5 Best Cap Table Management Software.

We understand how important it is to have the right tools for your company as you begin fundraising, bringing on co-founders, or even offering stock options to employees. While cap tables aren't all that’s needed, they are something that should not be overlooked or ignored. A small error on a cap table can cause massive problems down the road so it's important it's managed correctly from the start.  

So to make things simple, we've gone ahead and ranked all of the best cap table management tools, starting with our favorites. Let’s dive in!

1) Gust Launch

Gust Launch is our favorite cap table management due to its ease of use and helpful customer service - they’ll even walk you through incorporating a startup that's designed to raise capital (C-Corp). Gust Launch can be seen as one of the more expensive options on this list but it’s well worth it in our opinion. They also have different tiers that scale with you as your business grows. If you’d prefer to start for free, Gust also has a free service called Gust Equity Management made exclusively for cap table creation.

Price: $300 /year

Website: https://gust.com/equity

Pros

• Cap table software is free
• Issue stock options
• Handles incorporation
• Phone & chat support

Cons

• Has limited complexity.

2) Carta

While Carta started out with solely cap table management, they have been slowly turning Carta into an ownership management empire. The company’s UI is a little dated, but you’re buying Carta’s software for the power of their tools, not the aesthetic. Carta counts over 8,000+ companies as customers and has valued over $200B in private assets. Carta is a great option if you're a later stage startup.

Price: $2800 /year

Website: https://carta.com/private-companies/cap-table-management/

Pros

• Issue stock options
• Phone support
• iPhone and Android Apps

Cons

• UI has room for improvement
• Onboarding process can take a while
• Expensive

3) Eqvista

Eqvista’s cap table management software isn’t any more powerful than competitors but it is one of the most user-friendly. The company’s focus on making it easy to use will save your time in the long and short run. If you need help with 409A valuations, you can count on Eqvista to handle that as well.

Price: $2.00 /shareholder /month

Website: https://eqvista.com/

Pros

• Quality training
• Phone support

Cons

• No mobile app

4) Shareworks

Shareworks by Morgan Stanley will help you simplify your equity plan management so you can forget about those spreadsheets. It isn’t as intuitive or visually appealing as some on this list (LTSE Equity), but it might be the most powerful. If you’re a founder on the go, you’ll appreciate Shareworks’ app, as long as you don’t need any customer service.

Price: Unknown

Website: https://www.shareworks.com/product/cap-table-management-software/

Pros

• iPhone and Android Apps
• 24/7 Support
• Easy to navigate

Cons

• Customer service is limited
• Limited training material 

5) LTSE Equity

In terms of ease-of-use, LTSE Equity (formerly Captable.io) is like the LeadLoft of cap table software; that is to say, LTSE is incredibly easy to set up and use. The UI is clean and the visualizations are clear. Great for first time founders.

Price: $40 /month

Website: https://equity.ltse.com/

Pros

• Easy to set up
• Intuitive

Cons

• No starting templates
• No mobile app

5) Diligent Equity

Diligent Equity (formerly TruEquity) has a ton of features on top of cap table management that make it ideal for larger companies and venture capital firms. With their quality training, you can learn how to run waterfalls and scenario models to gain valuable insights into your company. 

Price: Unknown

Website: https://www.equityeffect.com/cap-table-management-software/

Pros

• Great customer service
• Powerful modeling tools

Cons

• UI could be cleaned up

Wrapping Up

Cap table management has historically been a massive headache for founders but with today's tools, it’s safe to say that this problem is now a thing of the past. When selecting a cap table management software, we recommend you focus on cost and ease of use. This is why we (LeadLoft) chose Gust, not only as our favorite, but as the service our team uses to manage our own cap table.

However, you really can’t go wrong with any of the options listed above.