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Investment Analytics · head to head

Preqin vs S&P Capital IQ Pro

Preqin logo

Preqin

Investment Analytics

Alternative assets data on funds, managers, investors, deals and performance

From
Free
Free plan
Yes
Full reviewWebsite
S&P Capital IQ Pro logo

S&P Capital IQ Pro

Investment Analytics

S&P Global's research platform for company, credit, sector and market data

From
On request
Free plan
No
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Preqin has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Preqin no paid prices are published; Preqin's product pages lead to a demo request, and the free account lists what it includes but not where its limits are.; S&P Capital IQ Pro no published pricing: the product page and release notes offer a demo request only, checked November 2026.
  • They diverge on capability: Preqin covers Preqin Pro, S&P Capital IQ Pro covers ChatIQ.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 12 November 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Preqin and S&P Capital IQ Pro actually diverge.

Attributes where Preqin and S&P Capital IQ Pro differ
AttributePreqinS&P Capital IQ Pro
Starting priceFreeOn request
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWeb, APIWeb, Excel, Mobile

Identical on both: pricing model (quote), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Investment Analytics).

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 Preqin

  • Preqin Pro
  • Investor (LP) profiles
  • Benchmarks and Indices
  • Term Intelligence
  • Transaction and Company Intelligence
  • Cash flow pacing and forecasting
  • Enterprise Data Solutions
  • Preqin MCP

Only in S&P Capital IQ Pro

  • ChatIQ
  • Document Intelligence
  • Screener
  • S&P Capital IQ Pro Plug-in
  • ChatIQ Spreadsheets
  • Sector and credit modules
  • Valuation tools
  • Earnings IQ alerts

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Preqin

  • Finding and qualifying LPs to approach during a fundraisenot S&P Capital IQ Pro
  • Manager selection and due diligence by LPs and investment consultantsnot S&P Capital IQ Pro
  • Benchmarking fund performance against private market peer groups and indicesnot S&P Capital IQ Pro
  • Comparing fund terms such as fees against similar fundsnot S&P Capital IQ Pro
  • Forecasting capital calls and distributions for a private markets portfolionot S&P Capital IQ Pro
  • Feeding private markets data into a data warehouse or AI workflownot S&P Capital IQ Pro

S&P Capital IQ Pro

  • Building comparable company and precedent transaction sets for M&A and valuation worknot Preqin
  • Credit analysis drawing on S&P Global Ratings research alongside company financialsnot Preqin
  • Sector research in banking, insurance, real estate, energy, and metals and miningnot Preqin
  • Querying filings and earnings call transcripts across many companies with ChatIQnot Preqin
  • Feeding refreshable company and market data into Excel modelsnot Preqin
  • Private company research and screening for deal sourcingnot Preqin

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Preqin

  • No paid prices are published; Preqin's product pages lead to a demo request, and the free account lists what it includes but not where its limits are.
  • Coverage figures are inconsistent across Preqin's own and BlackRock's pages, with firm counts of 48,000 and 67,000+ and fund counts of 135,000+, 210,000 and 235,000+, so what a licence covers has to be confirmed in a demo.
  • Performance data comes from GP-to-LP reports enriched by FOIA requests, which means coverage is strongest where public pension investors are obliged to disclose and thinner for funds without such LPs.
  • It is a private markets specialist; public equity and fixed income analytics, real-time prices and portfolio risk need a separate terminal or platform.
  • Since March 2025 Preqin is owned by BlackRock, itself a large alternatives manager, and integration into Aladdin and eFront is described only as happening over time, which leaves the standalone roadmap uncertain for firms that do not use BlackRock technology.
  • Preqin MCP is listed only for ChatGPT and works within existing entitlements, so it extends a paid licence rather than offering a separate way in.

S&P Capital IQ Pro

  • No published pricing: the product page and release notes offer a demo request only, checked November 2026.
  • Several datasets are add-on subscriptions on top of the base licence, so the content a user sees depends on what their firm has bought rather than on the product.
  • Multi-Document ChatIQ excludes Dow Jones and Nikkei news, scanned documents, insurance statutory filings and research from contributors including Goldman Sachs, Citi, Barclays and Bank of America, per the October 2025 release notes.
  • Earnings IQ alerts cover US exchange-listed companies only, per the October 2025 release notes.
  • Many of the newest AI tools are labelled beta or Labs, including Portfolio Insights and ChatIQ Presentations, as of the October 2026 announcement.
  • The product pages on spglobal.com refuse automated requests, so evaluating the product without talking to sales means relying on release notes and press releases.

Pricing, plan by plan

Preqin

Free
  • Free accountFree
    • Selected free alternative assets datasets and analytics
    • Free benchmarks
    • Industry reports and news
  • Preqin Pro and data products$undefined/mo
    • No prices published; access is arranged through a demo request
    • Preqin Pro, Benchmarks and Indices, Term Intelligence, Transaction Intelligence and Company Intelligence sold as named products
    • Global Reports included with the Private Markets Research (Insights+) subscription
  • Enterprise Data Solutions$undefined/mo
    • Priced by quotation
    • Feeds APIs, Operational APIs and data feeds
    • Snowflake and AWS marketplace listings

S&P Capital IQ Pro

On request
  • Capital IQ Pro licence$undefined/mo
    • Priced by quotation through S&P Global Market Intelligence sales, no list prices published
    • Some datasets, such as mine emissions, are separate add-on subscriptions
    • Bulk data delivery via Xpressfeed, APIs and Snowflake is sold separately

Which should you pick?

Choose Preqin if

  • You need preqin pro.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, API.
  • You also want investor (lp) profiles.
Preqin review

Choose S&P Capital IQ Pro if

  • You need chatiq.
  • You work on Web, Excel, Mobile.
  • You also want document intelligence.
S&P Capital IQ Pro review

Questions people ask

Is Preqin or S&P Capital IQ Pro better?
Neither clearly leads. Preqin starts at Free and S&P Capital IQ Pro at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Preqin or S&P Capital IQ Pro?
Preqin has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Preqin and On request for S&P Capital IQ Pro.
Does Preqin or S&P Capital IQ Pro run on more platforms?
Preqin runs on Web, API. S&P Capital IQ Pro runs on Web, Excel, Mobile.
Can I use Preqin for free?
Yes. Preqin has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. S&P Capital IQ Pro starts at On request.
What is Preqin best used for?
Preqin is most often used for finding and qualifying lps to approach during a fundraise, manager selection and due diligence by lps and investment consultants, benchmarking fund performance against private market peer groups and indices, comparing fund terms such as fees against similar funds. Of those, finding and qualifying lps to approach during a fundraise and manager selection and due diligence by lps and investment consultants are not what S&P Capital IQ Pro is typically brought in for.
What can Preqin do that S&P Capital IQ Pro cannot?
Preqin covers Preqin Pro, Investor (LP) profiles, Benchmarks and Indices, Term Intelligence. S&P Capital IQ Pro covers ChatIQ, Document Intelligence, Screener, S&P Capital IQ Pro Plug-in.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Preqin: Is Preqin owned by BlackRock?

Yes. BlackRock announced the acquisition on 30 June 2024 for £2.55 billion, approximately $3.2 billion, in cash, and announced its completion on 3 March 2025. Preqin founder Mark O'Hare joined BlackRock as a Vice Chair.

Source
S&P Capital IQ Pro: What is ChatIQ in Capital IQ Pro?

ChatIQ is the conversational AI layer in Capital IQ Pro. It answers natural-language questions across company, market, credit and economic data and over financial documents, news and research. The October 2026 update extended it to Excel modelling through ChatIQ Spreadsheets and to slide creation through ChatIQ Presentations in Labs.

Source
Preqin: Is Preqin still sold separately from Aladdin?

Yes. BlackRock states that Preqin will remain available as a standalone solution, while Preqin's data and research tools are integrated with Aladdin and eFront over time, starting with Preqin benchmarks inside Aladdin.

Source
S&P Capital IQ Pro: How many documents can Multi-Document ChatIQ analyse at once?

Up to 20, drawn from filings, transcripts, investor presentations, news and research across different companies or industries. Dow Jones and Nikkei news, scanned documents, insurance statutory filings and some contributor research are excluded.

Source
Preqin: How much does Preqin cost?

Preqin does not publish prices for Preqin Pro or its data products; its product pages lead to a demo request. A free account is available with selected datasets, free benchmarks and industry reports.

Source
S&P Capital IQ Pro: Can Capital IQ Pro data be used in Excel?

Yes. The S&P Capital IQ Pro Plug-in pulls data into Excel with formulas, a Formula Builder and a template library, and new datasets such as sustainability metrics and bond indices are added to it alongside the web platform.

Source
Preqin: Where does Preqin's data come from?

Preqin says more than 500 multilingual researchers verify data at source, using direct relationships with managers and investors, regulatory filings, press releases, news, websites and Freedom of Information Act requests. Fund performance data is sourced from GP-to-LP reports and enriched via FOIA requests.

Source
S&P Capital IQ Pro: How much does S&P Capital IQ Pro cost?

S&P Global does not publish prices. Access is licensed through its sales team after a demo, and some datasets are sold as add-on subscriptions.

Source
Preqin: Can Preqin data be delivered into our own systems?

Yes, through Enterprise Data Solutions: Feeds APIs for bulk structured datasets, Operational APIs for targeted on-demand access such as CRM views, more than 100 data feeds, and listings on the Snowflake and AWS marketplaces.

Source
S&P Capital IQ Pro: Can the AI screener build screens from plain English?

Yes. Since October 2025 the Companies screener has an optional AI-assisted mode that converts a natural-language description into screening criteria, which can then be refined manually. It is switched on in Screener settings.

Source
Preqin: Does Preqin work with AI tools?

Preqin MCP brings Preqin data into AI workflows and is available on the ChatGPT Marketplace and through ChatGPT for Financial Services. It operates within a client's existing entitlements and complements Preqin Pro rather than replacing it.

Source
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