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DCF model template
A free Excel DCF template — five-year unlevered free cash flow, a CAPM-based WACC build, Gordon growth terminal value with an exit-multiple cross-check, and a sensitivity grid. No email address, no sign-up, no macros.
Written by CA Pranay Bhansali, Founder & Principal, Volaxi — Chartered Accountant (ICAI), former senior buy-side research analyst.
Last reviewed September 2026 · LinkedIn
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DCF model template — Excel workbook
Five tabs, formula-driven, non-circular. Blue inputs on the assumptions tab; everything else calculates. The figures shipped in the file are illustrative placeholders — replace them with company facts before relying on any output.
The template in summary
| Topic | What it covers |
|---|---|
| Format | Excel workbook (.xlsx), five tabs, no macros, no email required. |
| Assumptions | Operating drivers, the full WACC build, terminal value inputs and the equity bridge on one tab. |
| Forecast | Five-year build from revenue to unlevered free cash flow, including the working capital movement. |
| DCF | Mid-year or year-end discounting, Gordon growth terminal value, exit multiple cross-check, equity bridge. |
| Sensitivity | Five-by-five enterprise value grid across WACC and terminal growth. |
| Scope | A starting structure — no three-statement integration, no debt schedule, no scenario manager. |
01
Assumptions and the WACC build
Every input sits on one tab in blue on a pale background. Nothing else should be typed over — the moment a formula is replaced with a hardcode, the valuation stops being reviewable.
The discount rate is built rather than asserted: CAPM cost of equity from the risk-free rate, equity risk premium and levered beta, plus an explicit size or specific risk premium, weighted against an after-tax cost of debt at target capital structure.
Operating
Base revenue, five annual growth rates, EBITDA margin, D&A, capex and working capital intensity, cash tax rate.
Cost of capital
Risk-free rate, equity risk premium, beta, specific risk premium, pre-tax cost of debt, tax rate, target weights.
Terminal value
Perpetuity growth rate, exit EBITDA multiple for the cross-check, and a mid-year discounting toggle.
Equity bridge
Gross debt, cash, debt-like items, surplus assets and diluted shares.
02
Unlevered free cash flow forecast
The forecast runs revenue, EBITDA, D&A and EBIT, applies cash tax to EBIT rather than to EBITDA, adds D&A back and deducts capex and the movement in net working capital. The result is unlevered free cash flow — cash available to all capital providers, before financing.
The working capital line is modelled as a balance driven off revenue, with the cash effect taken as the year-on-year movement. That is the line most downloaded templates get wrong, by deducting the balance rather than the change in it.
03
Discounting, terminal value and the bridge
Cash flows are discounted at the WACC calculated on the assumptions tab, with a mid-year convention toggle — cash generated through the year, not on the last day of it. Terminal value uses Gordon growth on the grown year-five cash flow, and the workbook reports the implied exit EBITDA multiple next to it so an unreasonable perpetuity assumption is visible immediately.
Enterprise value then crosses the bridge to equity: less gross debt and debt-like items, plus cash and surplus assets, divided by diluted shares. The terminal value share of enterprise value is displayed, because a DCF where 85% of the answer sits in the terminal assumption is a multiple in disguise.
04
Sensitivity and checks
A five-by-five grid recalculates enterprise value across WACC and terminal growth, written as live formulas rather than an Excel data table so it survives being copied into another workbook.
A checks tab tests that WACC exceeds terminal growth, that capital weights sum to one, that every forecast cash flow is numeric, that terminal value is not carrying the whole valuation and that the Gordon terminal value sits within a quarter of the exit-multiple cross-check. A master line reads ALL OK or ERRORS.
05
What the template deliberately does not do
This is a starting structure for analysis, not a transaction-ready valuation. Stating the limits is more useful than pretending a free download replaces deal work.
Three statements
There is no integrated balance sheet or cash flow statement, so no balance check across periods.
Financing
No debt schedule, interest build or covenant testing — the model is deliberately unlevered.
Scenarios
One case only. Upside and downside cases need a scenario switch added on the assumptions tab.
Comparables
Trading and precedent transaction analysis, and the triangulation between methods, sit outside this workbook.
Common questions
Is the DCF model template free?
Yes. The Excel file downloads directly with no email address, sign-up or payment required.
What is included in the DCF model template?
Five tabs: a cover with scope limits, an assumptions tab holding the operating drivers and the full WACC build, a five-year unlevered free cash flow forecast, a DCF tab with discounting, Gordon growth terminal value, an exit multiple cross-check, the enterprise-to-equity bridge and a sensitivity grid, and a checks tab with eight integrity tests.
Does the template use mid-year discounting?
It supports both. A toggle on the assumptions tab switches between mid-year and year-end convention; the discount periods on the DCF tab adjust automatically.
How is terminal value calculated?
Gordon growth on the grown year-five free cash flow, discounted back five years. The workbook also shows the implied exit EBITDA multiple and a separate exit-multiple terminal value so the two approaches can be compared before either is relied on.
Can I use this template for a live transaction?
It is a starting structure. A live valuation needs the forecast rebuilt on the company's own drivers, a three-statement integration, scenario analysis and triangulation against comparables before the output supports a price.
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If you require support with financial modelling, business valuation or financial due diligence for a live transaction or strategic engagement, we'd be pleased to discuss your requirements.