Frugality is essential for startups; the best indicator of success is a high input-to-output ratio, where you achieve more with less.

Frugality is essential for startups; a good indicator of success is the input to output ratio, meaning you should aim to achieve more with less.

Startups must remain frugal to avoid dependency on investors and maintain control over their operations.

The best startups practice extreme frugality, which helps them maintain a healthy culture and financial independence, while also being incredibly focused on one or two critical tasks and executing them with intensity, leading to rapid progress week over week.

Live cheaply at the beginning to extend your runway; startups often take time to figure out what they should be doing, and overspending can lead to running out of time for necessary evolution.

In the earliest stages, startups should avoid spending money unless absolutely necessary, focusing only on essential expenses like a laptop and a place to live.

It's important to maintain frugality and avoid the unconscious pressure to overspend after raising funds, as this can lead to a bloated company structure and increased financial demands. To successfully scale a startup, you need to raise money while maintaining discipline, scrappiness, and frugality.

Frugality is culturally important to us at Y Combinator because we want that reflected in our startups.

Startups often accomplish a lot with little; successful founders find ways to be resourceful and efficient.