Job Loss Runway Calculator: Months of Cash

How the worksheet works

Divides funds that you identify as liquid by the monthly costs you enter. It predicts no future income or job-search duration.

Inputs and privacy

Calculations run in the browser. Entered values are not sent to the API, stored, added to the URL, or used as analytics events.

Worked example

Illustrative inputs: ₹3,60,000 liquid savings, ₹45,000 essential monthly costs, no debt payment, and ₹5,000 continuing monthly income. The result is arithmetic only; it does not predict re-employment.

Limits

Educational arithmetic only. Verify contracts, tax questions, and employer-specific terms against current documents and qualified sources.

Read the cash table as a sequence

The opening balance is the money available at the start of that month. The closing balance subtracts the same net outflow entered in the form; it does not mean every bill is paid on the same day. A positive month-end figure can still hide an earlier rent, school-fee, or loan debit that arrives before salary or severance. Compare the schedule with actual bank dates, not only its final row. If income stops partway through a month, enter the amount that is genuinely expected to continue rather than a full-month assumption.

Illustrative scenario: separate certain cash from hope

Imagine a person with savings in a bank account, a severance amount that has not yet been confirmed, and occasional freelance work. The worksheet should include the liquid savings now, exclude the unconfirmed severance, and omit freelance income unless the person has a defensible continuing amount. This is not pessimism; it keeps the baseline auditable. A second run can add severance after a signed letter arrives. Keeping both versions makes the cost of waiting visible without treating a recruiter conversation, a pending claim, or an investment balance as spendable money.

Decide what belongs in the monthly baseline

Start with obligations that continue if work stops: housing, food, utilities, transport, insurance, school or care, minimum debt payments, and support sent to family. Separate recurring costs from one-time expenses such as a move, medical bill, device repair, or travel for interviews. The model has no dedicated field for every irregular cost, so preserve a separate reserve rather than quietly dividing an uncertain bill into monthly income. Avoid counting a loan instalment twice when it is already included in essential costs. Your own ledger is the source of truth; the calculator only performs the arithmetic you supplied.

Questions for a second pass

Should I include investments?

Only include holdings you could access on the timeline and terms you accept. A market value is not identical to cash available after fees, taxes, settlement delays, or a price change.

What if my household has two incomes?

Enter only income that is likely to continue, then make a second scenario for a temporary interruption. Keep the income owner, expected date, and reason for confidence beside your own notes.

Build a conservative, usable plan

Make separate versions for different events rather than blending them into one average. One version can show current household income continuing; another can remove it if a contract ends; a third can add a confirmed payment on its expected date. These are scenarios, not probabilities. Keep the assumptions beside each version so another household member can challenge a number without having to reconstruct your thinking. If the result depends on selling an asset, borrowing from family, or collecting a disputed amount, name that dependency explicitly. A runway figure is most useful when it tells you which conversation or document to pursue before cash becomes urgent.

Use the schedule to choose a next action

Look for the month where the closing balance crosses a personal floor, not only the month it reaches zero. Your floor might represent money reserved for rent, medical access, dependants, or an unavoidable move. The calculator does not know that boundary; decide it outside the form and write down why it matters. If the balance falls quickly, possible actions include confirming final settlement, reviewing recurring subscriptions, speaking with lenders before a missed payment, or delaying a discretionary purchase. If the projection looks comfortable, still check timing and irregular expenses. The table is an invitation to act earlier, not a reason to wait until its last row.

Keep evidence attached to each input

For every major amount, note its origin: a current bank balance, a signed settlement statement, a recent bill, or a household estimate. Add a date because balances and obligations change. Distinguish money legally accessible to you from funds jointly held, restricted, pledged, or needed for another commitment. A simple private worksheet can record source, owner, expected date, confidence, and what would invalidate the assumption. Do not paste personal account numbers, employer documents, or identity details into public feedback or analytics. This page calculates in the browser; it does not verify a bank balance, make a benefits claim, negotiate debt, or contact an employer on your behalf.