Cash Flow Calculator

Your net cash flow will indicate whether you are staying within your monthly spending budget or over spending. If you find that you're over spending, you need to review your cash flow and see where you can either increase your inflow or reduce your outflow to obtain a positive cash flow.

This personal finance calculator was designed to convert all inflows and outflows into their monthly equivalents making it easier to see how much you can really afford to spend during any given month. And because your household is just as much a business as any traditional business, the various sections of the cash flow calculator have been set up in the same way most businesses would set up their cash flow worksheet.

Cash Flow Calculator Instructions:

Begin by collecting all the personal financial information you need such as bank statements, credit card statements, pay stubs, receipts, bills, and so on. Take a minute or two to organize the data needed to calculate your cash flow. Once you have all the necessary figures, you can accurately add the information into the cash flow calculator fields.

Starting at the top and working your way down, complete and calculate the cash flows for each of the six sections. The Example Accounts that are provided will give you suggestions for the kind of cash flow items you should consider adding.

Once you've computed the entire worksheet, including the Cash Flow Summary, you can then go back and edit your entries, or even add items you might have forgotten.

When you're satisfied with your Cash Flow Forecast you can then click on the "Create Report" button at the bottom of the worksheet. This will create a condensed report in a new window that you can print out and later refer to when creating your spending plan.

You need to be keenly aware of your current monthly cash flow. Adequate cash flow is necessary to keep your household and/or business in good running order. If you run out of cash at the month's end, you risk not being able to meet your current financial obligations such as rent, utilities, insurance, and bill payments.

So, use this helpful budget tool to help you determine whether you have enough positive cash flow to meet all your monthly obligations. Your net cash flow will fall into one of three scenarios:

• You spend less than what you earn


• You spend exactly what you earn


• You spend more than what you earn

If you spend more than what you earn, you already have a negative cash flow, and you need to cut back on your expenses and/or increase your income. If you do nothing and continue overspending, your negative cash flow will spiral you into increasing debt.

Since the cash flow calculator permits you to go back and edit your entries or even add new items, use this feature to plug in revised income and spending amounts. Then, re-compute the totals to see what effect it might have on the result. Remember to aim for a positive cash flow. The reduction or elimination of just one expense outflow might be enough to ensure a healthier cash flow.

Calculating cash flow is not worth the effort if you don't put what you find out into practice. Examine what you're spending on a regular, monthly basis and adjust if you need to. Make sure that you're on track with your spending by regularly using this cash flow calculator to check your net cash flow. Bookmark this page on your browser to keep it handy.

Also, be sure to check out the other free financial calculators and helpful information on budgeting finances that's available on this website.