Thelander IF Digest: November 2025

The State of Gender Compensation in VC

This month, we are digging into gender compensation data among partners and non-partners at venture capital firms. The compensation of the 3,905 total employees whose gender was indicated in our 2025 Thelander PitchBook Investment Firm Compensation Survey was: 

So, what’s the breakdown in venture at firms with less than $1 billion in total AUM?

Male partners dominate the category, representing 76.7% compared to 23.1% for female partners. 

For non-partners, men make up 58.5% of the category, while women are closer to parity.

What does real-time comp data by gender look like for Managing General Partners and Director / Principals? Let’s start with Managing General Partners (IP 1 in our survey). 

Key takeaways: 

When looking at median total cash, female Managing General Partners at venture firms with less than $1 billion in total AUM are making $200,000 less than their male counterparts. At the maximum, they are making $1,750,000 less.

On the carried interest side, women are competitive with their male counterparts – both receive 45% at the median.

There are more men in the top role – 3.5 men to every 1 female managing general partner at venture firms with less than $1 billion in total AUM. 

What about as you move down the ladder to Director / Principal? 

Source: Thelander-PitchBook Investment Firm Compensation Survey

Women are out performing their male counterparts in total cash – across all percentiles.
Men and women are also on par when it comes to carried interest percentages
The ratio of men to women is also better than what we saw at the top level – there are 1.7 men for every 1 woman. 

What’s The Bottom Line? 

Women have made progress YoY both in the number of women represented in each role AND the compensation. Having access to real-time, comprehensive and trustworthy compensation data is necessary to make educated decisions and know your worth. By filling out the no-cost Thelander-PitchBook Investment Firm Compensation Survey, you will secure 12 months of access to real-time compensation data for every job title you fill out. The more you give, the more you get.  All data is published in aggregate only with no individual names or firm names ever reported. 

Participate in the Thelander – PitchBook Investment Firm Compensation Survey Today