The Lean Startup
The Lean Startup is a methodology brand and educational platform built around Eric Ries' New York Times bestseller book, teaching entrepreneurs and enterprise innovation teams validated learning, Build-Measure-Learn loops, MVPs, and innovation accounting through books, online courses, and a global meetup community.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2010
- HeadquartersSan Francisco, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B and B2C
- OfferingServices
What The Lean Startup does
The Lean Startup is a methodology brand and educational platform built around Eric Ries' eponymous New York Times bestseller book, published by Crown Business. The underlying technology is a codified entrepreneurship framework centered on five core principles — Entrepreneurs are Everywhere, Entrepreneurship is Management, Validated Learning, Innovation Accounting, and Build-Measure-Learn — operationalized through Minimum Viable Products, pivot/persevere decision rules, and the Five Whys investigative method. The platform serves two primary customer segments: individual entrepreneurs and startup founders seeking a systematic approach to building products under uncertainty, and enterprise innovation teams seeking to apply startup methodology inside large organizations (the latter served via the Lean Startup Co. partnership). The business model combines four revenue streams: one-time book sales through global retail and eBook channels (Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Random House/Crown Business, Indie Bound, iBookstore), a recurring 6-lesson online course with exclusive Eric Ries content delivered via leanstartup.co, royalties from the curated Lean Series of practitioner-authored books distributed via O'Reilly, and referral economics into Lean Startup Co.'s enterprise training, coaching, and consulting engagements. Distribution is primarily retail-led for the book, direct-to-consumer for the course, and field sales for enterprise, supplemented by a global community-led motion through 94 meetup groups across 17 countries and the Lean Startup Circle online community of practice.
The company operates with 1–10 employees from San Francisco, was founded in 2010 with the lean startup methodology itself dating to Ries' work at IMVU (founded 2004), and has no disclosed institutional funding, parent company, or acquisition activity. Eric Ries retains authorship and IP control; the lean startup methodology is documented publicly on theleanstartup.com alongside principles pages, case studies (Dropbox, Wealthfront, Grockit, IMVU, Votizen, Aardvark), a volunteer-maintained wiki, and a bi-weekly newsletter. Press coverage spans The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Harvard Business Review, Fast Company, TechCrunch, Wired, Inc., CNBC, NPR, Reuters, Financial Times, and MSNBC, and endorsements come from Marc Andreessen, Tim O'Reilly, Dustin Moskovitz, Mitchel Kapor, and Scott Case, among others.
The Lean Startup firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- The Lean Startup
- Legal name
- The Lean Startup
- Website
- https://theleanstartup.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2010
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- The Lean Startup is a methodology brand and educational platform built around Eric Ries' New York Times bestseller book, teaching entrepreneurs and enterprise innovation teams validated learning, Build-Measure-Learn loops, MVPs, and innovation accounting through books, online courses, and a global meetup community.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
The Lean Startup industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Business and Entrepreneurship Education
- NAICS
- Educational Support Services (61171), Other Scientific and Technical Consulting Services (54169)
- SIC
- Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Entrepreneurship Foundations & Startup Basics (EDAMAHAA)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Lean Management & Continuous Improvement (Kaizen) (EDABAKAA)
Keywords
Where The Lean Startup is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- San Francisco
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
The Lean Startup business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B and B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Technology or R&D, Others
Revenue model
- Book Sales: The Lean Startup book (New York Times bestseller) published by Crown Business generates revenue through retail sales via Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Indie Bound, Powell Books, Borders, and Random House. Also available as eBook through Kindle, Nook, and iBookstore. International editions available through Amazon.ca, Amazon.co.uk, RandomHouse.ca, and Chapters.Indigo.ca.
- Online Course: The Lean Startup Online Course with Eric Ries is a 6-lesson introductory course for individuals and enterprise teams, available through leanstartup.co. Features exclusive content from the author for experiencing and executing rapid experimentation and validated learning.
- Lean Series Books: A curated collection of books written by leading practitioners in the field, covering Lean Startup implementation details. Titles include Lean Analytics, Running Lean, Lean UX, UX for Lean Startups, and Lean Enterprise. Available through O'Reilly and major retailers.
- Enterprise Training and Consulting: Lean Startup Co. provides training, coaching, and consulting services to large organizations seeking Lean Startup implementation. Helps organizations build new products and services faster, minimize risk, and create a framework for innovation.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | The Lean Startup Book - Standard retail pricing through major booksellers |
| Subscription | Monthly | Online Course - 6 lessons with exclusive Eric Ries content |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels7 records
Marketing channels8 records
The Lean Startup product offering
Product offeringCore offering
The Lean Startup is a methodology movement and content brand centered on Eric Ries's Lean Startup framework for entrepreneurship. The company sells a New York Times bestselling book, a six-lesson online course featuring exclusive content from the author, and a curated Lean Series book collection, while directing enterprise training, coaching, and consulting engagements to its partner Lean Startup Co.
Product overview
The Lean Startup is primarily a methodology and educational platform centered around Eric Ries' book, which teaches entrepreneurs and organizations how to build successful products through rapid experimentation and validated learning. The core offering is The Lean Startup Book, supplemented by an Online Course (6 lessons) and The Lean Series of curated books. The company also connects users to Lean Startup Co. for training, coaching, and consulting services. The platform provides free resources including case studies, meetup listings, and a wiki community.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- The Lean Startup Book The foundational book by Eric Ries, published by Crown Business, introducing the Lean Startup methodology for entrepreneurs. It teaches continuous innovation, validated learning, and the Build-Measure-Learn feedback loop for creating successful businesses through rapid experimentation.
- The Lean Startup Online Course A six-lesson online course featuring exclusive content from author Eric Ries, designed for individuals and enterprise teams to experience and execute rapid experimentation and validated learning for new entrepreneurial ideas.
- The Lean Series A curated collection of implementation-level books on Lean Startup topics written by leading practitioners, including Lean Analytics, Running Lean, Lean UX, UX for Lean Startups, and Lean Enterprise, distributed through O'Reilly and major retailers.
- Enterprise Training, Coaching, and Consulting (via Lean Startup Co.) Training, coaching, and consulting services delivered through Lean Startup Co. (leanstartup.co) to large organizations seeking to build new products and services faster, minimize risk, and create a framework for innovation using the Lean Startup methodology.
Quantifiable outcome
- Dropbox grew from 100,000 to 4,000,000 registered users in 15 months using Lean Startup principles
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use The Lean Startup
Customer profileNamed customers6 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
The Lean Startup technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature5 records
The Lean Startup partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- Lean Startup Co.coreLean Startup Co. is the official training, coaching, and consulting partner for The Lean Startup methodology. They help organizations build new products and services faster, minimize risk, and create a framework for innovation. The Lean Startup website directs enterprise inquiries to leanstartup.co for engagement.
Scale indicators4 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
The Lean Startup competitors and assessment
Company assessmentMarket position
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
The Lean Startup social profiles
Digital presenceThe Lean Startup financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
The Lean Startup leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
The Lean Startup funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
The Lean Startup M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about The Lean Startup
What does The Lean Startup do?
The Lean Startup is a methodology movement and content brand centered on Eric Ries's Lean Startup framework for entrepreneurship. The company sells a New York Times bestselling book, a six-lesson online course featuring exclusive content from the author, and a curated Lean Series book collection, while directing enterprise training, coaching, and consulting engagements to its partner Lean Startup Co.
Is The Lean Startup a public or private company?
The Lean Startup is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was The Lean Startup founded?
The Lean Startup was founded in 2010. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is The Lean Startup based?
The Lean Startup is headquartered in San Francisco, United States, in the North America region.
How does The Lean Startup make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Book Sales are the primary driver. The others are online Course, lean Series Books and enterprise Training and Consulting.
Does The Lean Startup have an API?
No public API is recorded for The Lean Startup.
What industry is The Lean Startup in?
The Lean Startup's product category is Business and Entrepreneurship Education. Its primary akta.pro industry code is EDAMAHAA, Entrepreneurship Foundations & Startup Basics, with a secondary code of EDABAKAA, Lean Management & Continuous Improvement (Kaizen). Its NAICS code is 61171 and its SIC code is 8742.