What all-equity compensation is typical for a pre-series A startup?

Question

I am being offered a full-time position at a start-up that has been around for 2+ years but is pre series-A. It has some angel funding.

Most likely there won't be any cash compensation (or very little). There is one founder, and a couple of employees.

What % equity should I expect?

Yes, I will be in a mid-senior role at a tech startup. I am not an engineer though. I have a fair amount of experience in the field and I would be leaving a 100K+ plus job. My take is everybody (except the founder) is being offered a similar pay structure (low salary + single digit equity)

Gary E · Answer 1 · 2011-04-21 21:50:55Z

up vote 1 down vote

This is a bit hard to answer unless we know what your contribution is to the startup.

answered Apr 21 '11 at 21:50

Gary E♦
12k11141

	Yes, I will be in a mid-senior role at a tech startup. I am not an engineer though. I have a fair amount of experience in the field and I would be leaving a 100K+ plus job. My take is everybody (except the founder) is being offered a similar pay structure (low salary + single digit equity) – user9881 Apr 21 '11 at 22:07
	Any input would be very helpful! – user9881 Apr 21 '11 at 22:18
	I'm having trouble thinking of how to answer this with the information provided. Probably not less than 1% and not more than 10% of the currently outstanding fully-diluted shares. That's a wide range that depends a lot on your role, the other players, how far along the company is in proving its business, the location, etc. etc. – Joel Spolsky♦ Apr 21 '11 at 23:44
	Thanks. How much of increased equity can one expect if a start-up still does not have venture capital, and has been around for a few years already? i.e. as compared to more recently started startups? – user9881 Apr 22 '11 at 3:50

1 Answer