The real cost of fundraising

How much does fundraising cost?

Fundraising is rarely free — even when you 'do it yourself.' Between broker fees, lawyers, tools, and the hundreds of hours of founder time it consumes, a raise can quietly cost more than you expect.

LeadAgent (leadagentx.ai) was built to change that math: an AI fundraising agent that finds investors, runs outreach, and books meetings for a flat monthly subscription — backed by our private investor network — instead of a percentage of your round.

Advisors and brokers: 2–6% of your round

Traditional fundraising advisors typically charge a success fee of 2–6% of what you raise. On a $2M seed round, that's $40K–$120K of your company's new money.

Legal and data-room costs

Priced rounds need lawyers ($10K–$30K+), and data rooms, cap table tools, and diligence prep add thousands more — costs that hit whether or not you close.

The hidden cost: your time

Most founders spend 20+ hours a week on investor prospecting for 3–6 months. That's founder-shaped time not going into product, sales, or the pitch itself.

The flat-fee alternative

LeadAgent runs the whole prospecting and outreach engine for a flat monthly subscription — no percentage of your round, no success fees.

What fundraising actually costs

Add it up: 2–6% success fees, five figures of legal, tooling, travel, and — the biggest line item — months of your own time. For many founders, the true cost of a raise exceeds 10% of the round in cash and opportunity.

The reason is that prospecting has always been manual: research, lists, emails, follow-up. Any human doing that work needs to be paid — usually out of your round.

How LeadAgent changes the math

An AI agent does the prospecting work at a fraction of the cost: investor research, personalized outreach, follow-up, and scheduling for a flat monthly fee that doesn't scale with your round size.

You still pay a lawyer — you don't pay a broker. Founders keep the equity they'd otherwise hand to an advisor, and the money they raise stays in the company.

$20M+

capital introduced

120+

investor meetings booked

6.8×

avg. reply lift

Frequently asked questions

How much does a fundraising consultant cost?

Most charge a monthly retainer plus 2–6% of the capital raised. On a $2M round, expect $40K–$120K+ in success fees alone.

Is it worth paying for fundraising help?

Good help pays for itself in time saved and rounds closed — the question is the pricing model. Percentage fees scale with your success; flat subscriptions don't.

What does LeadAgent cost?

Flat monthly plans starting at $199/month, with unlimited custom programs — no success fees and no percentage of your round. Cancel anytime with 30 days' notice.

Stop searching for investors. Let the agent find them.

Book a free strategy call and we'll show you exactly which investors the AI would target for your startup — including matches from our private investor network.

Find my investors