What Is OpenVC, and Is It Worth Using in 2026?
OpenVC is a free startup fundraising platform: an investor directory, deck tracking, a fundraising CRM and screened deck submissions, with Premium at $99/month or $299/year as of October 2026. It suits pre-seed to Series A founders building a free target list. Round Funded is the alternative for finding investors, emailing them from your own Gmail and tracking replies.
Short verdict: worth using, with a generous free plan. The limits are volume and control: deck submissions go through OpenVC, which screens them, at 1 a day free and 5 on Premium, so you send other outreach yourself.
Per Swanbase, OpenVC (openvc.app) is a separate company from OpenVC.com, a US asset manager.
OpenVC at a Glance
| OpenVC | |
|---|---|
| What it is | A free fundraising platform: investor directory, deck tracking, CRM and screened outreach |
| Best for | Pre-seed to Series A founders building a free target list |
| Pricing | Free plan; Premium $99/month or $299/year, as of October 2026 |
| Free plan or trial | Free plan (unlimited search, 1 deck submission a day); no Premium trial |
| Founded or launched | Launched on Product Hunt in March 2021 by Stephane Nasser and Lucas Roquilly |
| Headquarters | No official address found; Angels Partners describes a small Paris-based team |
| What it does not do | Send platform outreach from your own inbox (per Angels Partners), exceed 5 deck submissions a day, or offer a non-English interface |
What OpenVC Is and How It Works
OpenVC calls itself bootstrapped and says more than 40,000 startups have used it for their fundraising.
The investor database covers VCs, angels, family offices and accelerators: 16,000+ on OpenVC's CRM page, 20,000+ on its about page and 50,000 on its upgrade page. Angels Partners, which sells its own investor database, read the live counter at 16,696 in September 2026 and says coverage skews to the US and Europe. Each profile shows thesis, check size and the preferred approach: deck, email, form or warm intro.
Pitches you send through OpenVC to Verified investors are screened for fit: a SaaS startup cannot spam 100 biotech VCs, OpenVC's co-founder said on Reddit in 2025. Deck tracking shows who opened it and for how long, and startups can join OpenVC's deal flow for investor requests.
OpenVC Pricing in 2026
OpenVC has one paid tier for founders, Premium, at $99 per month or $299 per year as of October 2026, per its pricing page and help docs. It takes no equity or success fee on your raise. Investors use OpenVC free; fund managers can add the LP Navigator at $300 a month as of October 2026, with no annual commitment.
| Plan | Price and billing (as of October 2026) | Key limits |
|---|---|---|
| Free | $0, free forever | Unlimited search, 4 filters, 1 deck submission a day, basic deck review, CRM, deck analytics |
| Premium, monthly | $99/month, cancel anytime | 5 deck submissions a day, 10 filters, Intro Finder, unlimited deck reviews, perks library |
| Premium, yearly | $299/year billed annually (shown as $25/month) | Same as monthly |
One subscription covers the whole team. With no trial and no refunds, OpenVC's FAQ suggests starting free, then paying monthly to test Premium. The pricing page lists deck analytics as free, but the same FAQ calls them a Premium feature.
A breakdown by InvestorLists.vc matches these prices. A $399 six-month plan in OpenVC's February 2025 release notes is absent from its current pricing page.
What OpenVC Does Well
OpenVC beats Round Funded on cost of entry: it has a free plan, and Round Funded has no free tier.
- A free plan with substance. OpenVC says 90% of its features are free forever, and Swanbase's 2026 review calls the free version enough for most pre-seed and seed rounds.
- Screened submissions, with an average 40% reply rate that OpenVC claims; its upgrade page gives no method or sample.
- A free CRM with deck tracking, unlimited team seats and CSV export.
- Intro Finder on Premium scans your Gmail and LinkedIn for warm-intro paths, a fair reason to pay if intros are your best channel.
Per Angels Partners' Reddit summary, founders who closed rounds repeatedly name OpenVC their main sourcing tool.
Where OpenVC Falls Short
OpenVC's limits are volume, control and data depth.
- Capped submissions. 1 deck submission a day through OpenVC free, 5 on Premium; Swanbase puts an 80-fund campaign at several weeks on the free plan.
- Not your inbox. Outreach runs through the platform, per Angels Partners.
- Thin data past the big names. Founders on Reddit report outdated or vague entries beyond well-known funds, per Angels Partners.
- Few independent reviews. None on Trustpilot, G2 or Capterra as of September 2026, per Angels Partners; Product Hunt's 4.7 rests on 3 reviews.
- No KYC. OpenVC's co-founder said on Reddit in 2025 that investors are verified from public sources, sometimes with proof of past investments for angels. The same comment says OpenVC runs no KYC or AML checks, so founders remain responsible for their own safety.
- English-only interface, no trial, no refunds, per Swanbase and OpenVC's own FAQ.
OpenVC vs Round Funded
OpenVC is the stronger free directory; Round Funded is a paid system to find, email and track investors. Our Round Funded vs OpenVC comparison goes deeper.
| Criteria | OpenVC | Round Funded |
|---|---|---|
| Investors | 16,000+ to 20,000+ on its CRM and about pages; 50,000 on its upgrade page | 60,000+ active, filtered to a check in the last 6 months |
| Price (as of October 2026) | Free; Premium $99/month or $299/year | Round+ $99/month, Round Pro $249/month, Lifetime $899 one-time |
| Free option | Free plan, no Premium trial | No free tier; 3-day free trial on Round+ and Round Pro for first-time accounts, card required |
| Outreach | Through OpenVC, screened | From your own Gmail |
| CRM and pipeline | Free CRM with no limits: tasks, notes, follow-ups, unlimited seats, CSV export | Up to 2,500 investors in your pipeline on Round+, 5,000 on Round Pro; CSV export with a monthly cap |
| Volume | 1 deck submission a day through OpenVC free, 5 on Premium | Email up to 1,000 investors a month on Round+, 5,000 on Round Pro |
| Deck sharing | Free deck tracking: opens and time spent | Free Data Room; per-investor analytics from $99/month as of October 2026 |
| Languages | English-only interface; messages can be in other languages | 12 languages |
OpenVC wins on cost of entry, a free CRM with no limits and warm paths, and for a small pre-seed or seed round it may be all you need. Round Funded wins on list size, Gmail outreach and a 12-language interface, filters to investors with a check in the last 6 months, and adds a free Data Room.
Best OpenVC Alternatives in 2026
The best OpenVC alternatives are Round Funded to find, email and track investors, then two pairs Swanbase recommends: Foundersuite or Visible, and Crunchbase or Dealroom. We also compare AngelMatch.
1. Round Funded: find, email and track
Round Funded fits founders who outgrow OpenVC's 1 deck submission a day (5 on Premium). Instead of platform submissions, you email up to 1,000 investors a month on Round+ (5,000 on Round Pro) from your own Gmail and log replies in a built-in pipeline. There is no free tier, only a 3-day free trial on Round+ and Round Pro for first-time accounts, card required; the Find Investors tool is free.
2. Foundersuite or Visible: investor relations with a data room
Swanbase suggests Foundersuite or Visible for full investor-relations software with a data room. If only the data room is missing, Round Funded's Data Room for Startups is free to build and share. Per-investor analytics come with Round+ at $99 a month as of October 2026.
3. Crunchbase or Dealroom: fund research
Swanbase suggests Crunchbase or Dealroom to study a fund's portfolio and recent deals before approaching it; OpenVC's upgrade page positions Premium against Crunchbase.
4. Angels Partners: a free tier for browsing investors
Angels Partners, a competitor whose review is cited here, has a free tier for browsing its investor database, no credit card required, plus paid plans.
| Logo | Tool | Best for | Price (as of October 2026) |
|---|---|---|---|
 | Round Funded | Finding, emailing and tracking investors | $99 or $249/month, or $899 one-time |
 | Foundersuite | Investor relations with a data room | Not covered here |
 | Visible | Investor relations with a data room | Not covered here |
 | Crunchbase | Researching a fund's recent deals | Not covered here |
 | Dealroom | Researching a fund's recent deals | Not covered here |
| Angels Partners | Browsing an investor database on a free tier | Free tier; paid plans |
Who Should Use OpenVC
- Use OpenVC if you are raising pre-seed or seed on a budget and a few pitches a week is enough.
- Use Round Funded if 5 deck submissions a day is too slow and you want to email from your own Gmail; start with the free Investor Match.
- Use Foundersuite or Visible if you want investor-relations software with a data room, or Crunchbase or Dealroom if you need fund research.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does OpenVC cost?
OpenVC is free; Premium costs $99 a month or $299 a year as of October 2026 and covers the whole startup team. There is no trial, purchases are final, and OpenVC takes no equity or success fee. Investors use OpenVC free; the LP Navigator add-on for fund managers costs $300 a month as of October 2026, with no annual commitment.
Does OpenVC have a free plan or a free trial?
OpenVC has a free plan but no Premium trial. Free covers unlimited investor search, 4 filters, 1 deck submission a day, the CRM and deck analytics. Round Funded is the reverse: no free tier, but a 3-day free trial for first-time accounts, card required, on Round+ and Round Pro.
Is OpenVC legit, and what do reviews say?
Yes. Angels Partners, a rival investor database, calls it a legitimate, widely used free directory, used by more than 40,000 startups since 2021. OpenVC's co-founder said on Reddit in 2025 that it verifies investors from public sources but runs no KYC or AML checks, so vet investors yourself. Reviews are thin: Angels Partners found none on Trustpilot, G2 or Capterra as of September 2026.
What is OpenVC used for?
Founders use OpenVC as a free investor database: search investors, build a target list, send a deck through the platform and track the raise in a CRM. Investors use it free for deal flow. Round Funded's free Fundraising CRM also tracks a raise from first email to close.
How do you submit a deck on OpenVC?
You send your deck to an investor through OpenVC: 1 a day free, 5 on Premium. Submissions to Verified investors are screened for fit, and OpenVC's upgrade page claims an average 40% reply rate with no method or sample. Check each profile's preferred approach first.
What does OpenVC Premium include?
Premium raises deck submissions through OpenVC from 1 to 5 a day and search filters from 4 to 10. It adds Intro Finder for warm-intro paths via Gmail and LinkedIn, unlimited AI deck reviews and a perks library OpenVC values at $2M+. It costs $99 a month or $299 a year as of October 2026.
What is the best OpenVC alternative?
The best OpenVC alternative is Round Funded if you want to find investors and email them from your own Gmail. Per Swanbase, Foundersuite or Visible suit investor relations with a data room, and Crunchbase or Dealroom suit fund research. Our investor database comparison covers more tools.
Is Round Funded affiliated with OpenVC?
No. Round Funded is not affiliated with OpenVC. This comparison draws on OpenVC's public pages, checked in October 2026. Third-party sources are Swanbase and Angels Partners (September 2026), InvestorLists.vc (July 2026), a 2025 Reddit comment by OpenVC's co-founder and Product Hunt's review page. Round Funded sells a competing product, so verify current plans before deciding.
Final Word
OpenVC is a strong free starting point, with deck tracking and a free CRM. For more volume and outreach from your own Gmail, Round Funded is built for that job.
