Contingency Burn Calculator
Enter your project's contingency figures to see remaining balance, burn rate relative to project progress, and projected remaining at completion.
Enter Project Data
Total contingency set aside at project start
Sum of all executed change orders to date
Proposed but not yet approved (enter 0 if none)
Estimated overall project progress (0–100)
Understanding contingency burn
Construction project contingency is a budget reserve for unforeseen conditions, design changes, and change orders that have genuine entitlement. As change orders are approved, contingency is consumed. Tracking burn rate — how quickly contingency is being depleted relative to project progress — helps owners understand whether their project is on track or whether the contingency may be exhausted before substantial completion.
A key warning signal is when contingency burn rate exceeds project completion percentage. If 60% of contingency is consumed when the project is only 40% complete, the trajectory suggests the contingency may not last to the end of the project — which may require difficult decisions about pending change orders or additional project funding.
Key concepts this calculator uses
Remaining contingency
Original contingency minus all approved and executed change orders to date. This is the owner's current available reserve.
Burn rate
Approved changes divided by original contingency, expressed as a percentage. Compared to project completion % to identify pace risk.
Exposure
Approved changes plus pending (proposed but not yet approved) changes. Reflects the total financial commitment if all pending changes are approved.
Projected remaining
Extrapolation of the current burn rate to 100% project completion. A negative number indicates projected contingency exhaustion before project completion.
Owner contingency vs. contractor contingency
This calculator is designed for owner contingency — the reserve held by the owner outside the construction contract price to cover changes the owner directs and unforeseen conditions that are the owner's risk to carry. This is distinct from contractor contingency (embedded in the contractor's price for execution risks), which belongs to the contractor and is not the owner's reserve to track. If your project is structured under a GMP or cost-plus contract, verify which contingency structure applies to your project before using these figures.
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Track your contingency in ChangeGuard with automatic updates
ChangeGuard maintains a running contingency register updated automatically as change orders are processed — so your remaining balance is always current.
No credit card required for your first review.