Cash flow, profit and scenario forecasts that show you what is coming, before it arrives.
Most founders do not lie awake worrying about profit. They worry about running out of cash. A forecast turns that worry into a number you can see coming. We build rolling cash flow and profit forecasts from your live Xero, QuickBooks, FreeAgent or Sage data, then test them against the decisions you are weighing up, such as a hire, a price rise or a VAT registration. You get a plain-English view of the months ahead, and a named, qualified accountant to talk it through.
We build a 12-week and 12-month cash flow forecast driven by your live bookkeeping data, mapping when money genuinely lands and leaves. Debtor and creditor timing, VAT payment dates and seasonal dips are modelled so you can see your true low point in the cash cycle and plan around it, not react to it.
Beyond cash, we project revenue, gross margin and net profit so you can see whether the business is structurally profitable or simply moving cash around. We separate one-off items from recurring trade, so the underlying trend is visible and you know which months carry the business.
We model best-case, worst-case and most-likely versions side by side, then flex the variables that matter most to you, such as a 10 percent drop in sales or a key client leaving. This sensitivity analysis shows which levers move your numbers the most, so you can focus management attention where it counts.
Staffing is usually the largest cost line, so we forecast it precisely. We factor in the April 2026 National Living Wage of £12.71 an hour for those aged 21 and over, employer National Insurance, the Employment Allowance and auto-enrolment pension contributions, so a planned hire or pay review is costed in full before you commit.
Forecasts that ignore tax flatter your cash position. We schedule Corporation Tax, VAT and PAYE liabilities into the timeline, flag when crossing the £90,000 VAT registration threshold becomes likely, and model the cash impact of dividend versus salary extraction using current dividend tax rates, so HMRC bills never blindside you.
Whether you are approaching a lender, an investor or your own board, we produce forecasts in a format they expect, with clear assumptions, integrated cash, profit and balance sheet views, and a short narrative. We also help you track actuals against forecast each month so the plan stays honest.
You work with one qualified accountant who knows your business and your numbers, not a rotating support queue. They build the forecast, explain the assumptions in plain English and are on hand when a decision needs modelling quickly.
Forecasting is included within our fixed monthly plans at £129, £250 or £499 depending on complexity, with no hourly surprises. You know the cost upfront, and our rolling monthly terms mean you are never locked into a long contract.
We work directly in Xero, QuickBooks, FreeAgent and Sage, so forecasts are driven by live data rather than a stale spreadsheet. That means faster updates, fewer errors and a forecast that reflects this week, not last quarter.
When you are weighing a decision, slow answers cost money. We respond to queries within 72 hours, so when you need a scenario re-run before a meeting, the turnaround is dependable.
Every engagement is backed by our 30-day money-back guarantee. If the forecasting service is not giving you the clarity you expected in the first month, you can step away and get your money back.
Picture a founder who has just won her biggest order. She is thrilled, then she does the sums. She has to pay her staff and her supplier weeks before the customer pays her. A forecast is the thing that shows that gap in advance.
A forecast is simply your best estimate of what the business will earn, spend and hold in the bank over the months ahead. It is not a promise. Think of it as a weather report for your money. It cannot stop the rain, but it tells you to take a coat.
For a young company, the number that matters most is your runway: how long your cash lasts at today's spending (your burn rate). Good financial forecasting for startups answers one calm question early. When does the money get tight, and what can I do about it now?
Here is how runway and burn rate work, and how our financial forecasting service turns them into a plan you can act on.
See also: Startup financial model: runway and burn-rate forecasting
This is the part that catches good businesses out. Profit and cash are not the same thing. You can look profitable on paper and still struggle to pay wages.
Say you sell a project for £10,000. Your costs are £6,000, so you have made £4,000 of profit. But the client pays you in 60 days, while your staff and suppliers want paying this month. For two months your bank balance falls, even though the job made money.
That gap is why founders ask, am I actually making money, while watching the balance drop. A forecast maps when money truly lands and leaves, so you see the real low point before it arrives.
That is the whole point of cash flow forecasting services: to make the squeeze visible while you can still act on it.
Our financial forecasting services link three statements into one model (a three-way forecast). Change one number and all three move together. That keeps a forecast honest, not a hopeful spreadsheet that falls apart under questions.
Cash flow forecasting services and profit forecasts work best as one linked model, so cash and profit never tell you two different stories.
This tracks money in and money out, week by week or month by month. It answers a simple question: will there be enough in the bank to cover what is due? This is the view that stops a cash crunch becoming a crisis.
This shows whether the business makes money once all the costs are paid. It answers whether you are truly turning a profit, not just bringing in sales. It is also where we watch your gross margin and the point where you break even.
This shows what you own and what you owe at a point in time. Lenders and investors read it to judge how solid the business really is.
This is the cash tied up in unpaid invoices, stock and the bills you owe. Managing working capital well is often where a growing business frees up the most cash, without selling a single thing more.
See also: Our cash flow management serviceMonthly management accounts
People mix these up, but they do different jobs. A budget is the plan you set at the start of the year. A forecast is your honest, updated view of where you are actually heading.
You need both. The budget is your target. The forecast tells you, three months in, whether you are on track or need to change course. The gap between the two is your variance: your plan set against your actuals.
A common mistake is setting a budget and never looking again. By month four it describes a business that no longer exists. Our budgeting and forecasting services run the two together, so your plan and your actuals never drift apart.
Tax is the timing trap that surprises new founders most. You earn the money in one period, but the bill lands much later. It is easy to spend cash that was quietly already promised to HMRC.
Corporation Tax runs at 19% on profits up to £50,000, and 25% above £250,000, with Marginal Relief in between. So tax you owe can sit in your account for months, looking like money you can spend.
A forecast pencils these dates in early, so the bill is boring, not frightening. The table below shows when the main bills fall due.
| Bill | When you earn it | When you pay it |
|---|---|---|
| VAT (standard scheme) | Each VAT quarter | 1 month and 7 days after the quarter ends |
| Corporation Tax (not a large company) | Across your accounting year | 9 months and 1 day after the year ends |
| VAT registration | Turnover passes £90,000 in any 12 months | Register and start charging VAT from then |
Forecasting is not just for big companies. The smaller and younger your business, the more a single cash surprise hurts. A big company can absorb a bad month. A founder who pays themselves last often cannot.
You are not locked into anything either. Some owners want a one-off forecast for a loan or a funding round. Others want a rolling one, updated each month. You can start small and stop when it stops being useful.
The cost is modest next to what it saves. Crossing the VAT registration threshold of £90,000 in turnover is one such moment. So is a first hire at the National Living Wage of £12.71 an hour. These are the moments good financial forecasting support earns its keep.
Whether you want a one-off model or ongoing financial forecasting solutions, you only pay for what you need.
Smaller firms and limited companies get the same plain treatment as a funded startup. We keep the model simple, the assumptions clear and the price fixed, so the cost never gets in the way of the clarity.
Sometimes you need more than a year-end accountant. A funding round, a first big hire or a wobble in cash is when an outsourced specialist pays for itself. Your named accountant fills that role without the cost of a full-time finance hire.
See also: Fractional CFO vs accountant: which do you need?Investor and bank-ready business plans
The best forecasts are not built once and forgotten. They run off your live bookkeeping in Xero, QuickBooks, FreeAgent or Sage, so they reflect this week, not a stale spreadsheet from last quarter.
A specialist financial forecasting company writes every assumption in plain English, so you can see what drives the numbers. You also get a named, CIMA-regulated financial forecasting accountant who knows your business.
You get a live dashboard of the figures that matter most, like cash in the bank, runway and gross margin, so you can see where you stand without digging through a spreadsheet.
Once a month is plenty for most small businesses. If cash is tight or you are growing fast, a weekly check keeps surprises small. Tools like Float, Xero or QuickBooks chart the cash, but a forecast is only as good as the thinking behind it.
If you sell online, our financial forecasting solutions tie into your ecommerce KPIs and management accounts, where margin and stock timing move quickly.
From our London base we forecast for businesses across the UK, from sole traders to limited companies and partnerships. A few types have quirks worth naming.
For SaaS and subscription businesses, we model your recurring revenue (your MRR and ARR) and customer churn, because those drive everything. For ecommerce, stock timing and margin matter most. For hospitality, retail and professional services, it is seasonality and staff cost that move the numbers.
Whatever the sector, the job is the same: show you what is coming, in plain English, before it arrives. It is why financial forecasting for startups and growing firms is worth the effort.
You do not need perfect numbers to begin. You need an honest view of where your cash is heading, and what your next decision will cost.
Whether you want cash flow forecasting services, a full budget, or just a clearer view of next month, a free Tax Health Check is a good place to start. We look at your numbers with you, flag anything that needs attention, and you decide what happens next.
Most founders leave that first conversation feeling lighter. Knowing the number is almost always better than guessing at it.
See also: Book a free Tax Health CheckSee our fixed monthly pricing
Understanding your business needs.
Crafting your custom accounting strategy.
Quick and easy integration.
Consistent monitoring and reporting.
13-week rolling cash forecasts, runway analysis, and treasury support.
Read moreBank-ready and investor-ready business plans with financials that hold up.
Read moreDirect line to your account manager for the questions that come up between calls.
Read moreAged debtor chasing, payment terms enforcement, and collections support.
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It is one model that links three reports: your profit and loss, your balance sheet and your cash flow. Change one number, like a sale, and all three update at once. Banks and investors trust this because a standalone profit forecast hides the cash and funding side. A three-statement model shows the whole picture.
Usually three: a base case, a worse case and a stretch case. We then test the few things that really move your business, such as price, sales volume, margin and customers leaving. For investors we add a stress case, like your top customer leaving or costs rising 20%. That is the first thing a serious investor asks about.
That is the aim. We build to the format banks and investors expect: clear assumptions, monthly figures for the first two years, a working capital plan, a hiring plan and a simple page showing how the funding gets spent. Most clients close their round without needing the model reworked.
Both. The model itself sits in Excel or Google Sheets, so your team can dig into it. On top, you get a live dashboard of the figures that matter: revenue, margin, cash in the bank, runway and the cost of winning a customer. It refreshes from your accounting software, so your board pack is never out of date.
Either. A one-off model, for a fundraise or a big decision, is quoted per project and delivered within three weeks. A rolling forecast, updated monthly or quarterly, sits inside the £250 Premium Plus or £499 Enterprise plan, with a quarterly review built in.
Financial forecasting is the full picture: projected profit, cash and balance sheet together. Cash flow forecasting is one part of it, focused purely on the timing of money in and out, so you know you can cover wages, VAT and suppliers on the right dates. Profit forecasting tells you whether the model works; cash flow forecasting tells you whether you can pay the bills along the way. We build both as one linked model, so you never have to read them in isolation.
Yes. A budget is the plan you set at the start of the year, your target for revenue and spend. A forecast is the moving picture that updates as real results come in. We set the budget with you, run a rolling forecast alongside it, and report your actuals against both, so you can see clearly where you are ahead, where you are behind and what to do about it. Budgeting and forecasting work best as one ongoing process, not two separate jobs.
Yes. For startups the forecast centres on runway and burn rate, how long your cash lasts and when you will need to raise, alongside a revenue build and a headcount plan that investors will expect to see. We model best, base and downside cases so you can show a funder you genuinely understand the risks, and we keep it updated as the business changes. You do not need years of history; we build from your plan and your early numbers.
Yes, and it is one of the most common reasons founders come to us. A business plan needs numbers a bank or investor will believe, not best guesses. We build the linked forecast that sits behind the plan: profit, cash and balance sheet, with every assumption written out in plain English so it stands up when someone asks how you got there.
Tools like Float, Xero and QuickBooks are good at charting the cash you already have. What they do not do is decide your assumptions or stress-test a real decision for you. We build the model and the thinking behind it, and we can plug it into the software you already use so the numbers stay live between updates.
Financial forecasting is the full picture: projected profit, cash and balance sheet together. Cash flow forecasting is one part of it, focused purely on the timing of money in and out, so you know you can cover wages, VAT and suppliers on the right dates. Profit forecasting tells you whether the model works; cash flow forecasting tells you whether you can pay the bills along the way. We build both as one linked model, so you never have to read them in isolation.
Yes. A budget is the plan you set at the start of the year, your target for revenue and spend. A forecast is the moving picture that updates as real results come in. We set the budget with you, run a rolling forecast alongside it, and report your actuals against both, so you can see clearly where you are ahead, where you are behind and what to do about it. Budgeting and forecasting work best as one ongoing process, not two separate jobs.
Yes. For startups the forecast centres on runway and burn rate, how long your cash lasts and when you will need to raise, alongside a revenue build and a headcount plan that investors will expect to see. We model best, base and downside cases so you can show a funder you genuinely understand the risks, and we keep it updated as the business changes. You do not need years of history; we build from your plan and your early numbers.
I’ve had an excellent experience working with Zmartly. Harvey and the team are professional, responsive, and genuinely supportive. They explain things clearly, stay on top of deadlines, and always look for practical ways to save tax and improve…
I’ve used several accountants in the past, but hands down there is no one better than Harvey at Zmartly. He really understands exactly what advice you’re looking for and explains everything clearly and professionally. Nothing ever feels rushed…
I started working with Zmartly Accountants after having serious issues with my previous accounting firm. They were missing deadlines, incorrectly calculating VAT, constantly late, and extremely difficult and frustrating to communicate with. Switching to Zmartly was a huge…
I've had a terrible experience with multiple accountants. Zmartly have been incredible. If you do ecommerce / Amazon FBA you definitely need to go with someone who understands the complexities with it. Thanks to Harvey and his amazing…
Its not easy to find accountants who understand ecommerce especially Amazon and these guys know Amazon very well. Always helps us with advice if they spot something we incorrectly. Super easy to speak with someone if you have…
I’ve had an excellent experience working with Zmartly. Harvey and the team are professional, responsive, and genuinely supportive. They explain things clearly, stay on top of deadlines, and always look for practical ways to save tax and improve…
I’ve used several accountants in the past, but hands down there is no one better than Harvey at Zmartly. He really understands exactly what advice you’re looking for and explains everything clearly and professionally. Nothing ever feels rushed…
I started working with Zmartly Accountants after having serious issues with my previous accounting firm. They were missing deadlines, incorrectly calculating VAT, constantly late, and extremely difficult and frustrating to communicate with. Switching to Zmartly was a huge…
I've had a terrible experience with multiple accountants. Zmartly have been incredible. If you do ecommerce / Amazon FBA you definitely need to go with someone who understands the complexities with it. Thanks to Harvey and his amazing…
Its not easy to find accountants who understand ecommerce especially Amazon and these guys know Amazon very well. Always helps us with advice if they spot something we incorrectly. Super easy to speak with someone if you have…
Thirty minutes with a qualified accountant. Most owners uncover £1,000-£3,000 in annual savings on the first call. If we are not the right fit, you walk away with a free tax review on the house.
