As a startup employee, your stock options or shares can be a meaningful part of your compensation and financial future. But accessing that value isn’t simple. Many employees face questions like:
With average exercise costs around $140K based on Equitybee data and companies staying private longer, it’s no surprise that over 55 percent of employees walk away from their equity according to Carta, while others look to cash out early.
There’s no single best choice. The right path depends on your goals, your equity details, and your employment status. This guide compares both options side by side.
Private company liquidity is unpredictable. Windows open and close, valuations shift, and company policies can change without warning. Making the wrong move at the wrong time can mean losing equity value, missing tax advantages, or giving up long-term upside.
This edition gives you a clear, employee-first breakdown of the two main ways to access value from your equity:
using Equitybee to exercise or selling shares on the secondary market.
Exercising options turns them into real shares, but the upfront cost can be overwhelming. Equitybee helps you exercise without draining savings.
Employees who want to keep their equity and believe in the company’s future, but don’t want to take on the financial burden of exercising.
Secondary platforms like Forge and EquityZen allow employees to sell exercised shares to accredited buyers. But unlike exercising, secondary sales depend heavily on whether your company permits transfers at all.
Employees at companies that allow secondary sales and are willing to approve them, who want certainty and cash today.
This isn’t really an either-or decision. Equitybee and secondary markets serve different needs, at different moments, for different employees. Think of it this way:
- Equitybee is designed for people who want to keep their equity, but can't or don't want to cover the exercise cost themselves.
Both are valid. Both are useful. And both can be smart moves depending on your financial goals, employment status, risk tolerance, and how you feel about your company’s future.
The key is understanding which path matches where you are right now.
If you want to see a full side-by-side breakdown of Equitybee, Forge and EquityZen,
you can view the full comparison table here: View Table
We’re here to help you make the smartest move for your equity and your financial future.
See how Equitybee can help you fund your exercise →
🎥 Want to learn more about stock options? Watch our Stock Options Unlock video guide → Watch on Instagram
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