The equity (%) without the actual cash value of the options is basically a vanity number - it does not mean much and is not comparable between the companies.

Whilst I agree equity % alone doesn't give you a picture of the value of those options, what it does communicate is whether it's the kind of company that actually gives out meaningful equity, which is useful information. It tells you if the company is actually serious about making a big exit a life-changing event for all early employees.

The odds of a company making it that big are so low though, you're chasing lottery tickets with that outlook, which I suppose is still useful information.

I actually recommend chasing lottery tickets to people who are in common jobs like customer support or social media engagement.

You could do those jobs practically anywhere, but fast-growing tech startups tend to pay relatively well (at least as well as established players) and throw in a lottery ticket.

If you enjoy wearing a variety of hats, like you'll need to in a smaller company, you might as well do a couple years each at a bunch of different startups and collect lottery tickets along the way.

People don't tend to get rich in support jobs, but a bonus of even a few tens of thousands of dollars can be a game-changer, and on the off chance you catch a ticket that ends up being worth a couple hundred grand (what happened to me that made me start recommending this!), it'll change your life!

Rarely will a customer support role be offered shares that are worth more than a couple grand at the time of grant, and it's not always worth sticking around the whole vesting period, but if you get in late enough that the company has proven product/market fit (Series A and following, at least a few dozen employees, 3+ years), it probably won't go all the way to zero.

Unless they have extended their exercise window beyond that standard 90d, those lottery tickets may cost a lot is money to retain after leaving for another job. So much so that companies exist solely to extend loans for them.

You don't get to just collect multiple lottery tickets without either going out of pocket or watering down your share significantly.