Calculate to see results
Worked example
Calculated by the same engine as the calculator above.
- Inputs
- Cash at the start
- ₹50,00,000
- Cash at the end
- ₹35,00,000
- Months between them
- 3
- Result
- Monthly burn
- ₹5,00,000
- Cash used in the period
- ₹15,00,000
- Runway left (months)
- 7
Formula
Monthly burn = (Opening cash − Closing cash) ÷ Months
- Opening cash = bank balance at the start of the period
- Closing cash = bank balance at the end of the period
- Months = length of the period
- Runway left = Closing cash ÷ Monthly burn
Assumptions
- The burn is the average over the period; months with big one-off payments push it up.
- Funding or loans received during the period hide burn; leave them out of the closing balance.
- The runway assumes the same average burn continues.
- If cash went up over the period there is no burn to measure.
- Educational estimate only, not financial advice. Capitallytics does not execute transactions.
Burn Rate Calculator FAQ
Answers about how this calculator works.
What is the difference between burn rate and runway?
Burn rate is how much cash you use each month. Runway is how many months your remaining cash lasts at that burn.
What period should I use?
Three months is a common choice. It smooths out one unusual month while still reflecting how you spend today.
Why does this differ from my profit and loss?
Burn is about cash. Profit includes items that are not cash yet, such as unpaid invoices and bills, and ignores some cash items such as loan repayments.
Does fundraising count?
Not as burn. If you raised money during the period, subtract it from the closing balance first, or the burn will look smaller than it is.