Strengthening LFX Mentoring: A Fairer Stipend Model and a Shared Standard of Excellence

 This post was updated on July 1, 2026 to include additional clarifying information. 

Two updates that help our growing mentorship community do its best work.

LFX Mentoring has grown into one of the largest open source mentorship programs in the world, connecting new contributors with experienced maintainers across hundreds of projects every year. As the program scales, we're making two updates that keep it fair, sustainable and welcoming for everyone.

A more equitable stipend model

At its core, LFX Mentoring is all about providing unique opportunities to learn, grow, and become part of the global open source community. By participating, mentees get to work on exciting technology and receive invaluable coaching directly from experienced practitioners. Because the heart of this program is professional development, it is fundamentally designed as a learning experience, not employment. While many open source mentorships are entirely unpaid, some of our participating projects choose to offer stipends. These stipends can be thought of as educational grants that help offset basic living expenses so mentees can focus their energy on learning and contributing. Since these stipends are intended to offset basic living expenses (and not intended as compensation or wages), these amounts are calculated to reflect the cost of living in a mentee’s country.  

Mentee stipends are calculated using a formula based on Purchasing Power Parity (PPP): we start from a $6,000 USD baseline and adjust for each mentee's country, so a stipend’s real-world value is comparable wherever a mentee lives. We review these amounts periodically to keep them aligned with industry standards and economic conditions.

For programs that start on or after July 1, 2026, we've refreshed the schedule. We keep PPP and the $6,600 maximum, and we've lowered the minimum to $1,000 so that stipends more closely reflect regional cost of living and align with other popular open source mentoring programs. This lets us reinvest in the program and extend mentorship to more people each term.

These updates apply only to future programs. If you've already been accepted into a program that starts before July 1, 2026, you'll continue to receive the amount listed in your acceptance letter. Full country-by-country amounts are published in the mentee stipend documentation.

A shared Standard of Excellence

We're also publishing the Linux Foundation Mentoring Standards of Excellence: a clear statement of the collaborative, respectful, and professional behavior we encourage from every mentor, mentee, and candidate.

The Standards highlight what makes mentorship work: supporting one another, giving constructive feedback, communicating with respect, and accepting evaluations and selection decisions gracefully. They also explain how to raise concerns through the right channels. The goal is simple: every participant has a positive, productive experience and the clarity to do their best work.

Learn more

Explore open mentorships and apply at LFX Mentorship.