Average dev salaries for an angel-funded startup? | Hacker News Reader

Average dev salaries for an angel-funded startup?

4 pointsheadcarrot6 comments

I'm in discussions with a couple guys who want to start a company, already have an angel lined up (one of the co-founders, actually), and I'm trying to figure out how much to ask for my monthly salary.

The angel/ co-founder wants to put in enough money to float the company for 5-6 months, at which point we'd either shut it down or (hopefully) have additional money coming in.

I've worked with these guys before so I trust them, but am just looking for a fair number to ask.

$4K/month? $5K? $6K? More? Less?

Also I should add that I'm in NYC, in case there are any geo differences.

Thanks!

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Out in Southern California (high but not as high cost of living), we found that angels were OK with salaries of around $60k / year for the founders.

If this is your startup (so you're a founder, not first hire...), then figure out how much money you can live on, altering your standard of living as much as you feel comfortable doing. I wouldn't expect to save much money off of your salary, but it should keep you floated. Remember, if you take too high of a salary, it's possible you'll run out of money -- so take as little as possible, for the maximum chances of success.

I agree. Since you are getting equity then you want to just take enough to pay your bills. Stretch the initial investment as far as it will last. This is actually a lower risk than most startups where it is your own money you are spending. You would be amazed how much you can cut back to stretch the dollar.

I'd second the $5k per month. It'll be on 1099 so you will have a tax advantage and take home will look good if you have a lot of Schedule C expenses.

Are you getting equity? If not, why the hell would you want to take anything below a regular salary? If yes, it really depends on the circumstances.

Sorry, should have mentioned that I am getting equity. :) Although I imagine (again, we're just about to start discussions) that the number would be 15-30%

I understand that it depends on circumstances, I'm just looking for a few data points to understand what is kinda-normal

Then you should be looking at a 15-30% reduction in the median salary for your job. So if it is 100k you should be looking at 70K with 30%. It differs from company to company, but that is my golden rule that I go by.

As the company becomes more and more profitable after X rounds naturally the equity reduces for new hires and the rate increases. So with the above example, if you gave your second level hires 10% it should be in the range of a 20% reduction from the median wage. By the time you are at 1-2% equity rounds of hiring. You should be close to or above market and the equity is more of a leverage tool to get and retain top talent.

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