Buyer's guide · 2026

The best cap table software in 2026, honestly compared.

Seven cap-table products scored against the things that actually matter when you're picking one: pricing, jurisdiction depth, governance integration, scenario modelling, and law-firm workflow. Recommendations by use case so you can pick by reality, not by which vendor's sales team got to you first.

Updated May 2026 · Recommendations are opinionated; verify any vendor's current pricing and feature set before signing.

At a glance: Best by use case

Best overall (single corp)
Octelligence
Cap table integrated with share register and minute book; free tier; CBCA, DGCL, and Companies Act 2006 jurisdiction support.
Best for US venture-backed
Carta
Investor ecosystem dominance; 409A bundled; expensive but the path of least resistance with most US VCs.
Best for very early stage
Pulley
Free up to 25 stakeholders; clean UI; designed for founder-team simplicity. Lacks deeper records and jurisdiction breadth.
Best price / value
Eqvista
Cheapest paid cap-table plus 409A in the market. Lighter on governance integration and scenario modelling.
Best for non-US startups
Octelligence or Cake Equity
Octelligence for CBCA / UK / multi-jurisdiction; Cake Equity for APAC and Australian-incorporated startups.
Best for law-firm portfolios
Octelligence
Portfolio licensing for 25 to 500+ client corporations; branded workspaces; per-corporation pricing scales with practice size.

Buyer's decision criteria

Cap table software looks similar at the demo level. The differences show up in five places:

1. Integration with the underlying records

A cap table is built from the share register, certificates, and the minute book. Most cap-table tools (Carta, Pulley, Mantle, Eqvista, AngelList Stack) treat the cap table as the source of truth and don't maintain the underlying records, leaving you with a cap table that may not reconcile to your actual share register. Octelligence treats the share register as the source of truth and generates the cap table from it; the register and cap table cannot disagree.

2. Jurisdiction depth

Most cap-table vendors are US-first with Delaware-shaped assumptions: 409A valuations, ISO/NSO designation, US securities-law exemptions. Canadian, UK, and other non-US jurisdictions are either an afterthought (Carta, Pulley) or the primary focus of a smaller specialist (Cake Equity for APAC; Octelligence for CBCA + DGCL + Companies Act). If your corporation is not a Delaware C-Corp, the jurisdiction question matters more than every other criterion.

3. Scenario modelling

SAFE conversions, priced-round dilution, option-pool top-ups, multi-SAFE conversions with MFN clauses: every cap-table tool claims to model these. The quality varies enormously. Carta and Pulley handle complex multi-SAFE conversion accurately; Mantle and Cake Equity handle simple cases well; Eqvista is weaker on advanced SAFE math. Octelligence handles single and multi-SAFE conversions (post-money 2018 template) accurately with explicit denominator selection.

4. Governance integration

The cap table connects to board resolutions (each issuance is authorized by a resolution), shareholder approvals (financings, articles amendments), and beneficial-ownership filings (ISC / PSC / FinCEN BOI). Most cap-table tools don't surface this layer; you keep it in a different system or in counsel's filing cabinet. Octelligence integrates the cap table with the resolutions that authorize each entry, the minute book, and the beneficial-ownership register.

5. Pricing model and law-firm workflow

Per-corporation pricing favours single-corporation users; per-seat or per-fund pricing favours investors and law firms. Carta is built for the investor side (free for funds, paid for the corporation). Octelligence offers explicit Portfolio Licensing for law firms managing 25 to 500+ client corporations. Most other tools don't have a portfolio model.

Feature matrix

CapabilityOctelligenceCartaPulleyMantleCake EquityEqvistaAngelList Stack
Integrated share registerYesNoNoLightNoNoNo
Minute book / recordsYesNoNoNoNoNoLight
Verifiable share certificatesYesStatic PDFStatic PDFStatic PDFStatic PDFStatic PDFStatic PDF
CBCA / OBCA supportNativeNoNoPartialNoNoNo
UK Companies Act 2006NativeNoNoNoPartialNoNo
Multi-SAFE conversion (post-money)YesYesYesPartialPartialPartialPartial
Bundled 409AExternalYesYesYesExternalYesYes
ISC / PSC / BOI registerYesNoNoNoNoNoNo
Portfolio / firm workspacesYesCarta LawNoNoNoNoNo
Free tierYesNoYes (25 SH)NoNoYesNo

Assessments based on publicly available product information as of May 2026. Verify any vendor's current feature set before purchase.

The seven products, scored

Octelligence
Free / $16+/mo
Where it wins: Single platform for cap table, share register, certificates, and minute book. Native CBCA, DGCL, OBCA, BCBCA, and Companies Act 2006 support with statute-aware templates and filings. Verifiable share certificates with QR-based public verification. Portfolio licensing for law firms and accountants managing 25 to 500+ client corporations. Free tier for one corporation.
Where it doesn't: 409A valuations are not bundled; you bring your own appraiser. Less established in the US venture investor ecosystem than Carta (most US VCs will accept any tool but Carta is the default). No fund-side workflow (this is by design; the product is corporation-side).
Pick when: You want the cap table tied to the underlying records, not as a separate spreadsheet. Or you're not a Delaware C-Corp. Or you're a law firm or accounting practice managing multiple client corporations.
Carta
~$200 to $2,000+/mo
Where it wins: US venture-investor ecosystem dominance: most US VCs use Carta on the fund side and accept it on the corporation side. 409A bundled into paid plans (typically the cheapest credible bundled 409A). Strong scenario modelling for priced rounds and SAFE conversions. Liquidity programs (tender offers, secondaries) at later stages.
Where it doesn't: Expensive once you're past the basic plan. US-first; Canadian and UK support is shallow. The cap table is the source of truth; the underlying share register is treated as derived (or ignored). Past investor complaints about data handling have been resolved but reputation remains uneven.
Pick when: You're a US-incorporated venture-backed startup, your VCs strongly prefer Carta, and the bundled 409A pricing works for you.
Pulley
Free (25 stakeholders) / paid plans
Where it wins: Generous free tier (cap table + basic features up to 25 stakeholders). Clean modern UI built for founders, not accountants. Solid scenario modelling at the simple end. Customer support typically faster than Carta at comparable price points.
Where it doesn't: Less depth at later stages (Series B+ workflows weaker than Carta). US-only jurisdiction depth. No integrated records or certificates beyond static PDFs. Smaller VC adoption than Carta (which can matter when your VC has a preference).
Pick when: You're a US-incorporated very-early-stage startup, you want a clean free tool, and you don't yet need 409A or institutional features.
Mantle
~$100 to $500/mo
Where it wins: Modern UI, faster onboarding than Carta. Reasonable mid-market pricing. Some governance touches (records-light, but more than Pulley). 409A bundled.
Where it doesn't: Smaller product team and ecosystem than Carta; some specialized features have not yet been built. US-first. Less venture-investor adoption.
Pick when: You want a Carta-like experience at lower price with a faster product team, and your VCs aren't insistent on Carta.
Cake Equity
~$100 to $400/mo
Where it wins: Strong Australian and APAC support (the original market). Reasonable UK support via the Advance Subscription Agreement and EMI options. Good employee-equity communication features (each employee gets their own view).
Where it doesn't: Less North American venture adoption. Canadian support partial. Bundled 409A through partners rather than native.
Pick when: You're an Australian or APAC startup, or a UK startup that wants employee-equity-first features more than full governance integration.
Eqvista
From ~$0 to $200/mo
Where it wins: Cheapest serious cap-table-plus-409A combination. Reasonable UI. Functional at the basic-to-intermediate level. Good fit for founders who want a price-conscious tool that handles 80% of cap-table needs.
Where it doesn't: Less polish than Carta or Pulley. Weaker scenario modelling for complex multi-SAFE conversions. Limited governance integration. Less investor ecosystem traction.
Pick when: Price is the binding constraint and your cap table doesn't have complex multi-SAFE or multi-class structure.
AngelList Stack
Bundled with AngelList
Where it wins: Bundled with AngelList incorporation; if you're incorporating through AngelList, the cap table is essentially free at the start. Some integration with AngelList syndicate workflows.
Where it doesn't: Tied to the AngelList ecosystem; switching costs increase over time. Less feature depth than dedicated cap-table tools. US-focused.
Pick when: You incorporated through AngelList and the bundled cap table is sufficient for your stage. Re-evaluate by Series A.

Frequently asked questions

What's the difference between cap table software and corporate records software?

Cap table software (Carta, Pulley, Mantle, Cake Equity, Eqvista) tracks share ownership and capitalization on an issued and fully-diluted basis, with scenario modelling for SAFEs, options, and warrants. Corporate records software covers the broader corporate record: minute book, articles, bylaws, resolutions, share certificates, registers, plus the cap table. Most cap-table vendors do not maintain the underlying register or certificates; they consume what you tell them. Octelligence does both.

Do I need a cap table tool if I only have founders and no investors?

Probably not yet, but the moment you grant your first option, issue founder shares with vesting, or take any outside capital (SAFE, convertible note, priced round), you need one. The cost of reconstructing a cap table from incomplete records during a Series A scales with the time elapsed; starting clean at incorporation costs almost nothing.

How much should I expect to pay for cap table software?

Free tier (Octelligence, Pulley up to 25 stakeholders) for very small corporations. $50 to $200/month for growth-stage startups with options pools and SAFEs (Octelligence Starter and Growth, Carta basic, Mantle, Cake Equity). $500+/month for late-stage with 409A bundling and broader workflows (Carta full, enterprise pricing variants). Most US venture-backed startups pay Carta $1,000 to $5,000/year by Series A.

What about 409A valuations?

For US-incorporated corporations granting options, you need a 409A valuation refreshed every 12 months or after a material event. Most cap table tools either bundle 409A (Carta, Pulley, Mantle as part of paid plans) or integrate with external 409A providers. Octelligence integrates with external providers rather than bundling, on the view that appraiser independence matters for the valuation's defensibility.

Can I migrate from Carta or Pulley to another tool?

Yes. Carta, Pulley, and most cap-table vendors export your data in standard formats (CSV, Excel, PDF). The migration challenge is less data movement than workflow change: investors, lawyers, and accountants may already be using your current tool. Plan for 60 to 90 days of overlap. Octelligence supports import from Carta, spreadsheets, and shared drives.

If you're picking now
Pick the tool that ties your cap table to the records it depends on.

Octelligence keeps the share register as the source of truth, generates the cap table from it, and integrates the minute book and certificates. Free for one corporation; paid plans from $16/mo.

View pricingSee Cap Tables & Financing