Working Capital Calculator
Operational cash cushion.
Calculate working capital and working capital as a percentage of revenue from current assets, current liabilities, and revenue.
What this tool does
Working capital is current assets minus current liabilities—the cash available to cover short-term operational needs. This calculator takes your current assets, current liabilities, and annual revenue to compute three interconnected metrics: your absolute working capital balance, your current ratio (a liquidity indicator showing how many times over current assets cover current liabilities), and working capital expressed as a percentage of revenue. The result illustrates your operational cash cushion and how it scales relative to business turnover. Current assets and liabilities are the primary drivers; changes to either shift both the absolute figure and the ratio significantly. A typical scenario involves assessing whether cash reserves adequately support ongoing operations. Note that this calculation doesn't account for cash conversion cycles, seasonal variations, or the composition of assets and liabilities—results are for educational illustration only.
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Formula Used
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Disclaimer
Results are estimates for educational purposes only. They do not constitute financial advice. Consult a qualified professional before making financial decisions.
Working capital is the cash cushion a business has after netting current assets against current liabilities. It's the buffer that funds day-to-day operations: paying suppliers, covering payroll, stocking inventory. Positive working capital means the business can fund itself; negative means it depends on constant collections to remain solvent.
800k current assets minus 500k current liabilities = 300k working capital. Against 3M annual revenue, that's 10% of revenue - a typical buffer for a growing business. Below 5% leaves little room for error; above 20% can signal idle capital that could be invested or returned to shareholders.
Some industries run negative working capital successfully. Supermarkets and fast-food chains collect cash from customers before paying suppliers, so current liabilities legitimately exceed current assets without financial distress. For most other businesses, negative working capital is a warning sign - a quarter of late customer payments and the business can't meet payroll.
Quick example
With current assets of 800,000 and current liabilities of 500,000 (plus annual revenue of 3,000,000), the result is 300,000.00. Change any figure and watch the output shift — it's often more useful to see the pattern than to memorise the formula.
Which inputs matter most
You enter Current Assets, Current Liabilities, and Annual Revenue. Not every input has equal weight. Adjusting one input at a time toward extreme values shows which ones move the result most.
What's happening under the hood
Working capital = current assets - current liabilities. % of revenue = WC ÷ revenue × 100. Current ratio = current assets ÷ current liabilities. The formula is listed in full below. If the number looks off, you can retrace the calculation by hand — that's the point of showing the working.
What the score tells you
Headline financial numbers — income, savings, debt — each tell part of the story. This calculation stitches several together into a single read you can track over time. The value is in the direction, not the absolute number.
What this doesn't capture
The score is a composite of the inputs you provide. Life context — job security, family obligations, health, housing — doesn't appear in the math but shapes the real picture. Use the number as a prompt, not a verdict.
££800,000 assets - ££500,000 liabilities = 300,000.00.
Inputs
This example uses typical values for illustration. Adjust the inputs above to match a specific situation and see how the result changes.
Sources & Methodology
Methodology
This calculator computes working capital by subtracting current liabilities from current assets, representing the operational cash cushion available to cover short-term obligations. The model then expresses working capital as a percentage of annual revenue, showing what proportion of yearly turnover is tied up in near-term operations. A current ratio is also calculated by dividing current assets by current liabilities, indicating the organisation's ability to cover short-term debts with liquid resources. The calculator assumes all figures are accurate, current, and correctly classified as current (payable or collectible within one year). It does not account for cash conversion cycles, seasonal fluctuations, asset quality, debt structure, or industry-specific working capital norms, all of which may affect operational reality.
References
Frequently Asked Questions
Is more working capital always better?
Can a profitable business run out of cash?
How much working capital do I need?
What's the working capital cycle?
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