LivePlan Review [2025]: The Business Plan Software That Makes You Feel Like You Know What You're Doing

The Premise: Because Staring at a Blank Document While Panicking Isn't a Business Strategy

You know that moment when you realize you need a business plan—for investors, a bank loan, or just to prove to yourself that your business idea isn't completely unhinged? And then you open a blank Google Doc, type "Business Plan" at the top, and promptly spiral into existential dread about what goes in a business plan?

That's where LivePlan comes in.

Created by Palo Alto Software (the same people who've been helping entrepreneurs since before "entrepreneur" was a LinkedIn job title), LivePlan is cloud-based business planning software that promises to walk you through the entire process with step-by-step guidance, templates, examples, and AI assistance.

The pitch: create a professional, investor-ready business plan in a fraction of the time it would take fumbling through Word documents and Excel spreadsheets while googling "what's a cash flow projection" at 2 AM.

But does it actually deliver on that promise? Or is this just fancy templates that make you feel productive while your business idea remains as half-baked as when you started?

Let's find out.

What LivePlan Actually Is (The Basics)

LivePlan is a cloud-based business planning and financial forecasting tool that's been around since 2009. It's designed for entrepreneurs and small business owners who need to create business plans but don't have MBAs, accounting degrees, or infinite patience for complicated spreadsheets.

What you can do with LivePlan:

• Create business plans: Step-by-step guidance through every section (executive summary, market analysis, financial projections, etc.)

• Financial forecasting: Build profit/loss statements, balance sheets, cash flow projections without Excel nightmares

• Performance tracking: Dashboard that compares your actual results against projections

• Pitch creation: Export professional-looking plans as PDFs or slide presentations

• Collaboration: Work with team members, advisors, or accountants on your plan

• Industry research: Access data on trends, benchmarks, and competitive insights

It's basically a guided tour through business planning, holding your hand through every section with examples, prompts, and automatic calculations.

The Pricing (Surprisingly Reasonable)

LivePlan offers straightforward pricing with no hidden fees (refreshing in the software world):

Standard Plans

Monthly: $15/month for first 3 months, then $20/month
Annual: $12/month (billed at $144/year) — save 40%

Premium Plans

Monthly: $30/month for first 3 months, then $40/month
Annual: $24/month (billed at $288/year) — save 40%

What's the difference between Standard and Premium?

Premium gets you:

• Advanced financial forecasting tools

• Custom industry benchmarks

• Priority customer support

• Additional collaboration features

• 

For most small businesses and startups, Standard is sufficient. Premium is for people who need more sophisticated financial modeling or want faster support.

The 35-Day Money-Back Guarantee

Unlike competitors with 7-day trials or no refunds, LivePlan offers a full 35-day money-back guarantee. That's enough time to actually create a business plan, evaluate whether the software works for you, and get a refund if you're not satisfied.

This is legitimately generous and suggests confidence in their product.

The Good Stuff (Why People Actually Like LivePlan)

It Holds Your Hand Through the Process

The step-by-step guidance is LivePlan's killer feature. Every section includes:

• Prompts explaining what to write

• Examples from real business plans

• Video tutorials showing you how

• Tips on what investors/lenders want to see

For first-time founders who have no idea what goes in a business plan, this is invaluable. You're never staring at a blank page wondering what to write—the software guides you through each section systematically.

The AI-Powered Assistant Is Actually Useful

LivePlan's AI assistant (added relatively recently) helps with:

• Writing improvement: Adjusts tone, grammar, spelling

• Content generation: Suggests text based on your inputs

• Financial forecasting: Recommends projections based on your industry

• Analysis: Identifies potential issues in your plan

Is it going to write your entire business plan for you? No. But it'll help you refine what you've written and speed up the process significantly.

550+ Sample Business Plans

LivePlan provides over 550 industry-specific sample business plans covering everything from coffee shops to SaaS startups to nonprofit organizations.

These aren't customizable templates—they're examples showing what successful business plans look like in your industry. You can't just copy-paste, but you get a roadmap for structure, length, and content approach.

This is incredibly helpful for understanding what "good" looks like before creating your own.

Financial Projections Without Spreadsheet Hell

Creating financial projections is where most business planning efforts die. LivePlan handles the math automatically:

• Build profit/loss statements

• Generate balance sheets

• Create cash flow forecasts

• Produce break-even analysis

• Calculate funding requirements

• 

You input the basics (revenue estimates, expenses, growth assumptions), and LivePlan creates professional financial statements with charts and graphs.

No complicated Excel formulas. No wondering if your calculations are correct. The software does the heavy lifting.

Integration with QuickBooks and Xero

LivePlan integrates with QuickBooks and Xero, allowing you to import actual financial data automatically. This is huge for:

• Performance tracking: Compare projections against reality

• Updates: Keep your plan current without manual data entry

• Accuracy: Ensure your financials match your accounting records

For established businesses creating plans for expansion or funding, this integration saves hours of manual work.

The Performance Dashboard

Once your plan is complete, LivePlan's dashboard tracks your actual performance against projections with:

• 20+ charts and graphs

• Key metric tracking

• Variance analysis (actual vs. projected)

• Real-time updates when connected to accounting software

This transforms your business plan from a static document created once and forgotten into a living tool for managing your business.

Collaboration Features

Multiple team members can work on the plan simultaneously:

• Section locking prevents editing conflicts

• Comments and feedback functionality

• Permission controls for different users

• Sharing options for investors, advisors, lenders

For teams, this collaborative approach is much better than emailing Word documents back and forth.

Cloud-Based Access

Access your business plan from anywhere, any device. No software installation. No worrying about file versions. Everything saves automatically to the cloud.

This is 2025—cloud-based should be standard, but it's still worth noting.

Multilingual Support

Create business plans in Spanish, French, Brazilian Portuguese, Italian, or German. Display financials in various currencies.

For international businesses or entrepreneurs seeking funding in multiple markets, this flexibility matters.

The Not-So-Good Stuff (Reality Check)

You Must Be Online to Use It

LivePlan is cloud-based, which means no internet = no access to your business plan. If you're traveling somewhere without reliable WiFi or just prefer offline work, this is limiting.

For most people in 2025, this isn't a big deal. But it's worth noting.

Can't Copy Existing Plans

If you're creating multiple business plans (maybe you're a consultant or running multiple ventures), LivePlan doesn't let you duplicate an existing plan as a starting point.

You have to start fresh each time, which seems like an oversight. Why can't you copy a plan and modify it?

The Sample Plans Aren't Customizable

Those 550+ sample business plans? They're examples only—you can't use them as templates. You can read them for inspiration but can't load one as a starting point and customize from there.

This feels like a missed opportunity. Being able to start from an industry template and modify would be more helpful than starting from scratch with examples for reference.

Limited Integration Options

While QuickBooks and Xero integration is great, that's about it. If you use other business tools (CRMs, project management software, other accounting platforms), LivePlan doesn't connect.

For an all-in-one platform, the integration ecosystem is surprisingly limited.

The AI Is Helpful But Not Revolutionary

LivePlan's AI assistant is useful for refinement and suggestions, but don't expect it to write your business plan for you. It's more like a helpful editor than a ghostwriter.

Some competitors (like Upmetrics) have more robust AI features for actual content generation. LivePlan's AI feels like an add-on rather than core functionality.

Not Ideal for Complex Financial Modeling

If you need sophisticated financial modeling with multiple scenarios, detailed sensitivity analysis, or complex capital structures, LivePlan might be too simple.

It's built for standard small business financials. If you're doing complicated startup fundraising with multiple rounds, warrants, and complex cap tables, you'll need more advanced tools.

Premium Features Feel Like Upselling

The distinction between Standard and Premium isn't always clear. Basic financial forecasting should be included in the base plan—charging extra for "advanced" forecasting feels like unnecessary tiering.

Who Should Actually Use LivePlan

LivePlan makes sense for:

• First-time entrepreneurs creating their first business plan

• Small business owners seeking loans or presenting to investors

• Consultants and advisors helping clients develop plans

• Established businesses needing performance tracking against projections

• Anyone who hates spreadsheets but needs financial projections

• Teams requiring collaborative planning features

• People with tight deadlines who need plans created quickly

Skip LivePlan if:

• You only need basic templates (free options exist)

• You're a consultant creating dozens of plans (the inability to copy plans is frustrating)

• You need complex financial modeling (use specialized tools instead)

• You prefer offline software (LivePlan requires internet)

• You're extremely budget-conscious (free alternatives exist, though less guided)

• You're creating a one-page business plan (LivePlan is overkill)

How LivePlan Compares to Alternatives

LivePlan vs. Upmetrics

Upmetrics is cheaper ($7/month) with more robust AI features but less hand-holding and support. Better for tech-savvy entrepreneurs comfortable with less guidance; LivePlan is better for beginners wanting more support.

LivePlan vs. Bizplan

Bizplan costs more ($20.75/month) but includes access to Fundable, an online fundraising platform. If you're specifically seeking crowdfunding, Bizplan might be worth the premium. For traditional business planning, LivePlan is better value.

LivePlan vs. Enloop

Enloop is simpler and less technical, good for non-technical users. But it only offers a 7-day trial (vs. LivePlan's 35-day guarantee) and charges $9.95 per additional business plan beyond three. LivePlan is more robust with better support.

LivePlan vs. Free Templates

You can download free business plan templates from SCORE, the SBA, or Microsoft Office. These cost nothing but provide zero guidance, no automatic financial calculations, and no performance tracking.

Free is great if you know what you're doing. LivePlan is worth paying for if you need guidance and want to save time.

The Things Nobody Tells You

A Business Plan Doesn't Guarantee Success

LivePlan can help you create a professional-looking business plan, but it can't validate whether your business idea is actually good. Garbage in, garbage out—if your assumptions are unrealistic or your business model is flawed, a pretty plan won't fix that.

The software guides you through the process but doesn't replace critical thinking about your business.

You'll Still Need to Do Research

LivePlan provides industry data and benchmarks, but you still need to research your specific market, competitors, and target customers. The software can't do primary research for you.

Budget time for actual market research, not just filling in LivePlan prompts.

Financial Projections Are Still Educated Guesses

The automatic calculations make projections look precise and authoritative, but they're still based on your assumptions. If you estimate you'll acquire 100 customers per month and you actually get 20, the beautiful financial charts don't matter.

Be conservative with projections. Optimistic forecasts feel good but set you up for disappointment.

Investors Have Seen Thousands of LivePlan Documents

Many investors can recognize LivePlan's formatting and templates immediately. This isn't necessarily bad, but if you're pitching sophisticated VCs, consider customizing the design so it doesn't look cookie-cutter.

The content matters more than the formatting, but standing out visually can help.

The Performance Tracking Only Works If You Use It

The dashboard comparing projections to actuals is valuable only if you consistently update it. Most entrepreneurs create the business plan, get funded/approved, then never look at it again.

To get full value from LivePlan, commit to monthly reviews of actual vs. projected performance.

The Verdict: Solid Tool for Its Purpose

LivePlan is a well-designed, user-friendly business planning tool that genuinely helps entrepreneurs create professional business plans efficiently. The step-by-step guidance, automatic financial calculations, and extensive examples make business planning significantly less intimidating for first-timers.

Is it perfect? No. The inability to copy plans is annoying for consultants, the AI features lag behind newer competitors, and the integration options are limited. But for its core purpose—helping entrepreneurs create investor-ready business plans—it excels.

The 35-day money-back guarantee is generous enough that trying it is essentially risk-free.

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars ⭐⭐⭐⭐

(One star for excellent step-by-step guidance and ease of use, one star for automatic financial projections that actually work, one star for 550+ industry examples and templates, one star for performance tracking and accounting integrations, minus one star for inability to copy plans, limited integrations, and AI features that feel like an afterthought.)

The Bottom Line

LivePlan is worth the investment if you're creating a business plan and value guidance over starting from scratch. The pricing is reasonable ($12-24/month), the time savings are significant, and the quality of output is professional.

For first-time entrepreneurs, it's especially valuable—the education you get from working through LivePlan's process is worth the subscription cost alone.

If you're a business planning expert or creating dozens of plans, you might find the limitations frustrating. But for the average entrepreneur creating one or two plans? LivePlan delivers on its promise.

The alternative—cobbling together free templates, building financial projections in Excel, and hoping you haven't missed something critical—will probably cost you more time and stress than a few months of LivePlan subscription.

Sometimes the right tool makes all the difference between procrastinating for months and actually getting your plan done. LivePlan is that tool.

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Used LivePlan for your business plan? Share your experience in the comments. Did it help you secure funding, or did you end up wishing you'd just hired someone to write it for you?