11 Best Venture Capital Books
We analyzed 5+ expert sources, curated book lists, and recommendations from successful people to find the 11 best venture capital books according to the internet — not just one person's opinion. Each book on this list was mentioned by at least two independent sources, and the ranking is based on how frequently each title appears across all sources studied. This consensus-based approach ensures you get recommendations backed by multiple experts, not a single reviewer's bias.
Goal: Find the best Venture Capital books according to the internet (not just one person's opinion).
Method:
- Search for "best venture capital books" and study the top 5+ pages.
- Add only the books mentioned 2+ times.
- Rank the results neatly here.
11 Best Venture Capital Books
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Venture Deals
Be Smarter Than Your Lawyer and Venture Capitalist
Also recommended by
1 person
Sophia Amoruso recommended this bookSophia Amoruso
"When I went to raise venture capital [I read this book]. And I was like, you know, I've raised $70 million so I guess I figured that out." - Sophia Amoruso
Sophia Amoruso's recommendation of this book
The Entrepreneurial Bible to Venture Capital
Inside Secrets From the Leaders in the Startup Game
Zero to One
Notes on Startups, or How to Build the Future
Also recommended by
22 people
Andrew Ng recommended this bookAndrew Ng
"Gives an overview of entrepreneurship and innovation." - Andrew Ng
Andrew Ng's recommendation of this book
Ben Horowitz recommended this bookBen Horowitz
"I learned a lot reading it." - Ben Horowitz
Ben Horowitz's recommendation of this book
Bryan Johnson recommended this bookBryan Johnson
"A must read." - Bryan Johnson
Bryan Johnson's recommendation of this book
Chris Dixon recommended this bookChris Dixon
Chris Dixon recommended this book on Twitter.
Chris Dixon's recommendation of this book
Dustin Moskovitz recommended this bookDustin Moskovitz
Dustin Moskovitz recommended this book during a Stanford lecture in 2014.
Dustin Moskovitz's recommendation of this book
Elon Musk recommended this bookElon Musk
"[This author] has built multiple breakthrough companies, and [this book] shows how." - Elon Musk
Elon Musk's recommendation of this book +16
More recommendations
- Eric Weinstein
"If you really understand something that the rest of the world is confused about, and it’s an important truth, [this book] says here are all the ways you might want to make that work." - Eric Weinstein
- Keith Rabois
Keith Rabois recommended this book on a Medium blog post.
- Kishore Biyani
"Captures some interesting perspectives and insights on the way the world and the business organisations are changing and challenging the status quo." - Kishore Biyani
- Lee Stranahan
"A great business book." - Lee Stranahan
- Luis von Ahn
"I love [this book]." - Luis von Ahn
- Marc Andreessen
"The first book any working or aspiring entrepreneur must read—period." - Marc Andreessen
- Mark Zuckerberg
"This book delivers completely new and refreshing ideas on how to create value in the world." - Mark Zuckerberg
- Matt Mullenweg
"[This book] was excellent." - Matt Mullenweg
- Max Levchin
One of Max Levchin's answers to "what's your favourite business book you'd advise to young entrepreneurs?"
- Nassim Taleb
"When a risk taker writes a book, read it. In the case of [this author], read it twice. Or, to be safe, three times. This is a classic." - Nassim Taleb
- Sam Altman
This book was on Sam Altman's bookshelf.
- Patrick O'Shaughnessy
"An obvious suggestion, because [this book] is the talk of the town and sits at the top of bestseller lists everywhere." - Patrick O'Shaughnessy
- Tom Bilyeu
Tom Bilyeu recommended this book on his website.
- Ryan Petersen
"[Part of] my biz book canon." - Ryan Petersen
- Brian Dean
"Business classic that lives up to the hype. Completely reframes what a startup should do with their product and positioning." - Brian Dean
- Rupert Murdoch
"Brilliant, often provocative." - Rupert Murdoch
- Eric Weinstein
Secrets of Sand Hill Road
Venture Capital and How to Get It
Also recommended by
5 people
Eric Schmidt recommended this bookEric Schmidt
"As someone who’s helped a small company become a huge, valuable company, I know firsthand the power of the startup ecosystem and entrepreneurship. This book is the definitive book on navigating VC as part of that." - Eric Schmidt
Eric Schmidt's recommendation of this book
Elad Gil recommended this bookElad Gil
"[This book] is great." - Elad Gil
Elad Gil's recommendation of this book
Ryan Hoover recommended this bookRyan Hoover
Ryan Hoover mentioned this book on Twitter.
Ryan Hoover's recommendation of this book
Sam Altman recommended this bookSam Altman
"A valuable resource for any founder who wants to work with VCs." - Sam Altman
Sam Altman's recommendation of this book
Michael Mauboussin recommended this bookMichael Mauboussin
"Great!" - Michael Mauboussin
Michael Mauboussin's recommendation of this book
Mastering the VC Game
A Venture Capital Insider Reveals How to Get from Start-up to IPO on Your Terms
The Business of Venture Capital
The Art of Raising a Fund, Structuring Investments, Portfolio Management, and Exits
The Hard Thing About Hard Things
Building a Business When There Are No Easy Answers
Also recommended by
22 people
Peter Thiel recommended this bookPeter Thiel
"[The author] has written the first true guide for protecting a startup from self-sabotage." - Peter Thiel
Peter Thiel's recommendation of this book
Mark Zuckerberg recommended this bookMark Zuckerberg
"For anyone insterested in building, growing, or leading a great company, this book is an incredibly valuable resource." - Mark Zuckerberg
Mark Zuckerberg's recommendation of this book
Peter Attia recommended this bookPeter Attia
One of Peter Attia's answers to "any books you feel would make your reading list?"
Peter Attia's recommendation of this book
Marc Andreessen recommended this bookMarc Andreessen
"Let’s just say, we started out relationship with vigorous disagreement, and we’ve continued that to this day." - Marc Andreessen
Marc Andreessen's recommendation of this book
Larry Page recommended this bookLarry Page
"An inspiring story of a business rebirth through sheer willpower." - Larry Page
Larry Page's recommendation of this book
Matt Mullenweg recommended this bookMatt Mullenweg
"Entertaining more than anything. I read [this book], I was like: I would never work for this guy. But entertaining and some good lessons." - Matt Mullenweg
Matt Mullenweg's recommendation of this book +16
More recommendations
- Andrew Ng
"A bit dark but it does cover a lot of useful territory on what building an organization is like." - Andrew Ng
- Drew Houston
"One of the great things that [the author] wrote in [this book] is the hardest part of being a CEO is managing your psychology." - Drew Houston
- Keith Rabois
"Reflects 2000-2003." - Keith Rabois
- Dustin Moskovitz
Dustin Moskovitz recommended this book during a Stanford lecture in 2014.
- Max Levchin
One of Max Levchin's answers to "what's your favourite business book you'd advise to young entrepreneurs?"
- Luis von Ahn
"I like this one, but it’s not for very new entrepreneurs." - Luis von Ahn
- Kathryn Minshew
Most Recommended Books reached out to Kathryn Minshew directly.
- Andrew Wilkinson
"One of the best business books I've picked up in years." - Andrew Wilkinson
- Tim Ferriss
"A great book." - Tim Ferriss
- Blake Scholl
"Good." - Blake Scholl
- Chris Dixon
Chris Dixon recommended this book on Twitter.
- Fred Wilson
"Chapter five in [this book] is possibly the best thing I've read about leading a tech company." - Fred Wilson
- Raoul Pal
"By far, the best, most brutally honest and incredibly useful book about the realities of starting and running a company." - Raoul Pal
- Jodie Cook
"Reframes your mind: hard doesn’t mean bad. Seeking the easy route is a trap." - Jodie Cook
- Michael Dell
"Candidly talks about the very real thrills and perils of starting a business."- Michael Dell
- Marty Cagan
"Trust me: if you're a leader in tech, the best thing you can do in 2014 for your company is to read [this book]." - Marty Cagan
- Andrew Ng
eBoys
The First Inside Account of Venture Capitalists at Work
Also recommended by
1 person
Bill Gurley recommended this bookBill Gurley
"[The author] got sucked into writing more of a Hollywood gossip story." - Bill Gurley
Bill Gurley's recommendation of this book
Raising Venture Capital for the Serious Entrepreneur
VC
An American History
Venture Capital For Dummies
Sources
- 1
The Top 9 Books on Venture Capital | by Sergio Marrero | Rebel One — RBL1 | Medium
medium.com
- 2
Best books on venture capital
biggerinvesting.com
- 3
Concept Ventures | The Home of UK Pre-Seed
rlc.ventures
- 4
Final Draft: Seven books we recommend for venture capital
blog.dormroomfund.com
- 5
Venture Capital Books - 10 Best VC Investing Books [2023]
wallstreetmojo.com
Edited by
Software engineer whose passion for tracking book recommendations from podcasts inspired the creation of MRB.
Lead investor at 3one4 Capital whose startup expertise and love for books helped shaped MRB and its growth.





















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