How to Write a One-Page Business Plan

Most business plans die in a folder. You spend two weeks writing 40 pages, you feel productive, and then nobody reads it again. Not you, not an investor, not your cofounder. A one-page business plan flips that. It forces you to say what your business is, who it's for, and how it makes money, all on a single sheet you can actually look at every week.

Here's the thing first-time founders get wrong. They think a longer plan is a better plan. It isn't. A one-page business plan is the version you'll keep open while you build, and it tends to be the version that survives contact with reality. The data backs this up too: companies with a plan grow about 30% faster than those without one, and roughly 67% of failed startups had no formal plan at all. The trick isn't writing more. It's writing the right one page.

This guide walks through what goes on that page, how to fill each box, and how to keep it from rotting the moment your idea changes.

What is a one-page business plan?

A one-page business plan is a single-page summary of your entire business model: the problem, your solution, your customer, your revenue, and your numbers, all condensed into a format you can read in two minutes. It captures the same core decisions as a traditional plan, just without the padding.

Think of it as the difference between a map and a tourist brochure. The brochure has nice photos and long descriptions. The map just shows you where things are and how to get there. When you're driving, you want the map.

The format has a few well-known versions. The Lean Canvas, created by Ash Maurya, breaks a business into nine boxes and is built for early-stage startups testing risky assumptions. The Business Model Canvas, from Alexander Osterwalder, is similar but leans more toward established companies. There's also the one-page plan style popularized by Jim Horan, which reads more like a tight narrative than a grid. They overlap a lot. You don't need to pick the "correct" one. You need to pick one and fill it in with real answers.

Why write a one-page plan instead of a full one?

You write a one-page plan because it gets used, gets updated, and gets read by other people, three things a 40-page document almost never does. For a first-time founder who's still figuring out the business, that usefulness matters more than thoroughness.

A few concrete reasons it wins early on:

• Speed. You can draft a Lean Canvas in 15 to 20 minutes and a usable first version in an afternoon. A traditional plan takes weeks. When your idea is still moving, weeks is too slow.
• It exposes weak spots fast. When everything sits on one page, gaps are obvious. No customer? Empty box. No clear revenue? Empty box. A long plan can hide a broken model inside good prose.
• People actually read it. An investor will scan one page. A potential cofounder will read one page. Your future self in three months will read one page. Almost nobody re-reads chapter four of a long plan.
• It's built to change. You're going to be wrong about something. Maybe the customer, maybe the pricing. Editing one box beats rewriting a document.

This doesn't mean long plans are useless. If you're applying for a bank loan, an SBA-backed loan, or certain grants, you'll likely need the full version with detailed financials. About 75% of investors won't seriously consider a proposal without solid forecasts and market analysis. But that's a later, specific need. Day one, the one-pager is the tool you reach for.

What are the sections of a one-page business plan?

A solid one-page business plan covers nine elements: problem, customer segments, unique value proposition, solution, channels, revenue streams, cost structure, key metrics, and your unfair advantage. That's the Lean Canvas structure, and it works well because each box answers one specific question.

Here's what goes in each:

Notice what's missing. There's no 10-page market history, no five-year hiring plan, no mission statement essay. Those can come later if you need them. The one-pager is about the model, not the autobiography.

How do you actually fill it in, step by step?

You fill in a one-page business plan by starting with the problem and working outward, because every other box depends on getting the problem right. Most first-time founders start with their solution, which is backwards and leads to building something nobody wants.

Here's the order I'd use:

1. Start with the problem. Write the top one to three problems your customer has. Be specific. "People want to be healthier" is not a problem. "New parents don't have time to plan meals and feel guilty about it" is.
2. Name the customer. Who has this problem badly enough to pay? Narrow is better. "Everyone" is not a customer. Facebook started with Harvard students. Stripe started with developers. Pick a beachhead you can actually reach.
3. Write the value proposition. One sentence on why someone picks you over the alternative, including doing nothing. If you can't say it in a sentence, the idea isn't sharp yet.
4. Describe the solution. Now, and only now, write how you solve the problem. Keep it to the two or three features that matter. Resist listing twelve.
5. Fill in revenue and costs. How does money come in, and what does it cost to deliver? Even rough numbers force honesty about whether the math works.
6. Add channels, metrics, and your advantage. How you reach people, the few numbers you'll watch, and what makes you hard to copy.

Do the whole thing in pencil, figuratively. Your first draft is a set of guesses. The point is to make the guesses visible so you can go test the riskiest ones.

When you're staring at empty boxes, it helps to have structure instead of a blank page. You can sketch this on paper, use a free Lean Canvas template from SCORE, or work through a planning tool like Foundra that walks first-time founders through each section and turns the answers into something you can share. Plenty of founders just use a whiteboard. The format matters less than finishing it.

What's the difference between a one-page plan and a lean canvas?

A Lean Canvas is one specific type of one-page business plan, while "one-page business plan" is the broader category that includes the Lean Canvas, the Business Model Canvas, and simpler narrative one-pagers. So every Lean Canvas is a one-page plan, but not every one-page plan is a Lean Canvas.

The practical differences come down to focus. A Lean Canvas emphasizes problems, risks, and unfair advantage, which makes it well suited to brand-new startups where the biggest danger is building something nobody needs. The Business Model Canvas swaps in boxes like key partners and key activities, which fit a company that already knows its customer and is now optimizing operations. A narrative one-pager, the kind you might write for a quick investor intro, reads as a few short paragraphs instead of a grid.

For a first-time founder validating an idea, the Lean Canvas is usually the better starting point. It points you at the assumptions most likely to kill you. Once your model is proven and you're scaling, the other formats start to earn their place.

How long should a one-page business plan actually be?

A one-page business plan should fit on one page, which usually means 250 to 500 words or a single-page grid of short phrases, not full paragraphs. If it's spilling onto page two, you're writing a traditional plan and calling it something shorter.

The constraint is the feature, not a limitation. Forcing yourself to fit one page is what makes you cut the vague stuff and keep the decisions. Each box should hold a phrase or a sentence, not an essay. If a section needs more room, that's a signal to spin it into its own document later, like a detailed financial model or a go-to-market plan, while the one-pager stays as your summary.

A good test: can a smart friend read your page in 90 seconds and explain your business back to you? If yes, the length is right. If they're confused or it takes five minutes, tighten it.

How often should you update it?

You should revisit your one-page business plan every few weeks in the early days, and any time you learn something that changes a core assumption. This is the whole advantage of the format, so use it. A plan you never touch is just a longer version of a guess.

Set a recurring reminder, maybe every two weeks, to look at the page and ask what you've learned. Did customers respond to your channel? Update it. Is your pricing wrong? Update it. Did you discover the real problem was something adjacent? Rewrite that box. Among fast-growing companies, about 71% keep some kind of formal plan, but the value isn't the document sitting there, it's the act of revisiting and adjusting it as reality talks back.

Treat it like a dashboard, not a monument.

Key takeaways

• A one-page business plan condenses your whole model into a single readable sheet, and it gets used in a way long plans rarely do.
• The Lean Canvas, with its nine boxes, is the best default format for a first-time founder validating an idea.
• Start with the problem and the customer, not the solution. Most founders get this order backwards.
• Keep it to one page, 250 to 500 words, with phrases instead of paragraphs.
• Update it every couple of weeks. The point is the thinking, not the artifact.
• You'll still want a full plan later for loans, grants, or deep investor due diligence, but the one-pager is the right tool to start.

Companies with a plan grow roughly 30% faster, and most failed startups never made one at all. A page is enough to get that benefit. You don't need 40.

FAQ

Is a one-page business plan enough to raise money?
For early angel or pre-seed conversations, often yes, especially paired with a short deck. A clear one-pager shows investors you understand your model. For bank loans, SBA loans, or later-stage due diligence, you'll usually need the full plan with detailed financials, since about 75% of investors expect solid forecasts before committing.

What's the best one-page business plan template?
The Lean Canvas by Ash Maurya is the most popular for startups because it focuses on problems and risk. The Business Model Canvas fits more established businesses. SCORE offers free templates, and tools like Foundra or LivePlan can structure the process for you. Any of them works if you finish it.

How long does it take to write one?
A first draft of a Lean Canvas takes 15 to 20 minutes. A solid, thought-through version takes an afternoon. Compare that to weeks for a traditional plan. The speed is exactly why it's a better fit when your idea is still changing.

Can I write a one-page plan before I have customers?
Yes, and you should. At that stage every box is a hypothesis, which is the point. The page makes your assumptions visible so you can go test the riskiest ones, usually the problem and the customer, before you build anything.

Do I still need a full business plan?
Sometimes. If you're applying for traditional financing or a grant, or pitching investors who want exhaustive detail, you'll need the longer document. But you don't need it on day one, and many businesses run for years on a one-pager they keep current.

What should I do after finishing my one-page plan?
Pick the single riskiest assumption on the page and go test it with real customers. Talk to people, run a small experiment, or build a quick prototype. Then come back and update the boxes based on what you learned. The plan is the start of the work, not the end of it.

For more on turning your one-pager into a working plan, browse the guides at foundra.ai/key-reads/ or the free founder tools at foundra.ai/tools/.