Glossary · Ecosystem and support · Updated
An incubator is an organisation that supports a startup at the very beginning, often before it has a finished product or a first customer. It provides space, mentoring and a working method over a long period of six to twenty-four months, and usually takes no equity.
An incubator solves a specific problem: at the very start, a team has no office, no method and nobody to ask stupid questions. It supplies all three. Most are attached to a university, a local authority or a large company, which is why they rarely ask for equity: their funding comes from elsewhere.
What an incubator really gives you is not money, it is time and structure. Regular checkpoints, mentors who have done it before, and above all desk neighbours hitting the same problems six months ahead of or behind you. Applicants consistently underrate that last part; alumni mention it first.
The price is rarely equity, but there is a price: rent, programme fees, sometimes an exclusivity or a registered-office requirement. Read the agreement before signing, especially the intellectual property clauses when the incubator sits inside a research lab or a corporate.
Example: a typical incubation programme
Two founders join a regional incubator with a prototype and no customers.
| Programme length | 12 months |
|---|---|
| Equity taken | 0% |
| Cost | €250/month for two desks |
| Support | 1 monthly mentor session, 2 workshops per month |
| Funding provided | None directly; help securing a €30K soft loan |
| Exit goal | 10 paying customers and a pre-seed under way |
| Observed selectivity | Roughly 1 application in 5 accepted |
Over twelve months the direct cost is €3,000, with no dilution. That ratio is what makes an incubator hard to turn down early on, provided the programme genuinely matches your stage.
Incubator or accelerator: the comparison
The two words get used interchangeably in conversation, yet they describe two different moments and two very different bargains. The table below sets out what actually separates them.
| Criterion | Incubator | Accelerator |
|---|---|---|
| Stage targeted | Idea or prototype, often pre-customer | Launched product, early revenue |
| Programme length | 6 to 24 months | 3 to 6 months |
| Takes equity | Rarely, often none at all | Usually, 5% to 10% |
| Money provided | Rarely (sometimes a grant or soft loan) | Common seed cheque, €20K to €150K |
| Selectivity | Moderate, application and interview | Very high, a few percent of applicants |
| Format | Permanent desks, rolling admission | Fixed-date batches |
| What you pay | Rent, programme fees, or nothing | Equity |
| How it ends | A gradual move out of the space | A demo day in front of investors |
| Main benefit | Time, structure and a place to work | A network and a fast launch |
The simple rule: if you are still working out what you sell, that is an incubator. If you know what you sell and want to sell it ten times faster, that is an accelerator. Applying to an accelerator too early is the single most common reason for rejection.
The common mistake
Staying incubated out of comfort. Past eighteen months the incubator stops accelerating anything and becomes a cocoon: rent is low, mentors are kind, and the team keeps postponing contact with the market. Investors spot it immediately.
Frequently asked questions
Does an incubator take equity in the startup?+
Rarely in France. Most incubators are funded by a university, a local authority or a corporate and earn their keep through rent or programme fees. Where equity is taken it seldom exceeds a few percent, and should be negotiated like any other entry onto the cap table.
What is the difference between an incubator and an accelerator?+
An incubator supports a team still searching for its product over a long period, generally without taking equity. An accelerator works over three to six months with a startup that already has a product and customers, invests a small cheque and takes 5% to 10%.
Related terms
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