Free cash flow forecast template (12-month)
A cash flow forecast projects the money actually moving in and out of your business, month by month: opening balance, cash in, cash out, and the closing balance carried into the next month. It forecasts cash, not profit, which is why it, and not your profit and loss account, shows the month you run short. Download the free 12-month template below as a CSV, or copy it; no email required.
Quick Reference
Direct Answer
A cash flow forecast is a month-by-month projection of cash moving in and out of a business: opening balance, plus cash in (mainly customer receipts), minus cash out (wages, stock, rent, tax, loan repayments), giving a closing balance that becomes the next month's opening balance. It forecasts cash, not profit, so it reveals the month a business runs short even when trading is profitable.
Summary
This page provides a free downloadable 12-month UK cash flow forecast template (CSV) plus a worked example and guidance: forecast receipts on the date customers actually pay (invoice date plus average debtor days), include loan repayments in cash-out, and read a negative closing balance as the funding gap whose size and timing determine the right finance product (overdraft for a seasonal dip, invoice finance for slow B2B payers, a term loan for a one-off cost).
This Page Covers
UK 12-month cash flow forecast template: structure, a worked example, how to forecast receipts, how a lender reads it, and how a forecast gap maps to a finance product
Not Covered Here
Profit and loss (see /templates/profit-and-loss-template/), balance sheet (see /templates/balance-sheet-template/), debt serviceability (see /calculator/dscr-calculator/), the working capital cycle (see /calculator/working-capital-cycle/)
Download the template
The template is a 12-month grid: fill the cash-in and cash-out cells, and each closing balance carries into the next month's opening balance. Open the CSV in Excel, Google Sheets or Numbers.
Opening balance CASH IN Sales receipts (cash actually paid in) Other income Loans or investment received Total cash in CASH OUT Stock or materials Wages and salaries Rent and business rates Utilities, insurance, marketing Loan and finance repayments VAT payment Corporation tax / PAYE Other costs Total cash out Net cash flow = total cash in minus total cash out Closing balance = opening balance plus net cash flow (carries into next month's opening balance)
Worked example: a seasonal wholesaler
A wholesaler builds stock before a busy autumn, so cash goes out months before the receipts come back in. The forecast makes the gap visible in advance.
| Line | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Opening balance | 20,000 | 8,000 | -14,000 | -22,000 | 6,000 | 34,000 |
| Total cash in | 30,000 | 28,000 | 40,000 | 78,000 | 82,000 | 60,000 |
| Total cash out | 42,000 | 50,000 | 48,000 | 50,000 | 54,000 | 44,000 |
| Net cash flow | -12,000 | -22,000 | -8,000 | 28,000 | 28,000 | 16,000 |
| Closing balance | 8,000 | -14,000 | -22,000 | 6,000 | 34,000 | 50,000 |
Source: FundBiz cash flow forecast worked example, illustrative figures
The business is profitable across the period but goes cash-negative in August and September during the stock build. The forecast shows a funding need of about £22,000 across those two months, exactly the size a facility should be set to.
View as plain-text Markdown
### Simplified 6-month cash flow forecast (£), stock build before an autumn peak | Line | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Opening balance | 20,000 | 8,000 | -14,000 | -22,000 | 6,000 | 34,000 | | Total cash in | 30,000 | 28,000 | 40,000 | 78,000 | 82,000 | 60,000 | | Total cash out | 42,000 | 50,000 | 48,000 | 50,000 | 54,000 | 44,000 | | Net cash flow | -12,000 | -22,000 | -8,000 | 28,000 | 28,000 | 16,000 | | Closing balance | 8,000 | -14,000 | -22,000 | 6,000 | 34,000 | 50,000 | Source: FundBiz cash flow forecast worked example, illustrative figures The business is profitable across the period but goes cash-negative in August and September during the stock build. The forecast shows a funding need of about £22,000 across those two months, exactly the size a facility should be set to.
On paper the six months make a healthy profit, but the business is £22,000 short in August and September while stock is paid for ahead of the autumn sales. Spotted in July, that gap is a planned, funded stock build; spotted in August, it is a crisis.
The one assumption that breaks forecasts
Almost every forecast that turns out wrong does so on the timing of receipts. Sales are entered in the month they are invoiced, when the cash does not arrive until customers actually pay, often 30 to 60 days later. Take your real average debtor days and shift each sale to the month the money lands.
“A monthly cash flow forecast can show a comfortable closing balance and still miss the day the account goes overdrawn. Wages, rent and a VAT bill can all leave in the first week, before the month's receipts arrive. If cash is tight, run a 13-week forecast in weeks, not months, and watch the lowest point within each month, not the month-end figure. The month-end number is the one that lies to you.”
Reading the forecast for a finance decision
A negative closing balance is not a failure of the business; it is a precise statement of how much funding you need and when. The shape of the gap points to the product:
- A short seasonal dip that recovers on its own: an overdraft or revolving credit facility.
- A gap caused by slow-paying B2B customers: invoice finance, which advances against the receipts you are waiting on.
- A one-off cost or investment: a term loan sized to the gap.
Once you know operating profit from your profit and loss account, check it can carry the repayments with the DSCR calculator before you commit.
FAQs
What is a cash flow forecast?
A month-by-month projection of the cash actually moving in and out of your business. It starts with an opening bank balance, adds cash received (mostly customer payments), subtracts cash paid out (wages, stock, rent, tax, loan repayments), and carries the closing balance into the next month. It forecasts cash, not profit: a profitable business can still run out of cash if customers pay slowly.
How is a cash flow forecast different from a profit and loss?
A profit and loss account records income and costs when they are earned or incurred; a cash flow forecast records money only when it actually moves. You can invoice £50,000 in a month (profit) but receive nothing that month (cash). The forecast is built around when customers really pay and when bills really leave the account, which is why it, not the P&L, tells you the month you run short.
How many months should a cash flow forecast cover?
Twelve months is the standard for a business plan or a finance application, updated monthly by rolling the actuals in and adding a new month at the end. For a tight cash position, forecast weekly for the next 8 to 13 weeks as well, because a monthly view can hide a mid-month dip when a big payment lands before the receipts to cover it.
What does a lender look for in a cash flow forecast?
That the assumptions are realistic (receipts dated on when customers actually pay, not the invoice date), that loan repayments are included in the cash-out lines, and that the closing balance stays positive, or that the facility applied for is exactly the size of the shortfall. A forecast that dips negative is not a rejection; it is the clearest possible statement of how much funding you need and when.
How do I forecast sales receipts?
Take forecast sales, then shift them to the month the cash lands. If you sell on 30-day terms and customers pay on average 45 days late, a sale invoiced in Month 1 is a receipt in Month 3. Use your real average debtor days (from the working capital cycle calculator). Being optimistic here is the single most common reason a forecast turns out wrong.
What if the forecast shows I run out of cash?
That negative closing balance is the funding gap, and its size and timing tell you which product fits. A short seasonal dip suits an overdraft or revolving facility; a gap driven by slow-paying B2B customers suits invoice finance; a one-off cost suits a term loan. Run your figures through the matcher below and we surface the lenders most likely to fund that specific shape of gap.
Turn the forecast gap into funding
If your forecast dips negative, tell us the size and timing of the gap and your sector. We surface the panel lenders most likely to fund that specific shape of shortfall, with no impact on your credit score to check.
Find funding for the gap →By Adam Parker. Reviewed by Oliver Mackman. Last reviewed 30 July 2026.