Promissory fiat 

 Probably depends on the startup 😉 

 Always talking in fiat terms... there is a "big" if in that bet, for me it is a scam, the chance that "you" survive until reach the going public phase is low... and if you try to op out before, there are no buyers. 

 Not a scam but most likely worth nothing. 

 If part of your comp is a unilaterally dilutable share which is likely worth nothing, I mean, kinda scammy, right? 

 Any form pf compensation plan that is even remotely complicated is scammy. 

 Most of them are risky, but would not use the word scam.

Some might be though, but not all. 

 I'd disagree--I'd ALWAYS want options when I'm working in a startup.

Then you (and everyone else working there) has some skin in the game 😃  and if you (and by extension the company) become successful, then the payoff can be tremendous.

I'd go one step further--I'd probably NOT work for a startup if they DID NOT offer options... 

 Depends, but they can dilute the crap out of them right up to the x-date in order to make sure the founders, angels and VCs get their cut before any employee sees a dime. 

 Where is the average startup in 5 years? 

 Depends on the governance of the company and how much you trust the Board. 

 Not scams. Some maybe. But broadly would say risk/reward balance at low probability of success, but more similar to lottery tickets than scams 

 Better odds than a lotto ticket, but in many situations they will be worthless. 

Beyond founder options, these (options) should be viewed as a longer term incentive on top of decent compensation. 

 Long answer.

Startups are racing against a clocking of burning capital. At the beginning, they are all moving to zero (run out of cash).

The goal is to hit profitability, sell, or lock in further funding before hitting zero.

Labor is a significant cost, especially for startups.

Equity options are meant to reduce labor cost and give a startup a longer runway before hitting zero.

Even if one can trust the leaders of a company to not rug everyone, one must also trust that they are competent, properly allocating capital, and driving development in the right direction. Many startups fail, not because of malicious activity, but because of ignorance and poor decisions.

Even if the startup us successful, as you mentioned earlier, there is a potential that a vast amount of dilution takes place.

Again, it might not be malicious. Maybe funds were needed to get through thr next round of development before profitability could be achieved.

But the risk is present.

Then, on top of all that, you have the risk that leadership is greedy and will do anything they can to maximize their returns or exit, without regard to those who worked diligently to make it a success.

Historically, the vast majority of startups fail.

So its reasonable to assume that the vast majority of equity options are worthless.
 

 They’re very effective at aligning incentives to focus on the long-term value of a startup. Milestone-based compensation could be another option, though. 

 They are very very trusted though; you’re at the mercy of the founders not diluting you to zero afaik 

 Very true. You can get Zuckerberg’d at any moment depending on the board or company structure. 

 100% scam. 

 Just a lottery ticket and should never be given weight when considering your compensation.