If you’ve raised under $1M, start with Carta Launch (free) or Fidelity Private Shares (free under 25 stakeholders). Series A+ in the US: Pulley ($1,200/yr Startup tier) or Carta Build. EU/UK with international shareholders: Ledgy. Cost-conscious with a small cap table: Eqvista (free up to 20 shareholders) or Capboard ($30/mo). Skip AngelList Stack — they stopped accepting new customers in August 2026.
Cap-table errors don't show up until they cost you. A miscounted vesting cliff, a misnamed SAFE holder, an option grant logged in the wrong tier — these things sit quietly until your next valuation, your next round, or your acquirer's diligence team finds them. By then, the fix is a six-figure legal cleanup, not a five-minute software setup.
In our work helping 600+ startups raise over $3B — including $630M closed in 2025 — we've watched deals stall over cap-table errors that decent software would have caught on day one. This guide compares the 8 tools that matter in 2026 — pricing, free tiers, 409A valuations, and international support — without the bias of a vendor writing about its own product.
Why every "best cap table software" list is biased
Almost every "best cap table software" listicle is published by a vendor that ranks itself first and quietly buries competitors. Waveup doesn't sell cap-table software — we help founders raise capital, and in our work with 600+ startups we've seen which platforms survive due diligence and which create deal-blocking errors. That's the lens we use here.
Look at the SERP for "best cap table software" and notice the pattern: Carta's listicle ranks Carta #1. Cake Equity's listicle quietly omits Carta from its top picks. Qapita's listicle puts Qapita first. V7Labs' listicle elevates V7 Go (an AI doc-extraction product). Every editorial-looking page in the top 10 is written by a vendor selling one of the tools.
Waveup doesn't sell cap-table software. We help founders raise capital and run financial models — which means our incentive is to recommend the tool that keeps your cap table clean enough to survive due diligence, not the one paying us a referral fee. The picks below reflect what we actually see working across our fundraising clients.
8 best cap table management software tools in 2026
Carta and Pulley dominate US Series A–C. Ledgy leads in Europe. Capboard wins on price for early-stage EU teams. Eqvista is the cheapest US option with bundled 409A. Cake Equity is strongest in APAC/AU. Fidelity Private Shares (formerly Shoobx) is the bank-backed alternative. AngelList Stack is sunset — existing customers only.
Cap table management software 2026 — at-a-glance comparison. Pricing verified April 2026 from vendor pricing pages.
1. Carta
Carta is the category-defining platform for US private-company equity. Today the product covers cap-table management, 409A valuations, fund administration, equity plan management, and a suite of issuer/investor tools — the broadest single-vendor surface area in the market. Carta serves 40,000+ companies and runs the 409A engine that VCs and acquirers see most often during diligence.
- Best for: US-incorporated startups Series A through pre-IPO; teams that want cap-table + 409A + fund admin under one roof
- Pricing (verified April 2026): Carta Launch is free for companies with under 25 stakeholders that have raised under $1M; Build tier is approximately $2,988/year; Grow and Scale are quoted by stakeholder count + modules (Carta pricing, Vendr, Costbench)
- Free tier: Yes — Carta Launch under $1M raised + 25 stakeholders
- 409A: Included on Build and above; turnaround typical 10 business days
- International: US-strong; some EU support but the platform is built around Delaware C-corp norms
Strengths: Largest VC and law-firm acceptance in the US — your law firm almost certainly already has a Carta workflow. Strong 409A defensibility. Wide API + integrations. Considerations: Pricing climbs sharply once stakeholder count grows. Build/Grow tiers can run $5K–$15K+/year depending on modules. Most expensive option in this list at scale.
2. Pulley
Pulley is the founder-favorite Carta alternative. The product targets the same US Series A–C cap-table jobs — equity issuance, vesting, scenario modeling, 409A — at flatter, more predictable pricing. Pulley’s 409A turnaround is the fastest in the category on its Growth tier (3–5 business days).
- Best for: US founder-led startups that want predictable annual pricing and fast 409As
- Pricing (verified April 2026): Free up to 25 stakeholders (Startup Free); $1,200/year Startup tier (≤25 stakeholders); $3,500/year Growth (≤40 stakeholders, includes 2 annual 409As); $4,500/year Token tier; ~$4 per additional stakeholder (Pulley pricing, Capterra)
- Free tier: Yes — up to 25 stakeholders
- 409A: Included on Growth (2/year, 3–5 day turnaround)
- International: US-primary; angel investors writing checks ≤$50K count as half a stakeholder
Strengths: Cleanest pricing on this list. Fast 409A delivery. UI built for founders, not equity admins. Considerations: Smaller customer base than Carta means slightly less universal acceptance with traditional law firms; integration breadth is narrower.
3. Ledgy
Ledgy is the European answer to Carta. Headquartered in Switzerland and built for multi-jurisdiction startups, Ledgy handles UK EMI schemes, German VSOPs, French BSPCEs, and Dutch SAR plans inside one platform — none of which are first-class on US-built tools. GDPR-native data residency in the EU is a non-negotiable for many European boards.
- Best for: EU/UK scale-ups with stakeholders across multiple jurisdictions; teams that need EMI/VSOP/BSPCE compliance
- Pricing (verified April 2026): Three tiers (Startup / Scale-up / Enterprise). Startup tier €3,000–€6,000/year for ≤50 stakeholders; Scale-up €15,000–€40,000+ depending on size. Companies with under €2M raised get 50% off year 1 (Ledgy pricing, Vendr)
- Free tier: No standing free tier; year-1 discount for under-€2M-raised teams
- 409A: Not the primary focus — Ledgy partners on valuations rather than running them in-house
- International: Strongest in this list. Multi-currency, multi-jurisdiction tax forms, GDPR-native
Strengths: Best multi-country ESOP support. EU data residency. Investor-portal UX rated highly on G2. Considerations: US 409A workflows are not the headline use case — pair with a 409A specialist if you're a Delaware C-corp.
4. Capboard
Capboard is the Spanish-rooted, EU-friendly cap-table tool that competes hardest on price. The platform covers cap tables, scenario simulations, SAFEs, convertibles, ESOPs/phantom shares, a virtual data room, and stakeholder portals — at a fraction of Carta's entry point. Best fit for early-stage EU teams that want decent feature breadth without enterprise pricing.
- Best for: EU-incorporated early-stage startups, cost-conscious founding teams, syndicates with many small stakeholders
- Pricing (verified April 2026): $2/stakeholder/month billed annually with a $360/year minimum (covers up to 15 stakeholders); $60/month if billed monthly; annual billing saves ~50% (Capboard pricing)
- Free tier: No standing free tier; trial available
- 409A: Not bundled — handled via partner valuation providers
- International: EU-strong; supports Spanish, French, German, English UI; growing UK presence
Strengths: Cheapest serious option in the EU bracket. Built-in VDR is unusual at this price. Solid ESOP/phantom-share modeling. Considerations: Smaller US footprint; if your law firm is Delaware-default, expect some manual reconciliation.
5. Eqvista
Eqvista is the price-leader for cost-conscious US startups that still want bundled 409A valuations. The platform handles common, preferred, RSUs, options, warrants, and convertibles, with vesting that supports cliff/graded/custom schedules. The 409A package is the differentiator — at $990/year you get the valuation plus lifetime audit support and IRS-defense documentation.
- Best for: Cost-conscious US startups, LLCs, founders who want a 409A bundled cheaply
- Pricing (verified April 2026): Freemium up to 20 shareholders; Premium at $2/shareholder/month; 409A package starts at $990/year including audit-defense (Eqvista pricing)
- Free tier: Yes — up to 20 shareholders
- 409A: Bundled at $990/year (audit support + IRS defense included for the life of the valuation)
- International: US-anchored; handles LLC equity which most competitors don't
Strengths: Cheapest 409A in the market with audit defense baked in. Handles LLCs (rare). Real-time valuation feature is genuinely useful for board reporting. Considerations: UI feels less polished than Carta or Pulley; feature surface is narrower at the high end. Best at the value tier, not the enterprise tier.
6. Cake Equity
Cake Equity is the Australian-built platform that has become the default for APAC and ANZ startups. Strong on cross-border ESOP setup — Australian tax-deferred ESS, US 83(b), UK EMI — without forcing a single-jurisdiction template. Solid choice if your team is split across markets.
- Best for: APAC/AU/NZ startups, cross-border ESOP scenarios, teams with employees on three continents
- Pricing (verified April 2026): Free up to 5 stakeholders; Starter $540/year (up to 30 stakeholders); Growth $1,020/year (above 30 stakeholders, includes incentive plans + legal templates); custom for advanced features (409A, ASC 718, Form 3921, QSBS) (Cake pricing)
- Free tier: Yes — up to 5 stakeholders
- 409A: Available on custom plans; not bundled into Starter/Growth
- International: Strong APAC + UK; growing US presence
Strengths: Best APAC compliance support; founder-friendly UI; built-in attorney network. Considerations: US 409A and Form 3921 require the custom tier, which moves pricing into Pulley/Carta-Build territory.
7. Fidelity Private Shares (formerly Shoobx)
Fidelity Private Shares is the rebranded Shoobx product, now backed by Fidelity's Stock Plan Services business (700+ companies, 2.5M plan participants, $250B+ in plan value). The pitch: a cap-table tool with Fidelity's institutional credibility behind it, designed to carry a startup from formation through IPO and into Fidelity's public-company stock plan administration.
- Best for: Startups planning a long-term path through Fidelity's broader equity-administration ecosystem; teams that want a bank-backed counterparty
- Pricing (verified April 2026): Free for companies with under 25 stakeholders that have raised under $1M; Growth tier (custom-quoted) adds 409A and ASC 718 reporting; full pricing not publicly listed (Fidelity Private Shares pricing)
- Free tier: Yes — under $1M raised + 25 stakeholders
- 409A: Available on Growth tier; valuations from vetted partners
- International: US-anchored
Strengths: Institutional credibility from the Fidelity acquisition. Smooth handoff to public-company stock plan admin if you IPO. Considerations: Pricing transparency is the weakest in this list — expect a sales conversation. Smaller startup community than Carta or Pulley.
8. AngelList Stack (sunset — existing customers only)
AngelList Stack was the founder-friendly cap-table product that AngelList launched to compete with Carta and Pulley. In August 2026, AngelList stopped accepting new Stack customers as the team pivots to a rebuilt cap-table layer that natively integrates RUVs and Consolidation Vehicles. Existing customers can stay on current plans, but new feature work has paused.
- Best for: Existing Stack customers only — not accepting new sign-ups
- Pricing: Legacy — frozen for existing customers
- Migration partners: Pulley (onboarding assistance) and J.P. Morgan Workplace Solutions (free service for up to 100 stakeholders for 3 years)
- Action item: If you're on Stack and planning a 2026–2027 round, migrate before diligence — moving mid-round is painful
Source: AngelList — The Future of Cap Tables (announcement of Stack sunset and migration partners).
What is cap table management software?
Cap table management software is a tool that tracks every security a company has issued — common stock, preferred stock, options, warrants, convertible notes, and SAFEs — together with the people or entities that hold them. The software automates dilution math, vesting schedules, 409A valuations, and the paperwork investors and acquirers ask for during diligence.
A capitalization table — the cap table — is the source-of-truth list of who owns what in a company. Early on it fits in a spreadsheet. By Series A, with multiple security types, vesting cliffs, options grants, and SAFEs converting at different valuation caps, the spreadsheet becomes a liability. Cap-table software replaces the spreadsheet with a system that calculates dilution scenarios, generates 409A reports, manages stockholder consents, and stays defensible under audit.
When do I actually need cap table software?
Not strictly — a clean spreadsheet is fine until you take outside money or issue your first option grant. The trigger is your first priced round, your first SAFE that needs to convert, or your first option grant — at that point the math compounds faster than humans should be tracking it manually.
Three signals that the spreadsheet is over:
- You issue your first option grant. Vesting cliffs, exercise windows, and ISO/NSO classification all need to be tracked individually — for tax, compliance, and 409A purposes.
- You take your first SAFE or convertible note. Now you have a security that converts later at a price you don't yet know — modeling that conversion is harder by hand than it looks.
- You raise a priced round. Pre-money vs post-money math, pro-rata calculations, dilution waterfalls — software pays for itself in a single fundraising cycle.
How to choose cap table management software
Pre-seed and seed founders should not pay for cap-table software — Carta Launch, Pulley free, and Capboard cover everything you need. Once you cross $1M raised, prioritise 409A inclusion, audit trails, and waterfall modelling. In our $3B+ of fundraising work, the deals that close fastest run on tools that export clean SAFE and option-pool data without manual cleanup.
Six dimensions actually matter once you're past the marketing copy:
- Free tier under $1M raised. If you're pre-seed or seed, you should not be paying for cap-table software. Carta Launch, Fidelity Private Shares, Pulley, Eqvista, and Cake Equity all have honest free tiers under $1M raised.
- 409A bundled vs. add-on. A 409A from Eqvista is $990/year. From Carta Build it's included. From a third-party valuation firm it's $2,500–$5,000. Decide before you sign — switching tools mid-409A is expensive.
- International support. US-built tools don't handle UK EMI, German VSOP, or French BSPCE schemes well. If your team is multi-jurisdiction, Ledgy or Cake Equity belong on the shortlist; if it's US-only, simpler is better.
- Securities supported. Confirm SAFEs (pre- and post-money), convertible notes, RSUs, ISOs/NSOs, warrants, phantom shares — whatever your law firm has issued or will issue. Some tools quietly drop edge cases.
- Law-firm acceptance. Ask your law firm which tool they prefer before you commit. Friction with the firm that drafts your stockholder consents is friction you don't need.
- Migration cost. Once 100+ stakeholders sit in a system, moving them is a project. Pick the tool you'll still want at $10M raised, not just the cheapest one today.
Cap table management FAQ
These are the questions we field most during fundraising diligence: when to graduate from a spreadsheet, whether 409A valuations are bundled or extra, how Carta compares with Pulley and Ledgy, and what investors actually inspect. Each answer below reflects what we've seen in our work with 600+ startups raising real rounds — not vendor marketing copy.