Seed valuations kept climbing in 2025, but raising got slower, not easier. The median seed round held around $4M, the median seed pre-money reached $16M, AI took 42% of all seed capital, and the median gap from seed to Series A stretched to 2.1 years. This is the Value Add VC annual reference on what's actually normal at seed, with every figure sourced.
The median Series A pre-money is about 3x the seed median.
Source: PitchBook-NVCA Venture Monitor (Q4 2025)
Nearly double the pre-ChatGPT share of 23%.
Source: Carta, via SaaStr (Dec 2025)
Priced equity is now the exception at pre-seed.
Source: Carta, via SaaStr (Dec 2025)
The gap to Series A grew by about seven months since 2019.
Source: Carta, via SaaStr (Dec 2025)
The median seed raise on Carta was about $4M in 2025, and Carta's Winter 2025 State of Seed report put the median seed post-money valuation at $20M. PitchBook's US data tells the same story: a $3.8M median seed deal and a $16.0M median seed pre-money in 2025, against $8.3M at pre-seed and $49.0M at Series A.
| Metric | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Median seed round size | ~$4M | Carta (via SaaStr) |
| Median seed deal size | $3.8M | PitchBook-NVCA |
| Median seed pre-money valuation | $16.0M | PitchBook-NVCA |
| Median seed post-money valuation | $20M | Carta (via SaaStr) |
| Median pre-seed pre-money valuation | $8.3M | PitchBook-NVCA |
Priced equity is now the exception at the earliest stage. 92% of pre-seed rounds on Carta use SAFEs, up from 54% in 2019. The default structure is a post-money SAFE with a valuation cap and no discount, used by 61% of SAFEs in 2025.
Getting to Series A takes longer than it used to. The median time from seed to Series A has stretched to about 2.1 years, from 1.5 years in 2019. Over a longer window the odds hold up better: about half of seed companies reach Series A within four years (49.1% for the Q1 2019 cohort).
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Median time seed → Series A (2025) | ~2.1 years |
| Median time seed → Series A (2019) | ~1.5 years |
| Q1 2019 seed cohort reaching Series A within 4 years | 49.1% |
Raising a great seed is no longer the milestone; surviving the 2+ year gap to Series A is. Budget runway for 30 months, not 18, or you'll be raising a bridge you didn't plan for.
AI's dominance starts at the earliest stage. AI companies took about 42% of all seed capital in 2025, nearly double the ~23% share before ChatGPT. For non-AI founders, that's the quiet story behind the record valuations: the headline numbers are inflated by a concentrated rush into AI, and the bar for everyone else is higher than the medians suggest.
Seed valuations are at record highs, but clearing them, and surviving the 2+ year gap to Series A, has never been harder.
The median seed round was about $4M in 2025 per Carta data, and PitchBook's median US seed deal was $3.8M. Top (often AI) startups raise far larger rounds than the typical company.
PitchBook puts the 2025 median seed pre-money valuation at $16.0M (pre-seed: $8.3M). Carta's Winter 2025 State of Seed report put the median seed post-money at $20M.
Yes. 92% of pre-seed rounds on Carta use SAFEs, up from 54% in 2019. The default is a post-money SAFE with a valuation cap and no discount (61% of SAFEs in 2025).
It takes longer than it used to. The median time from seed to Series A has stretched to about 2.1 years (from 1.5 years in 2019). About half of seed companies reach Series A within four years (49.1% of the Q1 2019 cohort).
Compiled and maintained by Trace Cohen · @Trace_Cohen · t@nyvp.com. Free to cite with attribution (CC BY 4.0).