Investor question 24 of 50 · Costs, burn & runway
“How much runway do you have?”
Short answer: the investor is really asking how urgent is this raise? Answer in three steps: (1) cash / average net burn; (2) give the cash-out date; (3) explain what you'd do if the round takes longer.
What they're really asking
How urgent is this raise? Investors rarely care about the question on its own. They're testing whether you know your numbers cold, whether your assumptions are honest, and whether you can explain them simply.
How to answer, step by step
- Cash / average net burn.
- Give the cash-out date.
- Explain what you'd do if the round takes longer.
An example answer
About 12 months at current burn. We're raising now so we never negotiate with less than six months left.
Figures are from Loopdesk, the fictional SaaS company in our sample files. Swap in your own numbers and keep the structure.
The answer that loses trust
Avoid
Overstating runway by ignoring planned hires.
Where the proof lives
Before the meeting, find the number behind your answer. In our workbooks it lives in: Runway & Burn. If you can open that tab and point to it, the follow-up question is easy.