Model how long a startup’s cash lasts given burn, revenue growth and the month it turns cash positive.
Break-even arrives only if revenue compounds faster than costs; the crossover month comes from the ratio of the two growth rates. The cash needed to get there is roughly the average monthly deficit over that span, which is why it is far less than burn times months. A plan where costs grow as fast as revenue never reaches break-even at any scale, and that shows up in this calculation long before it shows up in the bank balance.
Startup Runway
Break-even month solves revenue × (1+g)^n = costs × (1+c)^n for n
Break-even month solves revenue × (1+g)^n = costs × (1+c)^n for n Break-even arrives only if revenue compounds faster than costs; the crossover month comes from the ratio of the two growth rates. The cash needed to get there is roughly the average monthly deficit over that span, which is why it is far less than burn times months.
A plan where costs grow as fast as revenue never reaches break-even at any scale, and that shows up in this calculation long before it shows up in the bank balance.
This calculator takes 5 inputs: Cash in the bank, Monthly operating costs, Current monthly revenue, Monthly revenue growth, Monthly cost growth. The pre-filled defaults are a realistic starting point — replace them with figures from your own environment for a result you can act on.