See what your startup stock options could be worth
“20,000 options” in an offer letter means nothing until you know the strike price, the share price and how much of the company that is. Enter the numbers from your offer to see the paper value today, how much has vested, what it costs to exercise, and what you would get at different exit sizes after dilution. These are estimates before tax, not financial advice.
Your grant
What you pay to turn one option into a share.
The company today
What investors paid in the last round, or the latest fair market value.
Post-money valuation of the last round. You can type 120m.
All shares, options and convertibles together. Needed with a valuation; optional with a price.
Vesting
Since vesting began.
Before an exit
The share of the company sold in each new round.
Exit scenarios: the company is sold or listed at … times today’s value
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Enter the number of options, the strike price and the latest price per share.
EstimateArithmetic on the numbers you enter, before tax. Not financial, legal or tax advice. Many startups never reach an exit, and then options pay nothing. Nothing you type leaves your browser.
How the option value is calculated
price per share = valuation ÷ fully diluted shares, when you start from a valuationpaper value today = options × (price per share − strike price), never below zerocost to exercise = options × strike priceyour stake = options ÷ fully diluted sharesvested = options × months served ÷ months of vesting, rounded down, and zero before the cliffshare kept after dilution = (1 − dilution per round) ^ roundsexit price per share = today’s price × exit multiple × share kept, and your options are then worthoptions × (exit price − strike)
The exit multiples are scenarios you choose, not forecasts. Tax is not included. Liquidation preferences, which pay investors back first, are not modelled; they matter most when a company sells for little more than it raised.
Questions about the stock options calculator
How do I work out what my stock options are worth?
Multiply the number of options by the difference between the share price and your strike price. 10,000 options with a $1 strike and a $5 share price are worth 10,000 × ($5 − $1) = $40,000 on paper, before tax and before any future dilution.
What is a strike price?
It is the fixed price you pay to turn one option into one share. If the shares are later worth more than the strike, the difference is your gain. If they are worth less, the option is not worth exercising.
How does dilution affect my options?
Each time the company issues new shares, every existing share becomes a smaller slice of the company. If a funding round sells 20% of the company, you keep 80% of your stake; after two such rounds you keep 64%. The number of options you hold does not change, but each share gets a smaller part of any exit price.
What does “fully diluted” mean?
It is the total number of shares that would exist if every option, warrant and convertible note were turned into shares. Your options divided by the fully diluted share count is the part of the company you would own.
Is this financial or tax advice?
No. It is arithmetic on the numbers you enter. It leaves out tax, liquidation preferences and the chance that the company never has an exit, so treat the results as rough estimates and speak to a qualified adviser before you exercise options.
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