Free Business Plan Software and Templates
Which business plan and financial model tools a startup can write its plan and forecast with for free today, whether forecasts and exports are included, which offer a trial or free templates, and what the first paid plan costs, read from each provider's own page.
Free allowances read on each provider's own pages, all checked on or after . Planning tools change their free plans from time to time: confirm the terms on the provider's page before you rely on it.
Business plan tools a startup can use for free today include PlanGuru (14-day free trial), SBA business plan guide (Free business counseling), IdeaBuddy (15-day free trial), SCORE business plan template (Free mentoring, DOC template), and ProjectionHub (Free individual templates). Each of the 8 free plans below links to the provider's page that states it, with its main limit, whether forecasts and exports are included, whether a card is needed and what the first paid plan costs.
A business plan and a financial forecast help you think through a market, raise from investors and apply for loans and grants. Business plan apps guide you through both, usually with a free trial, and public programs and software companies publish free templates.
The headline rarely tells you how far it goes. Most business plan apps offer a trial rather than a free plan, templates leave the financial model to you, and exports may be paid. Each tool below shows what is free, its main limit, whether forecasts and exports are included, whether a card is needed and what the first paid plan costs, quoted from the provider's own page with the date we read it.
Which tools we picked and the order they appear in are our editorial choices; the terms are the providers'. Some of these providers pay us a referral commission when someone signs up through our link: those links are labeled, and they play no part in which tools are listed or where.
Business plan software with a free plan or trial
Write a plan and build a financial forecast in a guided app, free to start.
- 1
PlanGuru
Full forecasting software, tried for 14 days
PlanGuru's free trial lasts 14 days with no card, and includes all features except Consolidations and PlanGuru Analytics. Paid plans start at $83 a month billed annually.
- What's free
- 14-day free trial (source: planguru.com)
- Forecasts and exports
- All features in the trial (source: planguru.com)
- Payment card
- No card needed (source: planguru.com)
- First paid plan
- Single Entity: $83/mo billed annually (source: planguru.com)
- 2
IdeaBuddy
A 15-day trial for one business plan
IdeaBuddy's free trial runs 15 days with no card, for one idea and one collaborator, with a limited Financial Plan. The Dreamer plan is $5 a month billed annually.
- What's free
- 15-day free trial (source: ideabuddy.com)
- Forecasts and exports
- Financial Plan, some options limited (source: ideabuddy.com)
- Payment card
- No credit card required (source: ideabuddy.com)
- First paid plan
- Dreamer: $5/mo billed annually (source: ideabuddy.com)
Start free at IdeaBuddyTerms read on ideabuddy.com on IdeaBuddy: the free allowance and how to start - 3
ProjectionHub
Excel projection templates, free to download
ProjectionHub's individual projection templates are free to download, each a 5-year model with complete projected financial statements. ProjectionHub+ with all templates is $499 one time.
- Forecasts and exports
- 5-year projected statements (source: projectionhub.com)
- First paid plan
- ProjectionHub+: $499 one time (source: projectionhub.com)
Start free at ProjectionHubTerms read on projectionhub.com on ProjectionHub: the free allowance and how to start
Free business plan templates and builders
Free templates and builders from public programs and nonprofits.
- 1
SBA business plan guide
A government guide with example plans
The SBA guide covers traditional and lean business plan formats, with example plans to download and a fillable startup cost spreadsheet. Free business counseling is available.
- What's free
- Free business counseling (source: sba.gov)
- Forecasts and exports
- Fillable startup cost spreadsheet (source: sba.gov)
- 2
SCORE business plan template
A Word template with free mentor help
SCORE offers a business plan template to download as a DOC file. Its mentoring is always free, for the life of your business.
Start free at SCORETerms read on score.org on SCORE business plan template: the free allowance and how to start - 3
LivePlan
Free business plan templates from a planning software maker
LivePlan's downloads page offers free business plan templates, checklists and eBooks. Its planning software is a paid plan from $15 a month paid annually.
- First paid plan
- Standard: $15/mo, paid annually (source: liveplan.com)
- 4
HubSpot business plan template
A one-page editable plan with prompts
HubSpot's free business plan template is a one-page editable file, with prompts for all of the essential parts of a business plan. It is offered as a free download.
Start free at HubSpotTerms read on blog.hubspot.com on HubSpot business plan template: the free allowance and how to start - 5
Shopify business plan template
A simple plan for goals and milestones
Shopify's blog gives access to a free business plan template, a simple template to clarify your business goals and milestones. The guide also covers how to fill it out.
Start free at ShopifyTerms read on shopify.com on Shopify business plan template: the free allowance and how to start
Also useful for bookkeeping, tax and finance
Referral links, picked for fit and ordered by fit (70%) and what a signup earns us (30%), at no cost to you. They never change this page's ranking.
Compare the top options
How this comparison is built
The list covers business plan and financial model tools a founder can use for free today without applying to a program. The order and the "best for" notes are our editorial reading of each tool's terms. Every term comes from the tool's own pricing or help page on the date shown, never from a third-party list; follow each link for the full conditions. A trial instead of a free plan, exports or financial forecasts kept for paid plans, templates only can matter more than the headline, so the comparison quotes them wherever the provider states them. Some of these tools pay StartupPerks a referral commission, and their links are labeled as referral links; that decides neither whether nor where a tool appears, and no tool pays for a placement on this page.
Read the full methodologyCommon questions
Is there free business plan software?
Mostly as trials and templates. By the terms each provider states, PlanGuru offers a 14-day free trial, IdeaBuddy a 15-day free trial, and ProjectionHub free individual templates for 5-year projections.
Where can I get a free business plan template?
The SBA's business plan guide includes downloadable examples and a startup cost spreadsheet, SCORE offers a free DOC template alongside free mentoring, and LivePlan, HubSpot and Shopify publish free templates.
Is LivePlan free?
No. LivePlan publishes free templates, checklists and eBooks; its Standard plan is $15 a month, paid annually.
Can I get free help writing a business plan?
Yes. The SBA lists free business counseling, and SCORE offers free mentoring.
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