SaaS Burn Rate Calculator
Calculate your monthly burn rate, net burn, and cash runway. Track your SaaS startup's financial health and plan for sustainable growth.
Your Numbers
Total monthly recurring revenue
Current cash reserves
Burn Rate Analysis
Tools to manage your startup finances
Keep your burn rate under control with real-time financial tracking and smart banking.
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AccountingReal-time financial dashboards for your SaaS. Track burn rate, revenue, and runway automatically.
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FreshBooks
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Understanding SaaS Burn Rate and Runway
Key Metrics Explained
Gross Burn Rate
Total monthly operating expenses including salaries, marketing, infrastructure, office costs, and all other business expenses.
Net Burn Rate
Gross burn rate minus monthly revenue. This shows how much cash you're actually losing each month after accounting for income.
Cash Runway
The number of months your current cash reserves will last at your current burn rate. Calculated as: Cash in Bank ÷ Net Monthly Burn.
Expense Categories to Track
- Personnel: Salaries, benefits, contractor payments
- Marketing: Advertising, content creation, events
- Infrastructure: Hosting, software licenses, tools
- Operations: Office rent, utilities, insurance
- Sales: CRM tools, sales team expenses
- Other: Legal, accounting, miscellaneous
Optimizing Your Burn Rate
- Focus on revenue-generating activities
- Regularly audit and eliminate unnecessary expenses
- Negotiate better terms with vendors
- Consider remote work to reduce office costs
- Track unit economics and customer acquisition costs
- Plan for seasonal variations in revenue and expenses
When to Be Concerned
- Runway drops below 6 months without funding plans
- Burn rate increasing without proportional revenue growth
- Customer acquisition cost exceeding customer lifetime value
- High employee turnover increasing recruitment costs
Pro Tip: Review your burn rate monthly and create different scenarios (best case, worst case, most likely) to plan for various outcomes and make informed decisions about hiring, spending, and fundraising.