Cake Equity

Cake Equity is an equity management platform for startups managing ownership, financing and employee awards. It is best suited to teams that want those workflows alongside investor access and US compliance tools; smaller companies should weigh the stakeholder caps against their likely growth.

Overview

Cake brings cap table records, fundraising instruments and equity incentives into one service for companies from an initial SAFE through later funding rounds. Founders, finance teams, employees, investors and attorneys are among its intended users. Founded in 2017, the company is headquartered in Venice, California.

For teams comparing categories, Cake sits within Cap Table Management Software and Equity Compensation Management Software.

Key features

Ownership and fundraising

Cap table management comes with audit logs and reporting, useful for tracking changes and reviewing ownership records. Fundraising scenario modeling, SAFE notes and convertible notes make the platform relevant to companies assessing financing structures as well as maintaining their capitalization table.

Supported instruments and awards include ISOs, NSOs, RSUs, RSAs, SAFEs, convertible notes, warrants, common shares and preferred shares. Advanced vesting rules, tax reporting and valuation support address needs beyond a basic ownership ledger. The 25-recipient limit is worth considering for companies distributing awards or communications to larger groups.

Employee and investor access

My Cake lets employees view grants and vesting progress. Cake also provides investor communications, document sharing and portfolio access through its platform and portal, giving stakeholders a route to relevant information without making cap table administration the only use case.

Compliance, migration and integrations

US compliance capabilities include 409A valuations, Form 3921, 83(b), ASC 718, Rule 701 and QSBS. These are specifically US-focused tools, so companies operating elsewhere should not assume they cover local compliance needs.

Cake says it offers free cap table migration, with human review and reconciliation before migrated records go live. Its Trust Center identifies ISO/IEC 27001:2022 under compliance information and provides a way to request security documentation. Cake MCP connects Claude, Codex, Cursor and other compatible assistants to live cap table data, but access is read-only; it is included on Team and Pro.

Pricing

Cake has a free tier and paid plans. The Free plan costs nothing, requires no credit card and includes five stakeholders, cap tables, stock options and SAFE notes. That is a practical entry point for a very small company, but the five-stakeholder ceiling may make it a short-lived fit as ownership expands.

Build costs $1,000 a year, billed annually, and includes 25 stakeholders; each additional stakeholder costs $1. Team costs $2,750 a year, billed annually, includes 40 stakeholders and charges $5 per additional stakeholder. Team is annual only. Compared with Build, it provides a higher included stakeholder allowance and access to Cake MCP, but its additional-stakeholder rate is higher.

Pro uses custom pricing, with annual billing and quarterly billing available. It includes 100 stakeholders, then charges $60 per additional stakeholder. Pro also includes priority support through a dedicated Slack channel. Its larger allowance and support may suit teams with more complex administration, but the per-extra-stakeholder charge makes headcount an important cost consideration.

Free is the lowest-commitment way to begin; Build and Team have published annual prices, while Pro requires a custom quote. The Free allowance is five stakeholders, compared with 25 on Build, 40 on Team and 100 on Pro.

Platforms

Cake supports Android, iOS and web. It is optimized for mobile browsers and can be added to an iPhone or Android home screen without downloading an app-store application, which offers mobile access without a separate store installation.

Who it's for

Cake is a strong fit for startups that want cap table administration, fundraising support and employee equity in the same platform, particularly those with investor and employee stakeholders to serve. The Free plan accommodates only five stakeholders; companies beyond that scale need to consider paid tiers and the cost of additional stakeholders. Its listed compliance tools are US-focused, and the assistant connection is read-only, so it is less suitable for buyers expecting international compliance coverage or AI-driven changes to records.

Pros and cons

• Broad ownership workflow: Cap tables, financing instruments, employee awards and stakeholder portals sit together, reducing the need to treat each as an entirely separate workflow.
• Useful migration assurance: Free migration includes human review and reconciliation before data goes live.
• Clear small-team entry point: The Free plan costs nothing and includes cap tables, stock options and SAFE notes, but stops at five stakeholders.
• Costs rise with stakeholder count: Build and Team charge for each stakeholder beyond their included limits, and Pro charges $60 per additional stakeholder.
• Regional and integration boundaries: Listed compliance capabilities are US-focused, while Cake MCP is read-only and limited to Team and Pro.

Alternatives

Eqvista is worth comparing for teams seeking a free cap table and ESOP option: its free plan supports fewer than 20 stakeholders and includes vesting schedules, stakeholder accounts and a data room.

Vquity offers a free plan billed forever for one company and up to 10 stakeholders, making it an alternative for a smaller company looking for access to all modules within that cap.

EquityList may suit teams interested in a free plan with 10 stakeholders and a lifetime allowance of 1,000 AI credits.

Fidelity Private Shares is an alternative for companies with fewer than $1M raised that want a free Launch plan for up to 25 stakeholders, including cap table management, equity plan generation and scenario modeling.

Ledgy offers a free Launch plan capped at 50 stakeholders, with equity plans and grants and simple vesting, making it a larger free-tier allowance to compare.

Computershare BoardWorks is a paid alternative with all modules included and unlimited committees; additional users are charged.

Empower Health and Welfare Benefits Administration is a paid alternative with pricing available by contacting an Empower representative.

Salary.com CompXL is a paid alternative whose pricing requires a personalized demo.

Verdict

Choose Cake if your startup needs a connected home for ownership records, fundraising instruments, employee awards and investor access, with US compliance capabilities in the mix. Its main advantage is that breadth; its main drawbacks are stakeholder-based costs and the US focus of its compliance tools. Teams with very small ownership groups can start free, but should compare alternatives before committing as the stakeholder count grows.