Built for founders, not accountants
Startup finance platform for cash and hiring decisions
See how long your cash lasts and what a hire would change. Plainhub calculates runway, burn, MRR and team cost from the entries you record. Keep income and costs current, then test a decision as a draft before adding it to your monthly spend.
Building a model for investors is a different job; for that, compare the options in financial modeling software for startups.
Which finance platform can help predict a company's burn rate?
Plainhub works out net burn from what you record: team cost, recurring expenses and committed plans, minus the MRR of active customers. To look ahead, add a hire or a cut as a draft and it shows burn, runway and the cash-out date with and without it, without touching today's figures. It is a straight-line projection from your own numbers, not a forecast of growth.
In CB Insights' analysis of startup failures among VC-backed companies that shut down since 2023, running out of capital was the most cited reason, at 70%. CB Insights adds that it is almost always the final cause, not the root problem.
Keep your runway inputs current
A spreadsheet can work well when someone maintains current cash, costs and customer revenue. Plainhub recalculates runway from changes you record, without requiring you to edit formulas. Keep your accountant and bookkeeping software for accounts and tax filings, and use this model for spending decisions.
Before changing tools, identify who updates your cash, costs and customer revenue, and how often. The comparison in best FP&A software shows what each one expects, and why most founders are years from needing any of them.
Plainhub sits in the gap. It is not bookkeeping and it is not a spreadsheet. It is the one place your runway, burn and MRR stay live, explained in plain language, so the most important numbers in your company are never a guess.
To see those numbers on screen, the startup financial dashboard page shows each one, screen by screen. Questions about them go to the finance agent that answers from your numbers, and if you are weighing tools for cash alone, see how cash forecasting tools compare.
What a week looks like
A week in Plainhub is a handful of short entries against one running runway number. On Monday a company has €310,000 in the bank, €44,000 a month of costs and €16,000 of MRR, so net burn is €28,000 and runway is 11.1 months.
On Tuesday a customer paying €2,400 a month says they are reviewing vendors. You mark them at risk, their revenue leaves MRR, and runway drops to 10.2 months on the spot, which is the number you would have if they left. On Wednesday you want to know whether a €6,000 a month hire still fits, so you add it as a draft: 8.5 months with the hire, shown next to today without changing anything. On Friday you cancel a €1,200 a month tool and commit that as a plan, and runway settles at 10.6 months.
None of that needed a spreadsheet session or a bank connection, and every figure came from something you typed. What it did not do is tell you whether the customer will stay or whether the hire is worth it. Those calls are still yours.
How the options compare
Founders run their money four ways: a spreadsheet, accounting software, an FP&A platform or Plainhub. The table compares whether each keeps runway and burn live, whether it needs a bank login, and who has to run it. Plainhub is the last row.
What you get
Plainhub gives a founder six things: live runway and burn, MRR with customer status, draft plans that show a decision's effect before it is made, a finance agent, team access by section, and no bank logins. Each is described below.
Live runway and burn
Every event you record updates net burn and how many months of cash are left, immediately.
MRR and customers
Each customer with a monthly amount and a status. Only active, recurring revenue counts as MRR, one customer at 30% or more triggers a warning, and late payments show up in your alerts.
Decisions before you make them
Draft a hire, a new tool or a cut and see runway and the cash-out date before and after. Commit it and it joins burn from its start date.
A finance agent
Ask questions in plain English and get answers from your recorded numbers, or log an expense from one sentence after you confirm it.
Built for teams
Invite teammates as viewers or editors. Pro includes two invitations; Max includes unlimited seats and access controls for each section.
No bank logins
Nothing to connect, nothing to import. Your numbers stay in your control.
Try the numbers first
Free calculators cover each number Plainhub keeps live: cash runway, burn rate, cash flow forecast, MRR and employee cost. None needs a signup. Run yours first to see where you stand, then let Plainhub keep the numbers live as events change.
When Plainhub is not the right fit
Plainhub is not the right startup finance platform if you need bookkeeping, figures imported from a bank or ledger, an investor model with growth assumptions, or tooling for a finance team running several entities. The list below says where to look instead.
- You need bookkeeping, invoicing or tax filing. Plainhub is not accounting software.
- You want figures pulled in from a bank or ledger. Plainhub only knows what you record.
- You are building an investor model with growth assumptions. See financial modeling software for startups.
- You have a finance team running several entities. See best FP&A software.
Common questions
What is a startup finance platform?
A single place where a founder runs the company's money day to day: cash, spending, revenue and team costs recorded as they happen, with runway, burn and MRR computed from them. It sits between accounting software, which records the past for tax, and a financial model, which is a plan built for investors.
What is the best finance software for a startup?
It depends what you need. For bookkeeping and tax, use accounting software like Xero or QuickBooks. Plainhub calculates runway, burn and MRR from entries you record yourself. Seven questions show your first runway estimate before you choose a plan.
Is Plainhub accounting software?
No. Plainhub is a founder's money operating system for runway, burn and hiring decisions. It does not do bookkeeping, invoicing or tax filing, and it is not a replacement for an accountant.
Do I need to connect my bank?
No. Plainhub never asks for bank logins or statement uploads. You record money events in plain words and the model builds from there, which is faster and keeps your financial data out of a third-party connection.
How is this different from a spreadsheet?
A spreadsheet is only correct the day you build it, and its formulas break silently. Plainhub keeps runway, burn and MRR live as you record events, and explains what each number means, so you are never quoting a figure you have not checked in a month.
Know your runway before it is a problem
Answer seven questions to see a runway estimate from your current cash, income and costs. Explore the sample workspace before signing up to check how the model handles changes. Pro is €29.99 a month and Max is €59.99 a month, with renewal cancellation anytime and access through your paid period.