Startups hire through three main channels: their own job boards, which are often hosted by Greenhouse, Lever or Ashby, the job pages their investors run, and people who can vouch for you. Find openings there, then pitch like a future colleague: say in a few lines what you would do in the role and attach proof.
Before you accept an offer, learn the company’s funding stage, how many months of cash it has and exactly what the equity is. At a startup, the upside and the risk both come from the company itself.
Key takeaways
- Startup openings often sit on a hosted job board with a predictable address, so you can search them.
- Stage predicts the job. A seed-stage team needs generalists. A later-stage company hires specialists into defined roles.
- Pitch with evidence: one specific observation, one result of yours that matches it, one work sample.
- Ask about runway before you accept. A funding headline does not say how long the money lasts.
- Treat equity as uncertain. Options cost money to exercise, can be taxed, and private company shares are hard to sell.
01
What a startup’s stage tells you about the job
“Startup” covers a team of four and a company of two thousand. Funding stage tells them apart. The middle column paraphrases the SEC’s glossary for small businesses. The last is a generalization to confirm with each company.
| Stage | How the SEC describes it | What it usually means for you |
|---|---|---|
| Seed | Typically the first funding round, often from friends and family, angel investors or early-stage funds, used for product development and market research | A handful of people, a broad role, little process, and pay that leans on equity |
| Series A | Often supports a company with an initial customer base and proof of concept | The first specialists and managers arrive, and your job keeps changing |
| Series B | Often supports a company scaling production and expanding its customer base | Teams and processes form, hiring speeds up, and roles get clearer |
| Series C and later | Often supports a company optimizing operations ahead of a future initial public offering | Much like any mid-sized employer: job levels, set processes and a narrower role |
The SEC notes that a company’s valuation generally increases with each round. That is not the same as profit, so ask about money at every stage.
02
Where startups post jobs and how to find their boards
Startups do not always advertise on the big job boards. Their openings are often on a job board that their applicant tracking system hosts, and each system uses a fixed address followed by a name for the company.
| System | Board address | The last part |
|---|---|---|
| Greenhouse | boards.greenhouse.io/ | A token the company chooses |
| Lever | jobs.lever.co/ | A site name, usually the company name with no spaces |
| Ashby | jobs.ashbyhq.com/ | A slug that identifies the company |
- Check a company you already know. Open a role on its careers page. If the address bar shows one of these, or another address on the same site, shorten it to the company part to see every opening.
- Discover companies you have not heard of. Limit a search engine to one board and add your role, for example
site:jobs.ashbyhq.com "product designer" remoteorsite:greenhouse.io "customer success".
Companies can embed these boards in their own careers pages, so add three more channels.
- Investors. Many venture capital firms and startup accelerators list openings across their portfolio companies on one page.
- Funding news. A company that has just announced a round often hires soon after.
- People. Founders and early employees post roles on LinkedIn, sometimes before a listing exists.
Our guides to the Greenhouse, Lever and Ashby applications show what each form asks.
03
How to stand out when you apply to a startup
A small team has a problem and needs someone who will solve it without much supervision. Your pitch should prove you are that person.
- Study the product. Use it if you can, and read what the founders have written.
- Find one specific thing. A gap in onboarding, an unreached market, a support question that keeps recurring.
- Make a small sample. One page, mockup or short analysis that takes hours, not weeks.
- Apply through the board, so you exist in their system.
- Send a short note to the founder at a very small company, or to the hiring manager at a larger one.
Subject: [Role] application: a sample of how I'd start Hi [Name], I applied for the [role] opening today and wanted to send one thing the form has no field for. While using [product], I noticed [specific observation]. I wrote up how I'd approach it in the first month: [link]. It builds on what I did at [employer], where I [result in one line]. If it's relevant, I can walk you through it in a short call. [Your name] [Phone] | [LinkedIn or portfolio link]
For follow-ups, see how to message a recruiter.
04
How to judge the risk before you accept
A startup job can end because the company runs out of money, however good your work is. The number to learn is runway: cash in the bank divided by the burn rate, which the SEC defines as the rate at which a company spends its cash over time, usually stated per month.
Check what you can from outside: the date of the last funding round, departures among the leaders, and whether the list of open roles is growing. A company that raises money under the SEC’s Regulation D files a brief notice called Form D, which includes its executive officers, the size of the offering and the date of the first sale. How to research a company covers searching the SEC’s filings.
Then ask. An evasive answer is information too.
1. How long will the cash you have now last at today's spending? 2. When was the last funding round, and what has to go right before the next one? 3. How much of your revenue depends on your biggest customers? 4. Is this role new, or did someone leave it? 5. What should I have delivered by the end of month six?
05
How startup equity works, in plain terms
The SEC describes stock-based compensation as pay in the form of a security, such as a stock option or restricted stock unit, and notes that it lets a company preserve cash. That is why early offers lean on it.
| Term | What the SEC says it means | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Stock option | A right, not an obligation, to buy a certain number of shares at an agreed strike price after a vesting period | Exercising costs money, and you gain only if the shares end up worth more |
| Vesting | Conditions to meet first, such as length of employment | Leave early and you keep only what has vested |
| Restricted stock unit | A right to receive shares once vesting conditions are met | You own no shares at the grant |
| Dilution | New shares are issued, so existing holders own a smaller percentage | Your share shrinks as the company raises money |
| Liquidation preference | An investor’s right to be paid before others if the company is sold | Common stockholders are typically paid last. Ask which class your grant is |
| Liquidity | How easily a security can be sold | Private company securities are generally illiquid |
Tax is the other trap. The IRS says you may have income when you receive an option, when you exercise it or when you sell the stock, and the rules differ for statutory options, such as incentive stock options, and nonstatutory ones. With most nonstatutory options, the gap between the stock’s value and what you pay is income when you exercise, so tax can come due before you have sold anything. Exercising an incentive stock option can trigger alternative minimum tax.
1. How many shares does the grant cover, and what fraction of all shares is that today? 2. Are these incentive stock options, nonstatutory options or restricted stock units? 3. What is the strike price, and on what schedule does the grant vest? 4. After I leave, what is the deadline for exercising options that have vested? 5. If the company is bought, what happens to the unvested part?
Then make the decision as if the equity were worth nothing. If you could not live on the salary, it is the wrong offer. For the rest, use how to evaluate a job offer.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
How risky is it to work at a startup?
Riskier than working for a company with steady profits. Until its revenue covers its costs, a startup depends on money from investors and can run short before the next round arrives. Ask how long the current cash will last and what has to go right before the next round.
Do I need startup experience to get hired at a startup?
No. A small company needs to see that you can take a vague goal and finish it without close management. A side project, a business you ran or a process you built from nothing all count. Bring one as a work sample.
How do I find startup jobs that are not on the big job sites?
Search the hosted job boards directly. Greenhouse boards sit at boards.greenhouse.io, Lever job sites at jobs.lever.co and Ashby boards at jobs.ashbyhq.com, each followed by a company name. Limit a search engine to one of those addresses and add your job title.
Should I take a lower salary in exchange for equity?
Not unless you could live on the salary by itself. A stock option is only a right to buy shares at an agreed price after a vesting period. Using it costs money, and it pays off only if the shares rise above that price and someone will buy them. The SEC calls private company securities generally illiquid.
Sources
- SEC: Resources for Small Businesses: Glossary: funding rounds, burn rate, Form D, stock options, stock-based compensation, restricted stock, dilution, liquidation preference and liquidity.
- IRS: Topic no. 427, Stock options: the two types of stock options and when each can create income.
- Greenhouse Support: Job board URL for Greenhouse-hosted job board: how that address is formed.
- Lever: Postings API documentation: the address of a Lever-hosted job site and its site name.
- Ashby Knowledge Base: Job Board: Configuring Your Setup: the address of an Ashby job board and the option to embed it.
Published by Jobbie and last updated on October 6, 2026. This guide is general information for job seekers, not legal, tax or financial advice. Spotted something wrong? Tell us.