What is cashflow forecasting?
A cashflow forecast predicts how much money will come into and go out of your business over a future period, typically 4 to 13 weeks. It tells you whether you will have enough cash to pay your bills, your staff, and yourself. It is the single most useful financial tool a small business owner can have.
Weekly Pulse · Monday 19 Oct 2026Hi Sarah, here's where things stand this week.
Cash Position
£96,000
Revenue
£118,000
Expenses
£99,000
Invoices · Owed to you
£24,000
Overdue · 3
£17,000
Outstanding · 2
£41,000
Total receivable
Bills · You owe
£3,400
Overdue · 1
£8,900
Due to pay · 4
£12,300
Total payable
Your CFO's take
Cash is healthy at £96,000, up £7,200 on last month. Revenue of £118,000 against £99,000 of costs made £19,000 of profit, though not all of it has reached the bank yet. Anderson & Co owes you £18,000, now 34 days overdue; chasing that today moves the most money.
CFO Pal · cfopal.co.uk · hello@cfopal.co.uk
Cashflow Forecast
13-week rolling forecast with budget tracking
Current Cash
£31,800
Apr 26
Cash In vs Out
-£3,400
spent more than received
Budget Pace
1 over pace
3 of 6 on track, 2 in caution
Spend vs Budget
£27,220 / £27,500
£280 underCash Flow Overview
| Period | Jan | Feb | Mar | W/C 14 Apr | W/C 21 Apr | W/C 28 Apr |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Opening Balance | £42,000 | £38,500 | £35,200 | £31,800 | £30,400 | £28,900 |
| Revenue | £18,200 | £16,800 | £17,400 | £4,100 | £4,100 | £4,100 |
| Staff Costs | £9k | £9k | £9k | £2k | £2k | £2k |
| Facilities & IT | £3k | £3k | £3k | £711 | £711 | £711 |
| Marketing & Sales | £1k | £2k | £3k | £415 | £415 | £415 |
| Cost of Sales | £8k | £6k | £6k | £2k | £2k | £3k |
| Total Cash Out | -£21,700 | -£20,100 | -£20,800 | -£5,500 | -£5,600 | -£5,900 |
| Net Cash Flow | -£3,500 | -£3,300 | -£3,400 | -£1,400 | -£1,500 | -£1,800 |
| Closing Balance | £38,500 | £35,200 | £31,800 | £30,400 | £28,900 | £27,100 |
Cash projected to fall from £31,800 to £16,500 by W/C 30 Jun.
Why cashflow forecasting matters
Profit and cash are not the same thing. A business can be profitable on paper and still run out of cash. This happens when money is tied up in unpaid invoices, stock, or when large expenses land before revenue comes in. A cashflow forecast gives you advance warning so you can act before problems arrive.
Most UK small businesses that fail do not fail because they are unprofitable. They fail because they run out of cash. A forecast that looks 8 to 13 weeks ahead gives you enough time to chase overdue invoices, delay a non-essential purchase, or arrange short-term funding before the gap becomes a crisis.
What a cashflow forecast includes
A basic cashflow forecast has three columns for each week or month: money in, money out, and the running bank balance. Money in includes customer payments, refunds you are owed, and any other income. Money out includes supplier payments, wages, rent, tax, loan repayments, and everything else that leaves the account.
The running balance tells you the projected cash position at the end of each period. If that number goes negative at any point, you have a problem coming and you now know exactly when it will hit.
How to build a cashflow forecast
You can build a basic forecast in a spreadsheet. Start with your current bank balance. For each of the next 13 weeks, list every payment you expect to receive (based on invoices sent and their due dates) and every payment you expect to make (rent, wages, suppliers, subscriptions, tax). The difference between the two gives you your projected balance. Our free cashflow forecast template has that 13-week grid already built.
The problem with doing this manually is that it takes time, it goes stale quickly, and it relies on you remembering to update it. Most business owners build a forecast once, update it for a week or two, and then stop. By the time they need it, the numbers are wrong.
How CFO Pal automates cashflow forecasting
CFO Pal connects to your Xero, QuickBooks, or Sage account and builds your cashflow forecast automatically. It pulls your real monthly income, real expenses, and real bank data, then projects your cash position 8, 13, and 26 weeks ahead. No spreadsheet. No manual updates. The forecast refreshes every time your accounting data syncs.
If the forecast shows your cash dropping below a threshold you set within the next 13 weeks, CFO Pal sends you an alert by email, SMS, or WhatsApp before the problem arrives, naming the week it happens. That is the difference between reacting to a crisis and preventing one.
Related guides
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