{
  "id": "days-cash-on-hand",
  "version": "c3f22e373893",
  "status": "published",
  "name": "Days Cash on Hand Calculator",
  "question": "What are our days cash on hand?",
  "summary": "Computes days cash on hand: cash and investments divided by the cash operating expenses of one day (operating expenses minus depreciation and amortization, over the days in the period).",
  "category": "finance",
  "subcategory": "business",
  "url": "https://www.acalculator.org/finance/days-cash-on-hand-calculator",
  "markdown": "https://www.acalculator.org/finance/days-cash-on-hand-calculator.md",
  "kind": "function",
  "method": "Days cash on hand = (cash + marketable securities and investments) ÷ ((operating expenses − depreciation and amortization) ÷ days in the period).",
  "assumptions": [
    "Cash and investments are balances at the end of the period; the expenses are for the whole period.",
    "Depreciation and amortization are taken out because they use no cash.",
    "Arithmetic is exact on the typed decimals; days show to 1 decimal and money to the cent, halves up."
  ],
  "inputs": {
    "$schema": "https://json-schema.org/draft/2020-12/schema",
    "type": "object",
    "properties": {
      "cash": {
        "title": "Cash and cash equivalents",
        "description": "Cash in the bank and short-term deposits at the end of the period.",
        "type": "number",
        "x-unit": "USD",
        "minimum": 0,
        "maximum": 1000000000000000
      },
      "inv": {
        "title": "Marketable securities and investments",
        "description": "Optional: investments that can be turned into cash, including limited-use cash and investments you count.",
        "type": "number",
        "x-unit": "USD",
        "minimum": 0,
        "maximum": 1000000000000000
      },
      "opex": {
        "title": "Operating expenses",
        "description": "Total operating expenses for the period.",
        "type": "number",
        "x-unit": "USD",
        "minimum": 0,
        "maximum": 1000000000000000
      },
      "da": {
        "title": "Depreciation and amortization",
        "description": "Optional: the non-cash expenses included in the operating expenses.",
        "type": "number",
        "x-unit": "USD",
        "minimum": 0,
        "maximum": 1000000000000000
      },
      "days": {
        "title": "Days in the period",
        "description": "The days the operating expenses cover: 365 for a year, 366 for a leap year, about 91 for a quarter.",
        "type": "integer",
        "minimum": 1,
        "maximum": 366
      }
    }
  },
  "outputs": {
    "dch": {
      "label": "Days cash on hand",
      "description": "Cash and investments ÷ cash operating expenses per day, to 1 decimal.",
      "format": "number"
    },
    "daily": {
      "label": "Cash operating expenses per day",
      "description": "(Operating expenses − depreciation and amortization) ÷ days in the period.",
      "format": "money"
    },
    "reserves": {
      "label": "Cash and investments",
      "description": "Cash and cash equivalents + marketable securities and investments.",
      "format": "money"
    }
  },
  "defaultAnswer": {
    "inputs": {
      "cash": 5000000,
      "inv": 3000000,
      "opex": 36500000,
      "da": 1825000,
      "days": 365
    },
    "outputs": {
      "dch": 84.21052631578948,
      "daily": 95000,
      "reserves": 8000000
    },
    "text": "$8,000,000.00 of cash and investments covers 84.2 days of cash operating expenses."
  },
  "examples": [
    {
      "given": {
        "cash": 5000000,
        "inv": 3000000,
        "opex": 36500000,
        "da": 1825000,
        "days": 365
      },
      "expect": {
        "dch": 84.21052631578948,
        "daily": 95000,
        "reserves": 8000000
      },
      "source": "California Department of Health Care Access and Information (HCAI), Financial Health of California Hospitals (days cash on hand = (cash + marketable securities + limited use cash + limited use investments) ÷ ((total operating expenses − depreciation and amortization expense from operations) ÷ days in reporting period)). https://hcai.ca.gov/visualizations/financial-health-of-california-hospitals/; hand calculation in content.mdx: (36,500,000 − 1,825,000) ÷ 365 = 95,000 a day; 8,000,000 ÷ 95,000 = 84.21… (exact 1600/19, Python Fraction)"
    },
    {
      "given": {
        "cash": 1200000,
        "opex": 4380000,
        "days": 365
      },
      "expect": {
        "dch": 100,
        "daily": 12000
      },
      "source": "California Department of Health Care Access and Information (HCAI), Financial Health of California Hospitals (days cash on hand = (cash + marketable securities + limited use cash + limited use investments) ÷ ((total operating expenses − depreciation and amortization expense from operations) ÷ days in reporting period)). https://hcai.ca.gov/visualizations/financial-health-of-california-hospitals/; hand calculation in content.mdx: 4,380,000 ÷ 365 = 12,000; 1,200,000 ÷ 12,000 = 100"
    },
    {
      "given": {
        "cash": 2500000,
        "inv": 500000,
        "opex": 9300000,
        "da": 300000,
        "days": 90
      },
      "expect": {
        "dch": 30,
        "daily": 100000
      },
      "source": "California Department of Health Care Access and Information (HCAI), Financial Health of California Hospitals (days cash on hand = (cash + marketable securities + limited use cash + limited use investments) ÷ ((total operating expenses − depreciation and amortization expense from operations) ÷ days in reporting period)). https://hcai.ca.gov/visualizations/financial-health-of-california-hospitals/ (days in the reporting period); hand calculation in content.mdx: (9,300,000 − 300,000) ÷ 90 = 100,000; 3,000,000 ÷ 100,000 = 30"
    }
  ],
  "sources": [
    "California Department of Health Care Access and Information (HCAI), Financial Health of California Hospitals: days cash on hand is the number of days a hospital can cover operating expenses from existing cash with no more money coming in; (cash + marketable securities + limited use cash + limited use investments) ÷ ((total operating expenses − depreciation and amortization expense from operations) ÷ days in reporting period). https://hcai.ca.gov/visualizations/financial-health-of-california-hospitals/ (retrieved 2026-10-19)"
  ],
  "related": [
    "current-ratio",
    "working-capital",
    "cash-flow",
    "emergency-fund"
  ],
  "changelog": []
}