Startup & Studio Burn Rate Calculator
Determine gross vs net cash burn and calculate precise runway months and zero-cash exhaustion dates for studios and ventures.
Direct Answer & Pipeline Overview
Startup & Studio Burn Rate Calculator is a specialized, 100% client-side engineering utility developed by Atlyxen Studios. It processes calculations and conversions directly inside your browser memory using hardware-accelerated WebAssembly and WebGL, guaranteeing instant results with zero server file transfers and zero data retention.
How to Use the Startup & Studio Burn Rate Calculator
Input Liquid Reserves
Enter your total liquid cash reserves currently in company bank accounts.
Enter Revenue & Itemized Costs
Provide monthly recurring revenue (MRR) alongside itemized payroll, cloud tooling, office, and marketing expenses.
Review Runway & Health Indicators
Inspect your calculated cash runway months, zero-cash calendar milestone, and fundraising readiness recommendation.
Simulate Growth Scenarios
Switch to the 24-month Scenario Modeler to test revenue growth rates, planned hiring additions, and capital injections.
Key Technical Capabilities
Calculates gross monthly burn, net burn, and cash runway in months and weeks
Projects exact calendar Zero-Cash Date and recommended fundraising launch window
Interactive 24-month scenario simulator with variable revenue growth and cost creeping
Hiring expansion modeler assessing immediate runway impact of headcount additions
Unit economics breakdown including daily cash depletion and breakeven revenue
One-click executive summary copy and 24-month CSV spreadsheet export
Built-in industry benchmarks for pre-seed startups, indie game studios, and SaaS
100% private financial computation in browser memory with zero server uploads
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between gross burn and net burn?
Gross burn represents the total outgoing cash expenditure incurred by your company each month regardless of income (payroll, server costs, software subscriptions, office space). Net burn is gross burn minus incoming monthly revenue (the actual net amount of cash leaving your bank balance each month). Net burn determines your true survival runway.
How many months of cash runway should an early stage startup maintain?
Most venture capitalists and startup accelerators recommend maintaining at least 18 to 24 months of cash runway following a fundraising round. This allows 12 to 15 months to focus entirely on product development and customer acquisition, leaving a comfortable 6 to 9 month buffer to launch and close your subsequent funding round.
What is the Default Alive concept in startup economics?
Default Alive is a financial principle introduced by Y Combinator co-founder Paul Graham. A company is Default Alive if its existing cash reserves are sufficient to carry it to profitability based on its historical revenue growth rate and expense trajectory, without requiring additional external capital injections. If existing cash will expire before reaching breakeven, the company is Default Dead.
When should a founder start fundraising before cash runs out?
You should initiate investor conversations when you have between 6 and 9 months of runway remaining. Closing a priced venture round or seed extension typically requires 3 to 6 months of outreach, partner meetings, legal due diligence, and wiring. Starting with under 4 months of runway significantly diminishes negotiating leverage and creates catastrophic insolvency risk.
How do new hires impact startup cash runway?
Because payroll is typically 65% to 80% of a technology startup's operating expenses, adding team members drastically accelerates net burn. In addition to base salary, founders must account for payroll taxes, health insurance, software licenses (GitHub, Slack, Figma), and equipment, typically adding 15% to 25% overhead above nominal compensation.
Is my company's financial data private when using this tool?
Yes. All financial calculations, scenario models, and projection schedules run strictly in your client browser memory using local JavaScript. No financial numbers, company information, or data points are transmitted to our servers or stored in any database.