How to Calculate Startup Runway (the India-aware way)

Ask ten founders how to calculate runway and nine will say "cash divided by burn." That is the right idea and the wrong formula — especially in India, where a meaningful chunk of your cash is sitting in GST credit and TDS receivable that the simple version ignores.

Here is the version that actually reflects how long you can survive.

The basic formula

The denominator is net burn, not gross burn. If you spend ₹10L a month and earn ₹3L, your net burn is ₹7L — that is the number cash actually depletes at. A profitable month means infinite runway.

Why the basic formula under-states India runway

In India, two buckets of real, recoverable cash never show up in your bank balance:

• •GST input credit — every expense you pay reclaims up to 18% GST. For a startup spending ₹10L/month, ~₹1.8L sits in your GSTR-2B as recoverable credit.
• •TDS receivable — Indian B2B customers withhold 1–10% TDS on your invoices. That money is yours; it shows up in Form 26AS and is refunded on filing.

Add collectible receivables you are confident will land this quarter, and your *effective* cash position is higher than your bank balance — often by a month or more of runway.

Want the number without the spreadsheet? Our free runway calculator does the GST/TDS-aware math for you — no signup.

When should you start raising?

1. 1.Under 3 months — emergency. Bridge debt or revenue-based financing becomes the realistic option.
2. 2.3–6 months — raise actively; a fundraise takes 3–6 months to close.
3. 3.6–12 months — start conversations now.
4. 4.12+ months — healthy; focus on growth, not pitch decks.

The trap is that runway is a moving number — burn creeps up, a big customer churns, a payment slips. Calculating it once a quarter in a spreadsheet means you find out you are in the danger zone a month too late.

Track it live instead of guessing

Runway connects your Razorpay, Cashfree, Tally, Zoho Books, Stripe and bank data and computes live, GST-aware runway every day — and pings you before you cross 6 months. Free for founders.