20 years of Y Combinator, distilled for founders.
Every YC essay, every Request for Startups, every founder interview, every public S-1 — read, organised and turned into clear playbooks. Explore free guides and database previews, then unlock the full research vault. Every source linked.
START HERE
Four ways in, depending on where you are.
Most people land here from one search. Pick the stage you're actually at — each path is a short reading order, not a list of everything we have.
Applying this cycle
YC application, end to end
Every question on the form, the character limits, what partners are reading for, and the deadline dates for the 2026 batches.
Deciding what to build
The 2026 Request for Startups
All 15 categories YC says it wants to fund — each one turned into a customer, a wedge, an 8-week MVP and a 90-day plan.
After you hit submit
Interview, deal and Demo Day
How long the wait actually is, what the 10-minute interview sounds like, and what the standard YC deal and SAFE math look like.
While you write
Free YC applicant tools
Answer generator, interview simulator, SAFE calculator, pitch deck builder and more — all free, no signup.
Free download · no paywall
The YC Application Cheatsheet
Every question on the form, with a strong and a weak answer side by side. Drop your email and we'll send it straight over — plus two YC founder stories a week.
No spam. Unsubscribe in one click.
FREE TOOLS
Tools that help you apply like a founder.
No signup. Each tool is built around a real YC decision point — from drafting answers to modeling the SAFE.
YC Application Answer Generator
Turn your rough notes into a tight, specific draft for every YC application question.
YC Interview Simulator
Practice the 10 questions partners ask, with a 60-second timer and scoring.
YC Pitch Deck Builder
Outline a 10-slide deck calibrated to what YC Demo Day investors expect.
YC SAFE & Valuation Calculator
Model post-money SAFE dilution, the MFN note, and your cap table after YC.
/for aspiring founders
Everything an aspiring founder needs, in one place.
Y Combinator has shaped the modern startup playbook — we've spent 1,000+ hours organising their publicly available wisdom into clear, free guides. From writing your application to picking the right idea to running your first user interviews. All free. All sourced.
01 · Apply
How to apply to Y Combinator (2026)
Every question on the YC application, what the partners are listening for, and side-by-side strong vs weak answers — all built from public YC partner talks and accepted application teardowns.
Read the application guide →02 · Interview
The YC interview, decoded
What the 10-minute YC partner interview actually covers, the question patterns to expect, and how to practice — distilled from 50+ public founder recaps.
Prep for the interview →03 · Ideas
15 YC startup ideas for 2026
Every category in YC's 2026 Request for Startups, expanded into a complete founder playbook — customer, wedge, 8-week MVP, pricing, and the first 10 customers.
Browse the 15 ideas →04 · Essays
20 years of YC essays, distilled
pg, Jessica, Sam, Geoff, Garry — every essential YC essay distilled to the argument, the evidence, and what changed since publication. Always linked back to the original.
Read the essays →05 · Frameworks
The YC mental models
Default Alive vs Default Dead, Do Things That Don't Scale, Make Something People Want — the operating models YC partners use, with worked examples you can apply this week.
Open the frameworks →06 · Free PDFs
Free founder resources · No email
Application cheatsheet, interview prep, the Default Alive calculator, user interview script, PG quote pack — every PDF is free to download. No gate, no upsell.
Grab the PDFs →Every guide is built from publicly available Y Combinator material — essays, partner talks, founder interviews, public S-1 filings. Sources are linked on every page.
/database-categories
Nine angles on the YC ecosystem, organised for founders.
The 46 databases below are grouped by what you're trying to learn. Click any group to jump straight to the cards that matter for your stage.
Deep Reports
10Long-form analyses — unicorns, dead unicorns, acqui-hires, IPOs, fundraising mechanics, solo founders.
view databases →Playbooks
8Step-by-step founder playbooks for the categories YC wants funded next — customer, wedge, MVP path, pricing.
view databases →Core Databases
7The foundational YC datasets — pivots, graveyards, first 1000 customers, idea evolution, founder origins.
view databases →Batch Packs
3Every YC batch, fully decoded — companies, founders, traction signals, pivots already happening.
view databases →Vertical Packs
7Per-industry views of the YC portfolio — AI, fintech, SaaS, consumer, healthtech, edtech, India.
view databases →Founder Files
4The non-business stories every founder eventually meets — burnout, co-founder splits, relationships, almost-quit moments.
view databases →Annual Reports
3Year-end views YC doesn't publish — success rates, failure patterns, emerging categories, the portfolio to watch.
view databases →Master Playbooks
3Combined growth, fundraising and survival playbooks — the full arc from idea to first million in revenue.
view databases →Subscription
1Monthly YC intelligence — five deep dives, one database update, one trend report, every month.
view databases →46
Total databases
20yr
Of YC history
100%
Publicly sourced
$0
To start reading
/the-database
The full YC library. 46 databases · 5 live · 41 shipping soon.
Pivots, first-1000-customer stories, batch packs, vertical packs, founder origin files — every angle of the YC ecosystem, structured and sourced. Each database has its own page, its own sources, and its own FAQ.
Learn Where Indian VCs Invest—and Find Your Best Match
Deep Reports
15 major Indian VCs decoded. 300+ verified portfolio companies. One report.
Launch on Product Hunt and Turn Attention Into Customers
Playbooks
The Product Hunt playbook for early-stage startups, calibrated to the 2026 algorithm.
Find the Startup Ideas YC Wants Funded in 2026
Playbooks
15 YC RFS categories. 15 complete founder playbooks.
Learn Why Rejected Startups Failed—or Broke Through
Core Databases
YC alumni who got rejected, pivoted, or nearly died — and built generational outcomes.
Learn How Solo Founders Got Into YC and Succeeded
Core Databases
20+ verified YC solo founders. Every case study. One bundle.
See When and Why Successful YC Startups Pivoted
Core Databases
500+ YC Companies. One Pivot. One Spreadsheet.
Learn Why 300+ YC Startups Shut Down
Core Databases
300+ YC Companies That Died. Here's Exactly Why.
Find the Channels That Won Their First 1,000 Customers
Core Databases
How 300+ YC Companies Got Their First 1000 Customers.
Compare YC Application Ideas With What Companies Became
Core Databases
What They Applied With vs What They Became.
See What YC Founders Did Before Starting Up
Core Databases
What 500 YC Founders Did 12 Months Before Founding.
Discover the Strongest Ideas and Teams in YC W25
Batch Packs
Every W25 Company. Every Founder. One Pack.
See Which YC S24 Startups Gained Traction
Batch Packs
The S24 Batch. Fully Decoded.
Learn What Happened to YC W24 Startups
Batch Packs
W24 With Full Hindsight.
Learn What Works in YC Fintech Startups
Vertical Packs
Every YC Fintech Company. One Pack.
See Which YC AI Startups Won After ChatGPT
Vertical Packs
Every YC AI Company. Pre and Post ChatGPT.
Learn How YC SaaS Startups Reach Product-Market Fit
Vertical Packs
300 YC B2B SaaS Companies. The GTM Playbook.
Learn How YC Consumer Apps Grow and Retain Users
Vertical Packs
150 YC Consumer Apps. Viral, Retention, Monetization.
Learn How Indian Founders Navigate YC and Fundraising
Vertical Packs
Every Indian Founder In YC History.
Learn How YC Health Startups Win Hospitals and Approval
Vertical Packs
100 YC Health Companies. FDA, Hospitals, GTM.
See What Makes YC Edtech Startups Survive
Vertical Packs
YC Edtech: Before, During, and After COVID.
Get Your First 1,000 B2B SaaS Customers
Playbooks
50 YC B2B Companies. Week By Week.
Get Your First 1,000 Consumer App Users
Playbooks
50 YC Consumer Companies. The Tipping Point.
Recognize Product-Market Fit in Fintech
Playbooks
30 YC Fintech Founders. The PMF Metric.
Reach $1M ARR Without Paid Ads
Playbooks
40 YC B2B Companies. $1M ARR. Zero Ad Spend.
Grow a Consumer Startup Without Paid Ads
Playbooks
40 YC Consumer Companies That Went Viral Free.
Learn When an AI Pivot Works—and When It Fails
Playbooks
50 Companies That Pivoted Into or Away From AI.
Learn How YC Unicorns Survived the Years to $1B
Deep Reports
20 YC Unicorns. The Series A to $1B Years.
Spot the Warning Signs That Kill Former Unicorns
Deep Reports
YC Companies That Hit $500M+ Then Collapsed.
Understand When an Acqui-hire Is a Good Outcome
Deep Reports
50 YC Companies Acquired For Their Team.
See the Milestones That Took YC Startups to IPO
Deep Reports
Every YC IPO. Batch Day to Bell.
Prevent Founder Burnout Before It Breaks the Company
Founder Files
40 Founder Mental Health Stories.
Handle a Cofounder Split Without Losing the Company
Founder Files
30 Documented YC Co-founder Splits.
Learn How YC Founders Survived Their Lowest Point
Founder Files
35 YC Founders On Their Lowest Moment.
Protect Your Relationship While Building a Startup
Founder Files
25 YC Founders On Relationships Under Pressure.
Learn How YC Founders Closed Their Funding Rounds
Deep Reports
50 YC Companies. Real Numbers. Real Stories.
See Which YC 2024 Bets Worked—and Which Failed
Annual Reports
The Annual Report YC Never Publishes.
Learn From YC’s 2023 Winners and Misses
Annual Reports
2023 With The Hindsight 2024 Provides.
Learn What Worked for Indian YC Founders in 2024
Annual Reports
Built Specifically For Indian Founders.
Grow From Zero to Your First $1M in Revenue
Master Playbooks
First 1000 + PMF + First $1M ARR. One Doc.
Raise From Seed to Series A With Proven YC Lessons
Master Playbooks
Seed to Series A. Real Founder Stories.
Survive Burnout, Cofounder Conflict, and Runway Crises
Master Playbooks
Burnout + Co-founder + Runway + Almost Quit.
See When YC Actually Improves Startup Outcomes
Deep Reports
50 Matched Pairs. The Honest Comparison.
Find Which YC Batches Produced the Most Unicorns
Deep Reports
Which Batches Produced The Most Unicorns. Why.
See How Solo YC Founders Replace a Cofounder
Deep Reports
Every Solo Founder In YC History.
Learn What Second-Time Founders Do Differently
Deep Reports
40 Founders On Their Second Company.
Get the Latest YC Startup Trends Every Month
Subscription
5 Deep Dives. 1 Database Update. Every Month.
Every database has its own page with sources, FAQ and download. Tap any card to open it.
From the blog · /blog
Learn YC by what you actually want to know.
Posts are organized by learning track — rejected founders, accepted founders, pivots, the graveyard, first 1000 customers, AI, fintech, solo founders, burnout, co-founder breakups. Every post links back to its source database.
Learn from rejected YC founders
Learn From Rejected YC Founders: What Airbnb, Stripe And Reddit Did The Day After
Every founder in the Rejection Database got told no — by investors, by YC partners, by both. What they did in the next 48 hours is the story.
Analysis · 10 min →
Learn from accepted YC founders
Learn From Accepted YC Founders: What 100+ Successful Applications Have In Common
Patterns from publicly shared accepted YC applications — Stripe, Airbnb, Reddit, DoorDash — and the answers that worked.
Data & Stats · 8 min →
Learn from YC founders who pivoted
Learn From YC Founders Who Pivoted: The 9 Pivots That Built Generational Companies
Twitch was Justin.tv. Brex was VR for Brazil. Instagram (pre-YC era) was Burbn. Here's what triggered the pivot — and the week it actually happened.
Analysis · 11 min →
Learn from YC companies that died
Learn From YC Companies That Died: The Four Causes Of Death
300+ YC companies shut down on the public record. The cause clusters into four patterns — market, product, team, capital — and every one is preventable.
Analysis · 9 min →
Learn how YC founders got their first customers
Learn How YC Founders Got Their First 1000 Customers (By Channel)
Cold email, Reddit, the YC network, one viral tweet — across 300+ YC companies, the channel that worked is shockingly concentrated.
Playbook · 9 min →
Learn from YC AI founders
Learn From YC AI Founders: Who Repositioned In 10 Days When ChatGPT Shipped
November 30, 2022 was a fault line. Some YC AI companies repositioned in two weeks, some never recovered. Here's the split.
Analysis · 10 min →
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