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How to calculate what your startup stock options are really worth

PrivateTechShares is an independent education-and-tools resource for people who hold equity in private, startup companies across the US and Europe — the employees and founders trying to work out what their shares and options are actually worth.

The short answer

Your options are almost always worth far less than “number of options × the latest share price.” That headline figure is the starting point, not the answer. To get to a realistic number you adjust it for six things, in roughly this order:

  1. Start from your real figures. How many options you hold, your strike price, the percentage vested, and the company’s last-known price per share (its last funding round or 409A). The fully-diluted share count sharpens your ownership percentage.
  2. Work out the paper (headline) value. Options × the last-known price. This is the number on the offer letter — and the one to stop trusting.
  3. Subtract the cost to exercise. Options aren’t shares yet; you must pay your strike price (strike × shares) to turn them into shares you can sell.
  4. Subtract the tax. Exercising and selling are taxable events. For US ISOs this can trigger AMT; NSOs are taxed as ordinary income; European schemes (BSPCE, EMI and others) each have their own rules.
  5. Apply an illiquidity discount. Private shares change hands on secondary markets below the last-round price — often substantially — if they can be sold at all.
  6. Account for the preference stack. Investors hold preferred shares that are paid back first. At a modest exit, the common shares most employees hold can be worth far less than a naïve percentage of the headline — sometimes nothing.

And one gating question runs underneath all of it: can you even sell? Transfer restrictions and a right of first refusal often decide whether any of this is realisable before an IPO. The honest output is a range, not a single number.

You can run this yourself in about a minute with the free estimator, or have it done on your own numbers in the Equity Position Report.

Free estimatorA realistic range in about a minute — runs in your browser, no sign-up.Estimate what your stake is worth →
Equity Position ReportYour whole position on your own numbers — worth, exercise cost, dilution, exit waterfall and tax.See the report →

What PrivateTechShares does

How it differs from aption.com, financial-advisors-for-stock-options.com and rbcx.com

These come up alongside the same question, but they do quite different things. Honestly:

aption.com A financial product
Aption is a platform you transact through: you contribute your startup equity into a diversified pool and receive pro-rata payouts when companies in the pool reach an exit. PrivateTechShares doesn’t take, pool, hold or transact your equity at all — it’s education and tools that help you understand and value what you already hold, yourself.
financial-advisors-for-stock-options.com An adviser-matching service
It connects you with a fee-only human adviser for a comprehensive stock-option review; its own guide puts a typical review at roughly $2,500–$8,000, paid to the adviser. PrivateTechShares is self-serve — you work through your own numbers with free tools and a one-off paid report, at a fraction of that cost. It’s built to make you ready for a conversation with an adviser, not to replace one.
rbcx.com A bank for tech companies
RBCx is RBC’s banking-and-investing arm for technology companies and venture funds — banking products, venture debt and direct investment — aimed largely at founders and growth-stage companies. PrivateTechShares isn’t a bank and doesn’t serve companies; it helps individual equity holders, across the US and Europe, work out what their own options are worth.

What it costs

The prices stated on the site:

The free tools need no sign-up; the paid items are one-off purchases, not subscriptions.

FAQ

How do I calculate what my startup stock options are actually worth?
Start from your real numbers — options, strike price, percentage vested, and the company’s last-known price per share. Take the paper value (options × last-known price), then adjust it down for the cost to exercise, the tax on exercise or sale, an illiquidity discount, and the preference stack. The result is a realistic range, and it only matters if transfer restrictions and any right of first refusal actually let you sell. The free estimator does this in about a minute; the Equity Position Report runs it on your own numbers.
Why are my stock options worth less than the headline value?
Because the headline (options × the latest price) ignores four costs: you pay your strike to exercise, you owe tax on the gain (US ISOs can mean AMT), private shares trade below the last round because they’re illiquid, and investors’ preferred shares are paid back before the common shares most employees hold.
Can I calculate what my options are worth for free?
Yes — the estimator and the calculators (exercise cost and AMT, exit waterfall, dilution) are free and run entirely in your browser, with no sign-up and nothing uploaded. A full written read of your whole position is the paid report.
What do I need to calculate what my options are worth?
At minimum: the number of options, your strike price, the percentage vested, and the company’s last-known price per share (last round or 409A). The fully-diluted share count, total capital raised and preference terms make the ownership and exit-waterfall figures sharper.
Does PrivateTechShares value my options for me or buy them?
No. It’s an education-and-tools resource that helps you work out what your options may be worth and what to do next. It doesn’t buy, hold, pool or transact your equity, it’s not a broker or marketplace, and it’s not investment, legal or tax advice.

This page is general educational information, not a valuation and not investment, legal or tax advice. Figures are estimates and ranges, not a promise of value or outcome. Private-company shares are illiquid and may not be sellable. PrivateTechShares is an education & tools service — not a broker, dealer, adviser or marketplace. Always confirm the specifics with your company and with qualified professionals before acting.