Feature
Cash flow forecasting: see 90 days of incoming money from your invoices
Cash flow forecasting from your open invoices: a 90-day view of incoming money that accounts for how each client really pays. See a worked example with numbers.
Updated · By PayToMe Editorial
Expected cash in, next 6 weeks
Cash flow forecasting means estimating how much money will arrive, and when, so you can plan rent, payroll, materials and taxes before the bills land. PayToMe’s forecast, which is in development, gives you a 90-day view of incoming cash built from your open invoices and from how each client has actually paid in the past. This page explains the idea, walks through a worked example with real numbers, and shows a simple way to do a rough version by hand today.
How the forecast will work
Profit and cash are different things. You can have $20,000 of invoices outstanding and still be unable to pay a supplier on Friday. The gap is timing, and timing depends on people.
- PayToMe reads your open invoices. Each one has an amount, a due date and a client.
- It learns each client’s habits. For every client with history, it looks at how many days after the due date they usually pay. A client who pays on day 2 is treated differently from one who pays on day 25.
- It places each invoice on the calendar. The expected payment date is the due date plus the client’s usual delay, shown with a range for uncertainty.
- You see a 90-day chart. Money is grouped by week or month, so you can see a thin period coming while there is still time to act.
You will be able to tap any bar to see which invoices make it up, and to see why PayToMe placed an invoice where it did. For clients with no history, the forecast will say so instead of pretending to know.
A worked example
Take a small design studio on October 24 with four open invoices. These numbers are made up to show the method.
| Invoice | Amount | Due date | Client’s usual delay | Expected payment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | $4,000 | Nov 10 | 6 days late | Nov 16 |
| B | $2,500 | Nov 20 | On time | Nov 20 |
| C | $6,000 | Dec 1 | 18 days late | Dec 19 |
| D | $1,800 | Dec 15 | 9 days late | Dec 24 |
Now group the money into three 30-day windows starting October 24: days 1 to 30 end November 23, days 31 to 60 end December 23, and days 61 to 90 end January 22.
| Window | By due date | Habit-adjusted |
|---|---|---|
| Oct 24 to Nov 23 | $6,500 | $6,500 |
| Nov 24 to Dec 23 | $7,800 | $6,000 |
| Dec 24 to Jan 22 | $0 | $1,800 |
| Total | $14,300 | $14,300 |
The total is the same. The timing is not. By due dates, the studio expects $7,800 in the second window. By habits, only $6,000 arrives then, and the $1,800 invoice slips past Christmas into the third window. If the studio has a $7,000 bill due in mid-December, one view says it is covered and the other says it is $1,000 short.
What if one client is later than usual
Suppose the client behind invoice C takes 30 days instead of 18. The $6,000 moves from December 19 to December 31, which is outside the second window entirely. The second window drops to zero. A forecast that shows a range would have flagged this as the biggest risk, because one invoice is 42% of the money you are counting on (6,000 out of 14,300).
Do a rough version by hand
You do not need software to start. This takes about twenty minutes.
- List every open invoice with its client, amount and due date.
- For each client, look at their last three paid invoices and note how many days after the due date they paid. Use the average.
- Add that delay to each open invoice’s due date.
- Group the amounts by week or month.
- Compare each period to what you need to pay out.
The due date calculator helps with step 3 when terms are written as “net 30” or “net 45.”
Why it matters
A cash crunch is rarely a surprise in hindsight. It was visible on the calendar weeks earlier, if someone had put real payment dates on it.
- Freelancers use it to decide whether they can say yes to a lower-paying project or need to chase work now.
- Small contractors use it to time material purchases so they are not floating a supplier invoice for three weeks.
- Agencies use it to see whether a big client’s slow payment threatens payroll.
The forecast also changes what you do about unpaid invoices. If it shows a gap coming in five weeks and the biggest late payer is the cause, you can follow up now. PayToMe’s planned smart reminders are designed to work from the same information, and our guide on getting paid faster covers the practical side.
What it will and will not do
It will:
- Show expected incoming cash over 90 days from open invoices.
- Adjust for each client’s real payment history.
- Explain where every bar comes from.
- Show uncertainty and flag clients with no history.
It will not:
- Promise that a client will pay on a date.
- Forecast money from invoices you have not created yet in the first version.
- Replace your accountant or your bank balance.
- Let the AI model do the arithmetic. Totals come from PayToMe’s invoice engine, and the AI is used only to explain results in plain language.
Details that matter
Partial payments
If a client pays half an invoice, the forecast treats the remaining balance as the open amount and keeps the client’s delay habit.
Recurring work
For clients on regular billing, the forecast will be able to include upcoming scheduled invoices once recurring invoices are in place, so the chart looks past what is already sent.
Currency
If you bill in more than one currency, the plan is to show the totals in your home currency with a note about the exchange rate used, since rates move.
Related reading
For the underlying idea, see the glossary entry on cash flow.