How Much Equity Should a Startup Advisor Get?

Most startup advisors receive between 0.10 percent and 1.00 percent of a company in equity, vesting over one to two years. The exact figure depends on two things: how early the company is and how much the advisor actually contributes.

The most widely used reference point is the Founder Institute FAST Agreement, which maps advisor role against company stage on a simple grid.

The short answer

A startup advisor typically earns between 0.10 percent and 1.00 percent of the company in equity. That equity almost always vests over one to two years rather than being granted up front, and it is granted as stock options or restricted stock, not cash.

Two variables move the number inside that range. The first is company stage. The earlier and riskier the company, the more equity an advisor takes for the same amount of help, because the shares are worth less on paper and the risk of the company failing is higher. The second is the depth of the relationship. An advisor who takes a monthly call is worth far less equity than one who opens doors, recruits, or shapes the product roadmap.

The FAST benchmark

The clearest public reference for advisor equity is the FAST Agreement, short for Founder / Advisor Standard Template, published by the Founder Institute at fi.co/fast. The Founder Institute released it to the public in 2011 and has revised it since, so always check the current version on their site before you rely on a specific figure.

The current FAST grid sets equity by advisor role and company stage. Here are the exact percentages as published by the Founder Institute.

Read the grid this way. A standard advisor takes regular calls and gives feedback. An expert advisor does more, such as making introductions, joining specific projects, or lending real credibility. The percentages fall as the company matures, because a share of a Series A company is worth much more than a share of a pre-seed idea.

Note that these figures are one organization's recommended template, not a legal standard. Older and alternative versions of the FAST grid circulate online with different tier names and slightly different numbers, which is exactly why you should quote the live version rather than a screenshot someone pasted years ago. Use the grid as an anchor for negotiation, not as a fixed price.

• Pre-seed company: a standard advisor with monthly meetings takes 0.50 percent, while an expert advisor who brings contacts and projects takes 1.00 percent.
• Seed company: a standard advisor takes 0.25 percent, while an expert advisor takes 0.75 percent.
• Series A company: a standard advisor takes 0.10 percent, while an expert advisor takes 0.50 percent.

Why advisor equity is so much smaller than investor equity

Founders sometimes anchor on the wrong number because they confuse advisors with investors. The gap is large and deliberate.

For context on the investor side, Y Combinator's standard deal is 125,000 US dollars for 7 percent of a company, and Techstars invests roughly 20,000 US dollars for common stock plus a follow-on convertible note. Those programs write real checks and take real board-level positions, so they command whole percentage points. An advisor contributes time and access, not capital, so a fraction of a single percent is the norm. If an advisor is asking for 2 or 3 percent without investing money or joining as an operator, that is a red flag, not a market rate.

How to structure the grant, not just the size

The percentage is only half the deal. The structure protects both sides.

• Vesting. Advisor equity should vest over time, commonly one to two years, so the company keeps the shares only for as long as the advisor keeps showing up. The FAST Agreement is built around monthly vesting for exactly this reason.
• Cliff. Many founder and employee grants use a one-year cliff, meaning nothing vests until the first anniversary. Advisor grants often use a shorter cliff or monthly vesting from day one, because the relationship is lighter and easier to end. Decide this on purpose.
• Acceleration and termination. Spell out what happens if the company is acquired or if either side ends the relationship early. A clean template like FAST already handles these cases so you do not have to draft them from scratch.
• Option pool. Advisor grants come out of the same employee option pool that funds early hires. Every fraction of a percent you give an advisor is a fraction you cannot give a future engineer, so budget the pool as a whole rather than granting equity one handshake at a time.

A simple way to decide

Work through three questions before you name a number.

• What stage are you? Find your row on the FAST grid. Pre-seed founders give the most, Series A founders give the least.
• What will this person actually do? Be honest about whether they are a standard advisor or a true expert. Most advisors are standard. Reserve the top of the range for people who measurably change your trajectory.
• Can you defer the decision? If you are unsure, offer the lower end with a review after six months. It is far easier to grant more later than to claw back an over-generous grant.

How this plays out in Brazil and LATAM

At Avante, we co-found AI-native companies for Brazil and Latin America, which means we sit on the founder side of these conversations regularly. The mechanics above are global, but the context here has its own texture. Advisor talent with deep enterprise or regulatory access is scarcer in the region, so a well-connected expert advisor can be worth the top of the FAST range in a way that is genuinely earned. At the same time, cap tables in early LATAM startups are often thinner and less formal, so founders benefit even more from using a clean, boring template and from vesting every grant. The discipline of a standard agreement matters most where the ecosystem is still maturing.

The takeaway is the same everywhere. Anchor on the FAST grid, pay in vesting equity rather than large up-front grants, and match the percentage to what the advisor will really deliver.

Preguntas frecuentes

How much equity does a startup advisor typically get?

Most advisors receive between 0.10 percent and 1.00 percent of the company, vesting over one to two years. Using the Founder Institute FAST Agreement as a reference, a pre-seed company typically grants a standard advisor about 0.50 percent, while an expert advisor to a pre-seed company can reach 1.00 percent. The figure drops as the company matures.

Should advisor equity vest or be granted all at once?

It should vest. Advisor equity is almost always structured to vest over one to two years, often with monthly vesting, so the company keeps the shares only for as long as the advisor stays engaged. The FAST Agreement is built around this model. Granting all the equity up front removes your only protection if the relationship ends early.

Is advisor equity the same as investor equity?

No, and the gap is large on purpose. Investors write checks and take board-level positions, so accelerators like Y Combinator take 7 percent for their 125,000 US dollar investment. Advisors contribute time and access rather than capital, so a fraction of a single percent is standard. An advisor asking for several percent without investing money is a warning sign.

What is the FAST Agreement?

FAST stands for Founder / Advisor Standard Template. It is a free, widely used advisor equity template published by the Founder Institute at fi.co/fast, first released to the public in 2011 and revised since. It provides a grid that maps advisor role against company stage and handles vesting and termination, so founders do not have to draft an agreement from scratch. Check the current version on their site before quoting a specific number.

How do I decide between the low and high end of the range?

Match the percentage to what the advisor will actually do. Reserve the top of the range for people who make introductions, recruit, or measurably change your trajectory. Give the lower end to advisors who mainly take a monthly call. If you are unsure, offer the lower figure with a review after six months, since it is easier to grant more later than to claw back an over-generous grant.