Vesting Schedule Calculator (Cliff + Monthly)
Vesting schedule calculator. 1-year cliff + monthly/quarterly RSU/option vesting. Vested-to-date, unvested, next vest date, full schedule.
Vesting Schedule Calculator
Track how an RSU or stock-option grant vests over time. The standard tech pattern is a 1-year cliff (nothing vests for the first year, then a chunk vests at once) followed by monthly or quarterly vesting to the end of the term. Enter your grant and see exactly how much is vested today, what's still unvested, and when the next tranche lands.
| Vest date | Shares | Cumulative | Value |
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How to Use the Vesting Calculator
Enter your grant size and start date
Total shares granted and the vesting-start (grant) date from your equity agreement. The grant date — not your hire date — is what the schedule counts from, though they're often the same.
Set the term and cliff
The classic structure is 48 months total with a 12-month cliff. Adjust to match your grant — some use 36 months, no cliff, or back-loaded schedules.
Choose monthly or quarterly
After the cliff, most grants vest monthly; some vest quarterly. This affects when each tranche lands but not the total.
Read your position
See vested-to-date, unvested, and the next vest date and amount. Add a current price to value the vested portion. The schedule table marks past vests with a check.
How Equity Vesting Works
The Cliff and the Drip
Vesting is how a company spreads an equity grant over time so it functions as a retention incentive. The dominant pattern in tech is a four-year schedule with a one-year cliff: you vest nothing for the first 12 months, then 25% vests in one lump at the cliff, and the remaining 75% drips in monthly (1/48 of the grant each month) over the next three years. The cliff protects the company from granting equity to someone who leaves in the first few months; the monthly drip keeps you incentivised to stay through year four.
RSUs vs Options — Same Schedule, Different Mechanics
The vesting schedule is identical for RSUs and stock options, but what vesting means differs. A vested RSU converts to actual shares (and is taxed as income at vest — see our RSU withholding calculator). A vested option gives you the right to buy shares at the strike price; you still have to exercise (pay the strike) to own them. This tool tracks the schedule for either; the financial consequence of each vest depends on which you hold.
"Standard 4-year/1-year-cliff grant: 0% at month 11, then 25% lands at month 12, then 1/48 every month after. Two-thirds of the value is still ahead of you the day after your cliff."
Refreshers, Accelerators, and Double-Triggers
Real grants have wrinkles this calculator simplifies. Refresh grants stack new awards on top of your original, each with its own schedule. Acceleration clauses can vest some or all of a grant on a triggering event — a "single-trigger" accelerates on acquisition, a more common "double-trigger" requires both an acquisition and your termination. Founders and executives often negotiate these; rank-and-file grants usually don't have them. Check your agreement for any acceleration language, as it can materially change your effective vesting.
Why the Date Matters
Knowing exactly when shares vest matters for real decisions: timing a job change to capture a cliff or an upcoming tranche, planning the tax hit of an RSU vest, or deciding when to exercise options. Leaving a week before a vest date forfeits that tranche entirely — a costly mistake the schedule above helps you avoid.
10 Facts About Equity Vesting
The standard tech grant is 4 years with a 1-year cliff.
At the cliff, 25% (of a 4-yr grant) vests in one lump.
After the cliff, most grants vest monthly (1/48 each month).
Leave one day before a vest date and you forfeit that tranche.
RSUs become shares at vest; options give the right to buy at strike.
Refresh grants stack new awards, each with its own schedule.
Double-trigger acceleration needs both an acquisition and your termination.
The cliff exists to protect the company from short-tenure grants.
Some grants are back-loaded (e.g. 10/20/30/40%) to boost retention.
The grant date — not necessarily your hire date — starts the clock.
Frequently Asked Questions
- A cliff is an initial period during which nothing vests. With a one-year cliff on a four-year grant, you vest 0% for the first 12 months, then 25% vests in a single lump at the one-year mark, and the rest drips in monthly. If you leave before the cliff, you walk away with nothing. The cliff protects the company from granting equity to very short-tenure employees.
- Yes — the vesting schedule is the same for RSUs and stock options. What differs is the consequence: a vested RSU becomes actual shares (and is taxed as income at vest), while a vested option only gives you the right to buy at the strike price. This calculator tracks the schedule; for the tax on an RSU vest, use our RSU withholding estimator.
- Use the vesting-start (grant) date from your equity agreement, not necessarily your hire date — though for an initial grant they're usually the same. Refresh grants and promotion grants have their own, later start dates. The schedule counts whole months from this date.
- You forfeit anything not yet vested as of your last day. Vesting is all-or-nothing per tranche — there's no partial credit for a month in progress. This is why people time departures for just after a cliff or a vest date; leaving a week early can forfeit a meaningful chunk of equity.
- Acceleration vests some or all of a grant early on a triggering event. Single-trigger accelerates on an acquisition alone; the more common double-trigger requires both an acquisition and your termination (so you're protected if a new owner lets you go). These clauses are usually negotiated by founders and executives; standard employee grants rarely have them. Check your agreement — this calculator models the base schedule without acceleration.
- That's the cliff catch-up. On a four-year grant with a one-year cliff, the first 12 months' worth of vesting (12/48 = 25%) is held back and then released in a single lump the moment you cross the cliff. After that, vesting resumes its normal monthly cadence. The calculator shows this as the first row of the schedule.
- Yes — set the cliff to 0 months. Then vesting starts from the first period: 1/48 each month from month one on a 48-month grant. Refresh grants and some executive grants skip the cliff because the retention value of the cliff matters most for new hires.
- Refresh (or "evergreen") grants are additional awards companies give to keep your total vesting steady as your original grant winds down. Each refresh has its own start date and schedule, so your real vesting is the sum of several overlapping grants. Model each one separately here, then add the vested amounts together.
- No — it tracks the share count and gross value. For RSUs, each vest is a taxable event (ordinary income on the value at vest), and shares are typically withheld to cover it. Use our RSU tax withholding estimator to see the after-tax share count. For options, the tax depends on the type (ISO vs NSO) and when you exercise.
- No. It's a schedule calculator based on standard vesting conventions. Your actual grant may have acceleration, performance conditions, or non-standard terms — always read your equity agreement, and consult a financial or tax adviser for decisions about exercising, selling, or timing around vesting.
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