Cap Table Simulator

A cap table tracks who owns what percentage of your company. As you raise rounds, the cap table changes — existing holders get diluted, new investors come in, and the ESOP often gets "refreshed" before each round.

This simulator takes your starting cap table (founders + ESOP) and applies a sequence of priced rounds. For each round it shows the post-money valuation, the new investor's ownership, the ESOP refresh cost, and what's left for founders.

It's the most-asked-for calculation in venture finance — usually done in Excel by an analyst at the firm. Now you can run it yourself.

Founder ownership is the single most important number to track over time. Most successful founders end up owning between 15% and 30% of their company at IPO or acquisition. Dropping below 10% before Series B is a warning sign — typically caused by raising too much, too early, at too low a valuation.

The two biggest dilution events that surprise founders:

1. ESOP refreshes — most term sheets require topping up the option pool to 10–15% post-money. This dilution comesonly from existing holders (mostly founders), not new investors.
2. Pro-rata rights in subsequent rounds — older investors maintain percentage by participating, leaving even less room for founders if the round is small.

Run this simulator before every term sheet conversation. Knowing what you'll own three rounds from now helps you prioritize cap, raise size, and ESOP.