How to Build a Startup Budget
A startup budget lists your one-time launch costs, your recurring monthly expenses and a cash cushion, then divides your available cash by monthly spending to show your runway in months.
What goes in
- One-time costs: incorporation, licenses, equipment, website, initial inventory, legal documents, trademark filing.
- Monthly costs: software, rent, insurance, marketing, contractors and salaries.
- Cushion: an allowance for the unexpected, often a few months of expenses.
Compute your runway
Runway is cash on hand divided by monthly net spending. If you hold $60,000 and spend $5,000 more each month than you earn, you have 12 months. Revisit it monthly, and raise or cut before the number gets small.
Do not forget IP
Naming and invention protection are real line items. The USPTO publishes its trademark fees, and a provisional patent application has its own filing fee. Budget for them early instead of rebranding later.
Questions
How much runway should a startup have?
Many founders aim for at least 12 months, which allows time to reach milestones and raise again before cash is tight.
Keep reading
Sources
General information, not legal or financial advice. Reviewed 10 November 2026.