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Founder Share Split Calculator

Explore how co-founders might divide ownership based on contributions, commitment and responsibilities.

Start answering

A starting point, not an answer. Your choices and importance settings are subjective judgements. The result is a way to open a conversation between founders. It is not legal, tax or investment advice, and it does not decide voting rights or legal shareholding. Nothing you enter leaves your browser.

Who are the founders?

Add between 2 and 10 founders. First names or labels like “Founder A” work fine. Nothing you type leaves your browser.

Answer the questions

Fill out as many as apply and leave the rest blank. For each question, choose the founder or founders who fit best. If two founders fit, choose both and the points are shared. Use “Importance” to say how much a question should count.

Compare scenarios

See the equal and suggested splits side by side, then try your own numbers. A manual scenario only counts once it totals exactly 100%.

Your own adjustment

Assumptions and next steps

Review what the numbers are based on, then take a summary into your founder conversation.

    Important. This calculator is an educational planning tool. It is not legal, tax or investment advice. The suggested result is not a legally fair or recommended split and does not decide voting rights, legal shareholding, tax treatment or enforceable rights. Founder details are never sent to a server.

    Agreed a split? Put it in writing.

    A founders’ agreement records roles, vesting, what happens when someone leaves and how decisions are made. Talk to our team about turning your discussion into documents.

    Request a consultation Private Limited registration

    What to think about when splitting founder equity

    Splitting ownership is one of the first big conversations between co-founders. A number on a screen cannot settle it, but it can make the conversation concrete. Use the results to ask better questions, then agree and document what you decide. See also our free tools and the guide to legal documentation.

    Equity is not the same as salary

    Equity is a share in the future value of the company. A salary pays for work today. Founders often take little or no pay early on, which is one reason equity is used to recognise their commitment. Decide separately what each founder is paid, if anything.

    Equity is not the same as control

    Ownership percentage and decision-making power are related but separate. Voting rights, board seats and what needs everyone’s approval are set in the company’s documents, so a founder’s percentage alone does not tell you who decides what.

    Vesting and what happens if someone leaves

    If a founder leaves after a few months with a large share, the remaining founders carry the business without them. Vesting spreads the ownership over time so shares are earned by staying and contributing. Agree it, along with what happens to unvested shares, before it is needed.

    Contributions change over time

    The founder who invests the most cash today may not be the one who contributes the most in year three. Revisit your assumptions, and consider documenting how roles or commitments can change.

    Dilution is normal

    When you issue shares to investors, advisers or an employee pool, every existing holder’s percentage falls. Plan for it rather than treating today’s split as permanent.

    Cash and sweat equity

    Money and effort are valued differently. Cash can be a share investment, a loan or a gift to the company, and each is treated differently. Sweat equity, meaning work in return for shares, also needs to be agreed and documented. This tool counts cash only as one contribution to discuss.

    Write down roles and agreements

    Whatever split you choose, record who does what, how decisions are made and how disagreements are resolved. A founders’ agreement and a shareholders’ agreement are the usual documents, and the company itself is set up through Company Registration. Not sure about the structure? Try the Business Structure Finder.

    Please note

    This page is general information, not legal, tax or investment advice. The calculator does not decide voting rights, legal shareholding, tax treatment or enforceable rights. Speak to a qualified professional before you rely on any split.

    FAQ

    Founder equity questions

    Plain answers to what co-founders ask when they talk about splitting ownership.

    Each question asks who fits, such as who came up with the idea or who is working full time. You tap the name or names that apply, and the calculator shares that question's points between them. Questions you leave blank are ignored, and each question has an Importance setting so you can change how much it counts.
    There is no single correct formula. Founders usually weigh what each person contributes now and will contribute later, such as time, skills, responsibility, cash and the risk they take, and then agree a split they all accept. This calculator turns your own answers into a starting point for that conversation.
    An equal split is simple and avoids awkward negotiations, and it works well when founders commit similar time and carry similar risk. It can feel unfair when contributions differ a lot, so many founders compare it with a suggested split based on contributions and discuss the gap.
    Vesting means a founder earns their shares gradually over time, often over several years with an initial waiting period called a cliff. If a founder leaves early, the unvested shares can return to the company, which protects the remaining founders. The terms are set in the agreements.
    Dilution is the fall in each existing shareholder's percentage when new shares are issued, for example to investors or an employee option pool. The value of a smaller share of a larger company can still be higher, but the percentage founders hold today will not stay fixed.
    No. Cash put into a company can be a loan, a share investment, or another arrangement, and each has different consequences. This calculator counts cash as one contribution among several so you can discuss it, but you need to agree separately how each amount is treated.
    No. The calculator is an educational planning tool. The percentages do not decide voting rights, legal shareholding, tax treatment or enforceable rights. Shareholding is set by how shares are issued and by the company's documents, such as the articles and a shareholders' agreement.
    No. Everything you type is calculated in your browser and is not sent to a server or stored. The downloadable summary is created on your device.