How to calculate Acid-Test (Quick) Ratio

Formula

Acid-test ratio = (cash + marketable securities + receivables) ÷ current liabilities

SQL query

This example assumes: balances(as_of, account_class, amount) with account_class including 'cash', 'securities', 'receivables', 'current_liability'. It is written in PostgreSQL syntax; date functions differ slightly in MySQL, BigQuery and SQLite, and your column names will differ from these.

SELECT as_of,
       SUM(amount) FILTER (WHERE account_class IN ('cash', 'securities', 'receivables')) * 1.0
         / NULLIF(SUM(amount) FILTER (WHERE account_class = 'current_liability'), 0) AS acid_test
FROM balances
GROUP BY as_of
ORDER BY as_of;

Common mistakes that make Acid-Test (Quick) Ratio wrong

• Do not confuse it with the SaaS quick ratio, which is a growth measure.
• Doubtful receivables overstate liquidity; use net receivables.
• Prepaid expenses are excluded from the numerator in the strict version.

Ask for Acid-Test (Quick) Ratio in plain English

Instead of writing the query yourself, you can type the question. SchemaChat turns it into SQL against your connected database or uploaded file, runs it, and shows the SQL and the figures it used so you can check the answer before you share it. It does not replace your judgement about the definition: check that the query matches the formula your business uses.

• What is our acid-test ratio by quarter?
• How much of our receivables is more than 60 days old?