Expectations from investors

 How much you should expect from investors depends on several key factors, including:

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1. Stage of Your Startup

Stage	Typical Investment Range	Investor Type
Idea/Pre-seed	$10K – $200K	Friends & Family, Angel Investors
Seed	$250K – $2M	Angel Investors, Seed Funds
Series A	$2M – $15M	Venture Capital (VC) Firms
Series B+	$10M+	Larger VC Firms, Private Equity

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2. What You're Offering in Return

• Most investors expect equity (ownership).

• At early stages, typical equity offered is 10%–25%.

• Higher the risk, higher the expected ownership or return.

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3. Your Valuation

For example:

• If your startup is valued at $1M (pre-money) and you’re offering 20% equity, then:

  • You can raise ~$250K (post-money $1.25M).

• Valuation is often determined by:

  • Market size

  • Traction (users, revenue)

  • Team quality

  • Product readiness

  • Competitive advantage

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4. Your Needs & Milestones

Base your ask on:

• Runway: How many months of operations the money will support (typically 12–18 months)

• Milestones: Product launch, user acquisition, revenue targets, etc.

• Expenses: Team, tech, marketing, legal, infrastructure

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5. Investor Type

Investor Type	Typical Ask	Typical Return Expectation
Angel	$10K – $500K	5x–20x return in 5–7 years
VC	$1M – $20M+	10x+ return, exit-focused
Incubator/Accelerator	$20K – $150K	5%–10% equity

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Example Scenario:

If your software company is at early seed stage with MVP, small user base, and promising team:

• Reasonable expectation: $100K – $500K for 10%–20% equity

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If you want, I can help you draft a funding strategy or estimate your valuation based on your business metrics.