Cash Burn & Runway Widget

The Cash Burn & Runway Widget in COMMITLY gives you a quick overview of your company’s financial runway. It shows how much liquidity is being used up each month and how long your available funds are expected to last – a key management tool, especially for growth-oriented companies and startups.

Cash Burn refers to the amount of money your company “burns” each month. It represents the average monthly decrease in your cash balance. This metric is especially important if your company is in a growth or investment phase and not yet profitable.

In COMMITLY, Cash Burn is shown in three variants:

Gross Cash Burn shows all monthly outflows – the total amount of cash leaving your company, regardless of income.

Example: You spend €-50,000 per month – regardless of whether you generate revenue.

Typical components include:

Net Cash Burn considers inflows and outflows. It shows how much money is actually lost after offsetting all cash flows.

Example: Income: €30,000; Expenses: €-50,000 → Net Cash Burn = €-20,000.

Important: If your cash flow from operations (Net Cash Burn) is positive – meaning you’re not burning money, but rather building liquidity.

Total Cash Burn shows the absolute change in your account balance over the selected period – including one-off effects (e.g. grants, investments, loans). In COMMITLY you find this in the position Change in Cash. Change in Cash is calculated:

Example: You receive a €500,000 investment. Despite an ongoing Net Burn, your balance increases – so Total Cash Burn can be positive.

In other words: This value reflects the actual change in liquid funds – regardless of whether it's from operations or exceptional items.

Runway indicates how many months your company is likely to remain solvent with its current cash reserves – assuming the current burn rate continues.

Example: You have €100,000 in your account and a Net Cash Burn of €-20,000/month → Your runway is 5 months.

To provide better insights, COMMITLY doesn’t rely on a single figure. Instead, it shows four perspectives – both historical and forward-looking:

This value shows how your Cash Burn developed over half a year. It smooths out short-term fluctuations and provides a stable trend basis.

Use case: Long-term analysis, e.g. for investor reporting or strategic planning.

This reflects a more current trend and highlights recent changes in cash flow behavior.

Use case: Early detection of trends like rising fixed costs or falling revenue.

Displays the actual Cash Burn of the most recently completed month – offering a snapshot of your most recent financial reality.

Use case: Short-term control and identification of unusual events or one-offs.

Based on your forecast in COMMITLY, this value shows the projected average Cash Burn for the next three months.

Use case: Forward planning and scenario analysis, e.g. for funding preparation or investment decisions.

Combining actual data with forecasts enables you to:

Thanks to the different timeframes, you can clearly see not only where you are today, but also where you’re headed.

Tip: Keep a close eye on your Net Cash Burn and Forecast Runway. These indicators show how sustainable your business model currently is – and when it’s time to take action.