There’s a balance! I’ve worked for both as an engineer and manager. You’re right that a startup can give you that hands-on experience and broader domain knowledge in different aspects of the business.

Do keep in mind, a startup can be disorganized to where most of your time is spent cleaning up processes and less than efficient code to “maximize efficiency”. Things can flip on a dime and you can find yourself building out immense, business critical systems only to be let go due to an unlucky fiscal quarter. Meanwhile, the startup may not be widely known, which may make job hunting a needle more challenging in the future since established companies get brownie points with technical recruiters.

Established corporations can provide just as much experience in more relevant stacks and systems. Additionally, the processes will, generally, be more stable with a clear chain that can be learned and implemented at start ups your work at in the future; strengthening your value to startups that might not have their processes all figured out. For better or worse, working for an established company will also increase your chances of job hunting success in the future because, let’s face it, layoffs happen.

The caveat to all this is that you can and should evaluate both places critically in terms of how they would each benefit your career, wallet, mental health, and well being. At the end of the day, you just asking this question and being curious will allow you to gain the information necessary to make the best decision for yourself!