How to use this Cash Flow Planner
This planner helps you forecast your business cash position month by month by combining starting cash, recurring income and expenses, and one-time cash events. It is designed for owners, bookkeepers, and advisors to quickly identify future cash shortfalls and funding needs.
Step 1 — Set your planning horizon
- Starting cash: Enter your current bank balance or available cash.
- Start month: Choose the first month to begin forecasting.
- Months to plan: Select how many months to project (6–24 months).
- Click Build planner to generate the monthly table.
Step 2 — Enter recurring inflows
- Add your monthly sales or contract income under “Sales”.
- Use Other income for rent received, grants, or regular funding.
- You can add multiple lines for different sources; they are summed automatically.
- These amounts repeat every month in the forecast.
Step 3 — Enter recurring outflows by category
- Payroll: Wages, benefits, and employer remittances.
- Rent: Office, warehouse, or equipment leases.
- Loans: Regular loan or line-of-credit payments.
- Taxes: Income tax installments, GST/HST, payroll remittances.
- Other expenses: Utilities, subscriptions, insurance, etc.
Tip: Separate large categories (payroll, taxes, debt) to see where cash pressure comes from.
Step 4 — Add one-time cash events
- One-time inflows: tax refunds, grants, asset sales, owner injections.
- One-time outflows: equipment purchases, bonuses, tax arrears, dividends.
- Enter these directly in the month they occur.
- Use the Notes column to explain unusual items.
Step 5 — Calculate and interpret the results
- Click Calculate cash flow to update all months.
- Ending cash becomes the next month’s opening cash automatically.
- Any month with negative ending cash is highlighted in red.
- This identifies months where you may need financing, cost reductions, or timing changes.
Print / PDF
Use Print or Download PDF to share forecasts with partners, banks, or advisors.
Export CSV / Excel
Export the full table to CSV or Excel for further analysis or budgeting models.
Best practices
- Be conservative with income, realistic with expenses.
- Review the forecast monthly and update assumptions.
- Watch the lowest cash balance as your key risk indicator.
Cash Flow Planner (Category-Based)
Recurring monthly inflows
Sales
Other income
These totals repeat each month. Use one-time inflows for irregular items (refunds, grants, asset sales, etc.).
Recurring monthly outflows
Payroll
Rent
Loans
Taxes
Other expenses
Keep “Taxes” for installments, HST remittances, payroll remittances, etc. Use one-time outflows for unusual payments.
Build the planner, enter any one-time inflows/outflows by month, then Calculate. Any month with negative ending cash is highlighted.