Carta — $1,000 off first year for Startups

Deal Highlights

What Is Carta?

Carta is the equity management platform used by over 40,000 companies to manage cap tables, issue equity grants, run 409A valuations, and facilitate secondary transactions. For startups issuing stock options to employees, granting equity to co-founders, or preparing for fundraising, Carta is the platform that investors and lawyers already use — making it the default choice for equity infrastructure.

In 2026, Carta handles the entire equity lifecycle: incorporation documents, stock option plans, exercise workflows, 409A valuations (required annually for tax compliance), investor reporting, and eventually liquidity events. The platform replaces the spreadsheet cap tables that break during due diligence and the manual 409A processes that cost $5,000–$15,000 per engagement with external valuation firms.

Why This Deal Matters for Startups

Equity is the currency startups use to attract talent, compensate co-founders, and raise capital. Managing equity on spreadsheets works until the first complication: an employee exercises options, a new funding round requires a waterfall analysis, or an investor asks for a cap table export in Carta format. At that point, migrating from spreadsheets to Carta costs weeks of manual data entry and reconciliation.

Starting on Carta from incorporation eliminates this migration pain. The $1,000 off first year makes professional equity management accessible during the phase when most startups are issuing their foundational equity grants.

What''s Included in the Carta Startup Deal

• $1,000 off first year of Carta
• Digital cap table with real-time ownership calculations
• Stock option plan management: Grant, vest, exercise workflows
• 409A valuations at preferred rates
• Electronic document signing for equity grants
• Investor reporting: Portfolio updates and data room
• Scenario modeling: Waterfall analysis for funding rounds
• Tax compliance: Section 83(b) filing support, exercise tax calculations

How to Claim This Carta Deal — Step by Step

Step 1: Create a free account on SaaSOffers at saasoffers.tech and access the Carta deal.

Step 2: Click "Get Deal" and follow the link to Carta''s startup program.

Step 3: Create your Carta account and set up your company — entity type, incorporation state, authorized shares.

Step 4: Build your cap table — add founders, their equity grants, vesting schedules, and any existing investors. Carta calculates fully diluted ownership automatically.

Step 5: Create your stock option plan (if issuing options to employees). Carta generates the plan documents and board consent.

Step 6: Issue equity grants electronically. Recipients receive an email, review the grant details, and accept digitally. No paper documents.

Step 7: Schedule your first 409A valuation. Required before granting options at a specific exercise price. Carta''s 409A service is faster and cheaper than external valuation firms.

Key Features for Startups

Digital Cap Table — Single Source of Truth

Carta''s cap table calculates ownership percentages, fully diluted shares, and value per share in real time. Every grant, exercise, and transaction updates the cap table automatically. When investors ask "what is the current cap table?" you share a Carta link — not a spreadsheet that may be out of date.

409A Valuations — Required, Simplified

US companies must have a current 409A valuation to issue stock options at fair market value. Carta''s 409A service uses your Carta data (cap table, financials, comparable companies) to produce the valuation, typically in 2–3 weeks versus 4–6 weeks from external firms, and at lower cost.

Scenario Modeling — Plan Before You Fundraise

Model funding rounds before they happen: enter the proposed round size, pre-money valuation, and investor allocation. Carta shows the post-round cap table, founder dilution, and option pool impact. This analysis is essential for informed fundraising negotiations.

Investor Reporting

Share portfolio updates with investors through Carta — financial metrics, product milestones, and cap table snapshots. Investors who use Carta (most institutional VCs do) receive updates in their existing dashboard without you building custom reports.

Carta vs Pulley vs Spreadsheets

Carta wins on investor compatibility (VCs expect Carta), 409A integration, and feature depth. Pulley wins on price for early-stage companies. Spreadsheets work for pre-funding companies with simple equity structures but fail during due diligence.

Who Is the Carta Deal For?

Startups issuing stock options to employees: The moment you grant your first option, you need a 409A valuation and a cap table that can handle vesting, exercises, and terminations. Carta manages all of this.

Startups preparing for fundraising: Investors expect cap tables in Carta format. Having your equity on Carta before the fundraise eliminates the data room preparation scramble.

Startups with co-founder equity agreements: Even 2-person startups benefit from formally documenting equity splits, vesting schedules, and cliff periods. Carta makes these agreements legally binding with electronic signatures.

Real Startup Use Cases

TechVenture (SaaS, pre-seed): TechVenture set up Carta at incorporation — 2 founders with 4-year vesting and 1-year cliff. When they hired their first engineer with a stock option grant, the option plan was already configured. The 409A valuation (required before granting options) was completed through Carta in 2 weeks. Total setup: 3 hours. Estimated cost without Carta: $8,000–$12,000 for an external 409A + lawyer fees for option plan documents.

Tips to Maximize Your Carta Deal

1. Set up Carta at incorporation, not at first fundraise — Retroactively entering equity history is error-prone and time-consuming. Start clean from day one.
2. Use Carta for 409A valuations — Carta''s integrated valuations are faster and cheaper than external firms, and the data flows directly into your cap table.
3. Issue all equity through Carta — Electronic issuance creates a clean, auditable record. Paper grants that are entered retroactively create reconciliation issues during due diligence.
4. Share the Carta investor view with your investors — Investors prefer Carta''s reporting format. Proactive sharing builds trust and reduces ad-hoc data requests.
5. Model funding rounds before negotiating — Use scenario modeling to understand dilution before entering term sheet discussions. Informed founders negotiate better terms.

Who Is This Deal For?

Frequently Asked Questions

Everything you need to know about this startup deal.