Ask HN: When should you start a start-up?

Seriously, you should start your ideally after you've done market research and determined that there is a definitive need for your service and/or product.

Too many start-ups don't do the research and totally just go straight to development. Mine included. Ie. http://www.plentyoftweeps.com

In anycase another startup I had I waited 5 years, craigslist.org had been operating that whole time and basically dominated in the markets where they had that 5 year run time, so I had to squeek by and penetrate markets where craigslist.org wasn't.

Anyway start ASAP with the market research. Ask people on buses, at restaurants, in planes, family and friends if they would use your service/product.

If you see a need, then do it, but do it cheap so you can fail without causing any long term damage to your finances. Most likely you'll fail (most companies do after all) so doing it cheap and failing fast are both useful and pragmatic. If you do manage to succeed then bravo. If you don't succeed but you enjoyed it then do it again when you see the next need. Wash, rinse, repeat. If you didn't enjoy it (or if you're looking to gain wisdom) then change paths and go work with or for someone else for a while. Pay attention to their successes and mistakes, be actively involved in their business, and then start your own again.

One bit of advice. Don't go into business with friends you can't live with losing. Best advice. Don't go into business with friends. I created a business with a bunch from friends from school and we did well. So well that we had more customers than we could handle. End result: everyone quit but me. :( . If I could do it over I would have waited until I had the cash to hire help and quit my day job. I lost a lot of "good" friends over money and walked away with a huge loss when I couldn't deliver by myself.

I second what boonez123 and aeden said, that was indeed wise advise.

In addition, I would say, as soon as you see a need (but, validated through market research, formal or informal) go after it. There are lots of intelligent people thinking out there, who are as capable as seeing market needs as you or me or the next person. The only thing that matters in these days of open source and low cost startups is execution - who comes first to the market with the better product.

A need that is not met can be a current $0 dollar idea but if developed well can be a future million dollar idea. If you hit on a million dollar idea when you are poor, thats how you would get rich!

Before/during/after college? - 'Now' would be best.

When you see a need that you feel like you can monetize, and also think you have the time and/or love for the project to be able to launch it.

I feel like I've missed the target on the second one way more then the first. One of my first projects launched well and had some good stable income (about $1500/month). After that I decided to think big, and now I have a few projects that are just too big for me to do in my spare time. I think some thought should be put into how long it will take you to get to the minimal viable product.

You should start a start-up when your idea is so strong, that you are willing to sacrifice it's monetization for it's success.

pg wrote this essay some time ago: http://www.paulgraham.com/start.html

He discusses the elements you need to create a successful startup. To answer your question of "when" to start a startup, it may be worth considering these elements. When you have them (or 2 out of 3 of them since the third element is to spend as little money as possible, and you can't really do that until you're in it) it may be time.

Another relevant pg essay: http://www.paulgraham.com/notnot.html

Here he discusses some of the dimensions you include in your question (age, wealth, in/out of college) and analyses their impact on one's decision to start (or not start) a startup.

When you see a need. The rest is just noise.

When you feel, you want to work for yourself.