Foundevo

Only 2.3% of Startups Reach $25M ARR

Praveen Panjiar

20 Nov 2025 — 5 min read

Why 98% Startups Don’t Scale

October 11, 2025

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Only 2.3% of Startups Reach $25M ARR — Here’s Why

New data from 6,525 SaaS startups reveals a staggering truth — it’s statistically harder to reach $25M ARR than it is to get into Harvard or Stanford.

Nearly half of software startups make it to $1M ARR, but only 1 in 50 break the $25M mark within 10 years. The data, powered by ChartMogul’s decade-long dataset, uncovers what separates the few who scale from the many who stall.

⚙️ 47% of startups reach $1M ARR after monetizing.
1 in 5 reach $5M ARR.
1 in 10 hit $10M ARR.
Only 1 in 50 ever make it to $25M ARR.

This isn’t just data — it’s a reality check for every founder chasing long-term growth.

If your startup’s chasing sustainable growth, this is a must-read reality check.

Dive into the full ChartMogul analysis and see where your startup stands.

Stanford Just Made Its AI Courses Free

Stanford Just Made Its AI Curriculum Free — Learn What the Pros Know

Stanford just did something incredible — they’ve released their entire AI curriculum online for free. Same professors. Same lectures. Zero cost.

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Which University in Your State Built the Most Unicorns?

The “college dropout” founder story is fading — data shows that top universities are now the real startup launchpads. From Stanford (207 unicorns) to Harvard (164) and UPenn (67), graduates from elite programs are shaping the next generation of billion-dollar companies.

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