5 Numbers Every Founder Should Track
Hello! Welcome back.
Before we jump in with today's edition, a quick announcement that we are at #SaasStr this week. We are meeting some amazing folks from the tech community and having great conversations about the fintech space. If you are around, we would love to meet you. So, come say hi!
Now, let's dive right in.
Startups don’t usually die from one bad quarter. They die from not knowing they’re in one.
Financial intuition is important, but it has limits. You can't fix what you can't see.
That’s why every founder, regardless of stage or funding, should track five essential numbers every single month. These aren’t just for your board deck. They’re for your peace of mind.
Let’s break them down.
1. Cash in Bank
First up, the simplest, most grounding number of all.
How much cash do you have right now?
Not projected cash, not “expected payment from that big client”, but the actual number in your account today.
Can you answer that off the top of your head? If not, it’s worth asking: Why not?
Cash in the bank tells you how much room you have to operate, experiment, and breathe. It’s your startup’s oxygen tank. If your tools don’t surface this instantly, you’re flying blind.
2. Burn Rate
Burn rate shows how quickly your company is spending money. It’s your financial metabolism.
There are two ways to look at it:
- Gross Burn: All your expenses
- Net Burn: Expenses minus revenue
Track both. Why? Because they answer different questions:
- What’s our total monthly spend?
- What’s the real damage after revenue comes in?
If your burn is rising and MRR is flat, it’s time to pause. Ask yourself, are you investing in growth or just leaking cash?
3. Runway
Cash tells you where you are. Burn rate tells you how fast you’re moving.
Runway tells you how long you’ve got.
Cash ÷ Monthly Net Burn = Runway (in months)
How many months can you operate before hitting zero? That’s your runway.
But here’s the deeper question: Is it shrinking faster than you planned?
You may have 6 months now, but did you have 9 last quarter? The trend matters more than the snapshot.
Runway gives you leverage if you act early. It creates space to raise, recalibrate, or reallocate, but only if you’re tracking it in time.
4. Monthly Recurring Revenue (MRR)
MRR is your income engine. It’s not just how much you’re making, it’s how reliably you’re making it.
It can be broken down into:
- New MRR (fresh customers)
- Expansion MRR (upsells or seat growth)
- Churned MRR (lost customers or downgrades)
The goal isn’t just growth. It’s durable growth. Is your MRR climbing steadily? Or are you gaining customers just as fast as you’re losing them?
Don’t obsess over ARR unless you're fundraising, it’s just MRR × 12 (and it is relevant for investors).
MRR is what you operate on. It’s the real signal of traction.
5. Gross Margin
This tells you how much do you keep after delivering your product or service?
Gross Margin = (Revenue – COGS) ÷ Revenue
A high margin gives you flexibility to invest in growth, experiment with pricing, or survive a rough patch. A low margin means you have to run lean or raise more capital to keep up.
Where are you right now?
If it’s under 50%, and you’re planning to scale aggressively, it might be time to rethink your cost structure.
Because if revenue is growth, margin is what powers the engine.
Why These Five?
Together, these five numbers give you the clearest possible view of your business:
- Cash: What’s in your wallet
- Burn Rate: How fast you’re spending
- Runway: How long you’ve got
- MRR: What’s coming in
- Gross Margin: What you actually keep
They’re not just “finance metrics.” They’re decision tools.
Just like in a game of poker, you can bluff with a bad hand. But if you don’t know your chips, you’re not in the game, you’re just betting blind.
Similarly, these five numbers are your chips.
They tell you what’s working, what’s fragile, and what’s next. Know them. Track them. Review them every month.
The Finlens Dashboard is built perfectly for you to track these numbers and much more, transparently and efficiently.
