free cash flow

noun

A measure of a company's financial performance, calculated as net income plus depreciation and amortization, less changes in working capital, less capital expenditure.

“Free cash flow can be very negative for profitable, fast-growing businesses and very positive for unprofitable, declining ones.”

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Meanings

nounfree cash flow (plural free cash flows)

plural free cash flows

  1. businessA measure of a company's financial performance, calculated as net income plus depreciation and amortization, less changes in working capital, less capital expenditure.

    Free cash flow can be very negative for profitable, fast-growing businesses and very positive for unprofitable, declining ones.

    1 more example

    But its [Amazon's] dominance in its market helped it become a cash machine over time: $33bn in free cash flow in 2024, against $2bn 10 years before.

    2026 June 13, Robert Armstrong, “AI is revolutionising the stock market”, in FT Weekend, London: The Financial Times Ltd., →ISSN, →OCLC, page 5

Translations

German Barmittelzufluss
  • Barmittelzuflussmeasure of a company's financial performance
Spanish flujo dinerario libre
  • flujo dinerario libremeasure of a company's financial performance
Swedish fritt kassaflöde
  • fritt kassaflödemeasure of a company's financial performance
Cite this entry
APA

free cash flow. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/free%20cash%20flow

MLA

“free cash flow.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/free%20cash%20flow. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “free cash flow,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/free%20cash%20flow.

Source: free cash flow on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.