Free tool
Runway, floor, cushion.
How long your money lasts, the least you can live on, and what is still coming in. Three numbers turn a worry into a date.
Take the Runway Check ↓The short answer
How long will your savings last after a layoff?
Divide the cash you could actually spend by what you spend in a normal month: that's your runway, in months. Then run it again against your floor, the least a month can cost with everything optional cut, and count severance and unemployment as a one-time cushion rather than income.
Updated
A note before you begin
Three numbers, not twenty. That's the whole trick.
Most people run this math at two in the morning, in their head, and get a different answer every time — not because they're bad at it, but because the question keeps changing shape. Runway, floor, and cushion are the three that hold still.
Nothing you type is sent anywhere; it runs in your browser and disappears when you close the tab. And none of the three is a verdict. A short runway is information, not a sentence — it tells you which conversations to have this month and which ones can wait until next. A rough guess at your monthly expenses is enough to start.
Tool
Runway Check
Know your runway in ten minutes.
The three numbers
These update as you type. Empty fields count as zero. None of them is a verdict — they're the starting point for every money decision that follows.
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at what you spend today
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what a month costs if you cut everything optional
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severance plus unemployment — money that arrives once, then stops
What the floor buys you
- Runway at the floorHow long your cash lasts if you cut everything back to the non-negotiables.
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- Runway at the floor, with the cushionThe same, once severance and unemployment are counted in — the outer edge, not the plan.
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Where these numbers go
Nothing here is stored.
The calculator doesn't submit your numbers. Close the tab and the numbers are gone. If you want to keep them, that's what your PinkSlipped Plan is for.
Questions people ask
Common questions
What are runway, floor and cushion?
Runway is how many months your cash lasts at today's spending. Floor is the least a month can cost: housing, utilities, health insurance, groceries, minimum debt payments and anything else that isn't optional. Cushion is severance plus expected unemployment, money that arrives once and then stops.
Should I count severance and unemployment as income?
Treat them as a cushion, not income. Severance is paid once and unemployment ends — most states pay up to 26 weeks — so plan against your floor and let the cushion extend your runway rather than set your spending.
Is anything I enter saved?
No. The calculator runs in your browser and nothing you type is sent or stored. If you want to keep the numbers, you can save them to a free PinkSlipped Plan.