A VC Pitch Deck Checklist You Can Use Today
Last updated: February 2026
Use this to run the “90-second test,” tighten your story,
and fix the slides VCs actually judge.
Quick checklist summary:
Aim for 10–14 slides plus appendix
Your first 3 slides must answer: What is it, why now, why you
Every claim needs proof (data, customer quote, traction metric, pipeline)
Investors decide in 90 seconds whether to keep reading
If your deck can’t be understood without you talking, it’s not ready
The 90-Second Test
Open your deck and give yourself 90 seconds. After 90 seconds, you should be able to answer all five questions clearly:
What do you sell, and to whom?
What painful problem are you solving?
Why is this urgent now?
What proof do you have (traction or credible path)?
What’s the next step (the ask)?
If any answer is fuzzy, your deck will lose most investors before slide 4.
Slide-by-slide VC Pitch Deck Checklist
Title / One-Liner
Clear one-line description (not a slogan)
Target customer explicitly named
Credibility signal (ex: “ex-X, built Y” or “$Z ARR” if true)
Problem
Specific pain, specific customer
Measurable cost (time/money/risk)
Proof (quote, data point, observed behavior)
Solution
Simple explanation in plain language
What is “new/different” vs alternatives
A single screenshot/product visual (if relevant)
Why Now
Market shift, regulation, platform change, new tech, new behavior
“This was impossible/uneconomic before” (one sentence)
Market
One credible TAM method (not 3 inflated numbers)
Define your wedge segment clearly (ICP)
Bottom-up signal if possible (pricing × reachable accounts)
Product/Service
What it does + how it works at a high level
Demo flow / key features (3 max)
Differentiation is shown, not claimed
Traction
One chart/table with the most impressive metric
Pipeline/LOIs if pre-revenue (with numbers)
Retention/cohort signal if applicable
Logos only if you’re allowed to use them
Business model
Pricing + unit economics logic
Who pays and when
Why you can scale distribution
Go-to-market
1–2 channels only (the ones that actually work)
Sales cycle / CAC logic / proof of channel
Who owns the motion (founder-led, SDRs, partners)
Competition
Show true alternatives, including “do nothing”
Positioning matrix that makes sense (not arbitrary axes)
Why you win (1–3 reasons with evidence)
Team
Why this team can uniquely solve this
Relevant wins and domain expertise
Advisors only if meaningful and active
Financials
3-year high-level forecast (simple and defensible)
Key drivers listed (pricing, conversion, CAC, sales cycle)
Burn + runway assumptions
The Ask
Amount raising + what it funds (milestones)
Time window + target investor type
2–3 milestone bullets with dates
Optional: Appendix
More product detail, customer quotes, unit economics, security, etc.