Investor ownership locked in
0%
at the cap
Tools · Tool 03
Valuation Benchmarks.
Cap ranges by stage and sector. The factors that move them. What a number actually buys you.
Benchmarks below reflect 2025-2026 ranges in the US venture market, calibrated against Carta's State of Pre-Seed 2025 and PitchBook-NVCA Venture Monitor data. Specific deals fall outside these bands, especially on the upside for AI infrastructure and frontier categories. Use them as a starting frame, not a ceiling or floor. Full sources at the bottom of this page.
Cap ranges by stage
Post-money SAFE cap ranges and priced-round pre-money ranges for US venture-stage companies. Typical and stretch figures.
| Stage | Raise size | Typical cap / pre-money | Stretch (top decile) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Friends & family | $50K - $250K | $3M - $5M cap | $6M - $8M cap |
| Pre-seed SAFE | $250K - $1.5M | $7M - $10M cap | $12M - $18M cap |
| Seed SAFE | $1.5M - $3M | $10M - $18M cap | $22M - $35M cap |
| Priced seed | $3M - $6M | $15M - $25M pre | $30M - $50M pre |
| Seed extension / bridge | $500K - $2M | At or above last round cap | Step-up to next stage |
| Series A | $8M - $15M | $40M - $55M pre | $80M - $200M+ pre |
Anchors: Carta State of Pre-Seed 2025 reports median pre-seed caps of $7.5M (sub-$250K rounds) to $15M (rounds over $1M). Median seed post-money is $20M with $4M raised. PitchBook Q3 2025 puts Series A median pre-money at $40.2M for non-AI and $54.9M for AI startups. Ranges assume a 12-month runway target and a credible path to next-round milestones.
Sector adjustments
The same company at the same stage prices differently across sectors. Below: relative cap multipliers vs. the typical stage range above.
| Sector | Cap adjustment | Why |
|---|---|---|
| AI infrastructure | 1.4x - 2.0x | Foundation models, dev tools, agent platforms. Premium pricing 2024-2026. |
| AI application (vertical) | 1.2x - 1.6x | Sector-specific AI products with early enterprise traction. |
| Horizontal B2B SaaS | 1.0x - 1.2x | Baseline. Cleanly priced, lots of comparables. |
| Vertical SaaS | 0.9x - 1.1x | Often slower scaling but stickier; priced near baseline. |
| Fintech | 0.9x - 1.3x | Wide variance based on regulatory model and capital intensity. |
| Marketplace / consumer | 0.7x - 1.0x | Slower to monetize at venture-scale, harder seed market in 2026. |
| Hardware / robotics | 0.8x - 1.2x | Capital-intensive but supportive market for select theses. |
| Climate / energy | 0.9x - 1.3x | Strong thesis demand, but underwriters scrutinize unit economics. |
| Biotech / health | Not comparable | Different fund structure, regulatory path, milestone-based pricing. |
Factors that move the cap
What pulls a number toward the top of the band, and what holds it at or below the bottom.
Push cap up
- Repeat founder with a prior exit
- Named lead investor with a thesis match
- Revenue traction beyond stage expectations
- Strategic partnerships or LOIs from real customers
- Defensible technical moat (proprietary data, model, or distribution)
- Strong competitive dynamics on the round (multiple term sheets)
- Top-tier prior experience (FAANG senior, big-name research)
- In a category with active fund mandates
Hold cap down
- Single-founder company with no commercial track record
- Capital-intensive go-to-market with long path to revenue
- Competitive market with no clear differentiation
- Cap table noise (broker on cap table, too many small SAFEs at varying terms)
- Long delay between previous raise and current round
- Revenue concentrated in one customer or one channel
- Outside the geographic core of US venture capital
- Burn outpacing milestones
What this cap actually buys you
A cap is a price. Enter your raise amount and proposed cap to see the ownership the investor locks in, and the implied post-money ownership that's left for everyone else.
Implied price per $1 of company
$0.00
per dollar of post-money
Remaining for everyone else
0%
before option pool, other SAFEs, round
How this reads: on a post-money SAFE, the investor's ownership percentage is locked in at
amount ÷ cap when the SAFE is signed. That percentage is preserved at the next priced round, regardless of how other SAFEs price. Stacking multiple post-money SAFEs at different caps stacks dilution in a way founders consistently underestimate. For full conversion math across multiple SAFEs, use the SAFE Modeler.
Sources & references
- Carta: State of Pre-Seed 2025 Annual data on pre-seed valuation caps, raise sizes, instrument types, and structural trends across thousands of US startups.
- Carta: State of Pre-Seed Q3 2025 Quarterly update. Median pre-seed cap data, the post-money SAFE share (61% of 2025 SAFEs), and stage-by-stage trend lines.
- PitchBook-NVCA Venture Monitor (Q1 2026) Quarterly market report on US venture activity, deal sizes, and valuations across stages.
- PitchBook: Q3 2025 US VC Valuations and Returns Report Median pre-money valuations by stage, including the AI vs. non-AI split that drives most of the variance at Series A.
- TechCrunch: AI seed startups command higher valuations Reporting on the ~42% AI valuation premium at the seed stage in 2025-2026, citing Carta data.
- Cooley GO: Negotiating the Option Pool Standard practice from a top startup law firm on pre-money option pool refresh, the math, and how to push back.
Negotiating a real cap?
The benchmark is a frame. The round is a conversation.
Every cap is a function of what your specific story will support with the specific investors in your specific conversation. If you are actively pricing a round, a short call will tell us both whether there is fit.
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