When raising pre-seed and seed funding, the amount of traction you need depends on the stage of your startup and investors' expectations, but generally, traction shows that you’re making progress toward product-market fit.

At the pre-seed stage, investors are primarily investing in your team and vision. They're looking for initial validation, such as a validated prototype, early customer feedback, or a small but growing user base, that supports your vision.

Investors typically expect more tangible traction for seed funding, including a working product, revenue, measurable user growth, or clear market demand. Focus on demonstrating momentum, whether through customer acquisition, partnerships, or product development and tailor your pitch to the level of progress you’ve made.

One way to look at this is to ask, "How much risk will the investor take?" The more risk they tolerate, the earlier they will invest with less traction. Your traction must be significantly higher if you're asking for millions and they're a later-stage investor. Your job as a founder is to de-risk the investment constantly.

For the founders that did raise, how much traction did you have? Share your thoughts.