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• 5 Best Business Plan Software and Tools in 2023 for Your Small Business

Data as of 3 /13/23 . Offers and availability may vary by location and are subject to change.

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A business plan can do a lot for your business. It can help you secure investors or other funding. It can give your company direction. It can keep your finances healthy. But, if we’re being honest, it can also be a pain to write.

Luckily, you don’t have to start from scratch or go it alone. Business plan software and services can help you craft a professional business plan, like our top choice LivePlan , which provides templates, guidance, and more.

You’ve got quite a few choices for business plan help, so we’re here to help you narrow things down. Let’s talk about the best business plan tools out there.

• LivePlan : Best overall
• BizPlanBuilder : Most user-friendly
• Wise Business Plans : Best professional service
• Business Sorter : Best for internal plans
• GoSmallBiz.com : Most extra features
• Honorable mentions

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LivePlan: Best overall business plan software

Data as of 3 /13/23 . Offers and availability may vary by location and are subject to change. *With annual billing

LivePlan has been our favorite business plan software for a while now, despite the stiff competition.

There’s a lot to like about LivePlan. It has pretty much all the features you could want from your business plan software. LivePlan gives you step-by-step instructions for writing your plan, helps you create financial reports, lets you compare your business’s actual financials to your plan’s goals, and much more. And if you ever need inspiration, it includes hundreds of sample business plans that can guide your writing.

LivePlan software pricing

But the best part? You get all that (and more) at a very competitive price. (You can choose from annual, six-month, or monthly billing.) While LivePlan isn’t quite the cheapest business plan builder out there, it’s not too far off either. And if comes with a 60-day money back guarantee. So there’s no risk in trying LivePlan out for yourself.

With a great balance of features and cost, LivePlan offers the best business plan solution for most businesses.

BizPlanBuilder: Most user-friendly

Need something easy to use? BizPlanBuilder fits the bill.

BizPlanBuilder doesn’t have a flashy, modern user interface―but it does have a very clear, intuitive one. You’ll be able to see your plan’s overall structure at a glance, so you can quickly navigate from your title page to your market trend section to that paragraph on your core values. And as you write, you’ll use a text editor that looks a whole lot like the word processing programs you’re already familiar with.

BizPlanBuilder software pricing

Data effective 3/13/23. At publishing time, amounts, rates, and requirements are current but are subject to change. Offers may not be available in all areas.

BizPlanBuilder also offers lots of helpful guidance for actually writing your plan. It gives you pre-written text, in which you just have to fill in relevant details. It offers explanations for what information you need to include in each section of your plan and way. It even gives you helpful tips from experts, so you’ll have all the information you need to plan like a pro.

So if you want planning software with almost no learning curve, you’ll like BizPlanBuilder.

Wise Business Plans: Best professional service

• Custom quote

Unlike all the other companies on this list, Wise Business Plans doesn’t offer software. Instead, it offers professional business plan writing services―meaning someone does all the hard work for you.

Now, you might think that sounds expensive―and you’re probably right (you have to request a custom quote for your plan). But there’s a lot to be said for expertise, and Wise Business Plans has plenty of that. Your business plan will get written by an experienced writer (with an MBA, no less). They’ll get information from you, do their own research, and then write your plan. You get one free revision, and you can always pay for more.  

Wise Business Plans service pricing

Your end result will be a polished, entirely original business plan. (You can even get printed copies.) And best of all, you won’t have to spend your precious time working on the plan yourself. Wise Business Plans takes care of all the hard parts, and makes your business look good while doing it. Sounds like a service worth paying for, right?

Put simply, if you want the most professional business plan possible, we recommend using Wise Business Plans’s writing service.

Business Sorter: Best for internal plans

Many businesses need plans to show to people outside the company (to get financing, for example). But what if you just need a plan for internal use? In that case, we suggest Business Sorter.

Business Sorter uses a unique card-based method to help you craft the perfect business plan. (You can watch a demo video to see how it works.) You’ll plan some of the usual things, like finances and marketing. But Business Sorter also lets you make plans for specific teams and team members. It also emphasizes more internal matters, like operations, that might get overlooked in a business plan for outsiders.

Business Sorter software pricing

After you’ve made your business plan, Business Sorter also helps you stay accountable to it. You can create tasks, give them deadlines, and assign them to team members―giving you basic project management tools to make sure your business plans become business actions. (Oh, and did we mention that Business Sorter has the lowest starting prices of any software on this list?)

It all adds up to a business plan software that works great for internal planning.

GoSmallBiz: Most extra features

Want to get way more than just business planning software? Then you probably want GoSmallBiz.

See, GoSmallBiz offers business plan software as part of its service―but it’s just one part of a much bigger whole. You also get everything from discounts on legal services to a website builder to a CRM (customer relationship manager) to business document templates. And more. In other words, you get just about everything you need to get your startup off the ground.

GoSmallBiz software pricing

Don’t worry though―you still get all the business planning help you need. GoSmallBiz gives you business plan templates, step-by-step instructions, and the ability to create financial projections. And if you get stuck, GoSmallBiz will put you in touch with experts who can offer advice.

If you want business planning and much, much more, give GoSmallBiz a try.

• PlanGuru : Best financial forecasting
• EnLoop : Cheapest tool for startups

We recommend the software above for most business planning needs. Some businesses, though, might be interested in these more specialized planning software.

Honorable mention software pricing

PlanGuru: Best financial forecasting features

PlanGuru is pretty pricey compared to our other picks, but you might find its forecasting features worth paying for. It has more forecasting methods than other software (over 20) plus it lets you forecast up to 10 years.

EnLoop: Cheapest tool for startups

EnLoop doesn’t have our favorite features or interface, but it does have really, really low pricing plus a seven-day free trial. It's the most affordable software for startup business planning and still provides all the essential features like financial analysis, team collaboration, charting, and more.

Data as of 3 /13/23 . Offers and availability may vary by location and are subject to change. * With annual billing

Several of our previous favorite planning software, including BusinessPlanPro and StratPad, seem to have gone out of business.

A business plan is a written, living document that tells the story of your business and what you plan to do with it. It serves as the source of truth for you—the business owner—as well as potential partners, employees, and investors, but it also serves as a roadmap of what you want your business to be.

Why you need a business plan

While some small-business owners don’t see the point of creating a formal business plan, it can have some concrete benefits for your business. For example, one 2016 study found that business owners with written plans are more successful than those that don’t. 1

Still too vague? Then let’s get specific.

If you ever seek business funding (from, say, banks, angel investors , or venture capitalists ), you’ll have to prove that your business deserves the money you want. A formal business plan―complete with financial data and projections―gives you a professional document you can use to make your case. (In fact, most potential investors will expect you to have a business plan ready.)

Even if you’re not seeking funding right now, a business plan can help your business. A formal plan can guide your business’s direction and decision making. It can keep your business accountable (by, for example, seeing if your business meets the financial projections you included). And a formal plan offers a great way to make sure your team stays on the same page.

What to include in your business plan

Not all business plans are created equal. To make a really useful business plan, you’ll want to include a number of elements:

• Basic information about your business
• Your products/services
• Market and industry analysis
• What makes your business competitive
• Strategies and upcoming plans
• Your team (and your team’s background)
• Current financial status
• Financial and market projections
• Executive summary

Of course, you can include more or fewer elements―whatever makes sense for your business. Just make sure your business plan is comprehensive (but not overwhelming).

How business plan software can help

With so many elements to include, business plan creation can take a while. Business plan software tries to speed things up.

Most business plan software will include prompts for each section. In some cases, you can just fill in your business’s specific information, and the software will write the text for you. In other cases, the software will give you specific guidance and examples, helping you write the text yourself.

Plus, business plan software can help you stay organized. You’ll usually get intuitive menus that let you quickly flip through sections. So rather than endlessly scrolling through a long document in a word processor, you can quickly find your way around your plan. Some software even lets you drag and drop sections to reorganize your plan.

Sounds way easier than just staring at a blank page and trying to start from scratch, right?

Choosing business plan software

To find the right business plan builder for your business, you’ll want to compare features. For example, would you rather write your own text, getting prompts and advice from your software? Or would you rather go with a fill-in-the-blank method?

Likewise, think about the elements you need. If your plan will have a heavy focus on finances, you’ll want to choose business plan software with robust financial projection features. If you care more about market and competitor analysis, look for software that can help with that research.

You may also want to find business plan software that integrates with your business accounting software . Some plan builders will import data from Xero, QuickBooks, etc. to quickly generate your financial data and projections.

And of course, you’ll want to compare prices. After all, you always want to end up with software that fits your business budget.

The right business plan software can make your life easier. With LivePlan ’s wide breadth of features and online learning tools, you can’t go wrong. Plus, BizPlanBuilder 's one-time pricing makes it easy to invest while Business Sorter has a low starting cost. And if you're business is looking to grow, GoSmallBiz and Wise Business Plans will scale with you.

But of course, different companies have different needs. So shop around until you find the software that’s best for you and your business.

Now that you've got a business plan, take a look at our checklist for starting a small business.  It can help you make sure you have everything else you need to get your startup off to a good start!

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Creating a business plan can take anywhere from a couple hours to several weeks. Your timeline will depend on things like the elements you choose to include, whether you use software or hire a writing service, and how much research goes into your plan.

That said, much of the business plan software out there brags that it can help you create a fairly detailed plan in a few hours. So if you’re going the software route, that can help you set your expectations.

If you want to get the most out of your business plan, you should update it on a regular basis―at least annually. That way, you can continually refer to it to inform your company’s strategies and direction.  

At the very least, you should update your business plan before you start looking for a new round of funding (whether that’s with investors or lenders).

Thanks to business plan software, you can easily write your own business plan rather than pay someone to do it for you. And in most cases, software will cost you less than a professional business plan service.

There are some times you might want to go with a service though. If time is tight, you might find that it’s worth the cost of a service. Or if you’ve got big investor meetings on the horizon, you might want the expertise and polish that a professional service can offer.

Ultimately, you’ll have to decide for yourself whether business plan software or a business plan service will work better for your company.

Methodology

We ranked business plan software and tools based on features, pricing and plans, and connections to project management and other services. The value of each plan and service, along with what it offers, was a big consideration in our rankings, and we looked to see if what was offered was useful to small businesses or just extra. The final thing we looked at was the ease of use of the software to see if it's too complex for small businesses.

At Business.org, our research is meant to offer general product and service recommendations. We don't guarantee that our suggestions will work best for each individual or business, so consider your unique needs when choosing products and services.

Sources 1. Harvard Business Review, “ Research: Writing a Business Plan Makes Your Startup More Likely to Succeed .” Accessed March 13, 2023.

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5 Best Business Plan Software in 2022

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When you’re starting a business, developing a strong business plan will be one of the first steps you take. Your business plan will cover everything from a detailed explanation of your products or services and pricing model to at least three years of financial projections—plus much more. Therefore, whether you’re not sure how to get started or you’re just looking to make the process easier, you may want to turn to business plan software for help.

In this guide, we'll break down five of the best business plan software options—discussing their pros, cons, features, pricing, and more—so you have all the information you need to decide which solution is right for your small business.

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The 5 best business plan software options

The right business plan software will make the process of writing your business plan much simpler. Like many business software solutions, however, there are a number of different business plan software options out there—each of which has a unique set of features, user experience, and price.

This being said, if you're looking for a place to start your search for the best business plan software, you can explore the five top options below:

How much do you need?

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We’ll start with a brief questionnaire to better understand the unique needs of your business.

Once we uncover your personalized matches, our team will consult you on the process moving forward.

1. LivePlan

Best overall business plan software.

If you want template-rich, modern-feeling business plan software, then LivePlan may be the right pick for you. LivePlan excels with their user interface, which feels updated and slick, and also offers intuitive, easy-to-use features and options.

Their step-by-step instruction will help you kick things off from the beginning, and you can take advantage of their online learning center to continue to gain business skills.

Affordable plans, including pay-as-you-go option

No long-term contracts or cancellation fee; 60-day money-back guarantee

Modern, intuitive interface; cloud-based, can be used on Mac, PC, as well as tablets

Ability to create unlimited plans in one account; over 500 customizable templates

Variety of business resources including video tutorials, step-by-step instruction, and general customer support

Limited integration options

Challenging to enter your own financial modeling projections

Can be difficult to learn

Ability to create an unlimited number of business plans on one account

More than 500 business plan templates spanning various industries

Integration with Xero and QuickBooks Online

Real-time tracking of financial data with accounting integrations

Ability to export your business plan to Word or PDF

Expert advice and step-by-step instruction included

Performance dashboards for tracking against budgets and sales goals

Ability to create and export a one-page pitch executive summary

Annual plan: $15 per month, billed every 12 months

Six-month plan: $18 per month, billed every six months

Pay-as-you-go plan: $20 per month, billed once every month

2. GoSmallBiz

Best for multiple business management tools in one platform.

Next on our list of the best business plan software options is GoSmallBiz, which is much more than just a business plan software. With GoSmallBiz, you have access to business continuity planning software with features that cover creating a roadmap, working through business and legal forms, building a website, and more.

In this way, GoSmallBiz is great for startups or newer businesses looking to access multiple business management tools through one platform.

Unlimited business consultation and extensive library of online resources

Multiple business tools in one software

Website consultation analysis and business assessment

Industry-specific business plan templates with emphasis on financial projections and statements

Expensive monthly cost compared to alternatives

Limited business plan features

Entire business plan can only be exported to Microsoft Word

Outdated interface

Industry-specific business plan templates with step-by-step building wizard

Ability to create financial statements and projections

Free website hosting and website builder

Customer relationship manager with integration with MailChimp

Digital marketing dashboard with social media and Google Analytics integrations

HR document builder

Corporate minutes writer

Business documents library

Business courses library

Unlimited business consultation

$39 per month, no contracts, free cancellation

Best for simple, fast business plan creation.

If you're looking for free business plan software, Enloop will be one of your closest options—they offer an all-inclusive seven-day free trial, no credit card required. Additionally, unlike some of the other options on our list, Enloop is strictly dedicated to business plan creation, including automated text writing, financial forecast comparisons, and a real-time performance score that tracks your progress.

This being said, if you'd prefer the most straightforward, fast, and simple way to write your business plan, Enloop will be a platform worth considering.

Simple and straightforward software, solely dedicated to business plan creation

Seven-day free trial

Automatic text generation available to streamline the writing process

Affordable plans with annual discount option

Limited additional educational resources

Only one template option

No integration options

Ability to create three business plans with customizable text, images, tables, charts, and over 100 currency symbols and formats

Includes automatic text generation for each plan section that you can then customize

Automatically generated financial statements

Includes financial performance comparison analysis (using three ratios with Detailed plan and 16 with Performance plan)

Real-time performance score to track your progress

Ability to invite users to edit (two with Detailed plan, five with Performance plan)

Pass/fail report and certificate to help you identify issues with your plan

Free plan: Seven-day free trial with no credit card required

Detailed plan: $19.95 per month or $11 per month, paid annually

Performance plan: $39.95 per month, or $24 per month, paid annually

Best for startups looking to acquire funding or find investors.

Part of the Startups.com suite, Bizplan gets top marks for their user interface—it’s intuitive, easy to use, and modern. You’ll work with a step-by-step business plan builder to get exactly what you’d like from your business plan. It may remind you of a modern website builder, since it has drag-and-drop tools to build templates.

Moreover, for one subscription fee, you have access to all of the tools in the Startups.com network, including self-guided courses, how-to guides, masterclass videos, and more. All in all, with a direct connection to Fundable, Bizplan is a top business plan software option for startups looking to acquire funding and find investors.

Subscription gives you access to all Startups.com tools

Lifetime access subscription option

User-friendly drag-and-drop business plan builder

Excellent educational resources

Connection to Fundable great for businesses looking for capital

No free trial

No templates based on industry

No mobile access

Drag-and-drop templates for business plan building

Financial command center to track all business financials in one place

Unlimited account collaborators

Ability to share business plan online with investors

Online resources including self-guided courses, masterclass videos, how-to guides, mentorship access

Unlimited software use for Fundable, Launchrock, and Startups.com

Monthly plan: $29 per month

Annual plan: $20.75 per month, billed at $249 per year

Lifetime access: $349 one-time fee

5. PlanGuru

Best for financial planning and budgeting.

Finally, for some of the strongest financial features among business plan software options, including budgeting and forecasting, you might check out PlanGuru. Whereas the other solutions we've reviewed were first and foremost focused on writing a business plan, PlanGuru is dedicated to business financial planning —providing the tools you need to create budgets, financial forecasts, reports, and more.

Therefore, if you need a software solution that can streamline the financial piece of your business planning processes, PlanGuru will certainly have the most to offer.

Extensive financial tools and detailed forecasting, budgeting, and reporting capabilities

Substantial library of resources

Cloud-based and desktop options

14-day free trial and 30-day money-back guarantee

Expensive, especially for additional users

Only focuses on the financial aspect of business planning; no templates or tools for basic business plan writing

Difficult to use without prior financial knowledge

Cloud-based version of software, as well as locally installed Windows version (desktop version has a few more features)

Works with QuickBooks Online, Xero, and Excel

Budgeting and forecasting for up to 10 years

Over 20 standard forecasting methods

Formula builder to create custom methods

Ratios and KPIs

Dashboard and reporting tools

Help guides, video tutorials, knowledgebase, and live U.S.-based customer support

14-day free trial

$99 per month (additional users $29 per month)

$899 per year (additional users $299 per year)

What to look for in business plan software

Ultimately, it's up to you to decide, which, if any, of the best business plan software solutions on our list is right for your business.

So, if you're trying to figure out how to choose between the various options out there, it might be helpful to compare your top choices based on the following criteria:

Features: As we've seen different business plan software solutions offer different features. You'll want to look carefully at the feature list of any software and determine what features are most important for your business needs. Do you need an extensive library of templates with detailed customization? Would you prefer software that includes an online learning center for business skills? Are you looking for a solution that combines business plan writing with other tasks? It may be useful to list out your ideal feature set, so you can compare individual software plans to that list.

Price: Although you might be able to find some free business plan software options (or at the very least, free trials), in most cases, you'll need to pay a subscription fee to access the platform you choose. Therefore, you'll want to think about what your budget is for this business tool and what type of software is most cost-effective for your needs.

User experience: User experience can vary widely among different business plan software options. You’ll find some programs that are newer or have been recently updated. Others might have the kind of interfaces that felt new years ago but are now pretty out of date—and, subsequently, make them a little harder to use. The right user experience for your needs is genuinely a matter of opinion and comfort—nevertheless, it's worth testing thoroughly testing out a platform to ensure that it can truly work for you before investing in a monthly or annual subscription.

The bottom line

There's no doubt that properly crafting your business plan is important for the future growth and success of your small business. Luckily, the right business plan software should make the process much simpler.

This being said, whether you opt for one of the best business plan software options listed here, or another platform entirely, you'll want to take the time to compare multiple solutions and ensure you choose the one that's right for your business.

As we mentioned, it can be helpful to think about the features you're looking for, your budget, and your user-experience preferences ahead of time—that way, you'll have a set of criteria in mind as you explore different solutions.

Ultimately, perhaps the best thing you can do to find the right software is to actually test out the platforms themselves—either by using a free trial or a money-back guarantee.

This article originally appeared on JustBusiness, a subsidiary of NerdWallet.

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• Initiate with Your Business Concept: Lay the Groundwork: Start by introducing your business idea into Plannit AI's Business Plan Generator. This first step is crucial, as it sets the tone for a tailored, insightful business plan that truly resonates with your vision. Capture the Essence: Our platform is designed to grasp the nuances of your concept, ensuring that the generated plan accurately reflects the core and potential of your business.
• Navigate Through the AI-Guided Questionnaire: Tailored Interactive Experience: Plannit AI’s AI-guided questionnaire is your interactive guide through the planning process. It meticulously gathers information about your business's objectives, strategies, and market positioning, ensuring a comprehensive and reflective plan. Intelligent Feedback and Suggestions: As you progress through the questionnaire, benefit from smart prompts and suggestions, ensuring that your plan is not just detailed but also strategically sound and aligned with industry standards.
• Generate Your Plan with Advanced AI: Intuitive Plan Creation: With the questionnaire complete, Plannit AI's advanced algorithms intelligently analyze your responses. They then craft a detailed, customizable, and strategically aligned business plan, providing you with a structured, coherent, and actionable format. Benefit from AI-Powered Insights: Plannit AI offers AI-driven insights and suggestions, ensuring your plan is not just a document but a strategic tool equipped with tailored AI prompts and an in-app plan editor. Get inspired by browsing through our sample business plans, a collection of successful strategies across various industries.
• Finalize Your Plan with Confidence: Dynamic Adaptation and Refinement: Plannit AI recognizes that a business plan is a living document. Our platform allows for continuous adaptation and refinement, ensuring your strategy remains agile, relevant, and aligned with your evolving business goals. Professional Presentation and Sharing: Once your plan meets your standards, utilize Plannit AI's export features to present your plan professionally. Choose between various formats for exporting your business plan, ready to impress stakeholders, attract investors, or guide your team. Review and Adapt: Ensure your business plan is a living document, ready to evolve with your growing business. Plannit AI's dynamic platform allows you to adapt your strategy as new opportunities or challenges arise.
• Roadmap for Success: At its core, a business plan acts as a strategic guide, providing detailed steps on how your business will achieve its objectives. It helps you navigate the startup phase, manage growth effectively, and tackle unforeseen challenges with a well-thought-out strategy.
• Securing Funding: For startups and businesses looking to expand, a business plan is crucial for securing loans or attracting investors. It demonstrates to potential financial backers that your business has a clear vision, a solid strategy for profitability, and a plan for delivering returns on their investment.
• Informed Decision-Making: A well-prepared business plan offers valuable insights into your market, competition, and potential challenges. This information is vital for making informed decisions, from day-to-day operations to long-term strategic shifts.
• Market Analysis and Strategy: It allows you to conduct an in-depth analysis of your target market, understand customer needs, and position your product or service effectively. The marketing strategy outlined in your business plan helps in identifying the best channels and tactics to reach your audience and achieve market penetration.
• Financial Planning: One of the most critical components of a business plan is the financial forecast. It outlines your funding requirements, expected revenue, profit margins, and cash flow projections. This section is essential for budgeting, financial management, and ensuring the financial viability of your business.
• Goal Setting and Performance Measurement: A business plan sets clear, measurable goals and objectives. It provides a framework for monitoring performance, measuring success, and making necessary adjustments to stay on track.
• Aspiring Entrepreneurs: If you're at the idea stage, looking to transform your vision into a viable business, Plannit AI offers the tools and guidance to bring your concept to life. Our platform helps you articulate your business idea, define your target market, and develop a solid plan to turn your dream into reality.
• Students and Educators: For students delving into the intricacies of business planning and educators teaching the fundamentals of entrepreneurship, Plannit AI serves as an invaluable resource. It provides a practical, hands-on tool for learning and teaching how to create detailed business plans, analyze markets, and understand financials in a real-world context.
• Startup Founders: In the dynamic startup environment, Plannit AI is the ideal partner for founders looking to pivot quickly, secure funding, or understand their competitive landscape. With our AI-driven insights and market analysis tools, startups can make informed decisions and adapt their strategies to thrive in competitive markets.
• Small Business Owners: For small business owners seeking to optimize their operations, expand their customer base, or explore new markets, Plannit AI offers targeted solutions. Our platform simplifies the planning process, enabling owners to focus on growth while managing the day-to-day challenges of running their business.
• Consultants and Freelancers: Consultants and freelancers specializing in business development, strategic planning, or financial advising will find Plannit AI a powerful addition to their toolkit. It allows them to provide clients with comprehensive, data-driven business plans and strategies, enhancing the value of their services.
• Non-Profit Organizations: Leaders of non-profit organizations can leverage Plannit AI to plan initiatives, secure funding, and manage resources more efficiently. Our platform helps non-profits articulate their mission, set achievable goals, and measure their impact, ensuring they can make a difference in their communities.
• Innovators and Inventors: Individuals looking to commercialize innovative products or technologies can use Plannit AI to navigate the complexities of bringing new ideas to market. From patent strategies to go-to-market plans, our platform covers all bases, ensuring innovators can focus on what they do best.
• Small Business Development Centers (SBDCs) and Government Agencies: Government and SBA backed entities can greatly benefit from integrating Plannit AI into their services, enhancing their ability to support a larger number of clients more efficiently. By facilitating quicker, more in-depth business plan development, these organizations can spend more time assisting with plan execution and less time on creation, ultimately serving their communities more effectively.
• Anyone with a Business Idea: Ultimately, Plannit AI is for anyone with a business idea, regardless of industry, experience, or stage of business development. Our mission is to democratize business planning, making it accessible, understandable, and actionable for everyone.
• Interactive Questionnaire and ChatGPT Integration: Plannit AI transforms the business planning process into an engaging conversation. Through our advanced ChatGPT integration, we offer a questionnaire that dynamically adapts to your responses, ensuring your plan is personalized, comprehensive, and aligned with your business goals.
• Dynamic Planning Environment: Unlike static templates provided by many, Plannit AI introduces a living platform that grows with your business. It features real-time updates, strategic insights, and a feedback mechanism that keeps your business plan current and actionable.
• Extensive Educational Resources: Our Education Center is packed with articles, guides, and sample plans to bolster your planning process. It's designed to arm you with the knowledge to navigate the complexities of your industry confidently.
• Enhanced Collaboration and Customization: Recognizing the collaborative essence of business planning, Plannit AI supports team efforts with multi-user editing, annotations, and feedback features, ensuring a comprehensive approach to your strategy.
• Customer Success Stories: Our users' achievements are a testament to Plannit AI's effectiveness. These success stories illustrate how diverse businesses have utilized our platform for strategic planning and growth.
• Tailored Business Plan Creation: Our platform stands out with its tailored approach, featuring customizable templates that directly cater to your business type and industry, making plan creation straightforward and relevant.
• Content Generation:: ChatGPT helps draft various sections of a business plan, from executive summaries to marketing strategies, by providing structured and coherent text based on the prompts given.
• Strategic Insights: It can offer suggestions on business strategies by analyzing trends and providing examples from a wide range of industries.
• Financial Planning: While it can't replace professional financial advice, ChatGPT can guide the structure of financial projections and statements, helping you consider important financial aspects of your plan.

Take The First Step Towards Success

10 Best Business Plan Software and Tools for Better Productivity

Fast fact: 70% of businesses that survive for 5 years follow a strategic business plan. 

That makes having a comprehensive and compelling business plan a no-brainer for long-term business growth. It serves as a roadmap for your venture and demonstrates your vision, strategy, and potential to investors and stakeholders. 

However, drafting a business plan from scratch can take time and effort, especially for those with limited experience and resources. Fortunately, many excellent business plan software solutions are available to make the process easier.

This article covers the top 10 business plan software options available in 2024. Each offers unique features, pricing structures, and capabilities to cater to diverse business needs. 

Let’s get right in!

10 Best Business Plan Software for 2024

1. Upmetrics 2. LivePlan 3. Enloop 4. BizPlan 5. GoSmallBiz 6. Business Sorter 7. iPlanner 8. Cuttles 9. MAUS Master Plan Lean 10. Storydoc 11. Retable

1. Upmetrics

Upmetrics is a modern and AI-powered business plan generator that simplifies the complexities of creating a comprehensive business plan. With its intuitive business plan builder and built-in templates, Upmetrics allows users to customize their plans and forecasts according to their specific needs.

The newly launched AI assistant can help users create a business plan from scratch within 10-15 minutes. All you need to do is enter some information about your business and see your plan coming through.

Key Features:

• 400+ customizable business plan templates
• AI Pitch Deck Creator
• Strategic Planning Tools
• Financial forecasting capabilities

Pricing: Starter plan at $7/month, Premium plan at $14/month. (annual billing)

2. LivePlan

LivePlan is a comprehensive and user-friendly business plan software that serves to businesses of all sizes and industries. It offers a user-friendly interface and step-by-step guidance to make the process of crafting a professional business plan easier.

• Customizable templates and industry-specific examples
• Financial forecasting and budgeting tools
• Pitch deck and presentation mode
• Real-time collaboration and sharing capabilities
• Expert advice and educational resources

Pricing: Starts at $20/month for the basic plan, with more advanced options available.

Enloop is a cloud-based solution designed specifically for creating business plans for investors, banks, and lenders. Enloop’s writing and text synchronization features can help you streamline business plan creation for you. Let’s check out some of its best features.

• Free version for testing the solution
• Available in multiple languages
• Interactive PDF export
• Step-by-step guidance and templates

Pricing: Basic plan starts at $9/month, with more advanced plans ranging from $11 to $40/month.

BizPlan is a versatile business plan builder that connects to the Startups.com network, making it an ideal choice for startups seeking investment. With its step-by-step approach and the Progress Tracker tool, BizPlan helps users stay organized and on track.

• Connectivity to Findable for attracting financial investment
• Online educational programs for entrepreneurs
• Multiple owner access to a single account
• A lifetime access option is available

Pricing: Monthly plan at $29/month, annual plan at $249/year, or lifetime access for $349 (one-time fee).

5. GoSmallBiz

GoSmallBiz is an online support system specifically designed for small businesses and startups in the United States. In addition to business plan creation, GoSmallBiz offers valuable resources and educational materials to help to aspire entrepreneurs succeed.

• Access to up-to-date management information
• Unlimited access to online consultants
• Customer database for attracting and retaining customers

Pricing: Monthly fee of $39.

6. Business Sorter

Business Sorter is a cloud-based solution that simplifies the process of creating internal business plans. Featuring a user-friendly card system and pre-designed solutions tailored to different business needs, Business Sorter is perfect for entrepreneurs who aren’t looking for investor-focused presentations.

• 173 digital cards for comprehensive business planning
• Unlimited team member access and monitoring
• Multi-device accessibility
• Built-in help function and strong data protection

Pricing: Cost depends on the number of users, with a special offer for companies with an unlimited number of team members.

7. iPlanner

iPlanner is a multifunctional platform for business planning and project management. The tool provides a variety of business plan templates and financial forecasting tools , making it suitable for a broad spectrum of startups, from restaurants to large enterprises and venture capital initiatives.

• Step-by-step business plan creation wizard
• Integration with Microsoft Office and DropBox
• Training content library with practical recommendations
• Experienced mentor support

Pricing: Professional Plan at $55 (supports 1 project), Corporate Plan at $93 (supports 12 projects), and Corporate Plus (custom pricing).

Cuttles is a fully interactive business planning software with a focus on planning, budgeting, and financial forecasting. With its ready-made templates and multi-language support, Cuttles caters to a global audience of entrepreneurs.

• One-page business plan template for banks, investors, and lenders
• High-level security through cloud storage
• PDF export for business plans
• Online training courses and resource library

Pricing: Seed Plan at $8/year (1 startup, 1 user), Grow Plan at $16/year (1 startup, unlimited users), and Series Plan at $48/year (unlimited startups and users).

9. MAUS Master Plan Lean

MAUS Master Plan Lean is an Australian-based business plan creation software designed for strategic planning. With its comprehensive toolset, MAUS Master Plan Lean helps users create actionable plans, track tasks, and monitor performance.

• Strategic planning wizard
• Step-by-step action plan creation and task tracking
• Schedule creation and collaboration tools
• Real-time marketing reports and performance tracking

Pricing: Business Planning & HR Pack at $97/month, MasterPlan Learn at $299/year, and Business Planning Pack at $499/year.

10. Storydoc

Storydoc is a business plan creator designed to help entrepreneurs and businesses create outstanding and innovative business plans, as well as other types of presentations. With its intuitive interface and a wide range of features, Storydoc makes it easy to organize and present various aspects of your business plan.

• Ready-made interactive slide templates optimized for engagement
• Robust integrations with existing tech stack
• Ability to pull company branding directly from website
• Extensive analytics panel for tracking performance

Pricing: Starter plan at $40/month per user, Pro plan at $60/month per user, and custom Team plans (pricing available upon request).

11. Retable

Retable  is a versatile and intuitive project management and data management software designed to streamline operations of all sizes of business. With its easy-to-use interface and robust feature set, Retable makes managing data sets, tasks and projects simpler and more efficient.

• Customizable templates for various use cases
• Advanced data views like grid, kanban, list, card, calendar, chart, map and form
• Collaborative workspaces with real-time updates
• Organization, team and role management
• Integration with popular productivity apps
• Over +30 column types
• Custom branding

Pricing: Starts at $12/month for the team plan.

Why use business plan software?

Using business plan software offers several advantages over creating a business plan from scratch. These software solutions are designed to streamline the process, provide guidance, and ensure a professional and well-structured outcome. Here are some key reasons to consider using business plan software:

Time-saving: Business plan software automates many tasks, such as formatting, financial calculations, and data organization, saving you valuable time and effort.

Guided approach: Most business plan software provides step-by-step guidance, prompts, and templates to ensure you cover all essential components of a comprehensive business plan.

Professional presentation: These software solutions offer built-in tools to create visually appealing and professional-looking business plans, increasing the chances of impressing potential investors or stakeholders.

Financial forecasting: Advanced financial forecasting tools help you create accurate financial projections, a critical component of any successful business plan.

Collaboration and sharing: Many software options offer collaboration features, allowing multiple team members to contribute to and review the business plan, ensuring a cohesive vision.

By using the power of business plan software, you can simplify the process, improve efficiency, and create a compelling and comprehensive business plan that effectively communicates your vision and increases your chances of success.

How to Choose the Right Business Plan Software?

With so many business plan software options available, choosing the right one for your needs can take time and effort. Here are some key factors to consider when selecting the best business plan software:

Ease of use: Look for software with a intuitive navigation & user-friendly interface to ensure a smooth learning curve and efficient workflow.

Industry-specific templates : Consider software that offers customizable templates and industry-specific examples relevant to your business sector.

Financial forecasting capabilities : Evaluate the financial forecasting tools and their ability to create accurate projections based on your business data.

Collaboration and sharing features: If you plan to involve multiple team members or stakeholders, prioritize software with robust collaboration and sharing capabilities .

Educational resources and support: Software that provides educational resources, such as tutorials, expert advice, and customer support, can be invaluable, especially for first-time business plan creators.

Integration with existing tools: Consider software that easily integrates with your existing platforms and tools, such as accounting software or cloud storage solutions.

Pricing and scalability: Evaluate the pricing plans and ensure they align with your budget and long-term goals, considering the potential for business growth and scalability.

By carefully assessing your specific needs and prioritizing the features that matter most to your business, you can select the best business plan software that will streamline the process and maximize your chances of success.

Creating a well-crafted business plan is similar to preparing a business proposal , it should be neat & clean, to the point, and engaging enough to attract investors or partners. The top 10 business plan software options discussed offer a wide range of capabilities to cater to diverse needs.

From user-friendly interfaces to advanced financial forecasting tools, collaboration features, and industry-specific templates, tools like Upmetrics streamline the creation of a comprehensive and professional business plan.

Selecting the right software requires careful consideration of factors such as ease of use, financial forecasting capabilities, collaboration features , educational resources, and integration with existing tools.

By utilizing the power of business plan software, you can present your vision with clarity and professionalism, increasing your chances of attracting the resources and support needed for long-term success.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Which business plan software is the best?

The best business plan software depends on your specific needs, goals, and budget. Some top options include Upmetrics, LivePlan, Enloop, BizPlan, each offering unique features and pricing structures. Carefully evaluate the capabilities of each software against your requirements to make an informed choice.

How do I create my own business plan?

Start by choosing a business plan software that provides templates, guidance, and tools for different components like executive summaries, market analysis, and financial projections. Follow the step-by-step process outlined by the software, filling in the necessary information and customizing as needed. Leverage the software’s features to create a comprehensive and professional business plan.

What are the different types of business plans?

The main types include standard business plans for presenting to investors or banks, lean business plans without extensive background information, and one-page business plans or pitches. Additionally, there are operational, tactical, strategic, and contingency business plans tailored to different purposes and business stages.

Is business plan software secure?

Most reputable business plan software solutions prioritize security features like multi-factor authentication, intrusion detection, data encryption, and regular security updates. However, it’s crucial to evaluate the specific security measures of the software you’re considering to ensure the protection of your sensitive business data.

Is it necessary for small businesses to use business plan software?

While not strictly necessary, using business plan software can significantly benefit small businesses by streamlining the process, providing guidance, and ensuring a professional outcome. It can save time, improve efficiency, and increase the chances of impressing potential investors or stakeholders.

What are the benefits of using Business Plan Software?

Key benefits include time-saving through task automation, a guided approach with templates and prompts, professional presentation tools, advanced financial forecasting capabilities, and collaboration features for multiple team members. Overall, business plan software simplifies the process and improves the quality of your business plan.

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6 Best Business Plan Software Platforms (2024)

Read on for a list of our favorite software platforms for writing a business plan, plus advice on how to choose the right business plan software for your needs.

Every successful ecommerce business is supported by a foundation of solid business planning. A professional business plan sets the stage for your new business , acting as an internal and external roadmap for brand identity, financial planning, project management, and more.

Writing a business plan is an important and often difficult task for any entrepreneur or business owner. If you can't get your head around a business plan template , business planning software can help. If drafting a business plan from scratch sounds too daunting to tackle on your own, business plan software offers everything you need for business plan creation, including financial reports, sample business plans, how-to articles, and more.

Read on for a list of the best business plan software platforms, plus advice on how to choose the right business plan software for your needs.

6 best business plan software platforms for 2023

Affordable software with business plan templates and samples

• Pricing : standard plan is $15/month; premium is $30/month; annual discounts available
• Money-back guarantee : 60 days
• Capterra rating : 4.5/5
• G2 rating : 4.1/5
• Integrations : QuickBooks, Xero, open API

One of the most affordable pieces of business plan software on this list, LivePlan allows users to create unlimited business plans and offers more than 500 sample business plans and pages to start with. Get step-by-step guidance on how to write your plan and use templates for different types of business plans, making it easy to tailor your plan to your needs.

LivePlan also offers a robust set of financial forecasting tools, helping you to convert financial data like cash flow statements into easy-to-read charts and graphs.

Business plan software for entrepreneurs who struggle with writing

• Pricing : 7-day free trial; detailed plan is $19.95/month; performance plan is $39.95/month; annual discounts available
• Money-back guarantee : none, but no contracts are required
• Capterra : 4/5
• Integrations <: none

Enloop has many of the same features as other pieces of business plan software. It automatically syncs financial data and creates financial ratios. And when you write your plan, it assesses it and gives you a performance score, so you can improve it if needed. You can also add users for easy collaboration and sharing. Enloop is especially good if writing isn’t your strong suit, as you can plug in your metrics and let the software do the “writing” for you .

Business plan software for startups seeking investment

• Pricing : $29/month; $349 lifetime access; annual discounts available
• Money-back guarantee : 3 days
• Capterra : 4.4/5
• Integrations : Xero, QuickBooks

Bizplan is a business plan software that caters to small businesses and startups seeking external investment. The platform makes connecting with potential investors easy, and allows users to easily publish a business plan on Fundable, a popular crowdfunding platform.

Other standout features include drag-and-drop tools for creating business plan templates, access to self-guided business courses from Startups.com, and financial tools to help set salaries, forecast revenue, and track expenses.

Best business plan software for planning, forecasting, and scenario analysis

• Pricing : 3-day free trial available; app and desktop require separate subscriptions at $99/month each, plus $29/month per additional user; discounts available for annual billing
• Money-back guarantee : 30 days
• Capterra : 4.2/5
• Integrations : Xero, QuickBooks, Microsoft Excel

If the focus of your business plan is your business’s financial picture and potential, PlanGuru is an excellent option. In addition to offering most of the basic business plan software features you’d expect, PlanGuru offers tools for budgeting, financial forecasts and reports , strategic planning, and scenario analysis.

While PlanGuru supports additional users, each user also comes with an additional monthly fee of $29/month .

Best contract-free business plan software for new businesses

• Pricing : plans start at $15/month; Go service plan for $199/year; Guide service plan for $49/month; Grow service plan for $39/month; additional one-time services and recurring subscriptions available
• Capterra : n/a
• Integrations : MailChimp

While it may not have the longest list of business planning features, GoSmallBiz’s solution is part of a larger business continuity planning software platform that includes tools for everything from human resource management to tax payments. GoBizPlan also offers industry-specific business plan templates to kickstart your business plan creation. This is especially helpful if your business idea is destined for a specific vertical market .

GoSmallBiz users can create financial statements and projections for multiple years, including income statements , cash flow statements , and balance sheets . Finally, GoSmallBiz offers step-by-step guidance, prompts, and tutorials to help users get the most out of the platform .

Business plan software with the option to get help from professionals

• Pricing : free trial available; annual subscriptions available; PlanBuildr uses a custom pricing model; rates aren’t readily available on its website, but one landing page prices the business plan software at $3,500
• Money-back guarantee : none, but subscription may be canceled anytime within the first 30 days
• Integrations : various across accounting, CRM, and marketing tools

PlanBuildr is another user-friendly business plan software for people who aren’t as confident with the writing process. This software uses a fill-in-the-blank business plan creator to help you quickly build a simple but solid business plan. PlanBuildr also offers extensive financial reports and features, including charts and graphs and the ability to create various financial projections.

PlanBuildr has 10 business plan designs to choose from, and you can also hire PlanBuildr for additional business plan writing services .

Why use business plan software?

Entrepreneurs use business plan software to guide them through the process of turning a business idea into a complete business model. Only a select group of small business owners go into business for writing—the rest have stronger skills elsewhere. Business plan software can offer the exact support you need to get the wording, structure, and presentation just right.

Likewise, not every entrepreneur is good with numbers. Business plan software can help with financial forecasting by making sense of your cash flow and other financial data. Some software will even automatically generate financial statements for you, making it easier for you and your audience to understand the numbers.

Many business plan tools also offer a range of business plan templates . It’s almost always easier to follow a template or business plan example than to start with a blank page. Writing a business plan is a lot less intimidating this way. Plus, business plan templates can function as a checklist, ensuring that you don’t omit any important sections or information .

How to choose your business plan software

While most business planning software can accomplish the same end goal, each has its own pros and cons, depending on your needs. The best business plan software for you may be different than the best option for your fellow business owners. When shopping for business plan software, consider the following:

• Budget . Perhaps most obvious, the business plan software you choose needs to fit within your budget. Basic business plan tools may not have all the functionality you’re looking for, but more advanced features typically mean a higher price tag.
• Collaboration . If you’re collaborating on your business plan with a fellow founder, an accountant, or legal counsel, you’ll want a business plan tool that supports multiple team members. Some software also allow you to add users as viewers, which can be helpful for distributing the plan to shareholders, lenders, or potential investors, for example.
• Financial reporting . If business financials and reporting are important to you, choose business plan software that excels in this area. Look for business planning tools that offer financial forecasting features beyond basic data reporting, including marketing and performance reports and data visualization through charts and graphs. If you need more extensive financial tools, consider investing in accounting software .
• Interface . Every tool you use in your business needs to have an interface that’s easy to navigate. Choosing business planning software with a steep learning curve or difficult-to-navigate interface may make the process of creating a business plan more frustrating than it needs to be.
• Templates . One of the greatest advantages to using business plan software is access to business plan templates and examples. The best business plan software options offer a range of templates, enabling you to create business plans for multiple audiences and different contexts.
• Software integrations . If you have a tightly connected tech stack, it would behoove you to find a business plan software that can integrate seamlessly with other popular business tools, including Microsoft Office and popular platforms for marketing and accounting.
• Support. If you run into trouble with your business planning software, a great support team or library of business resources can help you get back on track. As a bonus, most business plan software providers also offer online learning tools to help you maximize your results, including video tutorials and built-in advice modules
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Business plan software FAQ

What is the best software to write a business plan, what are the 4 types of business plans.

• Startup business plan
• One-page business plan
• Internal business plan
• Strategic business plan

Is there a template for a business plan?

Do i need a business plan to start a small business.

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You can do this! Tour LivePlan to see how simple business planning can be.

Have an expert write your plan, build your forecast, and so much more.

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Business Plan Builder

A guided business plan builder that's simple & fun

Tackle your business plan in no time with AI assistance and step-by-step instructions from our business plan writing software.

Trusted by over 1 million small business owners

4.8/5 Google reviews

35-day money-back guarantee Get started risk-free

It's like having a business coach guide you through the process

Expert Guidance

Get simple instructions every step of the way

LivePlan's step-by-step instructions, examples, prompts and definitions of key business terms guide you through each phase of creating a professional business plan.

Access a library of over 550+ sample business plans for inspiration, chat with support for additional help, or join an expert-led webinar to get additional business planning tips and wisdom.

AI-Powered Planning

Welcome to a world without writer's block

LivePlan's business plan builder asks you questions about your business, you simply plug in the answers. It's as easy as that. Get expert guidance, instructions, and examples at each step.

Not sure where to start? The AI-Powered LivePlan Assistant will automatically generate ideas for each section of your plan and offer improved versions of your writing, adjusting for tone, voice, and grammar or spelling errors.

Automatic Financials

Forget the formulas and focus on your vision

Forget the complex formulas and spreadsheets — with automatic financials and drag-and-drop forecasting you can finish faster and be confident your numbers are accurate.

Instantly get tailored revenue and expense suggestions to add to your forecast using the AI-Powered LivePlan Assistant.

Growth Planning

Manage your growth with a data-driven process

Markets change faster than ever and technology evolves at breakneck speed. Be ready to adapt quickly, stay focused, and make decisions that are best for your business with growth planning.

LivePlan's business plan builder will teach you this simple, repeatable, four-step process to help keep your business healthy — no matter what stage you're at.

How We're Different

More than business plan writing software

LivePlan isn't just a business plan builder — it's a comprehensive business planning system to help you plan, fund, and grow.

Plenty of support to help you succeed

Inspiration powered by ai.

Use LivePlan's online business plan builder to instantly generate ideas at each step of your plan. You can also access 550+ sample plans to find one that matches your industry.

Guidance from business experts

Stay on track with video walkthroughs, webinars, and more from business planning experts.

If you ever get stuck, our team will help

If you ever have a question, you can instantly chat with a LivePlan expert.

Create a plan and build your business dreams

Frequently asked questions.

7 Best Business Plan Software for Startups in 2024

| Written by

Launching a new startup is an exciting yet challenging endeavor. Crafting a comprehensive business plan is a critical first step for any founder to outline their vision, objectives, and strategy. It acts as a roadmap to help guide important decisions and next steps as a company grows.

With so many options available, finding the right business planning tool can be daunting. The best software should be affordable, user-friendly, and offer a robust set of features to aid in financial modeling, strategic planning, and more.

In this review, we’ll explore some of the top business plan software solutions designed specifically for entrepreneurs. We’ll compare capabilities, ease of use, templates and resources, integrations, pricing, and more. Whether you’re looking to create an investor-ready plan or simply organize your strategy, choosing the right tool can help you get started on the right foot.

Our #1 Pick: LivePlan

Save time and create a professional business plan with intuitive tools and step-by-step guidance.

Unsure if LivePlan is right for you? Continue reading our comprehensive review below to learn more and explore your options.

Best Business Planning Tools

In this review, we’ll look at seven of the best business plan software platforms — discussing their pros, cons, features, pricing, and more — so you can decide which one is right for your startup.

Best Business Plan Software for Startups 2024:

• LivePlan – Best Overall
• Bizplan – Easiest to Use
• Enloop – Best Automation Features
• PlanGuru – Best Financial Forecasting
• IdeaBuddy – Best for Idea Validation
• iPlanner – Best for Nonprofits
• Wise Business Plans – Best Professional Services

The following tools all have their own great features. Based on its affordable pricing and usability, LivePlan is our top business plan software choice for startups.

Try LivePlan today or continue reading to explore your options!

Best Business Plan Software: LivePlan

LivePlan is the overall best business plan tool, offering a large number of features at an affordable price.

1. LivePlan – $15/month to $30/month

We love LivePlan overall because it offers great value at an affordable cost. The software lets you quickly create a business plan from anywhere in the world using what is arguably the best business plan software available on the market. It does everything better than its competition and costs way less.

What’s more, the online “cloud-based” platform is easy to use and you are under no contract or obligation to keep paying for the service. Even better, if you decide to stop service for whatever reason, Palo Alto Software, the makers of LivePlan, will keep your account active and data preserved for at least a year should you decide to reactivate your account later.

• Create an unlimited number of business plans
• A forecast feature for those less mathematically inclined. Plug in data, and it will generate charts, graphs, figures, and even the profit and loss, balance sheet, and cash flow statements
• 500+ business plan templates spanning all major industries
• Real-time financial data tracking
• Performance dashboards track sales and budgeting
• Create one-page pitch plans for potential investors
• Milestone scheduling feature — Some people will use it when working with others on their plan; it will let you assign milestones to people.
• Low-cost annual plans
• Affordable pay-as-you-go plans
• No cancellation fees
• Data saved for 12-months, even after cancellation
• Clean, modern platform
• Cloud-based; works on any business machine (Linus, Windows, Mac)
• Integrates with Quickbooks and Xero to import your data easily
• Knowledgeable customer support to get help with your plan
• No valuation capabilities
• Templates built on Palo Alto Software’s earlier software Business Plan Pro require some modifications to be used on LivePlan

Insider Information

Talking to the nice people at LivePlan we learned some inside information that we wanted to share with our readers.

Here’s what we learned:

• LivePlan has been used by contestants on ABC’s hit show “Shark Tank” to win over angel investors to help them get their ideas and businesses funded.
• Accountants use LivePlan as an added-value service to sell to their clients.
• Businesses continue using LivePlan because of a feature called “Dashboard” which lets you manually enter your actuals or pull actuals from Quickbooks online to do comparative forecasting and analysis.
• LivePlan helps with business continuity planning (BCP).
• LivePlan executives use LivePlan to make important business decisions.
• “Dashboard” does profit and loss, cash flow, and balance sheet reports and lets you compare and contrast your actuals from your forecasts to be able to show to investors.
• LivePlan lets you create business plans in 1/5th the time it takes using templates.

Customer Reviews

LivePlan receives great feedback from customers. LivePlan reviews average 4.5 stars out of 5 on GetApp. LivePlan is an easy company for us to recommend for the best business plan software.

2. Bizplan – $29/month, $249/year, $349 lifetime

Bizplan rates high on our list because they offer a lifetime plan that gets you “forever access” to their business plan software. As an added bonus, you also receive free access to Startup Courses and LaunchRock, a landing page builder.

• Easy, “fill-in-the-blanks” plan builder
• Publish your business plan online
• Unlimited business plans
• Bizplan takes care of the financials
• Cloud-based (use any browser on any computer)
• Options to add more graphics and photos
• Low-cost yearly plans
• Create unlimited business plans
• Xero to import your data easily
• Excellent and responsive customer support (email/chat/phone)
• Free access to Startup.com and LaunchRock.com
• Discount at Fundable.com (connect with lenders and investors)
• Can’t export in Word
• Doesn’t currently integrate with QuickBooks
• No free trial
• No third-party app integrations

Talking with BizPlan insiders, we learned that the premise behind BizPlan is to help startups easily create professional business plans to give them a leg-up with lenders and investors.

Here’s what else we learned:

• BizPlan’s does all your financial calculations for you.
• BizPlan strives to be an all-in-one solution for Startups needing funding.
• BizPlan is constantly making improvements to its software.

BizPlan receives great feedback from customers. BizPlan reviews average 4.4 stars out of 5 on GetApp. Still a relatively new option, BizPlan already has over 30,000 satisfied customers. As their platform grows, we wouldn’t be surprised to see them integrate even more valuable features. Keep a close eye on this one.

3. Enloop – Free to $39.95/month

If you’re looking to try before you buy, Enloop is a strong choice as one of the only business planning software tools with a free trial.

• User-friendly platform
• Compare your financials against your industry’s performance
• Bank ready financial statements (Profit and Loss, Balance Sheet, Cash flow)
• Lets multiple team members work on a business plan
• 36-Month detailed financial reports
• Sync date and text into your business plan
• Real-time performance rating
• Generated business plan Pass/Fail report
• Multiple currency formatting
• Seven-day free trial (no credit card required)
• Advanced financial ratios
• Financial projections
• Video tutorials to help you with the writing process
• No phone or chat support, just a “contact us” form.
• Three business plan limit per account
• Doesn’t integrate with QuickBooks or Xero
• No financial forecasts beyond 36-months
• No 30-day money-back guarantee

We learned that the premise behind Enloop is to make business planning easier for entrepreneurs. Enloop achieves this by making software simple to navigate through and takes risks off the table with their no credit card needed seven-day free trial. Their business plan creation software offers financial forecasting features for up to 36 months.

• Enloop utilizes 16 financial ratios to get your business ready for investors.
• Enloop offers some sample business plans that are easy to modify.
• Enloop’s performance score increases as you create your detailed plan.
• A new business or small businesses benefit the most from Enloop’s solutions.

Enloop receives fair feedback from customers. Enloop’s reviews average 3 stars out of 5 on PCMag. Enloop’s main complaint is its lack of instructional text for writing mission statements and other key sections. What they rank high on is their efficiency and the speed at which the software lets you write a business plan.

Even beyond the free version, Enloop Basic is just $9.95/month ($6/month when paid annually), so they’re one of the least expensive tools for writing a business plan.

4. PlanGuru – $99/month to $299/month

PlanGuru is a good option if you’re looking for considerably more robust software that offers quite a bit more. The most notable feature we like is the valuation tool, only present on the desktop version of the software. PlanGuru lets you calculate the valuation of your business using three different methods. No other business plan software offers this that we know of.

PlanGuru also offers budgeting, forecasting, and performance tools to help you put together a business plan. In the main, PlanGuru allows you to get a custom-tailored three financial statement budget model up and running out of QuickBooks or Xero in a matter of minutes. PlanGuru’s business plan writing software takes you through a setup process where it asks you questions such as:

• What’s the first month of your fiscal year?
• How many historical years do you want to import?

And, once you answer these questions, PlanGuru then generates a model for you that you can then populate with your historical data if you have it. Then you can go through PlanGuru’s 20+ projection methods.

Some financial data projection methods include:

• Expenses, like payroll, etc.
• Balance sheet items, like accounts receivable, accounts payable, crude expenses, prepaid expenses, loans, etc.

These are only a few of the features the business plan software offers. Here are some more.

• Budgeting/Forecasting Software
• Analytics Service for Financial Performance & KPIs
• Valuation calculations (desktop software only)
• Desktop and cloud-based options
• Free 14-day trial and 30-day money-back guarantee
• Great customer support and knowledgeable sales staff
• Lower-cost yearly plans offered
• Advanced financial calculations
• Business valuation calculations
• No contracts
• Integrates with QuickBooks and Xero
• Costlier than LivePlan and most other business plan software options
• Additional cost per user can add up quickly

The great thing about PlanGuru is that the only thing you have to worry about is the income statement and balance sheet projections because the cash flow statement is automatically generated.

Then once you have the cash flow statement, income statement, and balance sheet in place, you can then lock down the budget.

• PlanGuru’s desktop version has three different types of valuation methods that calculate the worth of your business.
• PlanGuru has some really nice reporting tools that pull together your financial statements into table formats, say, for the bank, line-by-line.
• PlanGuru also has some nice charts, graphs, scorecards, and some easily digestible reports that can help you visualize how your company is performing.
• Exports to Excel, PDF, and Word documents –and, there’s even a tool that lets you create customized reports.
• You can print your plan off too to show partners, lenders, and investors.
• PlanGuru now offers a cloud-based version of its software, though it will take some time to catch up to the rich features offered by the current desktop software version.
• With PlanGuru you also get free updates, bug fixes, and new releases as they become available.

Important Note: These tools are important because investors may want to see not only historical performance but also projections.

5. IdeaBuddy – Free to $35/month

IdeaBuddy makes our list because of what’s behind their approach. IdeaBuddy focuses on helping entrepreneurs develop their idea first, then share it, and then refine it into a plan. If you have a business idea and don’t know what to do next, IdeaBuddy could be what you’re looking for in a business plan software.

• Single-page business plan pitch (Idea plan)
• Clean modern design platform combined with great financial tools
• Marketing plan for selling and promoting your products
• Market overview plan where you create targeted customer profiles, identify your competition and calculate the market potential
• Business plan creation that includes forecasting performance and cash flow projections
• A proprietary algorithm calculates a final score for your idea providing recommendations for improvement after you complete “Story Mode”
• Idea Journal, that is an internal business plan for you to show potential investors
• A lifetime plan costs only $178
• Great for developing ideas
• Great for doing market research
• Pay-as-you-go plans offered
• Email-only customer service
• Software lag time issues
• Fewer software options than most other small business options

IdeaBuddy has some great features that are fantastic from idea conceptualization down to cost projections and the laying out of steps to take to start a business. We would have liked, however, to been given more KPIs that would notify us of tasks, help with idea validation, and help us measure other objectives to better monitor the health of our business. Another thing lacking was the design of the finished plan–it contained some noticeable structural issues.

IdeaBuddy has received some outstanding customer reviews on GetApp. IdeaBuddy has earned a 4.6-star rating out of 5 possible stars.

6. iPlanner – Starts at $55/year

iPlanner is a comprehensive business plan software that has been aiding entrepreneurs since 2007, providing a robust framework for developing business plans, models, and financial forecasts online.

• Unlimited Team Members & Collaboration
• A La Carte Pricing Model vs Packages
• Discounts for Serial Entrepreneurs & Business Coaches
• Solid amount of industry knowledge and experience.
• They’ve got two trademarked business planning services, Startup Framework™ and Strategy Designer™
• All of their business planning packages allow you to have unlimited collaborators and assign people three different roles: Project Owners, Advisors, and Viewers.
•  Their Startup Framework software has a business modeling section where you can design a business model canvas and strategize as much as you need before diving into your plan.
• Doesn’t have a month-to-month option for either of their services. Their Strategy Designer is payable only annually, while their Startup Framework is available for 3-month, 6-month, or 12-month payments.
• They don’t offer refunds
•  Their website is pretty old school and tough to navigate.
•  Unlike other business planning software, iPlanner doesn’t offer a free version or trial. However, you can take a tour of their Startup Framework software or view a demo of the Strategy Designer to get a feel for them.

iPlanner’s Business Planning Software

If a simple framework is all you’re looking for, iPlanner can help you out. They don’t have many bells and whistles, but at these price points, they offer a good value for nonprofits and corporations.

7. Wise Business Plans – Pricing by Request

Wise business plans website is a little confusing to navigate, and pricing is by request only, which can get frustrating. They do have a lot of options for different kinds of business plans for various types of business types, which makes them versatile. They also have business building and funding options as well. And, if you wish to establish business credit, they offer net-30 accounts that get reported to Equifax business.

• Claim to be the only business plan company to write for Fortune 100 and 500 companies
• Business formation services
• Business license searches
• EIN services
• Digital marketing services
• Business website design and branding
• Has a lot of helpful information
• Helpful options for forming your business
• Options to help after you start your business
• Helps small businesses establish business credit
• Not an actual business plan software
• Expensive by comparison
• Website is difficult to navigate
• Pricing is by request only
• Limited products and features
• Turnaround is one month
• Requires some work on your end

Business Plan Software Pros and Cons

• By using business plan software providers, you’ll be able to create a solid outline for your business. Although some of the options above are better than others, each will walk you through from start to finish.
• No matter how you look at it, business plan software is cost-effective. As long as you actually use the tool, you’ll generate significantly more value than you’re spending on monthly subscription fees.
• If you spend the time to create a solid plan, you’re much more likely to hold yourself accountable. Think of planning software like an accountability buddy for entrepreneurship.
• Your business plan tool will help set realistic financial goals, and most can also keep your bottom line in check by integrating your accounting software.
• Business planning software enables you to collaborate with partners, mentors and investors.
• Some of the business plan tools don’t offer support and can have slightly buggy features. That said, if you’re serious about writing a solid plan, go with a tool that’s constantly updated and well made.
• Although some business plan tools have a collaboration feature, none of them can review it when you’re done. All business planning tools lack a human touch.

How to Choose the Right Business Plan Software

With the array of business planning tools available, it can be daunting to select the right one for your needs. Here are some tips for choosing a business plan software solution:

• Consider your skill level – Opt for software like a wizard-guided template if you are less experienced in writing plans. Choose more advanced software with greater flexibility once you know what you are doing. Look for drag-and-drop tools to easily organize sections.
• Determine your budget – Prices range from free to several hundred dollars. Know how much you can spend before shopping.
• Compare features – Look for software with the specific tools you need, like financial projections, sample text, customizable templates, and more.
• Evaluate the financial tool capabilities – The software should provide extensive financial tools like forecasting, modeling, projections, and dashboards to streamline financial planning.
• Check reviews and ratings – Get feedback from other users about their experience with the software. High reviews indicate easier, more user-friendly software.

Which Is the Best Business Plan Software?

You know the unique requirements of your startup better than we do. These are all quality services that offer business planning software tools for entrepreneurs like you. Feel free to read over our full reviews if you’d like to know more about any of them or even visit the websites directly.

In general, we do prefer LivePlan because they have a huge library of business plan templates, and we love their convenient dashboard. They’re the planning software that is most likely to help you via customer support, continue updating their tool, and figure out ways to make your business experience better. Enjoy!

What is the purpose of a business plan?

The purpose of a business plan is to provide a structured outline and roadmap for a business’s goals, strategies, and operations. It serves as a guide for decision-making, resource allocation, and management. 

Furthermore, it can be a crucial tool for attracting investors, securing loans, and ensuring that all stakeholders have a clear understanding of the business’s direction and objectives.

What does business plan software do?

Business plan software assists entrepreneurs and businesses in creating, organizing, and refining their business plans. It provides tools, templates, and guidance to streamline the planning process. 

Features often include financial forecasting, market analysis, visual aids like charts and graphs, collaboration capabilities, and even integration with other business tools. This software aims to simplify the task of creating a thorough and professional business plan.

How do you write a business plan?

To write a business plan, start by writing an executive summary that provides an overview of your business idea, products/services, market opportunity, and projected growth. Outline your company description, industry analysis, target customers, competitive advantage, marketing and sales plans, operations, management team, and financial projections.

How long should a business plan be?

The length can vary based on the complexity of the business, its stage, and its intended audience. In general, it might range from 15-50 pages. However, the key is to ensure that the plan is comprehensive yet concise. 

For many situations, especially when seeking investment, a more detailed one is preferable. Yet, for internal purposes or for businesses at very early stages, a shorter, more concise plan might suffice.

Are there business plan templates on Word?

Yes, Microsoft Word has business plan templates you can download and customize. The templates provide section headings, instructions, sample text, and tables to input your specific business information.

What is Palo Alto Software?

Palo Alto Software is a company that’s been around since the late 1980s. They created business management software for startups and existing businesses. The software has since been updated and rebranded as LivePlan and today happens to be one of the most sought-after business plan software available in the marketplace.

Individual Business Plan Reviews

Further Reading

• What Is a Business Plan? July 2, 2024
• Lean Startup Business Plan Guide July 2, 2024
• The 7 BIGGEST Business Plan Mistakes to Avoid July 10, 2024

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Create Your Business Plan

• Create a comprehensive business plan.
• Easily customize your slides to fit your needs.
• Showcase data with 40+ chart options.

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Our business plan maker is used by over 27,500,000 marketers, communicators, executives and educators from over 133 countries that include:

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Professional business plan templates.

Create a presentation or document business plan quickly and easily with Visme's template options. Customize each page or slide to fit your vision and information to pitch to cofounders or investors. Get started today.

Data visualization made easy

Tell your story with the data to match using easy-to-customize charts and graphs. Select from 40+ chart and graph visualizations and find the one that proves your point clearly. Upload static data or connect to Google sheets for live data.

Customize every aspect of your presentation with your own images and text

Convey the exact mood you desire for your business plan with over a million images, thousands of icons, dozens of charts and data widgets to visualize information in an engaging way. Apply a color scheme to all your slides with one click. Add animation effects, transitions, interactivity, pop-ups, rollovers and third-party content to support your business case.

Speed things up with Visme AI Designer

Go from a text prompt to a ready-to-use design in mere minutes with Visme AI Designer (Beta). Do you need to create a business plan but lack the time? Let Visme AI Designer help you save time and effort. Describe your desired project to our AI Designer Chatbot, choose a style, and relax as AI Designer generates your project.

Apply our simple business plan template to give you a head start.

Meet the Team

Mission Statement

Product Overview

Value Propositions

Industry Landscape

Market Size

Customer Descriptions

Market Growth

Competitive Comparison

Competitive Advantage

Business Growth Projections

Marketing Mix

Conversion Funnels

Funding Needed

Share Your Business Plan

Finished your business plan and ready to share with the world? Visme’s business plan template makes it easy to publish, download and get feedback on your design. Simply download as a high resolution image or PDF, or publish it to the web and send a link to access it.

LEARN ABOUT BUSINESS PLANS

What is a Business Plan ?

A business plan is a written document or presentation that allows business leaders to share the business potential and goals, as well as your plans for the future. The business plan is a key step in working towards getting investors looking at your product.

If you're looking to flesh out a new business idea or venture in order to get cofounders or investors on board, you need a business plan. Get started with one of our templates to give you a starting point and framework for your own plan.

Why do I need a business plan?

Writing a business plan is a key step in securing funding and convincing high level executives that your business is worth their time. A well-executed business plan is crucial to the success of a business and it’s one of the first steps you should take.

EVERYTHING YOU NEED + MORE

Make Your Business Plan Stand Out

Take your business to new heights with a beautifully designed business plan. Our tools put the power of visual communication in the hands of entrepreneurs and business owners, no matter their level of design skills.

MAKE IT ENGAGING

Highlight your business’ unique selling point with interactive hotspots and rollover effects. Capture the attention of investors and stakeholders with interactive content.

VISUALIZE YOUR DATA

Charts & Graphs

Showcase in-depth data, statistics, and financial projections in a unique way. Harness the power of data visualization with Visme’s professional infographics, charts and graphs.

MEASURE THE IMPACT

Gain insight into the impact of your business plan with an analytics report. Track how many people have viewed your business plan and gauge its effectiveness.

HOW IT WORKS

How to Make a Business Plan in 5 Steps

If you are wondering how to write a business plan, you’ve come to the right place. Instead of starting your business plan from scratch, use our business plan templates to get you going in no time.

Learn more about creating your own business plan presentation or document by going through our step-by-step tutorial below or watching this quick video.

• Log into your Visme dashboard or create a new account, then click Create New Project.
• Access our business plan templates by searching for “Business Plan” in the search box.
• Select the template, then customize the content for your business.
• Update any charts and graphs to reflect your business goals.
• Once all your content is added, customize colors, logos, icons and more.

Questions About the Business Plan Template

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Your business plans deserve to be beautiful and so does the rest of your content

10 Best Business Plan Software and Tools in 2024

Got a million-dollar idea but find yourself staring at a blank page when it comes to crafting a business plan?

Yes, a business plan. It’s essential for your company, just like it is for any other firm. No entrepreneur is new to the importance of the plan.

But does the thought of spending endless hours and resources on creating one seem daunting?

Here’s the game-changer—with business plan software , you can craft a solid, engaging plan that attracts investors in just days.

These platforms not only assist in writing your plan but also in creating financial projections, cover pages, and more. But with so many options available, finding the perfect fit for your company can be confusing.

To help you with that, we’ve compiled a list of the top 10 business plan software based on user interface, features, pricing, and more.

Let’s dive in and explore your best options!

Best Paid and Free Business Plan Software and Tools

Jump to section.

Before getting into detailed analyses of each tool, let’s take a look at them to understand their suitability, impressive features, and base price.

How do we analyze these business planning tools?

Following extensive research and evaluation, we’ve compiled a list of the top business planning platforms. We considered factors like user experiences, ratings and reviews from G2 and Capterra, cost, and scalability.

Additionally, we’ve assessed these tools based on their automation capabilities, integrations, and other features. This list is tailored for business owners and individuals looking to streamline and optimize their business planning process.

1. Upmetrics

About Upmetrics

Upmetrics is the leading AI-powered business planning and financial forecasting tool for business students, entrepreneurs, and small business owners.

Upmetrics’ AI assistance helps you draft an entire business plan within an hour; you only need to answer a few questions and refine the initial draft. The platform allows you to work with your partners, advisors, or consultants in real time, ensuring everyone’s on the same page.

Besides, if you have burning business questions, you can’t seem to find the answer, shoot. Upmetrics’ AI Assist will provide practical answers for them. It’s like a business coach or co-pilot working with you on your plan.

Wait. That’s not all! Besides all these features, Upmetrics offers an automated financial forecasting tool with a visual dashboard, an AI-powered pitch deck creator, an extensive library of 400+ sample plans, a strategic planning tool, and a lot more.

Here’s the cherry on top: All these features won’t cost you a fortune. Upmetrics is affordable, reliable, and best for beginners (no technical knowledge needed).

Let’s have a look at what more you get using Upmetrics:

AI business plan generator

With an AI business plan generator, you answer a few questions and your plan will be ready.

Automated financial projections

Our AI does all the hard work and provides realistic financial projections without any complex calculations.

400+ business plan templates

Upmetrics has a library of customizable business plan templates to give you a great start on your plan.

AI co-pilot

Our AI co-pilot is your research assistant & business advisor, answering questions and providing insights.

Integration

Integrate your actual financial data from Xero and QuickBooks directly for seamless financial planning.

Real-time collaboration

The tool lets teams work together on business plans simultaneously, enhancing efficiency.

Other key features of Upmetrics include:

• AI pitch deck creator: With our AI business pitch builder, you can effortlessly auto-write sections, integrate business plan data, and create compelling presentations that capture investor interest.
• Guided business plan builder: With practical tips and examples you get inspiration on what exactly to write. Besides that, our drag-and-drop builder ensures a clear and visually appealing design.
• AI assistance: Enhance the business plan writing with AI assistant, through which you can auto-write, change the tone, alter the language, adjust the length, make financial statements, and more.
• Create actionable business strategies: Simplify the creation, management, and execution of your business strategy with our powerful planning tools and business canvases.
• Business resources: The tool offers various business resources like checklists, guides, and video tutorials to give you a great head-start for your business plan writing journey.
• Scenario planning: Easily see how different decisions affect your finances by testing various scenarios. This helps you prepare for any future financial situation.

Upmetrics pricing

Upmetrics provides the most affordable plans, and it also offers a 15-day money-back guarantee. Here are the two plans that the tool offers:

Create winning Business Plans with ultimate

AI Business Plan Generator

Plans starting from $7/month

What People Say About Us

2. Liveplan

About Liveplan

LivePlan is one of the best and most renowned business planning, budgeting, and performance-tracking tools for startups and small business owners.

Whether you’re a startup looking to attract potential investors or an established organization that needs help creating a forecast of your business’s financial future—LivePlan can help.

LivePlan simplifies the process of creating a professional business plan with its instruction manuals, tutorials, and expert guidance, whereas its automated financials built-in with formulas ensure precise financial forecasting.

LivePlan provides a wide range of features which may include:

• AI-powered business plan creator: It helps you write your business plan and answer your business-related doubts. It also helps you change the tone and length. However, the price may be prohibitive for some users.
• Budgeting and expense tracking: The tool helps you manage your finances with ease, providing real-time insights and detailed reports.
• Online learning tools & resources: From tutorials to step-by-step guides and a library of templates, LivePlan provides the resources needed to create a successful business plan.
• Collaborative planning: It enables teams to collaborate on business plans with real-time editing and commenting from anywhere.
• Pitch deck creator: With a customizable template and easy-to-use tools, you can create professional pitch decks that effectively communicate your business idea and vision.

What I didn't like about LivePlan?

Compare Liveplan with Others

Liveplan vs. Enloop: Which is Best for Your Business?

IdeaBuddy vs. Liveplan: Which is Best for Your Business?

Bizplan vs. Liveplan: Which is Best for Your Business?

About Enloop

Enloop is a business planning and financial forecasting tool. It helps business owners measure the strength of their business plan through their performance score feature to help them begin their venture with confidence. 

Unlike Upmetrics and LivePlan—Enloop is designed for individuals with prior financial knowledge and business planning experience.

Understanding all of its functionalities can be tough since it’s not the most intuitive and user-friendly application in this space. So it may take a while to get used to it.

Enloop provides a wide range of financial tools and business planning features, which may include:

• Business plan creation: Enloop's business plan creation feature guides you through the process of creating a professional business plan.
• Automated financial forecasts: The tool automatically generates financial forecasts in your business plan, which you can edit later. Although, there aren’t many verified reviews to back their claims.
• Collaboration features: It allows collaboration but lacks real-time editing and commenting. Members must save changes before others can access the plan.
• Real-time performance score: The real-time performance score goes up as you complete each section helping you improve your plan.

What I didn't like about Enloop?

4. IdeaBuddy

About IdeaBuddy

IdeaBuddy is an innovative business planning tool that helps new-age entrepreneurs turn their ideas into successful business plans. 

Customizable templates, industry-based guides, as well as streamlined idea and business plan creation, make it one of the most user-friendly applications on the list.

It’s designed on a principle where users can develop, test, and launch their business ideas—all in one place. While it’s great for idea creation, it may lack several comprehensive business planning features.

Financial forecasting is vital to a business plan, but IdeaBuddy may not provide all the necessary financial features for accurate projections.

So if your business is in the idea stage—choosing IdeaBuddy could be a fair call, but if you plan to build a comprehensive business plan, you need another tool.

IdeaBuddy provides a wide range of features, which may include:

• Modern business plan builder: It compiles all the sections from the business guide to generate a modern business plan.
• Mobile-friendly platform: It lets you manage your business plans from any mobile device with ease. You can collaborate in real-time and make quick edits and updates.
• Customizable templates: IdeaBuddy’s customizable templates offer a flexible and professional framework for creating business plans, financial forecasts, and pitch decks. But it doesn’t offer extensive design customization features.
• Test to score your idea: This feature evaluates your business concept's viability using a structured scoring system, competitive advantage, and financial feasibility.
• Brainstorm ideas with your team: This feature facilitates collaborative idea generation and development. It allows members to contribute their insights in a shared environment.

What I didn't like about IdeaBuddy?

About Planful

Planful is a business planning and financial performance management cloud software. It provides a structured framework for industry-wide businesses to develop, track, and execute their plans.

The tool specializes in financial performance management with advanced features like—financial close management, reporting, and consolidation.

While the tool has numerous advanced features and functionalities—they all come with a high price tag as it’s mainly designed for medium and large-scale enterprises.

Let’s have a look at the extensive financial tools and features you may get with a planful subscription:

• Budgeting and forecasting: With features like forecasts, driver-based planning, and what-if scenario analysis organizations can align budgets with business goals.
• Financial consolidation: Real-time consolidation updates and detailed reporting capabilities offer insights into financial performance across the organization.
• Scenario modeling: Users can create multiple scenarios and compare them to make informed decisions.
• Anomaly detection: Planful helps you spot unusual or out-of-the-ordinary things in a company's financial information to improve data accuracy.
• Data integration and connectivity: The platform integrates seamlessly with ERP, CRM, and other systems, ensuring that data is up-to-date and accurate.

What I didn't like about Planful?

6. iPlanner

About iPlanner

iPlanner is a business planning tool that has been helping entrepreneurs develop their business plans since 2007. It’s suitable for businesses looking to secure funding, better understand and manage risks, or communicate the company’s business model and strategy to the team.

Though this business planning tool has been around for over a decade now, it hasn’t seemed to cope with technological advancements, so it may not provide the most intuitive and visually appealing user interface.

But if you’re searching for an affordable business planning and performance tracking tool with KPIs, analytics, and reporting features, iPlanner can be a good investment.

Here’s an overview of the key features of iPlanner—a business planning tool: 

• Financial forecasting: There are tools to create comprehensive financial forecasts, including income statements, balance sheets, and cash flows.
• Scenario analysis: The scenario analysis feature enables you to evaluate various business scenarios by adjusting key variables and assumptions.
• How-to articles and guides: There are how-to articles and other resources to guide you in your business plan writing journey.
• Collaboration and sharing: With real-time editing and commenting, team members can collaborate from anywhere, ensuring everyone is on the same page.

What I didn't like about iPlanner?

7. PlanGuru

About PlanGuru

PlanGuru is a business planning tool that helps entrepreneurs make better decisions, increase profits, and accomplish their business goals through strategic business planning and accurate forecasting.

Budgeting & financial analytics, rolling forecast, and strategic planning are three critical components of PlanGuru’s feature list. 

PlanGuru specializes in forecasting financial statements, scenario analysis, budgeting, and gaining insights through reporting tools.

It offers many advanced financial forecasting features but is quite expensive— making it unsuitable for startups with limited investment capital.

PlanGuru provides a wide range of financial tools and business planning features to create business plans, which may include:

• Business valuation tool: With advanced valuation methods and sensitivity analysis, it enables informed decision-making for strategic planning and investments.
• 20+ standard forecast methods: The platform offers over 20 standard forecast methods, empowering businesses to protect their financial performance.
• Archive budget feature: This feature enables businesses to store and organize past budgets for easy reference and analysis.
• Custom report builder for Excel: It allows users to create tailored financial reports within Excel, leveraging the platform's analytical and visualization tools.

What I didn't like about PlanGuru?

8. The Business Plan Shop

About The Business Plan Shop

The Business Plan Shop is a business & financial planning and analysis platform for small and medium-sized business owners and financial advisors.

Its industry-specific business plan templates make it easier for beginners to get started.

Despite its many features, the business plan tool specializes in financial analysis, forecasting, and KPI tracking. It surely has a few advanced features but can be expensive for startups and small businesses.

This business planning tool provides a wide range of features, which may include:

• Financial forecasting: It automatically generates key financial metrics and allows for scenario commentary to explore different outcomes.
• Sync accounting data: It seamlessly integrates with your accounting software to import financial data directly into your business plan.
• Drag and drop templates and editor: This feature offers you a flexible way to create your plan. Users can easily customize templates by dragging and dropping sections.
• Faster than Microsoft Word: Unlike the manual formatting required in Word, this platform automates many aspects of the process, significantly speeding up the process.

What I didn't like about The Business Plan Shop?

About Bizplan

Bizplan is a comprehensive business planning tool that helps startups, entrepreneurs, and small business owners create business plans with direct access to planning experts. 

Financial tools help create detailed financial projections and financial and cash flow statements in no time, so entrepreneurs can spend more time growing and scaling their businesses.

The platform also has a fundraising tool to help startups connect with potential investors—which has already helped raise over $500 million for startups.

It has all the features to create a basic business plan but may lack industry-specific guidance or assistance.

Let’s have a look at the wide range of features that come with a Bizplan subscription:

• Drag and drop functionality: Customizable templates with drag-and-drop functionality for easy organization and editing.
• Financial modeling: It allows users to easily visualize financial data through charts and graphs, making complex financial information more understandable.
• Reporting and presentation: Track progress and metrics with detailed reports, and easily create professional presentations to showcase your business plan.
• Progress tracking: It enables users to monitor the development of their plan in real-time. It provides a visual overview of completed sections to stay organized.
• Step-by-step guidance: The tool provides users with a structured framework for creating their business plans. It ensures that users cover all aspects of business plans.

What I didn't like about Bizplan?

About Brixx

Brixx is a financial forecasting tool for cash flow, budgeting, and financial planning. Apart from helping users create a basic business plan, the platform also helps them with financial modeling, scenario planning, and goal tracking.

Its interactive charts and graphs can help you present your financial data and cash flow statements for enhanced reader understanding.

Integrating Brixx and other accounting software automates the syncing of your actuals and forecasts, giving you a head start using Brixx.

The tool primarily focuses on financial projections and forecasting, so there are only a few features for other parts of the business plan.

Let’s have a look at some features that come with a Brixx subscription:

• 1-10-year financial forecasts: This tool enables businesses to create detailed projections for profit & loss, cash flow, and balance sheet statements for up to 10 years.
• Automated tax forecasts: It simplifies tax planning by automatically calculating future-based and practical tax liabilities based on your financial data and projections.
• Business resources: The tool includes step-by-step guidance, pre-built templates, and a library of sample plans to help users create professional plans. But if you need help beyond that, the technical support may not be as helpful.
• Scenario planning: It allows users to create and compare multiple financial scenarios to understand the potential impact of different business decisions.

What I didn't like about Brixx?

How to choose the right business planning platform?

All the business plan tools on our list are credible and can help you create a winning business plan. However, it’s critical to understand each tool specializes in certain aspects of business planning.

Let’s understand which factors to consider while choosing the right tool to help you create a professional business plan:

The most obvious factor. Ask yourself how much you can afford to spend on a business plan maker.

A free or low-cost tool may provide only some necessary functionalities to create a detailed plan. So, figure out your budget and shortlist the tools that you can afford to invest in.

Your specific requirements

The next step. Learn your specific requirements. For instance, if your business is in the idea stage, you may not require a tool with advanced financial features like—PlanGuru; Ideabuddy may work.

Both tools cater to specific audiences; if you’re not sure, you may go with Upmetrics. It has pricing plans suitable for all business sizes.

Business plan templates

Custom designing a business plan can be tedious, so make sure the business planning tool you choose has industry-specific templates to help you get started.

AI assistance

Artificial Intelligence has revolutionized the way people get their things done. Make sure you select a platform that also provides AI assistance while creating a business plan.

With tools like ChatGPT and AI business plan generators , you can draft a business plan in a breeze.

Charts and graphs

Let’s face it, no one likes to read long paragraphs. The tool you choose must be able to turn your financial data and balance sheets into appealing and easy-to-understand charts and graphics.

Financial projections

The most critical section of a business plan. Understand your requirements regarding financial projections and the level of features the tool provides.

For instance, a large-scale organization may require a tool that can easily do business financials for ten or more years.

Contribution and sharing features

Make sure the tool you choose provides the contribution and sharing features so that you can work with multiple team members.

Convenience and user-friendliness

A no-brainer. Ensure the platform you choose has a user-friendly user interface and a manageable learning curve to understand all the working features.

Integrations

Some of the best business planning tools integrate with accounting software. This feature can be handy while importing your existing financial details into your business plan.

Step-by-step guides

These user guides and tutorials can help you easily outline and prepare the first draft of your business plan, so make sure you consider this as one of the factors while selecting a tool.

When you’re new to business planning tools, you may need help using some of its features. A responsive support team can help you get back on the right track.

Think of these factors as a checklist while researching the right business planning platform. Once you have checked off all the boxes, you will have the right business plan software by your side.

Pros and Cons of Using Business Plan Software

Undoubtedly, a business planning tool can be a worthwhile investment for your business, but it indeed has a few disadvantages too. Let’s get to that:

• Time Saving: business plan software can be a big time-saving investment.
• Step-by-step guidance: These guides make it easier to get started for beginners.
• Accurate reporting: Good business plan software guarantee the accountability and accuracy of the reports generated.
• Customizations: Business plan tools also offer options to personalize your reports.
• Generic templates: These planning tools often provide generic templates that may not suit your requirements.
• Limited flexibility: In terms of formatting, content, design, and layout.
• Learning curve: Using these tools requires a learning curve to navigate the software.

There have to be a few disadvantages, but they are negligible when you look at the positive side of having a business plan software onboard.

And this section leads us to our conclusion!

That was the article for today with some of the best business plan software. Now over to you. Revisit the top business planning software on the list, do your research, and select the one that best suits your requirements.

Got any more burning questions in mind? The FAQ section starts right after we wrap this article up, feel free to explore. Happy business planning! 

Other Business Plan Software Alternatives

• Best Liveplan Alternatives
• Best Bizplan Alternatives
• Best Growthink Alternatives
• Best Ideabuddy Alternatives
• Best Enloop Alternatives

Say No to Expensive Business Planning Software!

Get Affordable and Feature-Packed Business Planning with Upmetrics

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the best business plan software for startups.

We’ve already mentioned the best business planning tool in the blog post earlier; you may choose one amongst those depending on your specific needs.

However, Upmetrics can be a go-to business planning tool for startups as it only costs $7 per month to get started—which is worth it against the value you get.

Which tool is used as a one-page business plan?

There are many business plan software providing features to create one-page business plans like—Upmetrics and Ideabuddy. You can use Upmetrics’ canvas modeling feature to develop actionable and entrepreneur-focused one-page business plans.

Can I write a business plan myself?

Of course, you can. It’s easier than ever to write a business plan with the emerging use of tools like ChatGPT. Though you can write a business plan, you need assistance making it presentable for your investors.

And business planning tool providers like Upmetrics can help you do that. With 200+ sample business plans, you can easily write the first draft of your business plan.

What is the best way to write a business plan?

There can’t be a standard answer to this question. There are various business planning processes, which might not work for you. Still, considering the time-saving approach, using an industry-specific template and editing it as per your requirements can be an easy way to write a business plan.

Using ChatGPT for business plan writing can also be one of the best ways to write a business plan. As mentioned, there can’t be a specific answer to this question; find a way that best suits your needs.

Is there any free business planning platform available?

It’s really challenging to find the perfect business planning tool, that too, for free. IdeaBuddy from our list has a free plan, but it comes with very limited features, not so helpful for creating a business plan.

A Business planning platform like Upmetrics, Bizplan, and LivePlan also have free demos and trials, so you may try their features before purchasing. Furthermore, you can get 30% off on an Upmetrics subscription if you’re a nonprofit or student.

How much does a business plan tool typically cost?

The cost of a business plan software can widely depend on the level of features and functionalities it provides. Still, the monthly subscription of a business plan tool can range anywhere between $5 to $300.

About the Author

Upmetrics Team

Upmetrics is the #1 business planning software that helps entrepreneurs and business owners create investment-ready business plans using AI. We regularly share business planning insights on our blog. Check out the Upmetrics blog for such interesting reads. Read more

Best business plan software of 2024

For planning your business finance

Best overall

Best budget, best established, best for speed.

• How we test

The best business plan software makes it simple and easy to plan your business finances in order to present them to a bank or investors.

1. Best overall 2. Best budget 3. Best basic 4. Best established 5. Best for speed 6. FAQs 7. How we test

The whole point of a business plan is that it allows you to evaluate your strengths and weaknesses, not least via your Unique Selling Point (USP) ,and make product or service comparisons with competitors.

Of course, even the best business plan relies on estimates and guesstimates, as it's impossible to predict market changes, developments, and future performance under such conditions. 

Ultimately, though, a business plan will demonstratively prove why your business is a solid enough investment to risk putting money into, and shows that you have properly and thoroughly researched your market, and details the real potential of a new business opportunities.

Here then are the best business plan software providers currently available.

You may also be interested in our featured business guides on best business laptops , best business computers and best business smartphones .

The best business plan software of 2024 in fill:

Why you can trust TechRadar We spend hours testing every product or service we review, so you can be sure you’re buying the best. Find out more about how we test.

Reasons to buy

Reasons to avoid.

Bizplan is the online business planning tool that claims usage of 30,000 startup founders from the Startups.co platform. They use a guided creator that can break the big project down into the component pieces that get tracked with a Progress Tracker, and expert guidance each step of the way including templates that can be dropped in, and completed, along with simple integration of visuals along the way.

Additional resources are also provided via the Bizplan Academy, with lessons on relevant topics, for example, “Building a Brand: How to Tell a Powerful Brand Story,” and “Critical Path Your Way to Higher Revenues,” among the many offerings. Those that need even more assistance also can take advantage of an expert consultation from a financial expert.

• ^ Back to the top

2. PlanGuru

PlanGuru is a comprehensive, and powerful software package in the business planning space. Education is provided via a series of case studies at their PlanGuru University and a whole slew of video tutorials.

The feature set includes flexible budgeting that can handle a simple small business, or a larger multi-department operating budget, and financial forecasting that uses multiple methods, including intelligent and turn-key methods - twenty methods in total. Historical results can also be imported with the general ledger import utility which can then applied to produce a rolling forecast. They also offer PlanGuru Launch, a service to bring in expertise and is charged per hour of assistance.

A significant downside is Planguru charges a higher cost than other software options. The cheapest option is around $75 per month for one business entity when billed annually. While there is no free trial, PlanGuru does offer a 30 day money back guarantee. 

Our expert review:

Enloop is a great choice for business planning software for the cash strapped business as it is the rare offering that has a free tier. Step up up to the next tier, and this is no barebones product, as it has over 100 currency symbols, can automatically generate bank-ready financial reports, and even has automated text writing that can sync with financial data to turn it into text. There is also a real time performance score assigned, that dynamically changes as the business plan is strengthened.  

The plans start with the Free tier, which is limited to a single business plan with simple text, no images, and does not offer any advanced features. The next plan up is the Detailed plan, that supports three business plans, and offers a significant 55% discount when paid annually, making it even better value. This plan costs around $20 per month. For a more comprehensive package you can buy the Performance plan costing around $40 per month.

Read our full Enloop business plan software review .

4. LivePlan

LivePlan is business planning software that offers a simple pricing scheme as there is only a single plan to choose from. As they have a 15+ year track record, they offer a clean and simple interface, that can create business plans that look like they were done by an expert consultant, and the software includes a live dashboard that can track day-to-day performance. Those with writer’s block will benefit from the over 500 included sample plans that can be turned to for inspiration.  

Rather than complicate things with too many tiers to choose from, LivePlan only has a single plan which can be paid for monthly or annually.

5. Business Sorter

Business Sorter promises to simplify and speed up business planning and claims to be able to flesh out a plan in an hour or two, via a novel 273 card sort system that covers many common situations.

The ability to reword cards is included, or also to add cards to the already expansive deck, so no worries if there is not a pre-made card for your situation. Unlike some sites that have videos, the educational resources here are provided as PDFs and Word files, which can be quicker to access, but harder to follow for some learners. 

The lowest tier plan, Basic is fully featured, and includes up to three team leaders. 

Read our full Business Sorter review .

Other business plan software to consider

We've only covered some of the most popular business plan software platforms out there, but there are a number of other notables worth mentioning, plus a wide variety of providers of business plan templates. Below we'll briefly cover a range of some of the additional options out there that are worth considering to get your business plan right.

Go Business Plans is more of a consultancy than a software solution, but is worth mentioning for the simple fact that it's one of America's biggest business plan companies. While software might be able to do the job for you, if you're looking for significant funding, it's probably useful to get some professional advice, not least in terms of strategic planning, feasibility studies, and financial projections to ensure you have a solid base for your business plan.

Wise Business Plans provides a very wide range of templates to work from in constructing a business plan. These are particularly designed with funding in mind, no matter what kind of business you run. What is especially helpful is that Wise doesn’t simply deal with business plan templates for a diverse range of business types, the company also provides plan templates for franchises and non-profits.

Plan Writers  is another bespoke service that essentially listens to what you want and then puts the plan together for you. Again, this technically falls outside of business plan "software", but the chances are you'll use a software package as a platform to build from, and Plan Writers can then help you build up from that base.

Bplans is another provider of business plan templates, but goes beyond that with additional pitch and SWOT analysis templates. There are also business plan guides, industry reports, and a free course on writing a business plan. Bplans also publishes a lot of free-to-use articles on business planning, financials, and tax reporting, to help ensure you can keep your figures and projections accurate and compliant.

We've also listed the best free software for small business .

A business plan is essentially your roadmap to profitability from an initial investment. Whether it's your own money, or a loan from a bank, it's still a good idea to set up a business plan for yourself.

Main things to look to are a SWOT analysis to provide an idea of your business idea's strengths and weaknesses, as well as identify a unique selling point (USP) that will give your business an edge.

While business plans inevitably demand the use of figures, and while these can be impossible to be accurate with, at least by making intelligent guesses you can set yourself targets to work towards.

That's another common feature of a plan, so that specific periods you can review your business progress and make adjustments to your plan as required. This allows you to use real figures for your projections, allowing you to better plan ahead.

Which business plan software is best for you?

When deciding which business plan software to use, first consider what your actual needs are, as sometimes free platforms may only provide basic options, so if you need to use advanced tools you may find a paid platform is much more worthwhile. Additionally, free and budget software options can sometimes prove limited when it comes to the variety of tools available, while higher-end software can really cater for every need, so do ensure you have a good idea of which features you think you may require.

How we tested the best business plan software

To test for the best business plan software we first set up an account with the relevant software platform, whether as a download or as an online service. We then tested the service to see how the software could be used for different purposes and in different situations. The aim was to push each business plan software platform to see how useful its basic tools were and also how easy it was to get to grips with any more advanced tools.

Read how we test, rate, and review products on TechRadar .

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14 Exceptionally Useful Tools for Writing a Business Plan

Alyssa Gregory is an entrepreneur, writer, and marketer with 20 years of experience in the business world. She is the founder of the Small Business Bonfire, a community for entrepreneurs, and has authored more than 2,500 articles for The Balance and other popular small business websites.

Writing a business plan is a necessary part of starting a business, yet many small business owners struggle with the process. Not only can it be time-consuming and stressful to conduct the necessary research and gather the required materials, but it can also be difficult to know exactly what format your business plan should be in and what information it should include.

To help you streamline the process, here are 14 tools you can use to get started with your business plan.

Online Tools

This set of online tools walks you through each section of a traditional business plan in a step-by-step format.

• SBA's Build Your Business Plan Tool - The SBA's Business Plan Tool is a step-by-step guide that allows you to save your progress and come back to it for up to six months.
• Enloop - With this tool, you add in your information, and Enloop automatically writes your plan based on your details.
• LivePlan - LivePlan is an online service that simplifies the business planning process while providing assistance with budgeting, forecasting, and performance tracking.
• RocketLawyer - Business owners can create a customized, printable business plan with RocketLawyer by following an online step-by-step interview process.
• StratPad - StratPad's step-by-step approach and cloud-based business planning software help small business owners create a plan in less than a day.

Business Plan Tutorials

These five business planning how-to documents will help you get your business plan started.

• How to Write a Simple Business Plan - An easy 8-step business plan tutorial that results in a streamlined and brief business plan that you can use as-is or as a starting point for a more traditional business plan.
• SBA's Video Business Planning Tutorial - This series of video tutorials includes nine videos that are about 2-10 minutes each. You can pick and choose where to start or run through them in the original order.
• Entrepreneur's Elements of a Business Plan - An in-depth review of the seven essential sections of a business plan: what you should include, what you shouldn't include, how to work the numbers and additional resources you can turn to for help.
• Comprehensive Business Plan Outline - A business plan outline that walks you through each section of a basic business plan, including an overview of what should be included, examples and tips for writing each section of your business plan effectively.
• Shopify's Ultimate Guide to Business Plans - This comprehensive 9-chapter business plan guide covers every important aspect of writing a business plan.

Business Plan Templates

If you prefer more of a "fill-in-the-blank" format to get your business plan started, one of these templates may be exactly what you need.

• SCORE Business Planning Templates - A collection of business planning templates that are for both new and established businesses.
• BPlans' Business Plan Template - A downloadable template that gives you a clear idea of what a traditional business plan should look like. (Free sign-up is required to download.)
• The $100 Startup One-Page Business Plan - Download and fill in the blanks with this one-page business plan template.
• Office Depot's Business Plan Templates - These templates include the most important elements of a business plan that demonstrate how the nature of a business and the target audience for the plan impact the content.

Keep in mind that the best business plans are those that are updated and regularly used as a way to keep your business on track. Whichever tool you use, make it a goal to create a plan that you can use as an action document and can grow with your business over time.

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Blog Business 8 Best Business Plan Software for 2024

8 Best Business Plan Software for 2024

Written by: Krystle Wong Jan 01, 2024

Gone are the days of staring at blank pages and struggling to structure a business plan effectively. With user-friendly interfaces and a wide range of business plan templates catering to various industries, creating business plans that are polished, professional and data-driven can now be done in a fraction of the time.

For startups, business plan software guides them through the crucial early stages with comprehensive business plan templates and financial modeling tools. Established businesses on the other hand benefit from the software’s collaborative features, enabling seamless teamwork as they pivot, innovate and pursue new growth opportunities.

In this article, let’s delve into exploring the seven best business plan software for 2024. Whether you’re an aspiring entrepreneur with a groundbreaking idea or a seasoned business owner ready to elevate your enterprise to new heights, these software solutions have all you need to create a solid business plan.

Click to jump ahead:

What is a business plan software?

• 7 Best business plan software for 2024

Factors to consider when choosing a business plan software

7 steps to create your own business plan, business plan software faq, key takeaway.

A Business plan software is a specialized digital tool designed to assist entrepreneurs, startups and established businesses in creating, organizing and presenting comprehensive business plans. 

Business plan software significantly reduces the time and effort required to create a comprehensive business plan . The availability of business plan templates, financial modeling tools and automated features streamlines the process of business planning and eliminates the need for starting from scratch.

Some advanced business planning software even integrates market research capabilities. This feature provides users with access to market trends, industry benchmarks and relevant data. Access to such data helps users make informed decisions and demonstrate a thorough understanding of their target market.

8 Best business plan software for 2024 

1. venngage.

Venngage specializes in transforming traditional business plans into captivating visual stories. Visuals can communicate complex information effectively, ensuring your ideas stand out and resonate with your audience.

When it comes to business planning, conveying your ideas with impact is just as important as the content itself. In this digital age, visual storytelling has emerged as a powerful way to captivate audiences and leave a lasting impression. That’s where Venngage steps in.

With a rich library of templates, Venngage offers a variety of themes and styles to suit different industries and business types. Customize your business plans with our user-friendly drag-and-drop tools by adding your brand elements, customizing colors, fonts and visuals to make your business plan truly unique. Check out our library of sample business plans to get started today.

However, while Venngage excels in visual storytelling, it might not be the go-to tool for in-depth financial forecasts and analysis. Users seeking extensive financial modeling might want to complement Venngage with a comprehensive business planning tool.

Pricing options:

Create your first 5 designs with Venngage for free and upgrade to a premium or business plan for $10/month per user and $24/month per user respectively to enjoy premium features. For larger teams who need extra support, controls and security, the enterprise plan starts from $499/month for 10+ seats.

Can I collaborate with team members using this business plan software?

Yes, absolutely! Venngage offers collaborative features that allow you to work seamlessly with multiple team members when creating business plans. You can invite team members to join your Venngage account and they can contribute to the design process in real time. 

Can I export my business plan to different file formats?

Upgrade to a premium or business plan on Venngage to export your professional business plan to different file formats. After designing your business plan, you can choose to export it as a high-quality PDF document, which is ideal for sharing and printing. Additionally, Venngage allows you to export your business plan as an image file (PNG or JPG), making it easy to use in presentations or on your website. 

Is this business plan software suitable for startups or established businesses? 

Venngage is great for entrepreneurs and businesses looking to enhance their business plans with visually engaging infographics and visual assets.

Instead of sharing a lengthy, 50-page document that may bore your audience and fail to effectively convey your message — present your business plan with infographics. Here’s how you can create a business plan infographic that will wow your readers and showcase your business at its best. 

2. LivePlan

Source: Screenshot from LivePlan

In the realm of business planning software, LivePlan stands out as a reliable and user-friendly tool. With a focus on seamless financial forecasting and budgeting capabilities, LivePlan streamlines the planning process, helping businesses transform their visions into reality.

The software’s financial forecasting tools provide users with the ability to project revenue, expenses and cash flow accurately. This financial insight is invaluable for making informed decisions and setting realistic goals.

For hassle-free data integration, the business plan software offers seamless integration with accounting software . This feature allows users to import financial data effortlessly, saving time and reducing manual data entry.

While LivePlan excels in financial planning and user-friendliness, some users may find the customization options for design and layout to be limited. For businesses seeking highly tailored visual aesthetics, LivePlan’s template-based approach might be less ideal.

The standard plan is available at $20/month for monthly billing and $15/month for annual billing. For businesses seeking extensive financial tools to support their operations and growth, the Premium plan costs $20 for the first month and $40/month (monthly billing) or $30/month (annual billing) for subsequent months.

LivePlan facilitates seamless collaboration among users within your account, allowing multiple individuals to work on the same plan concurrently. To prevent conflicting edits, LivePlan restricts access to specific sections, allowing only one user to edit at a time while others observe the locked section.

You can export your business plan by using the print to PDF feature. This generates your plan content in a standard file format compatible with Adobe Reader and other free reader programs. Alternatively, you can export your plan to Microsoft Word (2007 or later).

A great tool for small businesses, startups and entrepreneurs looking for easy-to-use software with solid financial planning tools.

3. Upmetrics

Upmetrics is an AI-powered business planning software that helps businesses of all sizes and industries write their business plan.

With Upmetrics AI Assistant, you can write your plan faster, get answers to any business-related queries, and prepare financial forecasts in no time. 

Besides, the subscription includes access to 400+ sample business plans, various informative guides, and video tutorials to keep your business plan writing process on track. 

Additionally, it has collaborative features, so that everyone on the team can share their insights. Not just that, the software provides you with an AI pitch deck generator, so you can make a stellar pitch.

As an AI business plan builder , Upmetrics is suitable for entrepreneurs, startups, and small businesses to write their plans at any stage. Although it has various cover page designs and immense customization options, it might still lack visual appeal. 

Pricing plan options 

• Starter plan – $7 monthly 
• Premium plan – $14 monthly 

Yes, you can collaborate with your team members while using Upmetrics. It offers collaboration tools that allow you to work effortlessly with your team on the business plan. You can invite team members to collaborate, assign tasks, and track the progress together. 

You can download your business plan as a PDF or directly as a document in Word. Besides, you can share the business plan directly to any email, and they will get the viewer access to the plan. 

Upmetrics is a versatile business planning software suitable for startups and established businesses. But its financial planning features, step-by-step guidance, and AI Assistant make it more useful for startups writing business plans for the first time.

4. BizPlan by Startups.com

Source: Screenshot from BizPlan

If you’re a startup aiming to raise investments, BizPlan is the one for you. As a universal professional business plan builder, BizPlan offers the added advantage of seamless integration with all the tools within the Startups.com network.

Designed with startups in mind, BizPlan’s step-by-step approach allows you to break down the entire scope of work into manageable steps and the built-in Progress Tracker tool keeps you on track towards success.

Once you subscribe, BizPlan opens the door to utilizing all the tools offered by Startups.com, making it a one-stop shop for your entrepreneurial needs. Whether it’s lifetime access to the service, connectivity to Findable to attract financial investments, a wealth of online educational programs or the ability to connect multiple owners to a single account, BizPlan delivers comprehensive support.

While the business plan software offers an array of benefits, it’s essential to consider the possible downsides. The absence of a free version and a mobile app, along with a lack of industry-specific templates for business plans may be worth considering before making your decision

Pricing plan options:

• Monthly plan ($29 per month)
• Annual plan ($20.75 per month or $249/year)
• Lifetime access (one-time fee of $349)

Bizplan encourages collaboration with partners, team members, advisors and subject matter experts by allowing threaded comments throughout the entire plan. It provides control over who can access sensitive financial data and enables convenient cloud-based access from anywhere.

Bizplan provides multiple options for sharing your business plan with others. You can generate an online version of your plan, which can be set as private by default or made publicly accessible through a unique shareable URL. Additionally, Bizplan offers the option to create a custom-branded PDF of your business plan. 

BizPlan is great for entrepreneurs and small businesses who value a vast collection of resources and need support in financial analysis.

Source: Screenshot from Enloop

Enloop emerges as one of the best business plan tools for startups, catering to entrepreneurs who crave a streamlined planning process. With the ability to automatically generate basic text for each section of your plan, Enloop saves time and effort in crafting your business vision.

A highlight of the business plan tool is its automatic generation of financial projections, offering accurate insights based on your entered data. This powerful feature empowers entrepreneurs to make informed decisions and project future outcomes with confidence.

For those with a penchant for strategic thinking, Enloop’s “what-if” scenario analysis becomes an invaluable tool. It allows users to explore various business strategies and assess their potential impact on plan outcomes, enabling sound decision-making.

Enloop doesn’t stop at generating numbers; it goes a step further by providing a business plan grading system. This insightful feature assesses plan quality, giving users valuable feedback to refine and enhance their business plans.

However, it’s essential to consider the software’s limitations as customization and design options are relatively limited. Additionally, the basic version of Enloop might not meet the needs of all users, as it lacks certain advanced features. 

• Seven day free trial (no credit card required)
• Detailed plan ($19.95/month or $11/month when billed annually)
• Performance plan ($39.95/month or $24/month when billed annually)

Enloop’s online business plan writing app lets you invite and collaborate with anyone on your business plans using the ‘Invite & Share’ feature.

Enloop allows you to download your business plan in PDF format whenever you’re ready. The plans remain accessible in your paid account, encouraging regular updates to keep track of your business’s health and have an up-to-date plan ready for financing needs.

Suitable for entrepreneurs seeking a tool that simplifies financial forecasting and scenario analysis.

6. PlanGuru

Source: Screenshot from PlanGuru

PlanGuru’s standout feature lies in its ability to forecast all three financial statements – income statement, balance sheet and cash flow statement so that users can make data-driven decisions.

Creating detailed analyses becomes a breeze with PlanGuru’s general ledger import utilities, allowing seamless historical data import. The software facilitates budget vs actual reporting and enables building rolling forecasts with just a few clicks each month.

Unlimited budgeting flexibility is another advantage offered by the business plan builder. Users can craft simple high-level small business budgets or delve into intricate multi-department operating budgets with ease.

With scenario analysis capabilities, PlanGuru empowers users to interpret the financial impact of specific events accurately. This feature enables making critical investments and strategic decisions with confidence, knowing thorough due diligence has been performed.

Given its sophisticated features, PlanGuru may be more suitable for financial professionals and analysts looking for in-depth financial analysis and budgeting tools. Users not familiar with financial modeling may face a steeper learning curve when utilizing Enloop’s robust capabilities.

• Single entity ($99/month or $75/month when billed annually)
• Multi-department consolidations ($299/month or $225/month when billed annually)

You can add up to 3 users with the multi-department consolidation plan. Additionally, all plans allow you to add on $29/month (billed monthly) or $25/month (billed annually) for each extra user.

What other apps does PlanGuru integrate with?

The cloud-based platform is also accessible as a Windows-based desktop version, giving you the freedom to choose the format that suits you best. Additionally, PlanGuru seamlessly integrates with MS Excel, QuickBooks Online and Xero, providing further flexibility and convenience in using the software.

The cloud-based version is suitable for SMBs or nonprofits budgeting for a single entity while the multi-department consolidations plan is for companies with multiple departments needing consolidated budgets.

7. Business Sorter

Source: Screenshot from Business Sorter

With Business Sorter’s card sort system, crafting the foundation of your plan becomes a breeze. Featuring 273 cards covering various business situations, the business plan generator offers flexibility, allowing users to customize their plan by adding their cards or modifying existing ones, tailoring the plan to their specific needs.

The platform also provides the convenience of viewing your plan on any device, including smartphones, which not many business plan apps have. Additionally, guidance is at hand with Business Sorter as the software provides valuable tips and advice for every key step, empowering users to implement their business strategy with confidence.

While Business Sorter excels in its interactive features, it may not offer as extensive financial analysis tools as other business plan software. For businesses requiring advanced financial modeling capabilities, Business Sorter might not fully meet their requirements.

• For small teams with up to 3 users ($10/month or $80/year)
• For medium teams with up to 10 users ($30/month or $240/year)
• For large teams with up to 30 users ($80/month or $640/year)
• For enterprises with unlimited users (custom pricing)

Your business plan can be edited by only one user at a time. When a user opens a plan, it automatically locks to prevent any data loss and remains locked until the user finishes their work and exits the plan.

You can print each business plan directly from the plan summaries on your dashboard. 

Suitable for both entrepreneurs and businesses looking for an interactive and visually appealing planning approach.

9. AchieveIt

Source: Screenshot from AchieveIt

AchieveIt stands as a versatile software for business plans, designed to simplify the planning process for businesses of all sizes and planning methods. With AchieveIt, you can easily build plans, ensuring alignment and engagement among your employees and optimizing plans for seamless execution.

Regardless of your preferred planning method, AchieveIt empowers you to construct plans effortlessly, providing a flexible solution for any planning use case. The software ensures your plans are well-aligned with your organization’s objectives, engaging all team members for successful plan execution.

The business plan tool provides robust tracking and reporting features, allowing businesses to monitor the progress of their plans and measure performance against set goals. Users can create customized dashboards to visualize key performance metrics, making it easier to identify trends and insights.

That said, In comparison to most business plan software, AchieveIt’s pricing might be relatively higher with its extensive features. On top of that, for users new to strategic planning software, AchieveIt may present a learning curve during the initial adoption phase.

The business plan software packages for AchieveIt varies based on factors like organization size, required functionality and the number of users. AchieveIt being an enterprise-level software offers custom pricing to cater to the specific needs of each business. For accurate pricing details, it’s best to contact their sales or customer support team.

AchieveIt allows team members, stakeholders and advisors to have shared access to the platform, providing them with visibility into the latest updates and progress on the plans. Users can assign tasks to team members and track their progress within the platform. 

Can AchieveIt integrate with existing systems?

AchieveIt’s Data Integration API lets you import key metric data from existing systems, saving time and reducing errors by eliminating the need for data entry in multiple places.

AchieveIt is best suited for medium to large-sized businesses and organizations that require a comprehensive and collaborative strategic planning platform. It caters to teams and enterprises seeking to improve their planning processes, track performance and drive organizational alignment to achieve business objectives effectively.

No idea what your business plan should look like? Check out these business plan examples for inspiration. 

When searching for the best business planning software, you may be wondering — what features should I look for in business plan software? You want to make sure it meets your specific requirements and streamlines the planning process effectively. Here are the top six factors to consider:

Ease of use

The software should have a user-friendly interface that simplifies the process of creating a business plan. Look for intuitive navigation, clear instruction and a layout that makes it easy to input and organize your information.

Features and business plan templates

Check the range of features and business plan templates the software offers. Look for a diverse selection of business plan templates catering to various industries and business types. The software should provide essential sections like executive summaries, market analysis, financial projections and more.

Financial modeling tools

Your business plan software should allow you to input financial data and generate accurate and comprehensive financial projections. These business plan creation tools are vital for assessing the financial viability of your business.

Collaboration and sharing

If you’ll be working with a team or seeking feedback from others, consider software that enables real-time collaboration and easy sharing. The ability to work together seamlessly can enhance productivity and improve the quality of your business plan.

Built for fast-moving teams that need to be on the same page, Venngage’s real-time collaboration enables you to polish your design with your team in real time, leave comments on each other’s work,and save your designs in one shared folder. With your  Venngage Business  account, you can easily invite and manage your team members to collaborate on a design, all in real time.

Security and data protection

Since a business plan contains sensitive information, prioritize software that prioritizes security. Ensure that the software uses encryption and data protection measures to keep your data safe from unauthorized access.

Exporting and sharing options

Check the software’s export options. You’ll likely want to share your business plan with others, so ensure it can be exported in popular formats like PDF or PowerPoint.

Are you an entrepreneur starting a new business or expanding your existing business? This guide on how to create a small business plan might come in handy for you. 

Creating business plans can be a crucial step in setting your entrepreneurial vision on the right track. To help you through the process, here are 7 steps to guide you in crafting a comprehensive business plan:

Step 1: Executive summary

Start with an attention-grabbing executive summary. This section provides an overview of your business. In your executive summary, make sure to highlight your mission, goals, products or services, target market and the unique value you offer. Keep it concise, yet compelling.

Step 2: Company description

Give a detailed description of your company. Explain your business’s history, its legal structure (e.g. sole proprietorship, LLC, corporation) and the reasons why your business will succeed in the market.

Step 3: Market analysis

Conduct thorough market research to understand your industry, target market and competition. Identify your ideal customers, their needs and preferences. Analyze your competitors and highlight your competitive advantages.

Step 4: Products and Services

Describe your products or services in depth. Explain their features, benefits and how they meet the needs of your target customers. Emphasize what sets your offerings apart from the competition.

Step 5: Marketing and sales strategy

Outline your marketing and sales strategies to reach your target audience. Explain your promotional activities, pricing strategies, distribution channels and sales tactics. Detail how you plan to acquire and retain customers.

Step 6: Financial projections

Project your financial performance over the next three to five years. Include estimated revenue, expenses and cash flow. Detail your startup costs and funding requirements if applicable. Be realistic and supported by market research.

Step 7: Implementation plan

Create a detailed roadmap for executing your business plan. Set specific goals and milestones. Break down tasks and assign responsibilities. Include timelines and a plan for measuring progress.

A great tip here is to start with a well-structured outline. This guide on how to create a business plan outline will help you in creating your blueprint to easily identify your business’ resource needs, including finances, personnel and equipment. 

Is my business data safe with business plan software?

Most reputable business plan software providers prioritize data security and employ encryption and other measures to keep your business data safe from unauthorized access.

What are the benefits of using business planning tools?

Business planning tools offer time efficiency, professional presentation, error reduction, collaborative features and accessibility, making it easier to create a comprehensive business plan that impresses investors and stakeholders.

Do I need any specific skills or expertise to use business plan software?

No, many business plan software solutions are designed to be user-friendly, requiring no specific skills or expertise. They often come with templates and step-by-step guidance to assist you through the planning process.

In the dynamic landscape of 2024, businesses are on the lookout for innovative tools to stay ahead of the curve and drive their growth. These 7 business plan software picks for 2024 offer a wide range of features, from user-friendly interfaces and real-time collaboration to sophisticated financial analysis tools and customizable dashboards.

Whether you’re looking for user-friendly platform business planning tools that aligns with your business planning processes or a business plan writing software that allows you to tailor the business plan according to your industry, goals and unique requirements — I’m quite certain I’ve got them all covered. 

The value of these business plan software options lies not only in their efficiency but also in their ability to save time and reduce errors. By integrating with existing systems through Data Integration APIs, users can seamlessly import key metric data, eliminating redundant data entry and streamlining the process.

If you’re still unsure about which is the right business plan software for your business, you can always take advantage of free trials or video tutorials and demos offered by software providers. Testing the platform firsthand will give you a practical understanding of its usability and suitability for your business.

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How to Write a Business Plan: Step-by-Step Guide + Examples

Noah Parsons

24 min. read

Updated May 7, 2024

Writing a business plan doesn’t have to be complicated. 

In this step-by-step guide, you’ll learn how to write a business plan that’s detailed enough to impress bankers and potential investors, while giving you the tools to start, run, and grow a successful business.

• The basics of business planning

If you’re reading this guide, then you already know why you need a business plan . 

You understand that planning helps you: 

• Raise money
• Grow strategically
• Keep your business on the right track 

As you start to write your plan, it’s useful to zoom out and remember what a business plan is .

At its core, a business plan is an overview of the products and services you sell, and the customers that you sell to. It explains your business strategy: how you’re going to build and grow your business, what your marketing strategy is, and who your competitors are.

Most business plans also include financial forecasts for the future. These set sales goals, budget for expenses, and predict profits and cash flow. 

A good business plan is much more than just a document that you write once and forget about. It’s also a guide that helps you outline and achieve your goals. 

After completing your plan, you can use it as a management tool to track your progress toward your goals. Updating and adjusting your forecasts and budgets as you go is one of the most important steps you can take to run a healthier, smarter business. 

We’ll dive into how to use your plan later in this article.

There are many different types of plans , but we’ll go over the most common type here, which includes everything you need for an investor-ready plan. However, if you’re just starting out and are looking for something simpler—I recommend starting with a one-page business plan . It’s faster and easier to create. 

It’s also the perfect place to start if you’re just figuring out your idea, or need a simple strategic plan to use inside your business.

Dig deeper : How to write a one-page business plan

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• What to include in your business plan

Executive summary

The executive summary is an overview of your business and your plans. It comes first in your plan and is ideally just one to two pages. Most people write it last because it’s a summary of the complete business plan.

Ideally, the executive summary can act as a stand-alone document that covers the highlights of your detailed plan. 

In fact, it’s common for investors to ask only for the executive summary when evaluating your business. If they like what they see in the executive summary, they’ll often follow up with a request for a complete plan, a pitch presentation , or more in-depth financial forecasts .

Your executive summary should include:

• A summary of the problem you are solving
• A description of your product or service
• An overview of your target market
• A brief description of your team
• A summary of your financials
• Your funding requirements (if you are raising money)

Dig Deeper: How to write an effective executive summary

Products and services description

This is where you describe exactly what you’re selling, and how it solves a problem for your target market. The best way to organize this part of your plan is to start by describing the problem that exists for your customers. After that, you can describe how you plan to solve that problem with your product or service. 

This is usually called a problem and solution statement .

To truly showcase the value of your products and services, you need to craft a compelling narrative around your offerings. How will your product or service transform your customers’ lives or jobs? A strong narrative will draw in your readers.

This is also the part of the business plan to discuss any competitive advantages you may have, like specific intellectual property or patents that protect your product. If you have any initial sales, contracts, or other evidence that your product or service is likely to sell, include that information as well. It will show that your idea has traction , which can help convince readers that your plan has a high chance of success.

Market analysis

Your target market is a description of the type of people that you plan to sell to. You might even have multiple target markets, depending on your business. 

A market analysis is the part of your plan where you bring together all of the information you know about your target market. Basically, it’s a thorough description of who your customers are and why they need what you’re selling. You’ll also include information about the growth of your market and your industry .

Try to be as specific as possible when you describe your market. 

Include information such as age, income level, and location—these are what’s called “demographics.” If you can, also describe your market’s interests and habits as they relate to your business—these are “psychographics.” 

Related: Target market examples

Essentially, you want to include any knowledge you have about your customers that is relevant to how your product or service is right for them. With a solid target market, it will be easier to create a sales and marketing plan that will reach your customers. That’s because you know who they are, what they like to do, and the best ways to reach them.

Next, provide any additional information you have about your market. 

What is the size of your market ? Is the market growing or shrinking? Ideally, you’ll want to demonstrate that your market is growing over time, and also explain how your business is positioned to take advantage of any expected changes in your industry.

Dig Deeper: Learn how to write a market analysis

Competitive analysis

Part of defining your business opportunity is determining what your competitive advantage is. To do this effectively, you need to know as much about your competitors as your target customers. 

Every business has some form of competition. If you don’t think you have competitors, then explore what alternatives there are in the market for your product or service. 

For example: In the early years of cars, their main competition was horses. For social media, the early competition was reading books, watching TV, and talking on the phone.

A good competitive analysis fully lays out the competitive landscape and then explains how your business is different. Maybe your products are better made, or cheaper, or your customer service is superior. Maybe your competitive advantage is your location – a wide variety of factors can ultimately give you an advantage.

Dig Deeper: How to write a competitive analysis for your business plan

Marketing and sales plan

The marketing and sales plan covers how you will position your product or service in the market, the marketing channels and messaging you will use, and your sales tactics. 

The best place to start with a marketing plan is with a positioning statement . 

This explains how your business fits into the overall market, and how you will explain the advantages of your product or service to customers. You’ll use the information from your competitive analysis to help you with your positioning. 

For example: You might position your company as the premium, most expensive but the highest quality option in the market. Or your positioning might focus on being locally owned and that shoppers support the local economy by buying your products.

Once you understand your positioning, you’ll bring this together with the information about your target market to create your marketing strategy . 

This is how you plan to communicate your message to potential customers. Depending on who your customers are and how they purchase products like yours, you might use many different strategies, from social media advertising to creating a podcast. Your marketing plan is all about how your customers discover who you are and why they should consider your products and services. 

While your marketing plan is about reaching your customers—your sales plan will describe the actual sales process once a customer has decided that they’re interested in what you have to offer. 

If your business requires salespeople and a long sales process, describe that in this section. If your customers can “self-serve” and just make purchases quickly on your website, describe that process. 

A good sales plan picks up where your marketing plan leaves off. The marketing plan brings customers in the door and the sales plan is how you close the deal.

Together, these specific plans paint a picture of how you will connect with your target audience, and how you will turn them into paying customers.

Dig deeper: What to include in your sales and marketing plan

Business operations

The operations section describes the necessary requirements for your business to run smoothly. It’s where you talk about how your business works and what day-to-day operations look like. 

Depending on how your business is structured, your operations plan may include elements of the business like:

• Supply chain management
• Manufacturing processes
• Equipment and technology
• Distribution

Some businesses distribute their products and reach their customers through large retailers like Amazon.com, Walmart, Target, and grocery store chains. 

These businesses should review how this part of their business works. The plan should discuss the logistics and costs of getting products onto store shelves and any potential hurdles the business may have to overcome.

If your business is much simpler than this, that’s OK. This section of your business plan can be either extremely short or more detailed, depending on the type of business you are building.

For businesses selling services, such as physical therapy or online software, you can use this section to describe the technology you’ll leverage, what goes into your service, and who you will partner with to deliver your services.

Dig Deeper: Learn how to write the operations chapter of your plan

Key milestones and metrics

Although it’s not required to complete your business plan, mapping out key business milestones and the metrics can be incredibly useful for measuring your success.

Good milestones clearly lay out the parameters of the task and set expectations for their execution. You’ll want to include:

• A description of each task
• The proposed due date
• Who is responsible for each task

If you have a budget, you can include projected costs to hit each milestone. You don’t need extensive project planning in this section—just list key milestones you want to hit and when you plan to hit them. This is your overall business roadmap. 

Possible milestones might be:

• Website launch date
• Store or office opening date
• First significant sales
• Break even date
• Business licenses and approvals

You should also discuss the key numbers you will track to determine your success. Some common metrics worth tracking include:

• Conversion rates
• Customer acquisition costs
• Profit per customer
• Repeat purchases

It’s perfectly fine to start with just a few metrics and grow the number you are tracking over time. You also may find that some metrics simply aren’t relevant to your business and can narrow down what you’re tracking.

Dig Deeper: How to use milestones in your business plan

Organization and management team

Investors don’t just look for great ideas—they want to find great teams. Use this chapter to describe your current team and who you need to hire . You should also provide a quick overview of your location and history if you’re already up and running.

Briefly highlight the relevant experiences of each key team member in the company. It’s important to make the case for why yours is the right team to turn an idea into a reality. 

Do they have the right industry experience and background? Have members of the team had entrepreneurial successes before? 

If you still need to hire key team members, that’s OK. Just note those gaps in this section.

Your company overview should also include a summary of your company’s current business structure . The most common business structures include:

• Sole proprietor
• Partnership

Be sure to provide an overview of how the business is owned as well. Does each business partner own an equal portion of the business? How is ownership divided? 

Potential lenders and investors will want to know the structure of the business before they will consider a loan or investment.

Dig Deeper: How to write about your company structure and team

Financial plan

Last, but certainly not least, is your financial plan chapter. 

Entrepreneurs often find this section the most daunting. But, business financials for most startups are less complicated than you think, and a business degree is certainly not required to build a solid financial forecast. 

A typical financial forecast in a business plan includes the following:

• Sales forecast : An estimate of the sales expected over a given period. You’ll break down your forecast into the key revenue streams that you expect to have.
• Expense budget : Your planned spending such as personnel costs , marketing expenses, and taxes.
• Profit & Loss : Brings together your sales and expenses and helps you calculate planned profits.
• Cash Flow : Shows how cash moves into and out of your business. It can predict how much cash you’ll have on hand at any given point in the future.
• Balance Sheet : A list of the assets, liabilities, and equity in your company. In short, it provides an overview of the financial health of your business. 

A strong business plan will include a description of assumptions about the future, and potential risks that could impact the financial plan. Including those will be especially important if you’re writing a business plan to pursue a loan or other investment.

Dig Deeper: How to create financial forecasts and budgets

This is the place for additional data, charts, or other information that supports your plan.

Including an appendix can significantly enhance the credibility of your plan by showing readers that you’ve thoroughly considered the details of your business idea, and are backing your ideas up with solid data.

Just remember that the information in the appendix is meant to be supplementary. Your business plan should stand on its own, even if the reader skips this section.

Dig Deeper : What to include in your business plan appendix

Optional: Business plan cover page

Adding a business plan cover page can make your plan, and by extension your business, seem more professional in the eyes of potential investors, lenders, and partners. It serves as the introduction to your document and provides necessary contact information for stakeholders to reference.

Your cover page should be simple and include:

• Company logo
• Business name
• Value proposition (optional)
• Business plan title
• Completion and/or update date
• Address and contact information
• Confidentiality statement

Just remember, the cover page is optional. If you decide to include it, keep it very simple and only spend a short amount of time putting it together.

Dig Deeper: How to create a business plan cover page

How to use AI to help write your business plan

Generative AI tools such as ChatGPT can speed up the business plan writing process and help you think through concepts like market segmentation and competition. These tools are especially useful for taking ideas that you provide and converting them into polished text for your business plan.

The best way to use AI for your business plan is to leverage it as a collaborator , not a replacement for human creative thinking and ingenuity. 

AI can come up with lots of ideas and act as a brainstorming partner. It’s up to you to filter through those ideas and figure out which ones are realistic enough to resonate with your customers. 

There are pros and cons of using AI to help with your business plan . So, spend some time understanding how it can be most helpful before just outsourcing the job to AI.

Learn more: 10 AI prompts you need to write a business plan

• Writing tips and strategies

To help streamline the business plan writing process, here are a few tips and key questions to answer to make sure you get the most out of your plan and avoid common mistakes .  

Determine why you are writing a business plan

Knowing why you are writing a business plan will determine your approach to your planning project. 

For example: If you are writing a business plan for yourself, or just to use inside your own business , you can probably skip the section about your team and organizational structure. 

If you’re raising money, you’ll want to spend more time explaining why you’re looking to raise the funds and exactly how you will use them.

Regardless of how you intend to use your business plan , think about why you are writing and what you’re trying to get out of the process before you begin.

Keep things concise

Probably the most important tip is to keep your business plan short and simple. There are no prizes for long business plans . The longer your plan is, the less likely people are to read it. 

So focus on trimming things down to the essentials your readers need to know. Skip the extended, wordy descriptions and instead focus on creating a plan that is easy to read —using bullets and short sentences whenever possible.

Have someone review your business plan

Writing a business plan in a vacuum is never a good idea. Sometimes it’s helpful to zoom out and check if your plan makes sense to someone else. You also want to make sure that it’s easy to read and understand.

Don’t wait until your plan is “done” to get a second look. Start sharing your plan early, and find out from readers what questions your plan leaves unanswered. This early review cycle will help you spot shortcomings in your plan and address them quickly, rather than finding out about them right before you present your plan to a lender or investor.

If you need a more detailed review, you may want to explore hiring a professional plan writer to thoroughly examine it.

Use a free business plan template and business plan examples to get started

Knowing what information to include in a business plan is sometimes not quite enough. If you’re struggling to get started or need additional guidance, it may be worth using a business plan template. 

There are plenty of great options available (we’ve rounded up our 8 favorites to streamline your search).

But, if you’re looking for a free downloadable business plan template , you can get one right now; download the template used by more than 1 million businesses. 

Or, if you just want to see what a completed business plan looks like, check out our library of over 550 free business plan examples . 

We even have a growing list of industry business planning guides with tips for what to focus on depending on your business type.

Common pitfalls and how to avoid them

It’s easy to make mistakes when you’re writing your business plan. Some entrepreneurs get sucked into the writing and research process, and don’t focus enough on actually getting their business started. 

Here are a few common mistakes and how to avoid them:

Not talking to your customers : This is one of the most common mistakes. It’s easy to assume that your product or service is something that people want. Before you invest too much in your business and too much in the planning process, make sure you talk to your prospective customers and have a good understanding of their needs.

• Overly optimistic sales and profit forecasts: By nature, entrepreneurs are optimistic about the future. But it’s good to temper that optimism a little when you’re planning, and make sure your forecasts are grounded in reality. 
• Spending too much time planning: Yes, planning is crucial. But you also need to get out and talk to customers, build prototypes of your product and figure out if there’s a market for your idea. Make sure to balance planning with building.
• Not revising the plan: Planning is useful, but nothing ever goes exactly as planned. As you learn more about what’s working and what’s not—revise your plan, your budgets, and your revenue forecast. Doing so will provide a more realistic picture of where your business is going, and what your financial needs will be moving forward.
• Not using the plan to manage your business: A good business plan is a management tool. Don’t just write it and put it on the shelf to collect dust – use it to track your progress and help you reach your goals.
• Presenting your business plan

The planning process forces you to think through every aspect of your business and answer questions that you may not have thought of. That’s the real benefit of writing a business plan – the knowledge you gain about your business that you may not have been able to discover otherwise.

With all of this knowledge, you’re well prepared to convert your business plan into a pitch presentation to present your ideas. 

A pitch presentation is a summary of your plan, just hitting the highlights and key points. It’s the best way to present your business plan to investors and team members.

Dig Deeper: Learn what key slides should be included in your pitch deck

Use your business plan to manage your business

One of the biggest benefits of planning is that it gives you a tool to manage your business better. With a revenue forecast, expense budget, and projected cash flow, you know your targets and where you are headed.

And yet, nothing ever goes exactly as planned – it’s the nature of business.

That’s where using your plan as a management tool comes in. The key to leveraging it for your business is to review it periodically and compare your forecasts and projections to your actual results.

Start by setting up a regular time to review the plan – a monthly review is a good starting point. During this review, answer questions like:

• Did you meet your sales goals?
• Is spending following your budget?
• Has anything gone differently than what you expected?

Now that you see whether you’re meeting your goals or are off track, you can make adjustments and set new targets. 

Maybe you’re exceeding your sales goals and should set new, more aggressive goals. In that case, maybe you should also explore more spending or hiring more employees. 

Or maybe expenses are rising faster than you projected. If that’s the case, you would need to look at where you can cut costs.

A plan, and a method for comparing your plan to your actual results , is the tool you need to steer your business toward success.

Learn More: How to run a regular plan review

Free business plan templates and examples

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How to write a business plan FAQ

What is a business plan?

A document that describes your business , the products and services you sell, and the customers that you sell to. It explains your business strategy, how you’re going to build and grow your business, what your marketing strategy is, and who your competitors are.

What are the benefits of a business plan?

A business plan helps you understand where you want to go with your business and what it will take to get there. It reduces your overall risk, helps you uncover your business’s potential, attracts investors, and identifies areas for growth.

Having a business plan ultimately makes you more confident as a business owner and more likely to succeed for a longer period of time.

What are the 7 steps of a business plan?

The seven steps to writing a business plan include:

• Write a brief executive summary
• Describe your products and services.
• Conduct market research and compile data into a cohesive market analysis.
• Describe your marketing and sales strategy.
• Outline your organizational structure and management team.
• Develop financial projections for sales, revenue, and cash flow.
• Add any additional documents to your appendix.

What are the 5 most common business plan mistakes?

There are plenty of mistakes that can be made when writing a business plan. However, these are the 5 most common that you should do your best to avoid:

• 1. Not taking the planning process seriously.
• Having unrealistic financial projections or incomplete financial information.
• Inconsistent information or simple mistakes.
• Failing to establish a sound business model.
• Not having a defined purpose for your business plan.

What questions should be answered in a business plan?

Writing a business plan is all about asking yourself questions about your business and being able to answer them through the planning process. You’ll likely be asking dozens and dozens of questions for each section of your plan.

However, these are the key questions you should ask and answer with your business plan:

• How will your business make money?
• Is there a need for your product or service?
• Who are your customers?
• How are you different from the competition?
• How will you reach your customers?
• How will you measure success?

How long should a business plan be?

The length of your business plan fully depends on what you intend to do with it. From the SBA and traditional lender point of view, a business plan needs to be whatever length necessary to fully explain your business. This means that you prove the viability of your business, show that you understand the market, and have a detailed strategy in place.

If you intend to use your business plan for internal management purposes, you don’t necessarily need a full 25-50 page business plan. Instead, you can start with a one-page plan to get all of the necessary information in place.

What are the different types of business plans?

While all business plans cover similar categories, the style and function fully depend on how you intend to use your plan. Here are a few common business plan types worth considering.

Traditional business plan: The tried-and-true traditional business plan is a formal document meant to be used when applying for funding or pitching to investors. This type of business plan follows the outline above and can be anywhere from 10-50 pages depending on the amount of detail included, the complexity of your business, and what you include in your appendix.

Business model canvas: The business model canvas is a one-page template designed to demystify the business planning process. It removes the need for a traditional, copy-heavy business plan, in favor of a single-page outline that can help you and outside parties better explore your business idea.

One-page business plan: This format is a simplified version of the traditional plan that focuses on the core aspects of your business. You’ll typically stick with bullet points and single sentences. It’s most useful for those exploring ideas, needing to validate their business model, or who need an internal plan to help them run and manage their business.

Lean Plan: The Lean Plan is less of a specific document type and more of a methodology. It takes the simplicity and styling of the one-page business plan and turns it into a process for you to continuously plan, test, review, refine, and take action based on performance. It’s faster, keeps your plan concise, and ensures that your plan is always up-to-date.

What’s the difference between a business plan and a strategic plan?

A business plan covers the “who” and “what” of your business. It explains what your business is doing right now and how it functions. The strategic plan explores long-term goals and explains “how” the business will get there. It encourages you to look more intently toward the future and how you will achieve your vision.

However, when approached correctly, your business plan can actually function as a strategic plan as well. If kept lean, you can define your business, outline strategic steps, and track ongoing operations all with a single plan.

Noah is the COO at Palo Alto Software, makers of the online business plan app LivePlan. He started his career at Yahoo! and then helped start the user review site Epinions.com. From there he started a software distribution business in the UK before coming to Palo Alto Software to run the marketing and product teams.

Table of Contents

• Use AI to help write your plan
• Common planning mistakes
• Manage with your business plan
• Templates and examples

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9 Best Business Plan Software in 2024

Business plan is a document outlining business goals, financial projections, and strategies. It clarifies organizational vision, strategy, and finances while increasing the chances of securing funding and attracting investors. A well-written business plan works as an investor’s roadmap, showcasing a researched market opportunity, a sound strategy, and the true potential for financial return.

While developing a business plan using the traditional method is time-consuming and overwhelming, business planner software can assist entrepreneurs in creating a professional plan. These provide the necessary structure and guidance to create business plans efficiently.

Geekflare reviewed dozens of business planning tools and picked the best business plan software applications based on their features, ease of use, and pricing.

• Cuttles – Best for Interactive Business Planning and Pitching
• IdeaBuddy – Best for Comprehensive Planning with Financial Projections
• LivePlan – Best for Innovative Idea Development
• Bizplan – Best for Modern and Visual Planning
• Upmetrics – Best for Data-Driven Planning
• PlanGuru – Best for Advanced Financial Analysis
• Enloop – Best for Automated Financial Forecasting
• PlanBuildr – Best for Quick and Simple Business Plans
• The Business Plan Shop – Best for User-Friendly Interface
• Show more Show less

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Best for Interactive Business Planning and Pitching

• Financial Reporting Comprehensive
• Integration Yes
• Ease of Use Beginner-Friendly

About Cuttles

Cuttles is fully interactive business plan software that helps entrepreneurs develop business plans and understand their businesses. It is a web app that asks questions and creates a plan based on the answers given by the company, with a layout according to the brand.

Cuttles offers fully customizable business plan templates that organizations can modify according to their industrial needs. It has a beautiful editor that anyone can use with flexibility. It is available in English, French, Spanish, German, and Portuguese.

After creating a solid business plan, users can easily share its link with other team members or investors. It also supports exporting the plan in PDF format.

Cuttles Pros and Cons

250+ guides, examples, and widgets for assistance

7-day free trial on any plan

Dashboard to track financial health

No free plan is available

Does not offer any mobile app

Best for Comprehensive Planning with Financial Projections

• Financial Reporting Advanced
• Integration No

About IdeaBuddy

IdeaBuddy turns innovative business ideas into professional business plans for successful ventures. This free business planning software allows you to enter data in the sections in the Business Guide and automatically generate an investor-ready business plan.

IdeaBuddy has pre-built templates that companies can customize using an unlimited-edit-ability built-in editor. The business plan can be exported in Word, Excel, and PDF format or shared using a link. Organizations can use it to collaborate with teammates and stakeholders in real-time.

IdeaBuddy has a financial plan feature that companies use to get financial forecasts, which is an important component of a business plan. However, businesses can utilize sales pipeline software to generate data on financial projections.

IdeaBuddy Pros and Cons

Free plan available for one idea

15-day free trial

Mobile-friendly platform

Does not have any dedicated mobile app

Whiteboard is only available for Free and Team Pro plan users

Best for Innovative Idea Development

• Ease of Use Intermediate

About LivePlan

LivePlan allows users to create their business plans for all major industries with its collection of 500+ templates. LivePlan forecast feature lets companies skip the manual calculation and provide the data input based on which it will generate charts, figures, graphs, and other documents for the business plan.

After creating the business plan, companies can export it in Word or PDF formats. LivePlan supports real-time financial data tracking and Xero and QuickBooks integration. It also offers milestone scheduling and sales and budget tracking. It lets users create a one-page pitch in 30 minutes.

LivePlan Pros and Cons

AI-powered LivePlan Assistant for improved writing version

Performance dashboard with 20+ trend reports

Compare KPIs with industry benchmark data

Does not offer any free trial

Standard plan users do not get integration support

Best for Modern and Visual Planning

About Bizplan

Bizplan is ideal business plan software for startups looking for investors or funding. With this modern and intuitive business plan builder, entrepreneurs can create a business plan exactly as they want.

Bizplan also offers educational resources to help companies easily use this drag-and-drop tool for building templates. Its Financial Command Center comes with various financial tools. Companies can use this business plan software platform to create team salary forecasts, revenue projections, and balance sheets.

While users can add collaborators and stakeholders here, they can control who can view sensitive data and comment on them. Companies can share their business plan using the online link.

Bizplan Pros and Cons

Direct access to a community of 20,000 startup founders

1200+ detailed guides

Free technical support

No free trial available

No mobile apps

Best for Data-Driven Planning

About Upmetrics

Upmetrics offers an AI-powered business plan generator that can write a complete or partial business plan, re-format sections, make improvements, and adjust content tone. It allows real-time feedback and collaboration with an easily navigable comment section.

Upmetrics offers a drag-and-drop interface so that companies can create plan outlines according to their preferences. Once the plan is generated, users can save the file in DOC or PDF formats or share it online with the stakeholders.

Upmetrics users also choose creative cover pages to make their business plans stand out. It also has a financial forecasting feature that suggests expense types, revenue streams, sale costs, and expenses. It generates reports on cash flow, profit breakdown, retained earnings, etc.

Upmetrics Pros and Cons

400+ templates for almost all industries

Business plan checklist to track progress

15-day money-back guarantee

Does not have any mobile app

Best for Advanced Financial Analysis

• Ease of Use Advanced

About PlanGuru

PlanGuru is the right business planning software for companies focused on the financial aspect of the company. Businesses can utilize its budgeting, and reporting, and financial forecasting tools to include in the business plan.

PlanGuru is a web app that is also available on Windows-based apps. Using its 20+ standard forecasting methods, companies can generate forecasts for up to 10 years.

PlanGuru supports integration with QuickBooks, Xero, and Microsoft Excel for data import. The generated reports can be exported in Word, Excel, and PDF formats.

PlanGuru Pros and Cons

30-day money-back guarantee

14-day free trial

US-based technical support

Does not offer business plan templates

No desktop app for Mac

Best for Automated Financial Forecasting

About Enloop

Enloop facilitates quick business plan creation by generating automated text that users can easily edit. It automatically syncs the company’s financial data with the business and updates it whenever that data changes.

Enloop users can develop business plans using customizable text, tables, charts, images, and 100+ currency symbols and formats. They can invite their colleagues to edit the plan and other partners to view it.

Enloop automatically generates bank-ready financial forecast reports and 16 critical financial ratios for forecasted performance analysis. This tool allows users to utilize real-time performance scores in their business plans.

Enloop Pros and Cons

7-day free trial

Pass/fail report for understanding critical issues

Colored chart for data visualization

Free subscription plan is unavailable

Costlier than many of its competitors

Best for Quick and Simple Business Plans

About PlanBuildr

PlanBuildr is a user-friendly solution that prompts businesses to fill in the blanks to generate a business plan. Users have 10 templates of various industries to choose from to build a business plan for their company.

PlanBuildr automatically makes financial projections for 5 years, including income statements, balance sheets, cash flow statements, charts, and graphs to be included in the business plan. It supports direct printing of the plan and downloading to share with others.

PlanBuildr also supports adding teammates and creating an executive summary. The content and format generated by PlanBuildr are highly tailored to raise money faster from investors.

PlanBuildr Pros and Cons

Limited free trial

Expert customer support team and online support center

Business plan samples for various industries

Only 10 designs to choose from

Unavailability of free plan

The Business Plan Shop

Best for User-Friendly Interface

About The Business Plan Shop

The Business Plan Shop is a solution that offers a wide collection of templates for business plan creation. After signing up for this user-friendly software, users get instructions and examples for each section of the business plan.

The Business Plan Shop generates forecasts for three to five years, and measures progress toward goals using KPIs. Companies can use business consulting software while working on goals. It also supports side-by-side scenario comparisons between actual and forecast.

The Business Plan Shop integrates with Xero and QuickBooks to import accounting data for forecasting purposes. After creating the plan, users can easily export it in MS Word or PDF formats.

The Business Plan Shop Pros and Cons

7-day free trial is available

Built-in document editor for quick formatting

SSL for data security

Does not work offline

Free trial does not include access to templates

Business Plan Software Comparison

What Is a Business Plan?

A business plan is a document that explains a business’s objectives and how it aims to achieve them. It is an essential written document that companies need for internal (organizational decision-making) and external (securing funding from investors or partners) audiences. It focuses on key elements to demonstrate the business’s viability.

A standard business plan should consist of 15 to 20 pages. If it includes lengthy components, it is better to add them to the appendix and refer to them in the main plan.

How to Create a Business Plan

Creating a business plan involves steps like creating an executive summary, performing market research, developing business strategies, discussing business products, and making financial projections. To develop a business plan for an organization, go through the steps below.

#1. Write an Executive Summary

Consider it as the elevator pitch and include the summary of the whole business plan, including the mission statement. It is better to write it in the end.

#2. Define the Business

In this section, mention the basic info about the company, such as its registered name, location, key people, and their expertise. Also, include business structure, company history, and ownership percentage.

#3. Mention Business Objectives

The business plan should include an objective statement – what the company wants to achieve in the long run. While developing a plan for investment or loan, emphasize this section and make it elaborate.

#4. Discuss Products and Services of the Business

Here, describe in detail the product or service the business will offer. Also, include the pricing model, target audience, and sales and distribution strategy.

#5. Market Research

In this segment, discuss the competitors. Include the reason behind their success and how the organization has the potential to outperform them.

#6. Develop Business Strategy

Mention how the organization is planning to persuade customers to avail of the services and retain customer loyalty. Include detailed plans of marketing, management, and operational strategies.

#7. Financial Analysis

While startups may not have enough information on business financials, existing businesses should include a balance sheet, profit-and-loss statements, and a cash flow statement.

#8. Make Financial Projections

This is a critical section for financing or investors. Here, outline how the company is planning to generate profit to repay the loan or offer a generous return to the investors. 

#9. Additional Information

Any supporting information that the company wants to include in the business plan should go in the appendix.

Benefits of Business Plan Software

Business plan software has a robust toolkit that allows businesses to create investor-ready documents from the concept. It offers step-by-step guidance for business plan creation and pre-formatted templates for a professional structure. 

Business planning tools, when integrated with BPM software , accounting software, and market research software, can automatically collect relevant data for the business plan. It even has built-in tools to generate financial projections with complex calculations and graphs.

With these features, business planning software solutions empower companies to create compelling and error-free plans. Thus, they effectively communicate the organizational vision to investors.

How to Choose the Right Business Plan Software

Creating solid and convincing business plan tools is crucial, so companies must choose the right software to make the process smoother. Although there are many options, following these points will help them select the most suitable business plan software solution. 

Assessing Business Needs

Companies should start by identifying what the business plan requires. Does the company need in-depth financial forecasting, or does it need to focus on market research? Match it with the software’s features to choose the most useful software. 

Considering Team’s Expertise

Always take the technological expertise of the team into consideration. If the team has limited tech experience, go for user-friendly software with clear instructions and a flat learning curve.

Budgeting for Business Plan Software

Determine the organizational budget for the business plan apps and choose the tool with an affordable plan. To that end, compare the pricing models of the shortlisted applications.

Reading Reviews and Getting Recommendations

Read online user reviews and seek recommendations from other entrepreneurs or business advisors. This will provide valuable insights into the software’s effectiveness and user experience.

Regardless of the estimated business size, a properly written business plan is vital for future growth and success. Companies should choose the right tool to ensure that they send a clear and focused message to investors. It guides them through essential elements and helps them avoid critical oversights.

With sophisticated business plan software providers, users can effortlessly write a business plan. The above list will help them choose the right solution for business.

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What Is a Business Plan?

Understanding business plans, how to write a business plan, common elements of a business plan, the bottom line, business plan: what it is, what's included, and how to write one.

Adam Hayes, Ph.D., CFA, is a financial writer with 15+ years Wall Street experience as a derivatives trader. Besides his extensive derivative trading expertise, Adam is an expert in economics and behavioral finance. Adam received his master's in economics from The New School for Social Research and his Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in sociology. He is a CFA charterholder as well as holding FINRA Series 7, 55 & 63 licenses. He currently researches and teaches economic sociology and the social studies of finance at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem.

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A business plan is a document that outlines a company's goals and the strategies to achieve them. It's valuable for both startups and established companies. For startups, a well-crafted business plan is crucial for attracting potential lenders and investors. Established businesses use business plans to stay on track and aligned with their growth objectives. This article will explain the key components of an effective business plan and guidance on how to write one.

Key Takeaways

• A business plan is a document detailing a company's business activities and strategies for achieving its goals.
• Startup companies use business plans to launch their venture and to attract outside investors.
• For established companies, a business plan helps keep the executive team focused on short- and long-term objectives.
• There's no single required format for a business plan, but certain key elements are essential for most companies.

Investopedia / Ryan Oakley

Any new business should have a business plan in place before beginning operations. Banks and venture capital firms often want to see a business plan before considering making a loan or providing capital to new businesses.

Even if a company doesn't need additional funding, having a business plan helps it stay focused on its goals. Research from the University of Oregon shows that businesses with a plan are significantly more likely to secure funding than those without one. Moreover, companies with a business plan grow 30% faster than those that don't plan. According to a Harvard Business Review article, entrepreneurs who write formal plans are 16% more likely to achieve viability than those who don't.

A business plan should ideally be reviewed and updated periodically to reflect achieved goals or changes in direction. An established business moving in a new direction might even create an entirely new plan.

There are numerous benefits to creating (and sticking to) a well-conceived business plan. It allows for careful consideration of ideas before significant investment, highlights potential obstacles to success, and provides a tool for seeking objective feedback from trusted outsiders. A business plan may also help ensure that a company’s executive team remains aligned on strategic action items and priorities.

While business plans vary widely, even among competitors in the same industry, they often share basic elements detailed below.

A well-crafted business plan is essential for attracting investors and guiding a company's strategic growth. It should address market needs and investor requirements and provide clear financial projections.

While there are any number of templates that you can use to write a business plan, it's best to try to avoid producing a generic-looking one. Let your plan reflect the unique personality of your business.

Many business plans use some combination of the sections below, with varying levels of detail, depending on the company.

The length of a business plan can vary greatly from business to business. Regardless, gathering the basic information into a 15- to 25-page document is best. Any additional crucial elements, such as patent applications, can be referenced in the main document and included as appendices.

Common elements in many business plans include:

• Executive summary : This section introduces the company and includes its mission statement along with relevant information about the company's leadership, employees, operations, and locations.
• Products and services : Describe the products and services the company offers or plans to introduce. Include details on pricing, product lifespan, and unique consumer benefits. Mention production and manufacturing processes, relevant patents , proprietary technology , and research and development (R&D) information.
• Market analysis : Explain the current state of the industry and the competition. Detail where the company fits in, the types of customers it plans to target, and how it plans to capture market share from competitors.
• Marketing strategy : Outline the company's plans to attract and retain customers, including anticipated advertising and marketing campaigns. Describe the distribution channels that will be used to deliver products or services to consumers.
• Financial plans and projections : Established businesses should include financial statements, balance sheets, and other relevant financial information. New businesses should provide financial targets and estimates for the first few years. This section may also include any funding requests.

Investors want to see a clear exit strategy, expected returns, and a timeline for cashing out. It's likely a good idea to provide five-year profitability forecasts and realistic financial estimates.

2 Types of Business Plans

Business plans can vary in format, often categorized into traditional and lean startup plans. According to the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) , the traditional business plan is the more common of the two.

• Traditional business plans : These are detailed and lengthy, requiring more effort to create but offering comprehensive information that can be persuasive to potential investors.
• Lean startup business plans : These are concise, sometimes just one page, and focus on key elements. While they save time, companies should be ready to provide additional details if requested by investors or lenders.

Why Do Business Plans Fail?

A business plan isn't a surefire recipe for success. The plan may have been unrealistic in its assumptions and projections. Markets and the economy might change in ways that couldn't have been foreseen. A competitor might introduce a revolutionary new product or service. All this calls for building flexibility into your plan, so you can pivot to a new course if needed.

How Often Should a Business Plan Be Updated?

How frequently a business plan needs to be revised will depend on its nature. Updating your business plan is crucial due to changes in external factors (market trends, competition, and regulations) and internal developments (like employee growth and new products). While a well-established business might want to review its plan once a year and make changes if necessary, a new or fast-growing business in a fiercely competitive market might want to revise it more often, such as quarterly.

What Does a Lean Startup Business Plan Include?

The lean startup business plan is ideal for quickly explaining a business, especially for new companies that don't have much information yet. Key sections may include a value proposition , major activities and advantages, resources (staff, intellectual property, and capital), partnerships, customer segments, and revenue sources.

A well-crafted business plan is crucial for any company, whether it's a startup looking for investment or an established business wanting to stay on course. It outlines goals and strategies, boosting a company's chances of securing funding and achieving growth.

As your business and the market change, update your business plan regularly. This keeps it relevant and aligned with your current goals and conditions. Think of your business plan as a living document that evolves with your company, not something carved in stone.

University of Oregon Department of Economics. " Evaluation of the Effectiveness of Business Planning Using Palo Alto's Business Plan Pro ." Eason Ding & Tim Hursey.

Bplans. " Do You Need a Business Plan? Scientific Research Says Yes ."

Harvard Business Review. " Research: Writing a Business Plan Makes Your Startup More Likely to Succeed ."

Harvard Business Review. " How to Write a Winning Business Plan ."

U.S. Small Business Administration. " Write Your Business Plan ."

SCORE. " When and Why Should You Review Your Business Plan? "

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• Canva simplifies graphic design with an intuitive drag-and-drop interface and free templates.
• Later manages multiple social media accounts from one dashboard, enhancing productivity.
• Mailchimp's free plan includes management of 500 contacts and sends up to 1,000 emails a month.

Launching a small business is like setting off on a great adventure -- it's thrilling, a bit daunting, and packed with unknowns. Keeping costs down while plotting your course to success is no small feat. For the savvy entrepreneur, every penny saved is a treasure chest found.

Fortunately, the digital age has brought a bounty of free tools that can help new business owners manage their start-up expenses without feeling like they're scrimping on quality.

1. Canva: Unleash your inner artist

Canva is the Swiss Army knife of graphic design. Even if your most significant artistic achievement to date is a stick figure (and a questionable one at that), Canva has you covered.

With its drag-and-drop interface and a library of over 250,000 free templates, creating professional-looking designs becomes as easy as pie. Logos, flyers, social media posts, brochures -- you name it, Canva helps you whip it up without breaking a sweat or the bank.

Why a Business Credit Card Could Transform Your Small Business

These business credit cards that offer a convenient and efficient way to separate personal and business expenses, simplifying accounting and tax reporting.

Additionally, business cards can provide valuable perks such as rewards points, cashback, and expense tracking tools, enhancing financial management and the potential to help save money in the long run.

2. Later: Become a social media ninja

Managing social media doesn't have to be like herding cats. Later simplifies the chaos by letting you control all your social media platforms from one dashboard. Schedule posts, track engagements, and breathe easier -- all without flipping through a dozen tabs.

The free plan lets you plan 10 posts per month per social profile, which is a godsend for anyone who'd rather not live on their phone. Plus, think of all the extra time you'll have for coffee breaks!

3. LegalZoom: Navigate the legal jungle

Diving into the legal intricacies of starting a business can be as daunting as opening a puzzle box. But with LegalZoom's Basic plan, you get just what you need to form your LLC officially in your state -- all for $0 plus state filing fees (which can range from $35 to $500).

This plan includes crucial first steps such as the Articles of Organization, a name check service, and a step-by-step formation checklist to guide you through the process. As a bonus, you'll also get a customizable website powered by LegalZoom, setting you up with a digital presence from day one. It's like getting a head start in the business race without the usual hefty price tag.

4. Wix: Build a website that wows

Just 51% of small businesses use a website to reel in customers, perhaps because their owners are concerned about building and maintaining one. Wix is like your friendly neighborhood web builder, offering a platform so intuitive that even your grandma could master it.

Drag-and-drop tools, gorgeous templates, and the freedom to customize give you the power to create a professional website without ever learning a line of code. For startups, the free version does a fine job serving up a delicious, home-cooked website that can make your competitors' sites look like fast food.

5. Mailchimp: Run email marketing like a boss

Email marketing with Mailchimp is like having a megaphone at a whispering contest -- it helps your message stand out. Start with a free plan that manages 500 contacts and lets you send 1,000 emails per month, with a daily send limit of 500. That's a lot of hellos!

Mailchimp also helps you design emails that people actually want to read, track how well they're doing, and automate the whole shebang so you can focus on running your business. It's email marketing, not rocket science, and Mailchimp makes sure of that.

Embarking on your small business journey can feel like setting sail on the high seas. But with these free tools, you're not just drifting aimlessly -- you're steering confidently toward success. By embracing these resources, you can save money, enhance your productivity, and perhaps enjoy the entrepreneurial ride a bit more. After all, who says starting a business can't be a little fun?

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Jordi Lippe-McGraw is a freelance personal finance writer who has appeared in publications such as Forbes, The Wall Street Journal, TODAY, and Saving for College. In addition to personal finance, Jordi has a passion for travel. She's visited all 7 continents and over 55 countries, writing for outlets such as Travel + Leisure and Conde Nast Traveler.

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The Ultimate Guide to Business Analysis Techniques: 2024 Edition

Business analysis techniques are essential tools and methodologies employed by organizations to assess and enhance their processes, strategies, and outcomes. These techniques serve as the foundation for informed decision-making, enabling businesses to identify areas for improvement, anticipate potential challenges, and capitalize on opportunities.

What are Business Analysis Techniques?

Business analysis techniques encompass a variety of methods and frameworks designed to examine and improve different aspects of an organization. These techniques help businesses understand their operations, improve processes, and achieve their objectives. Business analysis techniques can be used individually or in combination, depending on the specific needs and context of the business analysis project. From SWOT Analysis to PESTLE Analysis, these techniques provide structured approaches to problem-solving and strategic planning . By visualizing data and processes, business analysis techniques aid in aligning organizational goals with actionable insights.

Why are Business Analysis Techniques Important?

Implementing effective business analysis techniques is crucial for several reasons:

Enhanced Decision-Making: By providing a comprehensive understanding of the internal and external factors affecting a business, these techniques facilitate better strategic decisions.

Risk Management: Business analysis frameworks like Porter’s Five Forces help identify potential threats and competitive pressures, allowing businesses to proactively mitigate risks.

Improved Efficiency: Techniques such as Business Process Modelling (BPM) enable organizations to map and optimize their processes, enhancing operational efficiency and resource utilization.

Strategic Alignment: Methods like MOST Analysis ensure that an organization’s mission, objectives, strategies, and tactics are aligned, promoting cohesive and strategic growth.

Innovation and Flexibility: Agile and Scrum frameworks support iterative development, fostering innovation and adaptability in dynamic business environments.

With the integration of visual collaboration tools like Creately , organizations can streamline the application of these business analysis processes and methods. Creately’s platform supports visual modeling, collaborative planning, and data-integrated diagrams, enhancing the overall effectiveness of business analysis.

8 Top Business Analysis Techniques for 2024

1. swot analysis.

SWOT Analysis is a cornerstone in the array of business analysis techniques and is extensively appreciated for its simplicity and effectiveness. SWOT analysis is a widely used business analysis technique that helps organizations identify and understand their Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats.

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• Definition : Internal attributes and resources that are advantageous and give an organization a competitive edge.
• Examples : Strong brand reputation, skilled workforce, unique technology, loyal customer base.
• Definition : Internal factors that place an organization at a disadvantage relative to others.
• Examples : Limited resources, poor location, lack of expertise, outdated technology.

Opportunities

• Definition : External factors that the organization can exploit to its advantage.
• Examples : Emerging markets, favorable regulatory changes, technological advancements, strategic partnerships.
• Definition : External factors that could cause trouble for the business or project.
• Examples : Increasing competition, economic downturns, changing consumer preferences, regulatory challenges.

It’s instrumental in strategic planning, helping to identify areas for improvement and opportunities for growth. In 2024, integrating the SWOT Analysis tool from Creately can further enhance its effectiveness by visually mapping out each component, enabling better comprehension and collaboration among team members.

2. PESTLE Analysis

PESTLE Analysis is another fundamental business analysis method that focuses on external macro-environmental factors affecting organizations. It evaluates Political, Economic, Sociocultural, Technological, Legal, and Environmental aspects to help businesses identify potential opportunities and threats from the broader landscape.

• Definition : This factor examines the impact of government policies, political stability, and government intervention in the economy.
• Examples : Tax policies, trade tariffs, political stability, government regulations, and foreign trade policies.
• Definition : This factor looks at the economic environment and its impact on the organization.
• Examples : Economic growth, exchange rates, inflation rates, interest rates, and unemployment levels.
• Definition : This factor considers the social and cultural aspects that influence the market.
• Examples : Demographic changes, lifestyle attitudes, cultural trends, health consciousness, and population growth rates.

Technological

• Definition : This factor examines the technological environment and the pace of technological change.
• Examples : Research and development activity, automation, technological advancements, and the rate of technological innovation.

Environmental

• Definition : This factor looks at the environmental and ecological aspects that can affect the organization.
• Examples : Climate change, environmental regulations, waste management, sustainability initiatives, and ecological impacts.
• Definition : This factor examines the legal environment in which the organization operates.
• Examples : Employment laws, health and safety regulations, consumer protection laws, intellectual property rights, and industry-specific regulations.

This analysis is crucial for understanding the external environment’s impact on business strategies. Creately can facilitate PESTLE Analysis by providing user-friendly templates and visual aids, making it easier to organize and present complex data comprehensively.

3. Porter’s Five Forces

Porter’s Five Forces is a powerful framework for assessing industry attractiveness and profitability. This is a business analysis technique developed by Michael E. Porter to understand the competitive forces that shape an industry and influence an organization’s strategy. It examines five key forces: threat of new entrants, bargaining power of buyers and suppliers, threat of substitutes, and competitive rivalry.

1. Competitive Rivalry

• Definition : The intensity of competition among existing competitors in the market.
• Examples : Number of competitors, rate of industry growth, product/service differentiation, brand loyalty, and switching costs.

2. Threat of New Entrants

• Definition : The potential for new companies to enter the industry and increase competition.
• Examples : Barriers to entry such as capital requirements, economies of scale, access to distribution channels, brand reputation, and regulatory policies.

3. Bargaining Power of Suppliers

• Definition : The ability of suppliers to influence the price and terms of supply.
• Examples : Number of suppliers, uniqueness of their products or services, their strength and control over the supply chain, and the availability of substitute suppliers.

4. Bargaining Power of Buyers

• Definition : The influence customers have on the pricing and quality of products or services.
• Examples : Number of buyers, their importance to the business, the availability of substitute products, price sensitivity, and the ability to switch suppliers easily.

5. Threat of Substitutes

• Definition : The likelihood of customers finding a different way of doing what you do.
• Examples : Availability of alternative products or services, technological advancements, changes in consumer preferences, and the relative price and performance of substitutes.

By evaluating these forces, businesses can understand the competitive dynamics of their industry and formulate strategic responses. Utilizing Creately’s Porter’s Five Forces Tool can aid in mapping these forces, enabling teams to visualize and discuss strategic options effectively.

4. Business Process Modelling (BPM)

Business Process Modelling (BPM) is essential for representing and analyzing business processes through visual representations. This technique helps identify inefficiencies, bottlenecks, and areas for improvement in workflows.

Key Components of BPM

Process Modeling

• Definition : Creating a visual representation of the steps involved in a business process.
• Examples : Flowcharts, BPMN diagrams, and process maps.

Process Design

• Definition : Designing business processes to ensure they are efficient and effective.
• Examples : Streamlining steps, removing redundancies, and ensuring alignment with business goals.

Process Implementation

• Definition : Executing the designed processes using appropriate tools and resources.
• Examples : Deploying process management software, training staff, and allocating resources.

Process Monitoring

Definition : Tracking and analyzing the performance of business processes. Examples : Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), dashboards, and real-time analytics.

Process Optimization

Definition : Continuously improving business processes based on performance data and feedback. Examples : Identifying bottlenecks, implementing process changes, and adopting best practices.

BPM is not only vital for operational optimization but also for aligning processes with business strategies. Creately’s support for data-integrated diagrams and visualization BPM tool makes it an excellent platform for BPM, allowing teams to create clear, interactive models that enhance understanding and collaboration. Read more on Creately’s guide on how to improve Business Process Modelling.

5. Agile and Scrum

The Agile methodology and the Scrum framework have become popular for their emphasis on flexibility, collaboration, and iterative development. Agile focuses on responding rapidly to changes and delivering value incrementally, while Scrum organizes work into sprints, promoting continuous improvement and team collaboration.

Integrating Agile and Scrum practices with visual tools like Creately, especially through the use of visual Kanban board software, makes workflow management more intuitive. Creately’s collaborative planning tools enable teams to visualize tasks, track progress, and make adjustments swiftly, ensuring that projects stay on track and objectives are met efficiently.

6. Root Cause Analysis

Root Cause Analysis (RCA) is a method used to identify the underlying causes of problems or incidents to prevent their recurrence. RCA aims to uncover the fundamental issues that lead to problems rather than just addressing the symptoms. By identifying root causes, organizations can implement corrective actions that prevent future occurrences. Root Cause Analysis is a critical tool for problem-solving and continuous improvement in any organization. By systematically identifying and addressing the underlying causes of problems, organizations can enhance their processes, prevent future issues, and achieve better overall performance. Creately’s Root Cause Analysis tool provides user-friendly templates and visual aids, making it easier to organize and present complex data comprehensively.

7. Stakeholder Mapping Analysis

Stakeholder Analysis is a crucial technique in business analysis and project management. It involves identifying and assessing the impact, influence, and interest of various stakeholders on a project or business initiative. Effective stakeholder mapping analysis ensures that the needs and concerns of all relevant parties are considered, leading to more successful outcomes.

By systematically identifying and understanding stakeholders' interests and influence, organizations can develop effective engagement strategies, manage expectations, and ensure that all relevant parties are considered in decision-making processes. This leads to better project outcomes and stronger relationships with stakeholders. Integrating the Stakeholder Analysis Tool from Creately can further enhance its effectiveness by visually mapping out each component, enabling better comprehension and collaboration among team members.

8. Customer Journey Mapping

Customer Journey Mapping is a powerful business analysis method that helps organizations visualize and understand the customer’s experience from their perspective.

This technique is essential for identifying touchpoints, pain points, and opportunities for enhancing customer satisfaction and loyalty. Customer Journey Mapping aims to create a visual representation of the customer’s experience across various stages and touchpoints with a product, service, or brand. It helps businesses understand and improve the customer experience by identifying areas where the process can be streamlined or enhanced.

Emerging Business Analysis Techniques

1. design thinking.

Design Thinking is a powerful methodology centered around empathy, ideation, and prototyping. By focusing on understanding the user’s experience, businesses can design solutions that truly meet user needs. This technique involves five stages: empathize, define, ideate, prototype, and test. Design Thinking fosters innovation by encouraging iterative feedback and collaboration among diverse teams. It’s particularly useful for addressing complex problems and developing user-centric products.

2. MOST Analysis

MOST Analysis stands for Mission, Objectives, Strategies, and Tactics. This framework helps organizations maintain strategic alignment by breaking down their mission into specific, actionable steps. The process begins by defining the mission, followed by identifying objectives to achieve that mission. Subsequently, organizations develop strategies and tactics to implement these strategies effectively. MOST Analysis is integral for ensuring that every business action aligns with the overarching goals and vision.

3. MoSCoW Prioritization

MoSCoW Prioritization is a technique used to prioritize requirements based on their importance. It categorizes requirements into four groups: Must have, Should have, Could have, and Won’t have. This method ensures that essential requirements (Must haves) are addressed first, enabling effective resource allocation and project management. MoSCoW Prioritization is especially useful in Agile development environments, where it supports iterative and incremental delivery.

CATWOE stands for Clients, Actors, Transformation, Worldview, Owners, and Environment. This technique is used to analyze how proposed changes will impact different stakeholders. By considering the perspectives of clients and actors, understanding the transformation process, and evaluating the worldview and environmental constraints, businesses can develop well-rounded strategies. CATWOE helps in identifying potential conflicts and areas that need more attention, making it a valuable tool for comprehensive problem-solving.

5. Brainstorming

Brainstorming is a group activity designed to generate a wide range of ideas and solutions. This creative process encourages open discussion and leverages diverse perspectives, leading to innovative solutions. Brainstorming techniques are highly effective for root cause analysis and identifying multiple approaches to a problem. Integrating tools like Creately’s Brainstorming Chart maker can enhance the brainstorming process by providing visual aids and collaborative spaces where teams can map ideas, create diagrams, and track their thought process in real-time.

Using Visual Tools for Business Analysis

Integrating business analysis techniques with advanced visual tools can greatly improve your brainstorming, planning, and execution processes. Creately stands out as a platform that facilitates such integration effectively, providing a seamless experience for business analysts, project managers, and corporate strategists. Here, we explore how Creately supports different business analysis frameworks and improves collaboration.

Key Features of Creately for Business Analysis

Creately offers a range of powerful features tailored for business analysis:

Diagrams and Template Libraries: Creately offers 8000+ professional templates/diagrams and 200,000+ examples spanning across industries to get a head start.

Infinite Canvas: Creately’s Infinite Canvas makes it easy to work on projects and serves as a central hub. Creately allows users to drag drop shapes or datasets, embed external content which makes it a great tool.

Real-time collaboration: Features like synchronous editing, real-time mouse tracking, real-time collaboration, include add and invite users, sharing documents and comments and in-app video conferencing make remote collaboration smooth and effective, emulating an in-person teamwork environment.

Data-integrated diagrams: Creately allows users to create diagrams that integrate live data , attaching notes and documents to diagrams ensuring real-time updates and a single source of truth.

Collaborative planning tools: With tools like Kanban boards, Gantt charts, and user story maps, teams can plan and execute projects collaboratively.

AI-powered tools: Enhance efficiency and accuracy with smart suggestions and automated diagramming capabilities. Explore Creately VIZ for more insight on AI capabilities.

Integrating Business Process Modelling with Creately

Business Process Modelling is crucial for visualizing complex workflows and identifying inefficiencies. With Creately, you can easily create detailed BPM diagrams that support better decision-making and process optimization. Visual collaboration tools like the infinite canvas enable teams to map out processes in detail and iterate on them collaboratively. For example:

• Identify bottlenecks: Use BPM diagrams to pinpoint inefficiencies and streamline processes.
• Align stakeholders: Visually represent business processes to foster a shared understanding among team members and stakeholders.

Using Creately Kanban Boards for Agile and Scrum

Agile and Scrum methodologies are essential for maintaining flexibility and iterative development in projects. Creately’s Kanban board software offer an integrated solution for managing Agile workflows:

• Visual planning: Move tasks across different stages of development, from backlog to completion, using visual Kanban boards.
• Sprint planning: Organize and prioritize user stories and tasks, facilitating focused and productive sprint planning sessions.
• Track progress: Real-time updates and visual indicators help teams track progress and make necessary adjustments promptly.

By leveraging Creately’s robust platform, business analysis techniques like BPM and Agile can be effectively integrated to enhance collaboration, planning, and execution. This fusion of business analysis methods with visual collaboration tools not only improves efficiency but also drives better project outcomes.

Practical Applications and Case Studies

Case study: implementing swot analysis for strategic planning.

One real-world example where SWOT analysis was pivotal involves a mid-sized e-commerce company looking to expand its market reach. By using SWOT analysis, the company meticulously identified its internal strengths and weaknesses and external opportunities and threats. This method provided a comprehensive view of the market landscape, allowing them to formulate a robust strategy that aligned with their strengths and addressed vulnerabilities.

Highlights of the Case Study:

• Strengths: Strong brand recognition, robust logistics network.
• Weaknesses: Limited product range, dependence on third-party warehouses.
• Opportunities: Emerging markets, expansion into new product categories.
• Threats: Intense competition, fluctuating market trends.

Case Study: Using MOST Analysis for Business Alignment

Another illustrative example is an IT services firm that utilized MOST analysis to realign its strategic priorities amid rapid technological changes. By focusing on their Mission, Objectives, Strategies, and Tactics, they could ensure that all business activities remained cohesive and purpose-driven. This approach was essential in maintaining alignment between their overarching goals and the specific actions undertaken to achieve them.

Key Outcomes:

• Mission: To deliver innovative technology solutions.
• Objectives: Increase market share by 15% over the next two years.
• Strategies: Invest in R&D, expand service offerings.
• Tactics: Launch new marketing campaigns, enhance customer support.

These case studies underscore the significance of employing structured business analysis techniques to drive strategic decisions. A crucial lesson learned is the importance of continuous assessment and adaptation. Utilizing tools like Creately can enhance these techniques, offering visual collaboration features that streamline planning, documentation, and execution across teams.

By integrating business analysis methods with Creately’s visual platform, businesses can:

• Collaborate more efficiently using data-integrated diagrams and kanban boards.
• Visualize complex processes and make informed decisions.
• Ensure alignment and consistency across various business functions.
• Quickly respond to market changes with agility and flexibility.

In conclusion, whether employing SWOT, MOST, or any other business analysis technique, leveraging visual collaboration tools enhances overall effectiveness, leading to better alignment and successful outcomes.

In the dynamic landscape of modern business, employing robust business analysis techniques is essential for strategic decision-making, risk management, and process optimization. Techniques like SWOT, PESTLE, Porter’s Five Forces, BPM, Agile, and Scrum offer structured frameworks to assess and improve various organizational aspects. Emerging methodologies like Design Thinking, MOST Analysis, MoSCoW Prioritization, CATWOE, and Brainstorming further enrich the analytical toolkit, fostering innovation and adaptability.

The integration of these techniques with advanced visual tools like Creately significantly enhances their application. Creately’s features—such as data-integrated diagrams, collaborative planning tools, real-time collaboration, and AI-powered assistance—streamline the analysis process, making it more efficient and effective. By leveraging Creately, organizations can visualize complex processes, ensure strategic alignment, and respond swiftly to market changes, ultimately driving better project outcomes and sustainable growth.

Join over thousands of organizations that use Creately to brainstorm, plan, analyze, and execute their projects successfully.

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Heroshe is a content specialist and a writer at Creately, online diagramming and collaboration tool. He is responsible for creating engaging, informative, and high-quality content that helps users understand and utilize the platform's features effectively. He mainly focuses on making complex concepts easy to grasp, and is passionate about art & music.

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Quarterly update highlights expansion on individual, business online accounts; Document Upload Tool hits 1 million submissions and more amended returns can be filed electronically

IR-2024-196, July 25, 2024

WASHINGTON — As part of ongoing transformation efforts, the Internal Revenue Service announced today continued progress on a variety of taxpayer service and technology projects using Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) funding that expand online tools and digital services.

The IRS highlighted improvements, including six new features to help taxpayers using the Individual Online Account, a new Spanish version of the Business Tax Account tool and the availability of amended business forms that can be filed electronically. In addition, the IRS announced hitting the milestone of 1 million submissions through the Document Upload Tool and more special Community Assistance Visits to help taxpayers in underserved parts of the country.

“Funding from the Inflation Reduction Act is helping spur innovation and improvement across the IRS to transform our operations in our work to help taxpayers and the nation,” said IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel. “This progress can be seen in our continued expansion of our online accounts to provide more features, increased use of new digital tools and additional special activities to help taxpayers in-person. By providing digital forms, making payments easier and continuing work to reduce paper-based processes that have long hampered the IRS and frustrated taxpayers, our progress is accelerating to make long-overdue improvements.”

Werfel highlighted these efforts as part of a quarterly update on the IRS Strategic Operating Plan, the transformational effort using IRA funding. As these initiatives continue to improve taxpayer service and expand online tools, the agency is also working to modernize its core technology infrastructure and compliance efforts focused on neglected problem areas involving high-income taxpayers, partnerships and corporations.

New features, key milestones reached on online, digital products

Taxpayers deserve the same functionality in their online accounts that they experience with their bank or other financial institutions. As detailed in the Strategic Operating Plan, the IRS is working to transform its operations to enable a future in which all taxpayers can meet their responsibilities, including interactions with the IRS, in a digital manner if they prefer. As part of this vision, taxpayers will be able to securely file all documents and respond to all notices online as well as securely access and download their data and account history. The IRS has hit or is progressing toward several milestones toward these goals, including:

• Retrieve all their tax related information from one source, including Wage & Income Account, Record of Account and Return transcripts;
• Request an update to their Identity Protection (IP) PIN using their smartphones or tablets;
• View information about the status of their audit at their convenience, instead of having to call the IRS to obtain audit information;
• Use a Lien Payoff Calculator to access lien information, calculate their lien payoff amount and generate a letter for download/print;
• Complete the Pending Installment Agreement process within Online Account without having to be re-routed to a separate application and
• View a comprehensive overview of their account information, including the status of their tax refund as it’s being processed.  
• With the latest expansion, Business Tax Account is now available in Spanish. In addition, eligible business taxpayers can see their balance due and make the payment all in one place. Previously, the balance due had to be viewed in a separate place from where the payment was made, adding another complicating step for businesses making payments. Sole proprietors can now download business entity transcripts from their Business Tax Account. This transcript shows entity information like business name, address, location address and more for the Employer Identification Number on file.  
• File new amended returns electronically: Additional business Forms 940, 941, 943 and 945, including the Spanish version of Forms 941 and 943, can now be filed electronically. Through this improved process, IRS employees can now access taxpayer return information electronically, allowing them to provide more complete and accurate answers to taxpayer questions. In addition, the IRS can now accept related electronic payments while minimizing errors normally associated with processing paper returns. Taxpayers can still choose to submit a paper version.  
• Respond to notices online hits 1 million uploads: IRS digitalization efforts reached another key milestone in the agency’s transformation work with the Document Upload Tool accepting its one millionth taxpayer submission. Initially launched in 2021 in a limited format and greatly expanded in 2023 with funding from IRA, the tool offers taxpayers and tax professionals the option to respond digitally to eligible IRS notices by securely uploading required documents online through IRS.gov. For anyone with a smart phone or computer, this means that replying to IRS notices is now often as easy as scanning required documents and uploading them to the tax agency.  
• Form 13533, VITA/TCE Partner Sponsor Agreement
• Form 13533-A, FSA Remote Sponsor Agreement
• Form 14039-B, Business Identity Theft Affidavit
• Form 12508, Questionnaire for Non-Requesting Spouse
• Form 14157-A, Tax Return Preparer Fraud or Misconduct Affidavit
• Redesigning notices: The IRS has redesigned 100 of the most common notices that individual taxpayers receive, part of the ongoing work to prepare for the 2025 filing season as part of the Simple Notice Initiative. These notices make up about 90% of total notice volume sent to individual taxpayers, representing about 150 million notices sent to individual taxpayers in 2022.

More in-person help offered; special programs offered in underserved areas

The IRS continues to focus on helping taxpayers get it right the first time, helping them to interact with the agency in the ways that work best for them on the phone, in-person and online. The IRS is expanding in-person service, particularly those in underserved and rural communities.

During the filing season, IRS Taxpayer Assistance Centers had a 37% increase in face-to-face contacts, with the IRS working with nearly 1.3 million taxpayers for this calendar year through July 13. The IRS also received 2.7 million volunteer prepared returns to date compared to 2.5 million last year, an increase of 9.1%.

This summer, the IRS is continuing its special series of Community Assistance Visits to give taxpayers living in areas far from the agency’s in-person offices an opportunity to meet face-to-face with IRS customer service representatives. These visits, which began last year with IRA funding, provide help for taxpayers who live about a two-hour drive away from an IRS office.

The IRS has already hosted events in Roma, Texas; Humboldt, Iowa; Hazlehurst, Georgia; and Orocovis , Puerto Rico. This week, the agency is offering face-to-face help at a temporary Taxpayer Assistance Center in Gallup, New Mexico. Upcoming Community Assistance Visits include:

• Aug. 5-9, Thomasville, Alabama
• Aug. 19-23, Abilene, Kansas
• Sept. 9-13, West Plains, Missouri
• Sept. 23-27, Clarkston, Washington
• Oct. 7-11, Fairbanks, Alaska
• Oct. 21-25, Potsdam, New York

More information on these events will be available on IRS.gov closer to the event date.

Modernizing foundational technology

In addition to improvements to customer-facing technology, the IRS is modernizing decades-old systems and equipment:

• Digitalization: The IRS continues to make significant progress scanning and electronically filing paper returns. The IRS has replaced scanning equipment that is older than five years and installed automated mail-sorter machines in the six highest-volume IRS locations, streamlining the process of mail sorting, opening and scanning. As of the end of June, the IRS had scanned more than 2 million pieces of paper. Digitization has far-reaching implications for how the IRS can improve service and will enable the IRS to create completely digital workflows.  
• Online Account payment plans. The IRS recently delivered a data service that improves the taxpayer experience through Individual Online Account, allowing tax professionals to access and create payment plans on behalf of individual taxpayers.

Beyond the improvements made in direct support of taxpayers, foundational technology has continued the incremental improvements needed to increase operational effectiveness and efficiency for IRS employees, which ultimately helps taxpayers:

• Updating outdated Human Resource IT systems . Due to more than a decade of funding cuts to the agency, the IRS has hundreds of disparate, legacy human resources (HR) information technology (IT) systems with thousands of workflows. The transformation and streamlining of the HR IT applications using IRA funding is key to cultivating a robust organization, with a healthy HR function at its core. This multi-year project is a partnership with Treasury’s CIO and leverages cutting-edge technology to modernize IRS’s legacy HR applications, automate manual processes and make use of Treasury’s existing shared service offerings. These HR technology improvements in talent acquisition, workforce planning, labor and employee relations and other key HR processes will enhance the employee experience, improve productivity and help retain a strong and high-quality workforce needed to deliver customer service improvements for taxpayers.  
• Increasing network bandwidth to help employees, taxpayers. IRS has doubled the network bandwidth at many of our worksites to meet increased workforce demand and improve taxpayer service. The IRS is on track to complete this phase of network expansion at all sites ahead of filing season 2025.

Ensuring complex partnerships, large corporations and high-income, high-wealth individual taxpayers pay taxes owed

The IRS is also continuing work to ensure large corporate, large partnership and high-income individual filers pay the taxes they owe. Prior to the Inflation Reduction Act, more than a decade of budget cuts prevented the IRS from keeping pace with the increasingly complicated set of tools that the wealthiest taxpayers use to hide their income and evade paying their share. The IRS is now taking a variety of steps to close this gap.

The IRS has ramped up efforts to pursue high-income, high-wealth individuals who have either not filed their taxes or failed to pay recognized tax debt, with dozens of revenue officers focused on these high-end collection cases. These efforts are concentrated among taxpayers with more than $1 million in income and more than $250,000 in recognized tax debt. Earlier this month, the IRS announced that it has collected more than $1 billion from high-wealth taxpayers as part of an effort to ensure these individuals pay what they owe. The $1 billion collected represents collections as of April 2024, with work continuing in this area.

More improvements planned for 2025 as filing season work intensifies

In addition to these areas mentioned above, the IRS has a number of initiatives where changes related to the Inflation Reduction Act will accelerate later this year and into the 2025 filing season. Here are some examples:

• Continuing to focus on enhancing live assistance through improved efficiency in call centers, reducing paper and continued expanded staffing levels at Taxpayer Assistance Centers, while working to ensure taxpayers are aware of all available credits and benefits.
• Expanding online services by expanding the features available in Online Account, including digital copies of notices, status updates, secure two-way messaging and expanded payment options.
• Accelerating digitalization by providing new non-tax forms in digital mobile-friendly formats, in addition to the 20 delivered in fiscal year 2024, as well as scanning at the point of entry virtually all paper-filed tax and information returns.
• Increased taxpayer information by expanding information available on important issues ranging from the availability of important tax credits and benefits, as well as more consumer-focused information raising awareness about emerging tax scams and schemes.

More information on these and other improvements related to the 2025 tax season will be available later this fall.

For further information:

• Strategic Operating Plan
• IRS.gov tools
• Taxpayer Online Account
• Tax information in non-English languages
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How to Create a Business Development Plan in 7 Steps

Don't leave your sales to chance. Set your goals, choose your target market, and create a plan to reach them.

Erin Hueffner

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Sales leaders often want to know how to improve their revenue or hit their sales numbers. To reach new heights, you need to start by building a solid foundation. That’s your business development plan. If you’re wondering where to begin, you’re in the right place to learn. We’ll explore how business development works and how to create a winning plan.

What you’ll learn:

What is business development, what’s the difference between sales and business development, how does business development work, why is business development important, how to create a business development plan in 7 steps, what’s the best technology for business development planning, sales planning can be delightful. no, really..

Our Sales Planning solution keeps sellers on track with easy-to-build and easy-to-optimize sales plans.

Business development (BD) is the process of long-term planning to increase your company’s value through relationships, markets, and customers. It involves researching your target audience, finding new opportunities, and using your channels to reach them. Your sales representatives can only close the leads they’re talking to. Finding and starting those conversations is what business development is all about.

The sales team receives leads, works them through their sales pipeline , and sells your company’s products and services. Sales representatives work their territories and their lists to close deals and convert leads to customers. It’s a transactional and tactical process.

On the other hand, the business development team digs through the entire marketplace to find new growth opportunities. Business development representatives prospect, reach out to leads, qualify them, and move them through the funnel. It’s a strategic process that requires patience.

When both teams are working together, businesses thrive.

( Back to top )

Business development takes many forms. Researching the market to find growth opportunities. Creating a new lead-qualifying process. Managing a project across departments with marketing and sales. Analyzing data to validate a theory. And of course, sales prospecting to find good leads.

Areas for new business development

So where do brand-new growth opportunities come from? Here are some places to start:

• Market analysis: Look into the market using tools like a customer relationship management (CRM) tool and determine areas your competitors haven’t tapped, or issues where current customers are dissatisfied. Those are gaps where you can introduce an existing product, a new bundle, or new campaigns.
• Strategic partnerships: Collaborate with partner companies on channel partnerships (such as third-party resellers) that can create new opportunities for both parties.
• Product development: Innovate on your offerings based on customer feedback, working with other teams to create something new. This could be new features to existing products, new product line extensions, and new business models (such as introducing freemium options or subscription offers).
• Mergers and acquisitions (M&A): Buy up market share and do a lot of business development all at once. If business leadership makes this decision, business development is responsible for finding ways to transition the new organization’s customer base over, and possibly migrate them to your company’s products instead.
• New funding: Find investors for working capital, things to invest in, and obtain grants to expand the business. Business development reps would be responsible for the outreach approach to investors, and making the case for the funding using sales data and customer feedback.
• Emerging technologies: Keep an eye on the industry and find new ways to disrupt your industry and take your company further. This could take the form of new channels like a trendy social media platform gaining popularity, or a new must-have feature that all your competitors begin adding to their products.

What skills do you need for business development?

Whether you’re thinking about transitioning into a role as a business development representative (BDR), or you simply need to add BD skills as you start wearing more hats in your current role, you’ll need some important skills. It’s easy enough to get started. Develop a curiosity about the customers you serve, the problems you solve, and the market you’re in. Here are some core skills:

• Communication: Business development representatives have to be skilled in cold calling, interacting with prospects on social media, and building relationships.
• Finding prospects: BDRs interact with prospects a lot, so they need to update the sales funnel, qualify leads, and nurture them.
• Business intelligence: Reps have to understand their business and competition through research, know how to collect meaningful data, and interpret and present that data using visualization dashboards.
• Data analysis: They should know how to track and present data to leadership, such as revenue, pipeline value, and the influence of business development on that pipeline.

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Nothing stays still in the world of sales.

According to the State of Sales report , 82% of sellers say they’ve had to quickly adapt to new ways of selling in the face of global challenges, including supply chain issues, inflation, and health precautions. On top of that, 57% of buyers said they prefer engaging with companies through digital channels. And 81% of sales reps said buyers are increasingly doing their own research before reaching out.

You need to adapt your plan as markets shift, and that’s where business development comes in.

Business development is the core activity that helps an organization find new areas of growth and strategize on making those areas work. It’s important for finding new leads, converting them, and keeping them as reliable customers.

What is business development planning? If I was joining a brand-new team and building a plan from scratch, here’s how I’d approach it.

1. Set S.M.A.R.T. goals with “sales math”

Start by reverse-engineering how to hit your target. Let’s say my quota is closing a million dollars a year, so that’s $250,000 per quarter. Ask these questions:

• How many deals do I have to close?
• What’s the average deal size?
• What are typical closing ratios?
• How many qualified opportunities would I need in the pipeline?
• How many first meetings would I need to do?
• What does the outbound activity look like in order to get a meeting?

To create the goal at the start of that list, use S.M.A.R.T. goals (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Timely).

So if I want that $250,000 in a quarter, that’s specific . We can measure all the stats in our sales math to figure out if we’re on track. To judge if the goal is attainable , we’d need to calculate the lead and volume increase. A jump of a few percent points is likely; a 50% increase isn’t. Any goal that’s geared towards growing the business is relevant to the business development representative’s job. And it’s timely because it’s set for this quarter.

2. Choose key performance indicators (KPIs)

As a subset of the goal setting, we need to choose the KPIs that we’ll measure along the way. Try these common KPIs for business development:

• Changes in revenue
• Lead conversion rate
• Leads generated per month/quarter/year
• Prospect and customer satisfaction
• Pipeline value

3. Market research

The next thing I want to know is how we’re messaging (and to whom). These are the core components of a solid business development plan:

• What are the key core personas and the accounts that I’m targeting, and what do they care about? What are their priorities?
• What are their current solutions? If they’re not using ours, how do they get the job done instead? Do they do it themselves?
• Do they use a competitor, or (in the case of tech sales) do they just use a spreadsheet? What problems does that create, and how can I align my solution to those problems?

Once we know these, we can figure out how to position our product or service to our target audience.

4. Pick a strategic target

Even a niche product can draw in a pretty broad list of leads. However, it’s not effective for our sales reps to just work a list of 100 accounts from top to bottom. If only a small percentage of your target market is in buying mode right now, you need a targeting strategy .

You need to pick low-effort targets first who have buying intent. If you’re collecting leads in a fully featured CRM, the system can track actions they take, including opening marketing emails you send to them, visiting key parts of your site, and even interacting with your social posts. AI can elevate these leads as “high intent,” or it can be done manually by reviewing actions taken by your leads list.

5. Sales pitch and sales enablement

Once you know your product-market fit, who you’re talking to, and how you’re approaching them, you can boil your messaging down to a sales pitch . It should explain your business’s mission and how it fits with the needs of your target persona in an attention-grabbing way.

From there, you’ll need to adapt that message to all kinds of sales enablement strategies. You should be asking questions like:

• What should the emails sound like?
• What’s the right sequence?
• What are the common objections I’m going to come across, and how do I handle them?

6. Set the budget

All this work will cost money. While it’s expected to have a return on investment (ROI), it’s not as immediate as sales activity. The budget needs to account for necessary personnel, tools, and forecasted returns. You’ll need to work with your finance team to ensure you have funds allocated to bring your plan to life.

7. Customer outreach

Finally, you need to decide how you’re going to prospect and nurture your leads, which depends on the budget you just set. Here are some methods to consider:

• Cold calling
• Upselling current customers
• Cross-selling
• Sponsorships with partners
• Advertising

Once you’ve chosen your mix of outreach methods, you need to decide on the cadence and order of channels. For example, you might use social posts to get the initial leads to your site. From there, you could pepper them with retargeting ads to make sure they sign up for your email list. Then you reach out with a “welcome series” of emails that introduce and entice them to your offer. The offer and messaging could change the longer they go without taking any action.

8. Measure, test, and improve

Form a plan to measure the relative success of each individual outreach strategy to decide where to invest more the next time around. Methods that lag behind should be investigated for weak points where leads are lost so they can be tweaked and tested in the market again.

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The modern business development team needs a good tech stack.

A customer relationship management (CRM) platform helps track the pipeline you’re building. Standardize the cadence of your outreach and build repeatable sequences that your entire team follows to help enforce your strategy.

Lead scoring helps you know when to move prospects to different parts of the pipeline, and some programs even monitor and collect customer signals to help automatically notify business development representatives when it’s time to reach out again.

No matter what platforms and tools you choose, it’s important to start with a process before throwing data intelligence and automation at your problems. Technology can only scale a process. If that process is broken or bad, it’s just going to make your problems bigger.

Build a plan to move your business forward

Before you can hit your numbers, you need a plan to get there. Set S.M.A.R.T. goals, build your customer persona, and choose the right channels to reach your prospects. When you do this, you can build a roadmap for the future and grow your revenue.

Deliver sales plans that perform and adapt

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Erin Hueffner is a writer from Madison, Wisconsin. Her career spans two decades in tech, journalism, and content marketing. At Salesforce, Erin’s work focuses on sales fundamentals and best practice content for Salesblazers. Erin has a bachelor’s degree in English from the University of ... Read More Wisconsin-Madison.

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• How to budget your money 

1. Examine your income

• 2. Choose your budgeting strategy 
• 3. Reduce spending 

4. Automate savings and investments

• 5. Track your progress 
• How to budget on a low income 

Why is budgeting important?

How to budget: tips, tools, and techniques.

Affiliate links for the products on this page are from partners that compensate us and terms apply to offers listed (see our advertiser disclosure with our list of partners for more details). However, our opinions are our own. See how we rate banking products to write unbiased product reviews.

• A budget can help you stay on top of expenses, pay off debts, and achieve your financial goals.
• There are several strategies for budgeting. Each has its own unique pros and cons.
• Checking in on your budget, adjusting it, and analyzing your spending habits regularly is critical.

A budget is, at its simplest, a plan for how you'll spend your earnings. It ensures you have the funds to cover your essentials — like housing, groceries, utilities, and your monthly debt payments — while also working toward other financial and savings goals .

In short: Budgets allow you to get the most out of your paycheck. Without one, there's a chance you could run out of money before your next pay date. 

How to budget your money 

Budgeting is critical if you want to stay on top of bills, pay off debts , or save for the future, and there are several ways to go about it. 

"Building a budget doesn't have to be overly complicated or time-consuming," says Brittany Castro, former in-house CFP  for Mint. "It's actually the first step in putting yourself in control of your finances because it means you know where your money goes each month."

How to plan a budget

Budgeting as a beginner can be daunting. Use these steps when making a personal finance budget for the first time: 

• Examine your income and expenses so that you can understand how much you're making, how much you're using, and if you're spending more than you're making
• Choose your approach to budgeting, such as the 50/30/20 rule or the envelope system, when determining how much to save each month
• Figure out where you can cut back on spending — and make strategies to help you stick to those cutbacks
• Automate your savings and investments so you can continue to make money off of your extra income without too much effort
• Find ways of tracking your budgeting process that work for you, such as using budgeting apps and/or creating a budgeting spreadsheet

To start budgeting, you first need a good pulse on your monthly income — more specifically, how much you take home each after taxes. If you're unsure what your net income (your income after taxes) looks like off the top of your head, you can typically use pay stubs or bank statements to get these numbers.

Once you have your income estimated, you'll also need to estimate your monthly expenses — things like your rent or mortgage, utility costs, groceries, insurance, and gas. If you have debts (like credit cards or personal loans ), add these in as well. Then compare the two numbers.

"If your expected expenses are greater than your expected income, you will need to earn additional income, cut out some purchases, go into debt, or do a combination of these three," says Todd Christensen, an accredited financial counselor and education manager at Money Fit. 

If your income outweighs your expenses, though, that means you have extra cash to put in savings, add to an emergency fund , or put toward other financial goals.

2. Choose your budgeting strategy 

The next step is to create your budget — a specific plan for how you'll use your earnings each month and eventually achieve your financial goals. 

There are several strategies for doing this, each with its own pros and cons. Here are a few of the options you might consider:

50/30/20 rule

According to Christensen, the 50/30/20 rule has become increasingly popular in the last 20 years. "It suggests you live on 50% of your income — housing, transportation, cell phone, utilities — enjoy 30% with dining out, recreation, or travel, and save and invest 20%."

The benefit here is that it's a simple, easy-to-learn approach, and it doesn't force you to account for every single purchase or expenditure. On the downside, it doesn't take into account your circumstances and may not work in every scenario. (If you live in a high-cost housing market, for example, adhering to that 50% rule may be unrealistic.)

70/20/10 rule

The 70/20/10 rule is similar to the 50/30/20 rule in that it has a loose budgeting structure. The categories for this budgeting strategy are: 70% goes to wants and needs, 20% goes toward savings and investments, and 10% goes toward debt payments or donations. 

Zero-balance or traditional budget

With a zero-balance budget, you're trying to get your income minus your expenses to equal zero. That means you use all your income each month — first, toward your essentials, and then, toward your wants and financial goals. Under this strategy, if you were to find yourself with an unspent $300 at the end of the month, you'd put that money in savings, make an extra loan payment, or make some other use of it.

The advantage of a zero-balance budget is that it accounts for every dollar, ensuring you make the absolute most of your earnings. The main drawback is that it's time-consuming. Tracking each expenditure and every dollar you earn can be tiresome. It's also difficult to use on unpredictable incomes (you never know how much you can allot for each expense). 

Pay yourself first budget

The pay yourself first strategy starts with your financial goals and works backward. So, say you know you want to put $500 toward your mortgage and $500 into savings each month. You'd start by subtracting that $1,000 from your monthly take-home pay (for example, $4,000 - $1,000), and then use that number ($3,000) for your monthly bills and expenses. 

This strategy's big perk is that it prioritizes your goals and allows flexibility in spending. On the downside, it may create stress if you leave yourself with too little to cover your monthly costs.

The envelope budget

The envelope system is a monthly budgeting method created by financial author Dave Ramsey. It requires putting cash into individual envelopes for each expense or category of expenses (e.g., housing, utilities, food, and entertainment). You then pull cash out of the envelopes as costs arise during the month. 

If you run out of money in an envelope, it's a sign you overspent or need to allot more to that category. If you have lots left over, you can adjust the budget for the next month and put those funds elsewhere.

The benefit of this method is that it's visual and tangible, making it easy to understand your budget and how you can improve it. Unfortunately, it's also time-consuming, and cash isn't always accepted — especially in today's digital economy.

3. Reduce spending 

While you go about creating a budget, it's important to fully analyze your expenses. You should ask yourself: Are those expenses necessary? If so, are there ways to reduce them or make them more affordable? This might mean renegotiating your pricing, switching service providers, or looking for coupons or special deals.

Here are some budgeting tips to cut down what you spend:

• Increase friction: Friction is when something like spending money becomes a little more difficult. An example of adding friction when spending would be removing your saved credit card information from your favorite site so that you have to manually re-add it in every time. This is a great way to make it harder for you to spend easily. 
• Wait before buying something: Set a 48-hour waiting rule for your purchases. If there's something you'd like to buy, sleep on it. If it still seems like a good idea in two days, then make the purchase. This helps you steer clear of unnecessary impulse buys.
• Audit your monthly subscription services: There are so many subscription services these days, and it's easy to lose track of just how much you're spending. Take a hard look at your subscriptions and consider cutting any you're not actively using. Look at streaming services, apps, subscription boxes, and even Subscribe and Save subscriptions on Amazon.
• Refinance any loans to get lower rates: You'll be surprised how much interest adds up on any loans you have. Refinancing your mortgage , car loan, and sometimes even your student loans could reduce your interest rate, monthly payment, or both, freeing up cash flow that you can put toward your budget for other, more important, expenses. Make sure to shop around with several lenders if you're considering this route.
• Meal plan: Planning your meals ahead of time helps you stay on track at the grocery store and avoid eating out in a pinch. You'll want a plan for every day of the week, including breakfasts, lunches, dinners, and snacks.

Cutting back even slightly could free up more cash for paying down debts, achieving your financial goals, or just reducing overall financial stress. 

No matter which budgeting method you choose, it's important to make saving a part of your plan. Typically, the best option is an automated deposit into your savings account, as this reduces hassle and keeps your goals on track. To maximize your savings, you might consider a high-yield savings account , which earns money at a higher rate than other options. 

Once you've automated your savings, you can also think about investing any income you might have left over. If this is something you're interested in, consider talking to a certified financial planner before diving in. They can help you choose the best investments for your goals.

5. Track your progress 

Budgets are ever-evolving tools, and you'll need to track your progress, adjust, and recalibrate often — especially in the beginning. You'll also need to adjust your spending habits as you go.

"The key is to identify your spending trends and ensure they match up with your spending priorities," Christensen says. "If you're spending $50 a week on soft drinks, but you would rather prioritize the purchase of a new gaming console, then it's time to change your soft-drink purchasing behavior."

Though you can certainly manually check in on your budget, Christensen recommends using a budgeting app that connects to your bank account, as these can streamline the process. For example, Rocket Money is an app that helps you create a budget, negotiate your bills, and reduce your spending — and it has a free plan.

Some budgeting apps offer credit monitoring services , as well. Consider tracking your credit score and credit card use when you're tracking your budget to better understand all of your financial needs.

You can also create an expense tracking spreadsheet in Excel, ask for receipts for every purchase, and total them up at the end of each week or month.

How to budget on a low income 

If you're struggling financially, budgeting is particularly important. As Lisa Fischer, chief growth and lending officer at Mission Lane , explains, "Keeping a close eye on spending is crucial for all consumers, but especially those who may be living paycheck to paycheck."

Not only can budgeting help you monitor your spending habits and stay on track with bills and expenses, but it can also ensure you prioritize saving, which should improve your financial outlook down the line.

In addition to budgeting, you can consider applying for rental or housing payment assistance, food pantries, and health care sharing plans to reduce your costs. Financial, debt, or credit counseling might be helpful as well. If this is something you're interested in, the nonprofit National Foundation for Credit Counseling is a good place to start.

If you want to make the most of your income while also achieving your long-term financial goals, having a budget is crucial. As Castro explains, "You need a solid budget and financial plan in order to set yourself up for long-term financial wellness, avoid running into problems such as racking up credit card debt, and build your net worth over time."

There are many ways to go about budgeting, and you may need to try a few before you find the right fit. You can also speak to a financial advisor for help choosing the best budgeting route for your household.

How to budget: FAQs

The best way to start a budget is to figure out how much you're making and compare it to what you're spending. Then you can figure out what budgeting method you want to use.

Cash stuffing is a budgeting technique that involves assigning monthly spending and saving categories to different envelopes. Then you put the amount of money you want to spend on those categories into the envelopes.

The 50/30/20 rule is a budgeting technique in which you assign 50% of your income to living expenses (such as rent and utilities), 30% of your income to non-necessary expenses (such as concerts or travel), and 20% to savings and investments.

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How To Write A Business Plan (2024 Guide)

Updated: Apr 17, 2024, 11:59am

Table of Contents

Brainstorm an executive summary, create a company description, brainstorm your business goals, describe your services or products, conduct market research, create financial plans, bottom line, frequently asked questions.

Every business starts with a vision, which is distilled and communicated through a business plan. In addition to your high-level hopes and dreams, a strong business plan outlines short-term and long-term goals, budget and whatever else you might need to get started. In this guide, we’ll walk you through how to write a business plan that you can stick to and help guide your operations as you get started.

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Drafting the Summary

An executive summary is an extremely important first step in your business. You have to be able to put the basic facts of your business in an elevator pitch-style sentence to grab investors’ attention and keep their interest. This should communicate your business’s name, what the products or services you’re selling are and what marketplace you’re entering.

Ask for Help

When drafting the executive summary, you should have a few different options. Enlist a few thought partners to review your executive summary possibilities to determine which one is best.

After you have the executive summary in place, you can work on the company description, which contains more specific information. In the description, you’ll need to include your business’s registered name , your business address and any key employees involved in the business. 

The business description should also include the structure of your business, such as sole proprietorship , limited liability company (LLC) , partnership or corporation. This is the time to specify how much of an ownership stake everyone has in the company. Finally, include a section that outlines the history of the company and how it has evolved over time.

Wherever you are on the business journey, you return to your goals and assess where you are in meeting your in-progress targets and setting new goals to work toward.

Numbers-based Goals

Goals can cover a variety of sections of your business. Financial and profit goals are a given for when you’re establishing your business, but there are other goals to take into account as well with regard to brand awareness and growth. For example, you might want to hit a certain number of followers across social channels or raise your engagement rates.

Another goal could be to attract new investors or find grants if you’re a nonprofit business. If you’re looking to grow, you’ll want to set revenue targets to make that happen as well.

Intangible Goals

Goals unrelated to traceable numbers are important as well. These can include seeing your business’s advertisement reach the general public or receiving a terrific client review. These goals are important for the direction you take your business and the direction you want it to go in the future.

The business plan should have a section that explains the services or products that you’re offering. This is the part where you can also describe how they fit in the current market or are providing something necessary or entirely new. If you have any patents or trademarks, this is where you can include those too.

If you have any visual aids, they should be included here as well. This would also be a good place to include pricing strategy and explain your materials.

This is the part of the business plan where you can explain your expertise and different approach in greater depth. Show how what you’re offering is vital to the market and fills an important gap.

You can also situate your business in your industry and compare it to other ones and how you have a competitive advantage in the marketplace.

Other than financial goals, you want to have a budget and set your planned weekly, monthly and annual spending. There are several different costs to consider, such as operational costs.

Business Operations Costs

Rent for your business is the first big cost to factor into your budget. If your business is remote, the cost that replaces rent will be the software that maintains your virtual operations.

Marketing and sales costs should be next on your list. Devoting money to making sure people know about your business is as important as making sure it functions.

Other Costs

Although you can’t anticipate disasters, there are likely to be unanticipated costs that come up at some point in your business’s existence. It’s important to factor these possible costs into your financial plans so you’re not caught totally unaware.

Business plans are important for businesses of all sizes so that you can define where your business is and where you want it to go. Growing your business requires a vision, and giving yourself a roadmap in the form of a business plan will set you up for success.

How do I write a simple business plan?

When you’re working on a business plan, make sure you have as much information as possible so that you can simplify it to the most relevant information. A simple business plan still needs all of the parts included in this article, but you can be very clear and direct.

What are some common mistakes in a business plan?

The most common mistakes in a business plan are common writing issues like grammar errors or misspellings. It’s important to be clear in your sentence structure and proofread your business plan before sending it to any investors or partners.

What basic items should be included in a business plan?

When writing out a business plan, you want to make sure that you cover everything related to your concept for the business,  an analysis of the industry―including potential customers and an overview of the market for your goods or services―how you plan to execute your vision for the business, how you plan to grow the business if it becomes successful and all financial data around the business, including current cash on hand, potential investors and budget plans for the next few years.

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Julia is a writer in New York and started covering tech and business during the pandemic. She also covers books and the publishing industry.