Comparison · 18 material differences
Dynamite Circle vs On Deck
This comparison was generated on request from the records. It carries no editorial verdict and is not indexed. The published comparisons are listed on the compare page.
Read down each column for one organization, across a row for the difference. A bronze mark at the left of a cell means the organizations differ on that row. A dash or “not published” means the organization does not disclose the fact — it is not a zero.
Verified September 2026
Invitation-only community
Verified September 2026 Dynamite Circle
Founders of bootstrapped, profitable, location-independent businesses in software, e-commerce, services and media.
Invitation-only community
On Deck
Pre-seed and pre-idea technology founders in or willing to travel to San Francisco, building for United States customers, who are committed full-time to starting a company.
What the records say
- Role or title — Dynamite Circle: Business founder; freelancers, employees, multi-level marketers, C-suite executives, upper management and department heads are excluded; On Deck: No published role or title.
- Minimum company revenue — Dynamite Circle: At least US$100,000 per year in business revenue (standard DC membership); On Deck: No published minimum company revenue.
- Minimum capital raised — Dynamite Circle: No published minimum capital raised; On Deck: Must not have raised beyond pre-seed.
- Geographic restriction — Dynamite Circle: No published geographic restriction; On Deck: Target customers must be in the United States; attendance in San Francisco for five business days is required.
- Annual dues — Dynamite Circle: $697 a year; On Deck: $10,000 a year.
Side by side
| Dynamite Circle | On Deck | |
|---|---|---|
| Profile | ||
| Type | Invitation-only community | Invitation-only community |
| Founded | 2011 (Founded in 2011 by Dan Andrews and Ian Schoen, who had started the Tropical MBA podcast in 2009.) | 2019 (TechCrunch reported that On Deck launched in June 2019, co-founded by Erik Torenberg and David Booth. The current ODF site does not publish a founding date.) |
| Headquarters | Not documented | San Francisco, United States |
| Geographic footprint | Members in 50+ countries and 200+ cities, with in-person meetups across seven continents and annual conferences in Bangkok and Mexico City. | The core programme is an in-person week in San Francisco; the ongoing community is online. The published eligibility notes rule out founders whose target customers are outside the United States. |
| Members | 1,400as of September 2026 | 3,000as of September 2026 |
| Chapters | No formal chapters. The organization runs local meetups in cities including Chiang Mai, Bangkok, Tokyo, Barcelona and Portland, and states it holds 200+ in-person meetups a year. | No chapters; the programme runs as numbered cohorts from a single San Francisco base. |
| Primary audience | Founders of bootstrapped, profitable, location-independent businesses in software, e-commerce, services and media. | Pre-seed and pre-idea technology founders in or willing to travel to San Francisco, building for United States customers, who are committed full-time to starting a company. |
| Typical member | Members are business owners rather than freelancers or executives, running bootstrapped companies with consistent recurring revenue above US$100,000 a year; the premium tier is limited to founders above US$1 million. | ODF states that cohorts run 80 to 100 people and that more than half have technical backgrounds. The published eligibility screen excludes founders who have raised beyond pre-seed, who already have a team, whose business cannot reach venture scale, or whose target customers are outside the United States. Named alumni companies include Cal.com, Luma and Partiful. |
| Qualification | ||
| Role or title | Business founder; freelancers, employees, multi-level marketers, C-suite executives, upper management and department heads are excludedCertain professional categories are also excluded, specifically coaching, consulting and recruiting.verified September 2026 · source ↗ | No published role or title |
| Minimum company revenue | At least US$100,000 per year in business revenue (standard DC membership)The organization also requires consistent recurring revenue rather than one-off income.verified September 2026 · source ↗ | No published minimum company revenue |
| Minimum capital raised | No published minimum capital raised | Must not have raised beyond pre-seedThis is an upper bound, not a floor: the FAQ says the programme is not suitable for founders who have already raised beyond pre-seed.verified September 2026 · source ↗ |
| Geographic restriction | No published geographic restriction | Target customers must be in the United States; attendance in San Francisco for five business days is requiredThe FAQ lists non-US target customers as a disqualifier and requires the "full SF sprint (five business days)".verified September 2026 · source ↗ |
| Invitation required | No | No |
| Sponsor required | No | No |
| Application process | Applicants confirm they meet six published requirements, agree to the code of conduct and submit an application with written answers about themselves and their business. A team member reviews each application personally and notifies the applicant within 48 business hours. DC BLACK adds a discovery call with the founder and revenue verification through a signed profit-and-loss statement, followed by facilitator-led placement into a mastermind group. Referrals from current members are encouraged. | The published sequence is: apply through an online form, then an optional asynchronous video, then an interview, then an optional second interview, with a decision stated at roughly 36 hours. Admission is to a specific numbered cohort rather than to open-ended membership. |
| Selectivity | "Only a fraction of applicants are accepted", per the requirements page; no acceptance rate is published. | Not publicly disclosed. Cohort size is published at 80 to 100 people, but no application volume or acceptance rate is given. |
| Cost | ||
| Annual dues | $697 a yearStandard DC membership: "$697 per year - one-time annual payment", covering the online community, app and free local meetups.verified September 2026 · source ↗ | $10,000 a yearHistorical: On Deck Scale, the programme for high-growth companies, was reported at US$10,000 per year in September 2022. This programme is not listed on the current ODF site.verified September 2026 · source ↗ |
| Programme fee | Not publicly disclosed | $1,000 one-timeCurrent ODF cohort fee: "Non-dilutive program with a Pay-what-you-can model; we suggest $1000 USD which covers venue, food, and year-round community infrastructure." The suggested figure is a guideline, not a fixed charge.verified September 2026 · source ↗ |
| Event costs | Not publicly disclosed in aggregate. The events page states that local meetups and Juntos are typically free, and that "Global conferences and retreats have ticket prices that are listed on each event page".verified September 2026 · source ↗ | The programme takes no equity. The related three-month Solo Founders residency does not publish a price on its own site. |
| Membership term | Annual | Admission is to a single cohort; the site describes year-round community access afterwards without stating a renewal term. |
| Structure | ||
| Meeting frequency | 200+ local meetups a year plus 13+ organised events annually; DC BLACK masterminds meet monthly | One five-business-day in-person sprint in San Francisco per cohort, then continuing online community activity |
| Peer forums | Online community and mobile app for all members; DC BLACK members are placed in facilitated mastermind groups of five to seven peers matched by track | Cohorts of 80 to 100 founders, more than half of them technical; there is no standing confidential forum group |
| Confidentiality | Not publicly disclosed beyond a published code of conduct | Not publicly disclosed |
| Time commitment | Not documented | Five business days in San Francisco for the sprint; no ongoing commitment is published |
| Organized as | Virtual, Event-focused, Forum-based | Cohort-based, Event-focused, Virtual |
| Confidential peer forums | Yes | Partial |
| Local chapters | Partial | No |
| Virtual membership | Yes | Partial |
| Online community | Yes | Yes |
| Member directory | Yes | Yes |
| Events | Yes | Yes |
| Programming | ||
| Educational programming | Partial | Yes |
| Leadership development | Partial | Partial |
| Retreats | Yes | No |
| Travel | Partial | No |
| Family programming | No | No |
| Spouse and partner programming | Not documented | No |
| Next-generation programming | No | No |
| Investment discussions | Partial | Yes |
| Investment opportunities | No | Partial |
| Philanthropic component | Not documented | No |
| Networking emphasis | High | High |
| Social emphasis | High | Medium |
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Last verified: not yet reviewed
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Sources
Drawn from the sources listed on each page: Dynamite Circle · On Deck