Business health calculator
Creditor Days Calculator
Turn average payables and credit purchases into creditor days. Your entered values stay out of analytics.
Formula and assumptions
Average payables ÷ credit purchases × days in the period
- Use average payables: the average of opening and closing balances if you have both.
- Use credit purchases only. Purchases paid at once do not create a payable.
- The period is 365 days for a year. Change it if you use a different period, and use sales or purchases for the same period.
- Days are shown to 2 decimal places (half up).
Formula version 1.0, last reviewed 1 October 2026.
Frequently asked questions
What are creditor days?
Also called days payable outstanding (DPO): the average time between buying on credit and paying for it.
Should I include purchases I paid for at once?
No. Use credit purchases only.
Is a longer figure better?
Not automatically. Paying later keeps cash longer but can strain supplier relationships or cost you early-payment discounts.