Scenario A
Founders
Founder percentages should total 100%
Funding Rounds
Scenario B
Founders
Founder percentages should total 100%
Funding Rounds

Scenario A

Ownership across funding rounds

Scenario B

Ownership across funding rounds

Detailed Comparison

Exit Value Calculator

How much would each founder walk away with at different exit valuations?

Save & Export This Comparison

Upgrade to Pro to save unlimited scenarios, export charts as PDF, and share with your cofounders.

Start 7-Day Free Trial

Get Your Free Equity Dilution Report

A personalized analysis with benchmarks, recommendations, and exit projections. Takes 30 seconds.

Generate Free Report →

💼 Professional Equity Report — $9.99 One-Time

Investor-ready PDF with charts, benchmarks, and personalized recommendations. No subscription required.

View Premium Report →

How do you compare two funding scenarios?

Comparing funding scenarios means calculating your final founder ownership after accounting for valuation, investment amount, and option pool size. The key formula:

Post-Money Valuation = Pre-Money Valuation + Investment Amount
Your Dilution = Investment Amount / Post-Money Valuation

Option pool impact: Investors often require an unallocated option pool (10–20%) for future hires. If structured as pre-money, founders bear the dilution. If post-money, investors share dilution. This significantly affects founder ownership.

Worked example: Scenario A: $8M pre-money, $2M investment, no option pool. Post-money = $10M. Your dilution = $2M / $10M = 20%. If you owned 100%, you keep 80%. Scenario B: $10M pre-money, $2M investment, 20% pre-money option pool. Post-money = $12M. Dilution from investment = $2M / $12M = 16.7%. Plus 20% option pool = 36.7% total dilution. You keep 63.3%. Lower valuation with no option pool may beat higher valuation with option pool.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is pre-money vs post-money valuation?
Pre-money valuation is the company's value before investment. Post-money = Pre-money + Investment Amount. Your dilution = Investment / Post-money. Higher pre-money means less dilution for the same investment. Investors quote pre-money, but your dilution is calculated on post-money.
How does the option pool affect dilution?
Option pool (typically 10–20%) is created to hire future employees with equity. If pre-money option pool is used, founders bear the dilution. If post-money, investors share the dilution. Compare scenarios with and without option pool to see impact on founder ownership. Pre-money pool = more dilution for founders.
Should I take a higher valuation with an option pool?
Compare net founder ownership after all dilution. A higher valuation with pre-money option pool may result in similar ownership as a lower valuation with post-money pool. Use this calculator to model both scenarios and choose based on final founder % and strategic fit. Sometimes lower valuation without option pool is better for founders.
What is a typical option pool size?
Typical option pools are 10–20% of post-capitalization, depending on stage. Seed stage: 15–20%. Series A: 10–15%. Series B+: 10% or less. Larger pools give more flexibility for hiring but increase founder dilution. Negotiate pool size based on actual hiring needs, not standard percentages.

Embed Free Startup Calculators on Your Site

Add equity dilution, SAFE note, runway, and offer comparison calculators to your website. One line of code.

Get Embed Code → For Accelerators