A term sheet is a one-page summary of the key terms of a deal, written before the long-form contract. It's the document that lets both sides — investor and founder, buyer and seller, licensor and licensee — agree on the headline economics before paying an attorney to draft the definitive agreement. Most term sheets are not legally binding (the language says so explicitly), but the deal that is signed in the term sheet is almost always the deal that closes in the long-form contract.
The three templates in this category cover the main flavors: equity-based term sheets for startup investments, Series A term sheets for institutional venture rounds, and venture capital term sheets for deals involving VC funds with their standard structure. Each captures the essential fields — valuation, investment amount, liquidation preference, board composition, protective provisions — and leaves the long-form drafting to counsel.
Use a term sheet whenever the deal is large enough that you would not want a verbal handshake to be the only record. Even for angel checks under $100,000, a one-page term sheet forces both sides to discuss and document the key numbers before the money moves. The fillable templates below are designed to be printed or sent as PDF, signed in DocuSign or similar, and used as the basis for the final equity purchase agreement or SAFE.