Guild Valuation, Funding & Investors

Guild is valued at $4.4B as of June 2022.

See full Guild profile

Last Guild valuation

$4.4B

Series F · Jun 2022

Last Guild funding round

$265M

Series F · Jun 2022

Cumulative funding Guild raised

$643M

across 7 funding rounds

Key investors in Guild

  • Cowboy Ventures
  • Redpoint
  • Harrison Metal
  • Bessemer Venture Partners
  • General Catalyst
  • Salesforce Ventures

Guild Overview

About Guild

Guild is a Denver-headquartered education platform partnering with major U.S. employers to deliver upskilling programs for their workforce. It provides access to online courses, bootcamps, and associate degrees from partners including Coursera and Simplilearn, targeting career advancement in tech, healthcare, and business fields. Walmart, Disney, and Lowe's utilize Guild's services to support employee tuition assistance. The platform features AI-driven career coaching and progress tracking tools. Launched in 2015, Guild has expanded to serve over 2,000 organizations across North America.


Founded

2015

HQ

United StatesDenver, CO

Website

guild.com

Status

Privately held

Customer focus

B2B

Revenue model

Subscription

Valuation

$4.4B (Jun 2022)

Guild Valuation

Guild is currently valued at $4.4B, based on its Series F in June 2022.

The $265M round was led by Wellington Management.

Guild's valuation has grown 4.4x from $1B at its Series D in November 2019 to $4.4B in June 2022, across 3 priced rounds.

Guild valuation by funding round

Guild valuation by funding round
DateStageValuation
Jun 2022Series F$4.4B
Jun 2021Series E$3.8B
Nov 2019Series D$1B

Guild Funding History

Guild has raised a total of $643M across 7 funding rounds.

Guild's first fundraising round was a $2M seed round in September 2015. The most recent completed round was a $265M Series F in June 2022.

Guild funding rounds

Guild funding rounds
DateStageInvestorsRaisedValuationDeal Summary
Jun 2022Series FWellington Management (lead)$265M$4.4BGuild is an online education platform focused on upskilling frontline employees, serving large hourly wage employers like Chipotle, Lowe's, Target, Hilton, PepsiCo, Kohl's, and Tyson Foods. The company offers competency-based learning programs that allow learners to progress at their own pace by demonstrating subject matter competence rather than completing time-based coursework. Guild raised $175 million in a Series F funding round led by Wellington Management, establishing a $4.4 billion post-money valuation. Additional backers in the round included Oprah Winfrey, Bon Secours Mercy Health, Citi Impact Fund, Bessemer Venture Partners, General Catalyst, and Iconiq Capital. The fundraise reflected strong momentum in the upskilling sector, which has attracted billions in venture funding as demographic, workforce, and technological shifts favor employer-covered e-learning solutions. This Series F followed the company's $150 million Series E round approximately one year prior.
Jun 2021Series ENext Play Capital; Salesforce Ventures; General Catalyst; Redpoint; Emerson Collective; ICONIQ Capital; Bessemer Venture Partners; Citi Impact Fund; Red Hook Capital; D1 Capital Partners; GSV Ventures; Cowboy Ventures$150M$3.8BGuild Education, a Denver-based edtech platform founded in 2015, connects employees with employer-sponsored education and upskilling opportunities through its technology platform, learning marketplace, and coaching services. It partners with major employers like Walt Disney Company, Chipotle, Walmart, Discover, and Lowe’s, as well as universities such as Oregon State and eCornell, enabling debt-free career advancement for working adults. The company operates as a certified B Corporation, taking a cut of tuition revenue from these partnerships to support lifelong learning and workforce equity. In early June 2021, Guild raised $150 million in an oversubscribed Series E round from Bessemer Venture Partners, Cowboy Ventures, D1 Capital Partners, Emerson Collective, General Catalyst, GSV Ventures, Salesforce Ventures, ICONIQ Growth, Next Play Capital, Red Hook Capital, Redpoint Ventures, and others including Citi Impact Fund, valuing the company at $3.75 billion post-money. This brought total funding to $378.5 million. Proceeds funded doubling the product and engineering team from 937 employees toward 1,300 by year-end, expanding coaching, onboarding more universities/bootcamps in high-demand fields like cybersecurity and healthcare, and enhancing payments/tech platforms. Guild demonstrated strong pandemic resilience, growing employees from 450 in early 2020 and confirming revenue more than doubled since March 2020, though exact figures were not disclosed. Over 4 million Americans accessed Guild benefits via employers. The round built on prior financings, including a $157 million Series D at $1 billion valuation in 2019. CEO Rachel Carlson emphasized supporting upskilling amid post-COVID job market shifts.
Nov 2019Series DGeneral Catalyst (lead)$157M$1BGuild Education, a Denver-based B Corporation founded in 2015, operates an education benefits platform that connects Fortune 1000 company employees to higher education programs, including degrees, certifications, and career support services from partners like Southern New Hampshire University, University of Arizona, and Purdue University Global. The company partners with major employers such as Walmart and Chipotle to boost talent retention and upskilling, having served over 400,000 working adults by late 2019. On November 13, 2019, Guild closed a $157 million Series D funding round led by General Catalyst, with participation from Emerson Collective, Iconiq Capital, Lead Edge Capital, and existing investors including Workday Ventures, Salesforce Ventures, Next Play Capital, Silicon Valley Bank, Felicis Ventures, Bessemer Ventures, Redpoint Ventures, and Harrison Metal. This round more than doubled prior funding of $71.5 million, bringing total raised to over $228 million, and established a post-money valuation of $1 billion, marking Guild as edtech's newest unicorn and one of few female-led companies to reach that milestone that year. General Catalyst's chairman and managing director, Ken Chenault—former CEO of American Express—joined Guild's board. CEO Rachel Carlson noted the company was not yet profitable but had profitable months, reinvesting revenue into R&D and partnerships; proceeds will expand employer and university partnerships, grow the team, explore acquisitions, and enhance services like career mobility. Guild targets the 88 million Americans needing skill training amid economic shifts, positioning against rising employer tuition benefits trends.
Jul 2018Series CFelicis (lead); Salesforce Ventures; Vista Venture Partners; Redpoint; Bessemer Venture Partners; Workday Ventures; Silicon Valley Bank; Rethink Education; Cowboy Ventures; Harrison Metal; Rethink Impact$40M-Guild Education, a Denver-based education benefits platform founded in 2015 by Rachel Carlson and Brittany Stich, raised $40 million in its Series C funding round on July 25, 2018, led by Felicis Ventures. New investors included Salesforce Ventures, Workday Ventures, Rethink Impact & Education, and Silicon Valley Bank, while existing backers Bessemer Venture Partners, Redpoint Ventures, Harrison Metal, and Cowboy Ventures also participated. Felicis' Wesley Chan joined the board. The round brought total funding to nearly $71.5 million. The financing supports Guild's expansion within the Fortune 1000, enabling major employers like Walmart, Discover Financial Services, Lowe's, Taco Bell, and Lyft to offer education as a benefit to their workforces. Guild's platform connects 2.5 million working adults to classes, programs, and degrees from over 90 universities and learning providers, addressing the needs of 64 million US working adults seeking higher education credentials. The funds will scale operations, hire 40 new employees focused on product, engineering, data, and analytics, and build savings for long-term growth. Unlike typical fundraising, investors approached Guild with this opportunity, aligning with its vision for strategic partnerships. At the time, Guild had grown to 160 employees from 60 the prior year, emphasizing product development for its online platform that simplifies tuition reimbursement and turns education costs into ROI for HR leaders.
Sep 2017Series BBessemer Venture Partners (lead); Redpoint; Social Capital; Cowboy Ventures; Harrison Metal$21M-Guild Education, a Denver-based education benefits company founded by Rachel Carlson and Brittany Stich, raised $21 million in a Series B financing round on September 6, 2017, led by Bessemer Venture Partners, with participation from Redpoint Ventures, Harrison Metal, and Cowboy Ventures. This brought total funding to $31.5 million. The company partners with employers such as Chipotle, DaVita, Kentucky Fried Chicken, and Denver Public Schools to transform corporate tuition assistance programs, which see over $22 billion in annual employer investments, into measurable 'Education as a Benefit' for frontline workers seeking college access. Guild's platform helps working adults, including 32 million U.S. college dropouts balancing work and family, complete degrees and advance careers. The funding supports team growth to 58 employees in Denver, expansion of technology products for employees and employers, and onboarding new partners. Bessemer partner Byron Deeter joined the board, highlighting Guild's role in pioneering education benefits amid evolving employer-employee relationships. Later rounds included a $150 million Series E in 2021 at $3.75 billion valuation and a $175 million Series F in 2022 at $4.4 billion, with investors like General Catalyst and ICONIQ, but these post-date the 2017 event.
Sep 2016Series ARedpoint (lead); 1776 Ventures; Ulu Ventures; Monitor Ventures; Social Capital; Cowboy Ventures; Harrison Metal$9M-Guild Education raised $8.5 million in a Series A funding round on September 16, 2016, led by Redpoint with participation from Social Capital and seed investors Harrison Metal and Cowboy Ventures. The Denver-based company, founded in 2015 by Rachel Carlson and Brittany Stich, provides employer-sponsored education benefits, partnering with universities to offer courses to employees. Guild's 38-person team at the time focused on a model where revenue from employee course enrollments goes directly to Guild, and universities pay Guild for cost savings on admissions marketing.
Sep 2015SeedHarrison Metal (lead); 1776 Ventures; Matt Glickman; Ulu Ventures; Cowboy Ventures; Brigette Lau; Fern Mandelbaum$2M--

Who has invested in Guild?

27 investors have backed Guild across its funding rounds, including Cowboy Ventures, Redpoint, Harrison Metal, Bessemer Venture Partners, General Catalyst and Salesforce Ventures.

Lead investors include Wellington Management, General Catalyst, Felicis, Bessemer Venture Partners, Redpoint and 1 other investor.


Guild Investors

Investors in Guild by funding rounds participated
InvestorHQRoundsRoleFirst check
Cowboy VenturesUnited StatesSan Francisco, CA5ParticipantSep 2015
RedpointUnited StatesSan Francisco, CA4LeadSep 2016
Harrison MetalUnited StatesSan Francisco, CA4LeadSep 2015
Bessemer Venture PartnersUnited StatesSan Francisco, CA3LeadSep 2017
Salesforce VenturesUnited StatesSan Francisco, CA2ParticipantJul 2018
General CatalystUnited StatesSan Francisco, CA2LeadNov 2019
1776 VenturesUnited StatesUnited States2ParticipantSep 2015
Ulu VenturesUnited StatesSan Francisco, CA2ParticipantSep 2015
Social CapitalUnited StatesSan Francisco, CA2ParticipantSep 2016
Next Play CapitalUnited StatesSan Francisco, CA1ParticipantJun 2021
Vista Venture PartnersUnited StatesSan Francisco, CA1ParticipantJul 2018
Emerson CollectiveUnited StatesSan Francisco, CA1ParticipantJun 2021
Matt GlickmanSpainSpain1ParticipantSep 2015

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Acquisitions by Guild

Guild has acquired 2 companies to date.

Last acquisition by Guild was on October 9th 2024. Guild acquired Nomadic Learning for undisclosed valuation.


Latest Acquisitions by Guild

Nomadic Learning
Entangled Group
Description
Nomadic Learning provides mobile-first capability academies with micro-learning modules on leadership, sales, and professional skills for corporate teams.
Entangled Group is a San Francisco-headquartered venture studio founded in 2015 that incubates and invests in education technology startups. It provides strategy consulting, sales acceleration, nonprofit management, and revenue services to the edtech ecosystem, supporting over 20 companies addressing K-12, higher education, and workforce training.
HQ CountryUnited StatesUnited States
HQ City
Baltimore, MD
San Francisco, CA
Deal Date9 Oct 202419 May 2020
Valuationundisclosed$150M
EV/Revenue
EV/EBITDA

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Guild Competitors

Guild competitors include listed companies like Graham Holdings, Stride and East Buy, and private ones like Multiverse, GoStudent and Eruditus Executive Education.

Public and private companies comparable to Guild
CompanyHQStatusRevenueEBITDAValuationRevenue Multiple
MultiverseUnited KingdomLondonPrivate$13M-$2.1B-
Graham HoldingsUnited StatesUnited StatesPublicly listed$4.9B$682M$4.8B1.0x
GoStudentAustriaViennaPrivate$107M$16M$3.4B-
StrideUnited StatesUnited StatesPublicly listed$2.5B$580M$3.4B1.2x
East BuyChinaChinaPublicly listed$850M$98M$3.4B2.8x
Eruditus Executive EducationIndiaMumbaiPrivate$399M-$3.1B7.8x

Guild Public Comps

Guild is still privately-owned, but its public comps include Covista, Graham Holdings, Grand Canyon Education, Laureate Education, Fibra Educa, Stride, East Buy, Bright Horizons Family, COL Global and McGraw Hill.

Last FYEV/RevenueEV/EBITDA
RevenueEBITDALast FYLTM2027ELast FYLTM2027E
Covista$2B$462M2.5x2.4x10.4x9.1x
Graham Holdings$4.9B$682M1.0x1.0x7.3x-
Grand Canyon Education$1.1B$306M3.4x3.3x12.4x10.0x
Laureate Education$1.7B$515M3.2x3.0x10.7x9.6x
Fibra Educa$269M-15.2x15.2x--
Stride$2.5B$580M1.2x1.2x5.1x4.8x
East Buy$850M$98M3.0x2.8x26.3x22.4x
Bright Horizons Family$2.9B$408M1.8x1.7x12.6x10.2x

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Common questions about Guild

When was Guild founded?Guild was founded in 2015.
Where is Guild headquartered?Guild is headquartered in Denver, CO, United States.
Is Guild publicly listed?No, Guild is a private, VC-backed company.
What is Guild's valuation?Guild was last valued at $4.4B in its Series F in June 2022.
How much funding has Guild raised?Guild has raised $643M across 7 funding rounds.
What was Guild's last funding round?Guild's last funding round was a $265M Series F in June 2022, led by Wellington Management.
Who are Guild's investors?Guild's investors include Cowboy Ventures, Redpoint, Harrison Metal, Bessemer Venture Partners, Salesforce Ventures, General Catalyst, 1776 Ventures, Ulu Ventures, Social Capital, Next Play Capital and 17 others.
Which companies are comparable to Guild?Companies comparable to Guild include Multiverse, Graham Holdings, GoStudent, Stride, East Buy and Eruditus Executive Education.
How many companies has Guild acquired?Guild has acquired 2 companies, including Nomadic Learning and Entangled Group.
What was the largest acquisition by Guild?The $150M acquisition of Entangled Group in May 2020 is the largest acquisition Guild has made to date.

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