Accounting · head to head
Carta vs Pennylane

Carta
Accounting
Cap table, equity and 409A valuation software built around United States private company practice
- From
- $29/month
- Rated
- -

Pennylane
Accounting
French tool combining business finances, accounting and a pro account in one platform
- From
- On request
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Each has a real cost: Carta pricing scales with the number of stakeholders on the cap table, so a company that grants options broadly pays a rising annual fee for employees and small angels who sign in once a year, and the cost keeps climbing after the round that justified it is spent.; Pennylane no pricing is displayed on the homepage or linked pricing page; visitors are directed only to a Demarrer maintenant (Start now) signup flow with no published EUR figure
- Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Carta and Pennylane actually diverge.
Identical on both: free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Accounting).
What each one covers
Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.
Only in Carta
- Cap table of record
- 409A valuations
- Electronic issuance
- Vesting and exercise
- Employee portal
- Scenario modelling
- Waterfall analysis
- ASC 718 expense reporting
Only in Pennylane
Nothing recorded that Carta does not also cover.
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Carta
- A startup that has just closed a priced round and whose investors and counsel expect the cap table to live somewhere they can read itnot Pennylane
- A company issuing options to employees for the first time and needing a defensible 409A before it can set a strike pricenot Pennylane
- A finance team preparing its first audit and needing ASC 718 stock compensation schedules that tie to the grant recordsnot Pennylane
- A venture fund that wants LP reporting, capital calls and SPV administration handled outside a spreadsheetnot Pennylane
Pennylane
- Automated invoicing with payment reminders and collectionsnot Carta
- Real-time cash flow visibility and financial forecastingnot Carta
- Employee expense management with card controls and workflowsnot Carta
- Automated supplier invoice payment processingnot Carta
- Mandatory e-invoicing compliance (France September 2026)not Carta
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Carta
- Pricing scales with the number of stakeholders on the cap table, so a company that grants options broadly pays a rising annual fee for employees and small angels who sign in once a year, and the cost keeps climbing after the round that justified it is spent.
- The cap table is a legal record assembled from years of board consents, so migrating to another provider means re-entering historical transactions and having counsel confirm the rebuilt table matches the signed documents, which is why most companies stay whatever they think of the service.
- The product is built around United States company law and tax practice, Delaware entities, 409A and ASC 718, so a company incorporated in the United Kingdom, Europe or elsewhere gets a record keeping tool while the valuation and compliance features that carry the price are of limited or no use.
- 409A valuations are delivered on a cadence and require a refresh after each material event or every twelve months, so a company that raises or changes materially is repeatedly back in a valuation process with fees and turnaround time attached, and a late valuation blocks option issuance.
- Carta drew sustained criticism in 2024 over how customer cap table data intersected with its secondary trading business, and although it exited that activity the episode is a live reason to check what a vendor holding your ownership record is permitted to do with it.
Pennylane
- No pricing is displayed on the homepage or linked pricing page; visitors are directed only to a Demarrer maintenant (Start now) signup flow with no published EUR figure
- The product bundles accounting, invoicing and a business bank account together, so buyers cannot subscribe to only one function
Pricing, plan by plan
Carta
$29/month- LaunchFree
- Cap table
- Stakeholder management
- Seed$360/year
- 409A valuations
- Option exercising
- Scenarios
Pennylane
On requestNo published plan breakdown. See the Pennylane review.
Which should you pick?
Choose Carta if
- You need cap table of record.
- You work on Web, Ios, Android.
- You also want 409a valuations.
Choose Pennylane if
Nothing in the data separates Pennylane from Carta on the points above - pick on price and on how each one feels to use.
Questions people ask
- Is Carta or Pennylane better?
- Neither clearly leads. Carta starts at $29/month and Pennylane at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Carta or Pennylane?
- Carta starts at $29/month and Pennylane at On request.
- Does Carta or Pennylane run on more platforms?
- Carta runs on Web, Ios, Android. Pennylane runs on Web.
- What is Carta best used for?
- Carta is most often used for a startup that has just closed a priced round and whose investors and counsel expect the cap table to live somewhere they can read it, a company issuing options to employees for the first time and needing a defensible 409a before it can set a strike price, a finance team preparing its first audit and needing asc 718 stock compensation schedules that tie to the grant records, a venture fund that wants lp reporting, capital calls and spv administration handled outside a spreadsheet. Of those, a startup that has just closed a priced round and whose investors and counsel expect the cap table to live somewhere they can read it and a company issuing options to employees for the first time and needing a defensible 409a before it can set a strike price are not what Pennylane is typically brought in for.
- What can Carta do that Pennylane cannot?
- Carta covers Cap table of record, 409A valuations, Electronic issuance, Vesting and exercise.
Answered from the vendors’ own pages
Carta: Do I need Carta before I have employees with options?
No. Before options exist a spreadsheet reviewed by your lawyer is usually enough. The pressure to move normally comes at a priced round, or the first time you need a 409A to set a strike price.
Pennylane: What financial processes does Pennylane help automate?
Pennylane streamlines multiple financial functions including invoice creation, expense management, payment collection, and receipt documentation. The platform centralizes data from facturation, purchasing, treasury, and accounting in one unified system.
SourceCarta: Is the 409A included in the subscription?
The subscription tiers bundle valuations differently and refreshes after material events can carry additional cost. Check what triggers a chargeable revaluation before you sign, because raising a round is exactly the moment you will need one.
Pennylane: Can Pennylane help with corporate spending control?
Yes. Pennylane provides corporate cards for employees with built-in spending controls and authorization workflows, allowing businesses to manage team expenses while maintaining visibility and approval requirements.
SourceCarta: Can my accountant get the stock compensation numbers out of it?
Yes, it produces ASC 718 expense schedules and exports. If your accounts are prepared under a different framework, expect the schedules to be a starting point that your accountant reworks rather than something they post directly.
Pennylane: Does Pennylane provide real-time financial visibility?
Yes. Pennylane's unified dashboard provides live transaction visibility and real-time cash flow monitoring across the entire business, helping teams access financial data instantly.
SourceCarta: Is it useful for a company outside the United States?
It can hold the share register and grants, and it does support some non United States structures. The 409A and United States tax workflow will not apply to you, so weigh it against local alternatives that understand your filings.
Carta: How hard is it to leave?
Harder than the export button suggests. You can export the data, but the receiving system has to reproduce every historical grant, cancellation and transfer, and someone has to verify the result against the original signed consents.
Carta: Who normally pays for it, the company or the investors?
The company, even though investors and counsel are frequent users. That is the usual complaint about the pricing model: the party paying is not the only party benefiting.
Related pages
Other head to heads
- Carta vs Airbase
- Carta vs Ramp
- Carta vs QuickBooks
- Carta vs Melio
- Carta vs Brex
- Carta vs Mercury
- Carta vs Spendbase
- Carta vs DATEV
- Carta vs Sage 50
- Carta vs Soldo
- Carta vs Yooz
- Carta vs Happay
- Carta vs Vena Solutions
- Carta vs ADP
- Carta vs Avalara
- Carta vs BlackLine
- Carta vs Chargebee
- Carta vs Cledara
- Carta vs Spendesk
- Carta vs Fyle
- Carta vs Qonto
- Carta vs Circula
- Carta vs Moss
- Carta vs IRIS KashFlow
- Carta vs FloQast
- Carta vs Hnry
- Pennylane vs Airbase
- Pennylane vs Ramp
- Pennylane vs QuickBooks
- Pennylane vs Melio
- Pennylane vs Brex
- Pennylane vs Mercury
- Pennylane vs Spendbase
- Pennylane vs DATEV
- Pennylane vs Sage 50
- Pennylane vs Soldo
- Pennylane vs Yooz
- Pennylane vs Happay
- Pennylane vs Vena Solutions
- Pennylane vs ADP
- Pennylane vs Avalara
- Pennylane vs BlackLine
- Pennylane vs Chargebee
- Pennylane vs Cledara
- Pennylane vs Spendesk
- Pennylane vs Fyle
- Pennylane vs Qonto
- Pennylane vs Circula
- Pennylane vs Moss
- Pennylane vs IRIS KashFlow
- Pennylane vs FloQast
- Pennylane vs Hnry
