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What do you consider reasonable salary for a founder preseed, seed yeah

@kristinasubbotina.esq

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Why it worked

The video provides high-value, specific data on a common pain point for founders, establishing authority through direct, expert-led conversation.

Summary

Two women discuss the typical salary ranges for startup founders at the pre-seed and seed stages. They break down the compensation into three tiers based on the founder's background and location.

Structure

1Introduction of the question regarding founder salaries
2Explanation of the first tier for experienced founders
3Discussion of the average salary for the majority of founders
4Mention of the top-tier salary range
5Brief commentary on biotech industry exceptions

On-screen text

what do you consider reasonable salary for a founder preseed, seed yeah

Transcript

What do you consider reasonable salary for a founder preseed, seed yeah. Yeah, so I would say there's like three levels of salary that we see. So the first is for the people who have already made a lot of money. They're typically paying themselves minimally. We see that for the multi-exit founder, the person who's had like a big executive job, you know, so that that happens. The bulk of founders are making somewhere between $100k and $150k, I would say. Probably today, it used to be $100k to $150k, probably today it's more like $120k to $170k. And I'm talking about founders living in San Francisco or New York. We do have a third tier which is $175k to $225k. I think $225k is the really the top that I've seen, unless you're in biotech. I don't know why like biotech seems to like be good be cool with bigger salaries. I don't know why. Pharma influence.

Original caption

What's a reasonable salary for a founder at pre-seed or seed? 💰 I asked @Kate McAndrew — after backing 100+ pre-seed companies, here's what she sees: → Multi-exit founders who've already made money: pay themselves minimally. They don't need it. → Most founders (living in SF or NY): somewhere between $120K–$170K. That's the bulk of what @_baukunst sees. → Top tier: $175K–$225K. That's the ceiling — unless you're in biotech, where it runs higher. If you're raising and have no idea what's "reasonable" to pay yourself — now you know. Don't undersell yourself, but don't overdo it either. Investors are watching. 👀 #founders #startupfunding #foundersalary #preseed #venturecapital