Cash Flow & Capital
Brighter Finance is a research subscription for Tesla and SpaceX investors: catalysts, dates, odds, charts and Musk-post tracking.
Brighter Finance is the most comprehensive resource for Tesla and SpaceX investors.
Research and education, not investment advice. Brighter Finance is not affiliated with Tesla, SpaceX or Elon Musk.
Published . Updated .
Is Tesla generating free cash flow?
It depends on operating cash versus what is left after investment. As of Q2 2026, the category note says net income was $1.1 billion, operating cash flow was $4.7 billion, and free cash flow at negative $1.1 billion. No cash-flow series is in the metric files, so the charts copy those note figures only. Q3 2026 cash flow is not in the library.
Copied from the Q2 2026 category note: property, plant and equipment rose from $41.8 billion in 2023 Q4 to $68.9 billion in 2026 Q2.
Unit: $B. As of Q2 2026.
| Period | Value ($B) |
|---|---|
| 2023 Q4 | 41.8 |
| 2026 Q2 | 68.9 |
Copied from the Q2 2026 category note: operating cash flow was $4.7 billion. capital expenditures reached $5.8 billion.
Unit: $B. As of Q2 2026.
| Period | Value ($B) |
|---|---|
| Operating cash flow | 4.7 |
| Capital expenditures | 5.8 |
| As written in the note |
|---|
| net income was $1.1 billion |
| operating cash flow was $4.7 billion |
| capital expenditures reached $5.8 billion |
| free cash flow at negative $1.1 billion |
| property, plant and equipment rose from $41.8 billion in 2023 Q4 to $68.9 billion in 2026 Q2 |
| Capital expenditure and R&D together reached about $8.2 billion |
Full odds history, all 110 charts and alerts: members. Members
What does the latest category note say?
This is the Cash Flow & Capital note for Q2 2026, as of Q2 2026. It is quoted from the conclusions file. It is not a later quarter.
Q2 2026 note
Tesla is profitable and generating substantial operating cash, but its current expansion spending has crossed above that cash, turning free cash flow negative while its property, plant and equipment base expands. This marks a shift from cash generation alone to cash generation being absorbed by a larger investment program. In 2026 Q2, net income was $1.1 billion (chart 52), operating cash flow was $4.7 billion (chart 54), and capital expenditures reached $5.8 billion (chart 59). Capital expenditures exceeded operating cash flow by about $1.1 billion (chart 60), leaving free cash flow at negative $1.1 billion (chart 61). Capital expenditure and R&D together reached about $8.2 billion (chart 65), while property, plant and equipment rose from $41.8 billion in 2023 Q4 to $68.9 billion in 2026 Q2 (chart 67). Profitability and operating cash remain positive, so the negative free cash flow reflects the scale of investment rather than a cash loss from operations. The rising asset base shows that this spending is becoming tangible business infrastructure.
Full odds history, all 110 charts and alerts: members. Members
FAQ
The figures above are copied from the named series or from the category note. A missing series is marked TODO. Members keep the full interactive history.
Full odds history, all 110 charts and alerts: members. Members
What is still missing from this page?
These items are marked TODO because the source files do not include them. Nothing here is filled with an estimate. TODO: publish this category's deck chart images. Those images are served only to members, so this page draws the public series it has. TODO: add a cash-flow metric series. The charts on this page copy figures from the Q2 2026 category note because the metric series file has no cash-flow rows. TODO: add Q3 2026 cash flow. It is not in the conclusions file or the metric series.
Full odds history, all 110 charts and alerts: members. Members