How to use the funding round equity calculator
Founders usually start a round with two numbers in mind: how much cash they need and what the company should be worth afterwards. Those two numbers decide the third one. The equity sold to new investors is simply the target raise divided by the target post-money valuation.
The implied pre-money valuation is the post-money target minus the raise. If you are also creating an option pool this round, enter its size. The pool is treated on a post-money basis and comes out of the existing holders, which matches how a pre-money pool works in practice. Leave it at 0 and that line disappears, with existing ownership calculated without any pool.
The table below shows how the split moves if the valuation lands 10% or 20% above or below your target, which is useful for setting a negotiating range. Preferred terms and convertible instruments can change the final outcome.
Frequently asked questions
There is no fixed answer, but giving up an unusually large slice in an early round leaves founders with little room for the rounds that follow. It is safer to weigh the cash you actually need against the ownership you can afford to sell, then negotiate the valuation that reconciles the two.
The pool here is measured on a post-money basis and subtracted from what is left after the investor's slice, so existing holders absorb it. That mirrors a pre-money pool, where the carve-out comes from the founders and early holders rather than the new investor.
For the same amount of cash, a lower valuation means selling more equity. The table under the results shows the ownership split when the target post-money valuation moves up or down by 10% and 20%.