An honest comparison of two platforms for startup founders looking to raise capital. We highlight where Carta excels and where Free Startup Funding wins.
Free Startup Funding has a direct advantage on 5 out of 9 dimensions below.
| Feature | Free Startup Funding | Carta |
|---|---|---|
| Starting PriceOur win | Free | $84/mo |
| Free Tier Available | Yes | Yes |
| Free Tier Limits | 10 contact reveals/month | Basic cap table for <25 stakeholders |
| SEC EDGAR VerifiedOur win | Yes | No |
| Data Source | SEC EDGAR Form D filings + Grants.gov | Customer cap table data + 409A valuations |
| Built for Founders | Yes | Yes |
| Federal Grant DatabaseOur win | Yes | No |
| Accelerator DirectoryOur win | Yes | No |
| Warm Intro PathsOur win | Yes | No |
Cap table management and 409A valuations
The free, SEC-verified startup funding database
Unlike crowd-sourced databases, every VC fund on this platform traces back to a public SEC EDGAR Form D filing. Grants come directly from Grants.gov, the official federal grant portal.
Yes. The core database — 38,000 SEC-verified VC funds, 500 active federal grants, and 200 accelerator programs — is free to browse. Revealing contact details (GP email, phone, LinkedIn) uses a credit system: 10 reveals per month on the free plan, 150 on the Pro plan ($49/mo). There is no credit card required to start.
Free Startup Funding sources VC data directly from SEC EDGAR Form D filings, which are legally required disclosures. This means fund names, accession numbers, and filing dates are authoritative rather than crowd-sourced or estimated. Carta uses customer cap table data + 409a valuations, which does not use SEC-verified filings, so data quality depends on editorial processes and community contributions.
Absolutely. Many founders use Free Startup Funding for discovery and non-dilutive funding (grants, accelerators) while using Carta for industry-leading cap table management. The platforms are complementary rather than mutually exclusive. If budget is a constraint, Free Startup Funding's free tier covers the most founder-critical workflows at no cost.
Not yet publicly. The platform is currently optimized for founder self-service through the web interface. If API access is a critical requirement, platforms like Crunchbase or PitchBook offer developer APIs, though at significant cost.
VC fund data is refreshed nightly via SEC EDGAR EFTS incremental filings, capturing new Form D submissions within 24 hours of filing. Grant data from Grants.gov is refreshed nightly. Accelerator information is updated weekly.
Compare Free Startup Funding against other platforms in the ecosystem.
Get instant access to 38,000 SEC-verified VC funds, 500 federal grants, and 200 accelerators — completely free to start.