Comparison · 19 material differences
Front Row Dads 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
Paid mastermind
Verified September 2026 Front Row Dads
Fathers who own or run businesses and want to organise their working life around family rather than the reverse.
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
- Minimum capital raised: Front Row Dads: No published minimum capital raised; On Deck: Must not have raised beyond pre-seed.
- Geographic restriction: Front Row Dads: 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: Front Row Dads: $2,497 a year; On Deck: $10,000 a year.
Side by side
| Front Row Dads | On Deck | |
|---|---|---|
| Profile | ||
| Type | Paid mastermind | Invitation-only community |
| Founded | 2016 (Founded in 2016 by Jon Vroman, who had earlier founded the Front Row Foundation in 2005. The frontrowdads.com About page returned HTTP 403 to automated fetching on 2026-09-06; the year was read from search results quoting that page.) | 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 | Austin, United States | San Francisco, United States |
| Geographic footprint | Primarily virtual, with in-person retreats and an annual FRD Live event in Austin, Texas; the organization describes members in multiple countries. | 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 | Could not be independently verified. Search results quoting the organization's About page describe "over 300 members in 10 countries", while an earlier account cites 230 members in 12 countries; the page returned HTTP 403 to direct fetching on 2026-09-06. | 3,000as of September 2026 |
| Chapters | No chapters; members are placed in small accountability groups called "Bands". | No chapters; the programme runs as numbered cohorts from a single San Francisco base. |
| Primary audience | Fathers who own or run businesses and want to organise their working life around family rather than the reverse. | 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 entrepreneurial fathers. The organization's framing is "family men with businesses, not businessmen with families"; it publishes no revenue, net worth or company-size test. | 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 | ||
| 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 | Core membership is bought directly at the published monthly or annual rate. The VIP tier requires an application and at least three months of Core membership before applying. The organization states there is no trial period. | 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 | Not publicly disclosed for Core, which is open at the published price. VIP requires an application; no acceptance rate is published. One third-party summary states the Brotherhood is closed to new members, which the live membership page does not corroborate. | Not publicly disclosed. Cohort size is published at 80 to 100 people, but no application volume or acceptance rate is given. |
| Cost | ||
| Annual dues | $2,497 a yearCore membership, annual rate, described on the page as saving 15 per cent against monthly.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 ↗ |
| Monthly dues | $247 a monthCore membership, monthly rate.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. |
| Programme fee | Core pricing is published; the VIP tier price is not. | $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. Members receive preferred access and discounted admission to FRD Live in Austin; no ticket price is published.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 | Monthly or annual; no trial period | Admission is to a single cohort; the site describes year-round community access afterwards without stating a renewal term. |
| Structure | ||
| Meeting frequency | Monthly deep dive calls and Band meetings, quarterly online summits, VIP retreats in spring and autumn, plus the annual FRD Live event | One five-business-day in-person sprint in San Francisco per cohort, then continuing online community activity |
| Peer forums | Small accountability groups called "Bands", supported by a private members' community and, for VIP members, a separate private thread | Cohorts of 80 to 100 founders, more than half of them technical; there is no standing confidential forum group |
| Confidentiality | Not publicly disclosed | Not publicly disclosed |
| Time commitment | Third-party summaries citing the organization describe an expectation of roughly 3-4 hours a month; not confirmed on a page that could be fetched directly. | 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 | No | No |
| Virtual membership | Yes | Partial |
| Online community | Yes | Yes |
| Member directory | Yes | Yes |
| Events | Yes | Yes |
| Programming | ||
| Educational programming | Yes | Yes |
| Leadership development | Yes | Partial |
| Retreats | Yes | No |
| Travel | Partial | No |
| Family programming | Yes | No |
| Spouse and partner programming | Yes | No |
| Next-generation programming | Partial | No |
| Investment discussions | Partial | Yes |
| Investment opportunities | No | Partial |
| Philanthropic component | Partial | No |
| Networking emphasis | Medium | High |
| Social emphasis | High | Medium |
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Sources
Drawn from the sources listed on each page: Front Row Dads · On Deck