What Is Burn Rate in Dental Practices?
Burn Rate refers to the rate at which your dental practice consumes cash each month — typically measured as net cash outflow when expenses exceed income.
It tells you how fast your reserves are depleting and how long you can operate without new income — a critical metric for clinics with tight margins, seasonal fluctuations, or growth-stage investments.
Why Burn Rate Matters for Dental Practice Owners
Most practice owners know their profit. Fewer know their burn rate.
But when:
- Patient income dips
- Associates underperform
- VAT, PAYE, or Corporation Tax hits together
…your burn rate becomes the most important number in the business.
Example:
If you’re spending £62,000/month but only collecting £51,000, you’re burning £11,000/month.
With £33,000 in the bank, you have just 3 months of runway unless conditions change.
How Burn Rate Is Calculated
| Metric | Formula |
| Monthly Burn Rate | Total Cash Outflow – Total Cash Inflow |
| Burn Rate Ratio | (Monthly Burn ÷ Cash Reserves) = Survival in months |
A rising burn rate signals cash stress before it appears in P&L — especially if income is accrued but not collected.
How DentPulse Tracks Burn Rate Automatically
| Feature | Function |
| LIQUIDIQ™ Burn Monitor | Tracks weekly and monthly burn trends based on actual bank activity |
| 12-Week Buffer Overlay | Shows how long your reserves will last at current burn speed |
| MCBTP™ Alerts | Flags if burn rate will breach your safe cash floor |
| CFFP™ Integration | Pairs future cash outflows with expected inflows to project burn risk ahead of time |
| Red–Amber–Green Zones | Categorises your burn rate: sustainable, declining, or dangerous |
DentPulse makes burn rate visible, actionable, and easy to forecast — turning a panic number into a planning tool.
DentPulse Tip™
You don’t go broke on paper. You go broke in the bank.
Tracking burn rate helps you intervene early — before an overdraft or missed payroll catches you off guard.Use DentPulse to manage burn dynamically, not retroactively.
Related Glossary Terms
- 12-Week Cash Buffer – Cash survival window at current burn rate
- CFFP™ – Cash Flow Future Pairing – Projects outflows vs. inflows in real time
- MCBTP™ – Minimum Cash Before Timing Pressure – Your personalised liquidity floor
- Budget Variance – Often the root of unexpected burn increases
- Cash Runway – The number of weeks/months before reserves run out
