Dear SaaStr: How Much Equity Should a Late Cofounder Get?
I’ve been through this both as a founder and a seed investor.
The answer? From 2:1 to 5:1, probably. Depending on when and how they join. How “late” a cofounder they are.
Those are relative “fairness” ratios that everyone can get their arms around. 2:1 often feels fair if the co-founder joins very early, before there’s all that much there … but after things are established. 5:1 often feels fair if they join as things are just taking off.
All you can do is what’s fair.
You can see with co-founders overall, the average at IPO is 2:1 between the founder-CEO and the other founder.
That data here:
