Membership
Three tiers, placed by company stage.
Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) is a peer council for founders, established in 2012. Membership is by application. Your company's stage sets your tier.
YEC Next
For founders under $1M in revenue.
$5,000 a year
Or $1,400 a quarter, or $550 a month.
A coached twelve-month program with a path to Core. Funded and pre-revenue founders are welcome.
In YEC Next: expert panels from your first month, each answer read by a YEC editor first.
YEC Core
For founders at $1M+ in revenue.
$3,500 a year
Or $1,100 a quarter, or $400 a month.
The main council. Requires $1M+ in revenue. No pre-revenue companies.
YEC Fellows
By invitation
Past or current members who reached $10M+ in revenue or an exit, or bring expert knowledge. By invitation; the member chooses Fellows or stays in Core. Fellows can earn credits or be paid to mentor, moderate, and run sessions.
$3,500 a year, paid upfront.
Monthly and quarterly plans are a 12-month commitment. The conversation can place you in a different tier than the one you applied for.
Membership
Why founders take a seat.
Your visibility
Publishing, with substance
Placements through YEC and its partners, including Inc. Expert panels put real questions in front of you, your answer runs under your name, and it reaches readers who come for signal.
Asks and gives
What members do for each other.
Bring a real problem. Get real help. Offer the same when it is your turn. Hiring calls, vendor referrals, warm introductions, candid feedback, pressure-tested decisions, all from people with nothing to sell you. This is the culture, and it is the larger half of the value.
Compared
How YEC differs.
| YEC | EO | YPO | Vistage | Hampton | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Who it is for | Founders, placed by stage | Owners and founders | Chief executives | CEOs, in groups of 12 to 16 | Founders of tech-enabled startups |
| Revenue to join | Under $1M: Next. $1M+: Core | $1M+ last fiscal year, or venture-backed | Typically $16M+ | Typically $5M+ | $3M+, or $3M+ raised, or a $10M+ exit |
| Other limits | No age limit | Under $1M goes to EO Accelerator | Under 45; typically 50+ employees | Typically 20+ employees | Live in a chapter city |
| Price published | Yes. $3,500 to $5,000 a year | Yes. $2,630 a year plus $3,500 to join, before chapter dues | No | Partly. About $16,500 a year, in a Vistage article | Yes. $15,000 a year |
YEC and EO
Who it is for
- YEC
- Founders, placed by stage
- EO
- Owners and founders
Revenue to join
- YEC
- Under $1M: Next. $1M+: Core
- EO
- $1M+ last fiscal year, or venture-backed
Other limits
- YEC
- No age limit
- EO
- Under $1M goes to EO Accelerator
Price published
- YEC
- Yes. $3,500 to $5,000 a year
- EO
- Yes. $2,630 a year plus $3,500 to join, before chapter dues
YEC and YPO
Who it is for
- YEC
- Founders, placed by stage
- YPO
- Chief executives
Revenue to join
- YEC
- Under $1M: Next. $1M+: Core
- YPO
- Typically $16M+
Other limits
- YEC
- No age limit
- YPO
- Under 45; typically 50+ employees
Price published
- YEC
- Yes. $3,500 to $5,000 a year
- YPO
- No
YEC and Vistage
Who it is for
- YEC
- Founders, placed by stage
- Vistage
- CEOs, in groups of 12 to 16
Revenue to join
- YEC
- Under $1M: Next. $1M+: Core
- Vistage
- Typically $5M+
Other limits
- YEC
- No age limit
- Vistage
- Typically 20+ employees
Price published
- YEC
- Yes. $3,500 to $5,000 a year
- Vistage
- Partly. About $16,500 a year, in a Vistage article
YEC and Hampton
Who it is for
- YEC
- Founders, placed by stage
- Hampton
- Founders of tech-enabled startups
Revenue to join
- YEC
- Under $1M: Next. $1M+: Core
- Hampton
- $3M+, or $3M+ raised, or a $10M+ exit
Other limits
- YEC
- No age limit
- Hampton
- Live in a chapter city
Price published
- YEC
- Yes. $3,500 to $5,000 a year
- Hampton
- Yes. $15,000 a year
Figures from each organization's own website, November 2026. See the full comparison
Member access
What a seat actually includes.
The table
The council itself
A vetted circle of established founders and operators, placed by your company's stage. Searchable when you need a specific kind of mind. Present when you need a sounding board that has already made the call you are weighing.
Asks and gives
Bring a real problem. Get real help. Offer the same when it is your turn. Hiring calls, vendor referrals, warm introductions, candid feedback, all from people with nothing to sell you.
People you cannot hire
Some members no longer take clients or sell their time. At the table, their judgment is open to you as a peer.
The member directory
Search the table by industry, location, expertise, and stage. Built for finding the one person who has navigated exactly what you are walking into.
Tables in person
Small, member-hosted dinners and gatherings. The kind of evening where one conversation resets how you think about the next year.
Sessions with operators
Live conversations with people who have done the specific thing you are working through, recorded in the Replay Library for the weeks you cannot make it.
Your visibility
Publishing, with substance
Placements through YEC and its partners, including Inc. Expert panels put real questions in front of you, your answer runs under your name, and it reaches readers who come for signal.
Press pitching
Reporters' requests matched to what you know, so you can pitch the stories that fit you.
The YEC blog
Our own publication. Hundreds of published pieces, and a standing place for yours.
Member newsletters
Your work and your asks go out to the table and to our list, not just onto a page.
Member spotlights
Interviews and profiles that put you at the head of the table, carried across our LinkedIn, Instagram, X, Facebook, YouTube, and TikTok channels. Visibility that drives introductions, not vanity.
Your public profile
An optional page on yec.co that shows who you are and what you build. You choose to turn it on.
The working library
The member home
A private space that holds it all: the feed, the directory, asks and gives, session recordings, and every resource. One place, members only.
Playbooks and templates
Templates, SOPs, checklists, and session materials. Tools you can put to work the same day.
AI tools in the portal
AI skills built for founders, inside the member home.
Access negotiated for the group
Curated introductions and partner arrangements across travel, software, and growth, chosen because they are useful.
A direct line to the YEC team
Message staff from the portal and a person answers.
Joining
How joining works.
Membership is decided through a short application, a conversation, and a review by YEC leadership.
- Apply through the short form on the apply page.
- Have a conversation with the YEC team.
- YEC leadership reviews the application and confirms your tier. The conversation can place you in a different tier than the one you applied for.
- If accepted, you receive a private link to choose your plan and take your seat.