Project 12 months of cash in and out, see your running balance, and get warned before the balance dips below zero. Export CSV or print. Free and private.
| Month | Cash in ($) | Cash out ($) | Net | Closing |
|---|
Cash in is money actually hitting the bank that month: customer payments (when they pay, not when you invoice — add your typical payment delay), GST refunds, asset sales, loan drawdowns. Cash out is everything leaving: suppliers, wages and super, rent, loan repayments, BAS payments (a classic quarterly cash shock — put them in the right months), insurance renewals, and tax. The quarterly and annual lump items are exactly what this planner exists to catch: a business can look fine month-to-month and still get flattened by a BAS quarter plus an insurance renewal landing together.
When a month's closing balance goes red, you have your warning months in advance — time to chase invoices, delay discretionary spending, arrange an overdraft, or inject funds. Update the plan monthly with actuals so the projection stays honest. It pairs naturally with the P&L Statement Builder — profit is the destination, cash flow is whether you survive the trip.
A cash flow forecast (also called a cash flow projection or cash flow worksheet) is a month-by-month plan of money moving in and out of the business, carried forward into a running bank balance. Unlike a budget, which sets targets, a forecast tracks timing — when a customer payment actually lands, when a supplier gets paid, when quarterly costs like BAS or insurance hit. That timing view is what catches shortfalls before they happen, rather than after the account is already overdrawn.
Some businesses run a tighter, short-term version of the same idea — a 13-week cash flow forecast — when they need weekly rather than monthly visibility, typically because cash is tight or a business is in a growth or turnaround phase. The underlying logic is identical either way: opening balance, plus cash in, minus cash out, equals closing balance, which becomes next period's opening balance.
| Cash Flow Forecast | Profit & Loss Statement | |
|---|---|---|
| Measures | When money actually moves in and out of the bank | Income earned and expenses incurred, regardless of when cash moves |
| Answers | "Will I have enough cash to pay the bills?" | "Is the business profitable?" |
| Unpaid invoices | Excluded until the customer actually pays | Counted as income once earned |
| Best paired with | Short-term survival and funding decisions | Long-term profitability and pricing decisions |
A business can be profitable on paper and still run out of cash — build both with the P&L Statement Builder to see the full picture.
| Who | Common Use |
|---|---|
| 🔨 Tradies & contractors | Plan around lumpy job payments and quarterly BAS/insurance costs |
| 🏢 Small business owners | Spot a coming shortfall early enough to chase invoices or arrange funding |
| 📈 Startups | Track burn rate and runway against an opening cash balance |
| 📊 Bookkeepers & accountants | Give clients a simple monthly forecast without building a spreadsheet from scratch |
| 🌱 Growing businesses | Test whether a big hire, purchase, or expansion is affordable before committing |
How is the closing balance calculated?
Each month: previous balance + cash in − cash out. The result carries forward, so one bad month flows through the rest of the year — exactly as it does in real life.
Should I use invoiced amounts or expected payments?
Expected payments. If you invoice in March but clients pay on 30-day terms, the cash belongs in April's plan. Cash flow planning is about timing, and payment delay is the single biggest timing gap for small businesses.
What does the red warning mean?
Your projected balance drops below zero in that month — the plan is telling you, months in advance, when you'll need funding or faster collections. That advance notice is the entire point of the exercise.
Why do the months start at July?
The planner follows the Australian financial year (July–June), matching BAS quarters and tax timing. Just start entering from whichever month you're in now.
Can I keep working on this later?
The page doesn't store data, so export the CSV — you can keep updating it in any spreadsheet, or re-enter the figures here whenever you want the printable version and the shortfall check.
What's the difference between a cash flow forecast and a budget?
A budget sets targets for income and spending. A cash flow forecast tracks when money actually moves, month by month, against your real bank balance — so it catches timing problems (like a BAS quarter and a big supplier bill landing together) that a budget alone won't show.
Can I use this as a 13-week cash flow forecast instead of 12 months?
The built-in grid runs monthly across a 12-month year, which suits most small businesses. If you need a rolling 13-week (weekly) forecast for tighter short-term cash management, export the CSV and split each month into weekly columns in a spreadsheet — the same opening-balance-plus-net-movement logic still applies.
What should a cash flow worksheet include?
At minimum: an opening balance, expected cash in by month, expected cash out by month, the net movement, and a running closing balance. This planner builds exactly that structure automatically so you don't have to set up the formulas yourself.