Cash Flow Calculator
Track the money moving in and out of your business each month to see your net cash flow — the lifeblood of any company.
A worked example
Running this tool on current national benchmarks (Federal Reserve / Freddie Mac via FRED (St. Louis Fed)) — swap in your own numbers to see how the result moves.
- Revenue / sales
- $60,000
- Cost of goods sold
- $24,000
- Operating expenses
- $18,000
- Other income
- $0
- Loan & interest payments
- $3,000
- Taxes
- $2,500
per month
- Gross profit$36,000
- Operating cash flow$18,000
- Net cash flow$12,500
The math behind it
The calculator builds up your monthly cash flow in stages. Gross profit is revenue minus cost of goods sold. Operating cash flow is gross profit minus operating expenses. Net cash flow then adds any other income and subtracts loan and interest payments plus taxes. The cash flow margin is net cash flow as a percent of revenue.
Assumptions & limits
- All figures are treated as actual cash in and out for the month — this is a cash view, not accrual accounting.
- It does not distinguish timing within the month, so it will not flag a mid-month shortfall between a big outflow and a later inflow.
- Loan payments are entered as a single line; the split between principal and interest is not separated here.
- One-time items like owner draws, capital purchases, or new financing are not modeled unless you fold them into a line.
Common questions
Why can a profitable business still run out of cash?
Profit is measured on accrual accounting — a sale counts as income the moment it is invoiced, even if the customer pays 60 days later. Cash flow tracks money actually in the bank. A business can book profit yet be short of cash if receivables pile up, inventory ties up funds, or debt payments come due before customers pay. That gap is what sinks otherwise profitable companies.
What is the difference between operating cash flow and net cash flow here?
Operating cash flow is what your core business throws off — revenue minus cost of goods minus operating expenses. Net cash flow takes that and layers on the rest of your obligations: it adds other income and subtracts debt payments and taxes. Operating cash flow can look healthy while net cash flow is negative if debt service is heavy.
What does a negative cash flow margin tell me?
It means that after all expenses, debt, and taxes, you are spending more cash than you bring in — you are burning through reserves. A negative margin is survivable briefly during growth or seasonal dips, but a persistent one means you must raise revenue, cut costs, or secure financing before the cushion runs out.