Check the cliff first
If recognised service is shorter than the cliff, this illustration shows no vested equity. Agreements can define treatment differently.
Founder equity tool
Founder vesting calculator
Illustrate a simple time-based vesting schedule and prepare questions about founder departure and ownership.
- Free to use
- Runs in your browser
- No details saved
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Enter your assumptions
This simplified illustration is not a cap table, legal instrument, tax calculation, or interpretation of an agreement.
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This simplified illustration is not a cap table, legal instrument, tax calculation, or interpretation of an agreement.
How to use this tool
Use the output as a decision prompt
Founder vesting is intended to align ownership with continued contribution. Under a simple time-based schedule, no equity is treated as vested before the cliff; after the cliff, the completed portion of the total term is applied to the founder grant.
Actual legal structures vary. Shares may be issued upfront subject to repurchase or transfer restrictions, granted over time, linked to milestones, accelerated in defined events, or treated differently for good and bad leavers. Tax and company-law consequences require professional advice.
Method and interpretation
What the calculation is designed to show
Apply time proportionally
After the cliff, vested grant equals completed months divided by total schedule months, capped at 100%.
Separate vesting from dilution
The tool shows a percentage of the original grant. Financing and option pools may change the founder’s percentage of the company.
Useful applications
When this tool can help
Revisit the calculation when assumptions or evidence change. Keep the inputs with the result so another founder or adviser can understand the reasoning.
- Illustrate a vesting schedule
- Prepare founder departure scenarios
- Discuss cliff length
- Compare months served
- Explain vested versus unvested equity
- List questions for legal advisers
Questions and limitations
Understand what the result cannot decide
What is a founder vesting cliff?
A cliff is an initial period before time-based vesting is recognised. If the founder leaves before the cliff under a typical schedule, none of that grant is vested, subject to the actual documents and law.
Does all first-year equity vest on the cliff date?
Many schedules recognise the accumulated first-year portion at the cliff and then vest periodically, but documents vary. This calculator uses proportional completed months once the cliff is reached.
What happens to unvested founder shares?
Treatment depends on the legal structure and agreements, including repurchase, transfer, cancellation, or other mechanisms. Obtain qualified advice.
Does vested equity stay fixed after fundraising?
The number of vested shares may remain, but the percentage ownership can dilute when new shares or options are issued.
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