The first engineer is not a cost line, they are a co-author of the product. Hire wrong and you inherit months of code you cannot maintain. Hire right and you buy years of leverage.
Bootstrapped founders cannot outbid funded competitors on salary, so they compete on the things money cannot buy: ownership, autonomy, and a problem worth solving.
The best early engineers are not chasing the highest number. They want to build something end to end without a committee in the way.
Equity, Honestly Explained
Be specific about equity and what it could be worth. Vague promises repel exactly the people you want.
Write the offer as if the recipient is smart, because they are.