Cash Flow Forecast Spreadsheet

Who this is for

When the money might run short. Enter what you expect to come in and go out in each of the next twelve months, and the forecast carries the balance forward so the tight months show up before you reach them.

Sole traders and freelancers with uneven income, seasonal work or a large bill coming, and anyone about to take on a commitment who wants to see whether the bank balance can carry it.

What this helps you track

• Expected receipts from sales and from other sources each month
• Expected payments for costs, drawings and the tax you put by
• Each month's net movement and the balance carried forward
• The lowest balance in the year ahead

How to use it

1. Write the business, the month the forecast starts and today's bank balance as the opening balance.
2. For each month, enter the sales you expect to be paid for in that month, not when you invoice, and any other money coming in.
3. Enter the costs you expect to pay, what you plan to draw for yourself and what you intend to put by for tax, using your own figures.
4. The net, the running total and the closing balance are worked out in the browser and the workbook; on paper, carry each closing figure down to the next row.
5. Find the month with the lowest closing balance and decide now what you would do about it.
6. Update the forecast each month with actual figures and roll it forward a month.

Formats

• Printable PDF (A4 and US Letter)
• Fillable PDF with form fields
• Fill in online, saved in your browser
• Excel / Google Sheets workbook

The printable is laid out inside a box that fits both A4 and US Letter, so the two files are identical and neither one is scaled. The fillable PDF has real form fields. The workbook uses plain formulas only — SUM, IF, COUNTIF and the like — so it opens in Excel, LibreOffice and Google Sheets without anything breaking, and every calculated cell is grey so you can see which figures it worked out.

How to print

Download the A4 or US Letter file to match the paper in your printer, open it in a PDF reader and print at 100% — not "fit to page", which shrinks the writing space. Both files leave a 14 mm margin, which clears the unprintable edge on home printers. To print the online version with your entries in it, use the Print this sheet button, which prints only the sheet and none of the page around it. More on printing.

Questions

Is this the same as a budget?

No. A budget says what you plan to earn and spend; a cash flow forecast says when the money actually moves. A profitable year can still have a month when the account runs dry because customers pay late.

What should go in the tax column?

Whatever you plan to move aside or pay to your tax authority in that month. The sheet supplies no rate; work out the amounts from your own figures or with your accountant.

Why does the sheet show a lowest balance rather than the month?

The summary gives the lowest figure; the month is the row where that figure appears in the closing balance column. On paper, circle it so it stands out when you next update the forecast.

How accurate does it need to be?

Close enough to act on. Round figures and cautious guesses are fine; what matters is updating it each month so the next twelve months always rest on the latest actual figures.