13-Week Cash Flow Forecast
The rolling forecast every lender, CFO, and turnaround advisor uses. Enter your weekly inflows and outflows — we'll show your ending bank balance for every week and flag the shortfall before it hits.
Weekly cash inflows
Enter a typical week. Add rows for anything else that hits the bank.
Weekly cash outflows
Break down payroll, rent, COGS, taxes, and debt service so you can see which lever moves the balance.
Free — takes 10 seconds
What a 13-week cash flow forecast is and why lenders ask for one
A 13-week cash flow forecast is a weekly, rolling projection of every dollar entering and leaving the bank account over the next quarter. It is the standard tool in turnarounds, bank workouts, and SBA lending because it operates at the timescale decisions actually happen: payroll runs on a Friday, not a fiscal quarter. Thirteen weeks is long enough to cover a full quarter of obligations and short enough that every line is defensible from real receivables and real bills.
Unlike a monthly budget, the 13-week model is direct-method — it starts from cash, not from net income. You list expected collections week by week, then the outflows that are already committed: payroll, rent, debt service, tax deposits, supplier payments. The ending bank balance for each week carries into the next, so a shortfall in week 9 becomes visible in week 1, while there is still time to do something about it.
How the model is built
Weekly inflows
AR collections + cash sales + other receipts
Base collections on the actual aging of your receivables and historical payment behavior, not on invoice dates.
Weekly outflows
Payroll + suppliers + rent + debt service + taxes
Include loan principal and tax deposits. They drain cash even though principal never appears on the P&L.
Rolling ending balance
Prior week ending + inflows − outflows
Compare each week against your minimum operating balance — the floor below which you cannot function.
How to use the forecast each week
Roll it every Friday
Drop the week that just closed, add a new week 13, and replace estimates with actuals. Comparing forecast to actual each week is what makes the next forecast accurate — the discipline matters more than the spreadsheet.
Treat any dip below the floor as a decision
A projected shortfall has four standard answers: accelerate a receivable, delay a payable, draw on the line of credit, or reduce an outflow. Choosing early costs far less than choosing on the day.
Bring it to the bank before they ask
Lenders and SBA underwriters read a 13-week forecast as evidence that management knows its numbers. Showing up with one — supported by reconciled books — changes the tone of the conversation.
Frequently asked questions
+Why 13 weeks instead of a monthly forecast?
Thirteen weeks is one quarter expressed at the resolution cash actually moves. Monthly forecasts hide the timing problems that cause missed payroll, because a month that nets positive can still contain two weeks that go negative.
+What is a rolling forecast?
Each week you drop the completed week and add a new week at the end, so the horizon stays at thirteen weeks. The forecast never expires and never becomes stale, and each cycle gives you a forecast-versus-actual variance to learn from.
+What is the difference between the direct and indirect method?
The direct method lists actual receipts and payments, which is what a 13-week model uses. The indirect method starts from net income and adjusts for non-cash items, which is how the statement of cash flows in your financial statements is built. Direct is better for operating decisions; indirect is required for formal reporting.
+Do lenders really ask for a 13-week cash flow?
Regularly — in SBA lending, covenant discussions, and any credit review where liquidity is a question. It is also the first document a turnaround advisor builds, because it shows within minutes whether a business can meet its obligations.
+How accurate should my forecast be?
Within about 5% on total inflows in the first four weeks is a good working standard. Accuracy in the later weeks matters less; those exist to show the shape of the quarter, and they sharpen as they roll forward.
Need a 13-week forecast a lender will accept?
We build the forecast off reconciled books and real receivables aging, then keep it rolling each week so it stays current. If you are preparing for an SBA application or a line-of-credit renewal, this is the document that gets read first.
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