A site for YC rejection stories

In plain words

This site collects stories and lessons from founders who have been rejected by Y Combinator. It features reflections on what applicants learned from their rejections and what they would do differently in future applications. The platform is designed for entrepreneurs who plan to reapply, offering insights from others' experiences with the YC application process.

written from the facts on this page · September 2026

• IW
  I wrote a guidebook on everything I know about applying to Y Combinator2012 · guidetoyc.com · ▲177
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  YC Rejects2018 · seedproof.com · ▲342

  A community of rejected YC companies

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  YC Rejection2023 · ▲392

  Share your YC application and get a YC rejection email

• 
  YC Library2023 · ycombinator.com · ▲810

  The new hub for YC's startup videos, essays, podcasts & more

• 
  Apply to YC (Y Combinator)2017 · ▲386

  Curated collection of resources for founders applying to YC.

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  rally2020 · welcomerally.com · ▲157

  A community of rejected YC founders

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  SimCity, but with Permits▲929

  A free city-building game in your browser. You are the mayor. You know what the city needs. Now get it past the zoning board, the neighbors, the appeals court and the next election.

  Life & fun · 2d ago · permit.petercai.com

• IV
  I've been paying for a rural Tanzanian's education for 10 years▲778

  Life & fun · 14d ago · tanzaniaeducationproject.org

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  Bigwords.page – Turn any screen into a sign. The URL is the app▲728

  Turn a phone, tablet or TV into a sign. Type a message and it fills the screen: welcome signs, timers, Wi-Fi passwords and more. No app, no account, free.

  Life & fun · 15d ago · bigwords.page

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  Guitoro, a virtual guitar you strum with your keyboard▲573

  Play a free virtual guitar online with your keyboard or by touch. Slow songs down and see every chord, string and strum. Acoustic, classic, electric and bass.

  Life & fun · 9d ago · guitoro.com

• 
  See *almost* any carriers phone settings▲432

  Carrier settings from iPhone, Pixel and Galaxy firmware, decoded and compared: APNs, VoLTE, 5G and Wi-Fi Calling per carrier, and what each build changed.

  Life & fun · 13d ago · carrierexplode.com

• 
  The whole Solar System and every tracked satellite, live in the browser▲407

  Life & fun · 23d ago · space.bl2.net

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  Tapflow 2.0▲1,125

  We built Tapflow for devs, designers, PMs, and tech folks who’ve been sitting on internal docs, templates, and systems — but never productized them. Upload a PDF, notes, or workshop deck, and Tapflow drafts a structured product (with chapters, teaser and pricing plans). It’s good for AI kits, onboarding guides, design systems, and frameworks. You can sell through Stripe, LemonSqueezy, or PayPal. Real-time collaboration is in early beta. No site builder, no LMS — clean design and just focused tools to ship. Fully bootstrapped and just launched on PH today →…

  Work · 2025 · tapflow.ai

• C9
  Clippy – 90s UI for local LLMs▲1,122

  Life & fun · 2025 · felixrieseberg.github.io

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  Appwrite Sites▲990

  Appwrite 2.0 brings a new engine, a rebuilt Console, five database types, an S3 API, an OAuth 2.1 server, and organization-level Domains and Firewall.

  Dev tools · 2025 · appwrite.io

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  AI Meeting Notes by Notion▲965

  Perfect meeting memory in Notion

  AI · 2025 · notion.com

• 
  Den▲948

  Multiplayer AI agent builder

  AI · 2025 · getden.io

• 
  Raycast for iOS▲870

  Powerful productivity on the go

  AI · 2025 · raycast.com