Founder compensation is one of the most persistently under-discussed topics in venture. Partners won't give a specific answer because every cap table is different. Other founders don't share their numbers because the gap between what they pay themselves and what they tell LPs is often uncomfortable. And yet the decision has to be made, often in the first board meeting, and it affects retention, credibility, and personal financial stability for the entire life of the company.
This report is a synthesis of publicly available founder compensation data from 2024 and 2025, with guidance on how to think about your own number.
Sources
The benchmarks below draw from:
- Kruze Consulting's annual CEO Salary Report, which publishes aggregate compensation data across their client base of roughly 800 venture-backed startups.
- Pave's compensation platform, which aggregates role-level data from its customer base of thousands of startups.
- Carta Equity Insights, which publishes aggregate data on founder equity and, occasionally, compensation.
- Pilot's founder compensation content, including their widely shared piece on the 43 percent founder pay cut during the 2024 capital tightening.
- J. Thelander Consulting's Venture Capital Compensation Report, a longer-running industry reference.
None of the data below is from our own client base. This is a synthesis of what is already public.
The Headline Numbers
Typical US-based founder CEO compensation by stage, 2025 data (most recent full-year):
| Stage | Median Salary | 25th Percentile | 75th Percentile |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pre-seed | $0 to $60,000 | $0 | $80,000 |
| Seed (under $2M raised) | $85,000 | $60,000 | $120,000 |
| Seed (over $2M raised) | $130,000 | $100,000 | $165,000 |
| Series A | $175,000 | $140,000 | $215,000 |
| Series B | $235,000 | $190,000 | $280,000 |
| Series C+ | $290,000 | $240,000 | $350,000 |
These are cash salary only and exclude equity, bonuses, and benefits. Add typical benefits (health, 401k) for a 10 to 15 percent gross-up on total compensation.
What the Trend Line Looks Like
The 2022 to 2024 compensation cycle showed a sharp reset. Median seed-stage founder salaries dropped roughly 20 to 30 percent from their 2021 peak as fundraising tightened and founders extended runway by taking less cash.
By late 2025, medians had recovered most of the decline but remained below 2021 peaks at seed stage. Series A and B compensation recovered faster and is now at or slightly above 2021 levels, reflecting the general shift in capital toward later-stage rounds.
The direction through 2026 so far is flat. Founders are not meaningfully increasing their salaries, but the capital tightening pressure that drove the 2022-2024 cuts has largely receded.
Geographic Variation
US-based founders in the Bay Area, New York, and Boston trend 15 to 25 percent above the national medians. Founders in Austin, Denver, Miami, and Seattle trend near or slightly below the medians. Fully remote companies distribute broadly but tend to cluster near the median.
International founders (UK, EU, India, LATAM) typically pay themselves at the local market rate, which for equivalent roles is often 40 to 60 percent below US levels. This is not a discount -- it reflects both cost of living and local compensation norms.
Stage-by-Stage Guidance
Pre-Seed (raised $0 to $1.5M)
Typical salary: $0 to $60,000.
Most pre-seed founders take little or no salary until the first institutional check. Angel-funded founders often defer all salary for 6 to 12 months.
The argument for zero salary: runway is the most important constraint, and every dollar paid is a dollar not going to product and hiring. The argument against: founders who are personally insolvent make bad decisions. A salary that covers basic living expenses -- rent, food, insurance -- is better for the company than a founder who is burning through personal savings.
Guidance: Pay yourself the minimum that lets you focus on the company without personal financial stress. For a single founder in a high cost-of-living city, that's usually $60,000 to $80,000. For a founder with a partner earning income, it can be less or zero.
Seed ($1.5M to $5M raised)
Typical salary: $85,000 to $165,000.
The biggest salary jump usually happens at the first seed check. Founders move from zero or minimal salary to something that covers full living expenses.
The investor perspective here is often misunderstood. Most seed investors would rather see a founder pay themselves a reasonable salary than work in a state of personal financial stress. An underpaid founder is a flight risk. A reasonably paid founder is committed.
Guidance: Pay yourself enough to not think about money for 18 months. For most founders, that is $100,000 to $150,000 in a US market. Disclose the salary to your board -- never hide it.
Series A ($8M to $20M raised)
Typical salary: $140,000 to $215,000.
At Series A, founders typically take a market-rate salary benchmarked against what they would pay a senior executive hire. The logic: the company has enough capital to pay a CEO properly, and underpaying the founder sets a problematic compensation anchor for the next executive hires.
Guidance: Set your salary to 75 to 100 percent of what you would pay a senior hire in your role. For most first-time CEOs, that lands in the $175,000 to $200,000 range. Revisit annually with the board.
Series B ($20M to $60M raised)
Typical salary: $190,000 to $280,000.
At Series B, founder salaries converge with the broader executive compensation market. The question shifts from "what can we afford" to "what does the role require." Most Series B CEOs earn roughly what they would command as a VP-level hire at a larger company.
Guidance: Full market rate. If the board pushes back, they are likely undervaluing your role. Hiring a CFO to run the comp analysis is worthwhile here.
Series C+ ($60M+ raised)
Typical salary: $240,000 to $350,000.
At Series C and beyond, founder compensation becomes less founder-specific and more executive-market-specific. The founders who took below-market salaries at earlier stages often catch up here. Annual bonuses tied to performance become more common (typically 20 to 40 percent of base).
The Cash vs. Equity Trade-Off
Every dollar a founder pays themselves in cash is a dollar not applied to runway. At a $1M annual burn, a $100,000 salary increase shortens runway by roughly one month. That math matters at seed. It matters less at Series B.
The trade-off shifts over the lifecycle:
- Pre-seed and early seed: Cash dominates. Extend runway, take the equity upside.
- Late seed and Series A: Balanced. Take enough cash to not burn out, take equity seriously but not exclusively.
- Series B and beyond: Salary matters more. Your equity stake has already taken the first major valuation lift, and further upside requires continued execution at a senior operating level.
When to Raise Your Own Salary
Three defensible triggers:
- After a priced round. Boards expect a salary review after any new capital raise. This is the easiest moment to negotiate up.
- On an anniversary after a flat year. If you have not taken an increase in 12 months and the company has performed, a standard market adjustment is warranted.
- After a major milestone. Hitting $1M ARR, closing a marquee customer, or achieving profitability all justify a review.
Avoid raising salary immediately before fundraising. It creates the optics of extracting value before investors write checks.
The Board Conversation
First-time founders often dread the salary conversation with their board. In practice, it is usually the easiest compensation conversation of the year if you approach it directly.
Recommended script:
- Come with benchmark data (Kruze, Pave, or this article).
- Propose a specific number backed by the benchmark.
- Explain the reasoning in two sentences.
- Ask for approval.
Most boards approve without negotiation if the number is within the benchmark band. Boards that push back usually have a legitimate reason (runway concern, underperformance, prior-period compensation already too high). Hear the reason. Adjust if warranted.
Common Mistakes
Paying yourself too little for too long. A founder who is personally insolvent three years in is a liability to the company, not a hero. The burnout cost shows up eventually.
Paying yourself too much too early. Pre-seed founders who pay themselves $150,000 burn through seed capital and signal poor capital discipline to Series A investors.
Not disclosing to the board. Cap table platforms like Carta expose payroll summaries to investors automatically. Hiding compensation is both futile and a trust-eroder.
Taking salary in equity instead of cash. "I'll take less now in exchange for a larger stake." The stake is already set in the cap table; you cannot meaningfully increase it by foregoing salary. This usually means the founder is undervaluing themselves twice.
The Real Guidance
Your salary is not a moral decision. It is a business decision. The right number is the one that:
- Keeps you personally stable enough to make good decisions
- Extends runway to the next milestone
- Sets a defensible anchor for future executive hires
- Falls within the benchmark range your board can defend to LPs
For most founders, that number is within 20 percent of the median for your stage. If you are dramatically above or below, there is usually a specific reason -- and if you cannot articulate the reason, you should revisit the number.
Our fractional CFO service includes an annual compensation review using benchmarks like the ones in this report. If you are unsure whether your salary is right for your stage, book a free consultation and we will run the analysis.
