Crunchbase vs Owler (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Owler grades higher than Crunchbase: 2.0 against 1.8 out of 4.0.
Checked Nov 12, 2026 · graded Nov 12, 2026 by ToolGPA
Owler grades higher on the free plan. They get the same grade on value for money, features, ease of use and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Crunchbase
Private company data with funding and growth predictions
Free trial
Which one is for you
Pick Crunchbase if
- Fits if you research startups, funding and investors
- Works for sellers who time outreach to a funding round
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you want contact details, as the pages read don't mention direct emails or phones
- Tight if you export a lot: 2,000 rows a month on Pro and 5,000 on Business
- Skip it if you want a price, as none is shown and Business is by sales only
- Watch out: the trial's length and terms aren't stated
Pick Owler if
- Fits if you want to follow rivals and get news alerts
- Works for someone who wants a free account to try company profiles
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you want contact details, as the pages read centre on company data and news
- Tight if you follow many companies: the free account follows 5
- Watch out: no plan prices are recorded, and the pricing page wouldn't load for us
- Watch out: the home page cites 150M-plus contacts, but the product pages read here don't show them
How we grade them
| 1.8GPACrunchbaseWeak | 2.0GPAOwlerFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CNo price was readable because the pricing page returned a bot check. Business is sold through sales. | CNo plan prices are on record, because the pricing page couldn't be read. Nothing to set against the $49 middle. |
| Free plan and trial | DA free trial on Pro, but its length and terms aren't stated. No free plan on record. | CThe free Community account has no card and follows up to 5 companies. You'll hit that fast. |
| Features | CFunding and investor data, growth and heat scores, tracking and exports. It does not mention contact emails or phones, which most of this category is about. | CCompany profiles, a competitor graph, search and news alerts. It does that job fully, but it's a smaller job than finding contacts. |
| Ease of use | CNo store rating on record. Searching and filtering company data takes some learning. | CNo store rating on record. You set up which companies to follow and how alerts arrive. |
| Platforms and integrations | CWeb only, and the listing names no integrations. | CWeb and a browser extension, and the listing names no integrations. |
| Best for | funding and investor research | company news and competitor tracking |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Crunchbase and Owler. How we grade
Where they differ
- Owler also covers web clipper.
In commonWebAI featuresResearch
At a glance
| Crunchbase | Owler | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free trial | Free plan |
| Starts at | Not published | Not published |
| Free plan | None | Owler Community is free, needs no credit card and follows up to 5 companies, with company details, competitors and news alerts. |
| Free trial | Free trial offered on Crunchbase Pro; length and terms not stated where read | None listed |
| Web | ||
| Browser extension | ||
| Made by | Crunchbase Inc. | Meltwater News US Inc. |
| Price read from | Not confirmed | Not confirmed |
| Checked | Nov 12, 2026 | Nov 12, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Crunchbase
- No price was readable: the pricing page returned a bot check, so prices are not listed.
- Business, the predictive tier, is sold through sales rather than by self-serve checkout.
- Monthly exports are capped at 2,000 rows on Pro and 5,000 on Business.
- The pages read describe company, funding and signal data and do not mention direct emails or phone numbers for contacts.
Owler
- The pricing page could not be read in this session, so no plan prices are recorded here.
- The free Community account is limited to following 5 companies.
- The home page cites 150M+ verified contacts, but the product pages read here centre on company data and news.
- Owler is now part of Meltwater, according to the site footer.
Key features
Crunchbase
- Private company coverage
- The site says it holds more than 4 million private companies and processes over 30 million verified data updates a year.
- Funding and investor data
- Funding history, investor data and leadership changes for each company, with live financials.
- Growth and heat scores
- AI-powered insights such as Growth and Heat Scores that point to companies gaining momentum.
- Predictions on Business
- Crunchbase Business adds predictions on funding, growth, acquisition, IPO and other events, with CRM integrations and auto-enrichment.
- Tracking and notes
- Notifications when tracked companies change, a Kanban-style board, and notes and tags on company profiles.
- Exports
- Pro allows exports of up to 2,000 rows a month, and Business up to 5,000 rows a month.
Owler
- Company profiles
- Profiles for 20 million-plus public and private companies, with annual revenue, employee count, location, funding history, acquisitions and recent news.
- Competitor graph
- Maps 45 million-plus competitive relationships between companies, which can be used to find rivals of a prospect or to explore a whole sector.
- Advanced search
- Filters the company database by annual revenue, sector, location, employee count and public or private status.
- News alerts and Daily Snapshot
- A daily email and a newsfeed for the companies you follow, plus Instant Insights that tag breaking events such as funding, layoffs and leadership changes.
- Following limits by plan
- Owler Community follows up to 5 companies. Owler Pro follows an unlimited number of companies.
Plans
Crunchbase
Pricing could not be confirmed. See crunchbase.com.
Owler
Pricing could not be confirmed. See owler.com.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Crunchbase or Owler?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Crunchbase has no price we could confirm, and Owler has no price we could confirm.
Which has a free plan, Crunchbase or Owler?
As of Nov 12, 2026, only Owler has a free plan. Crunchbase does not, though it has a free trial.
Which platforms do Crunchbase and Owler run on?
As of Nov 12, 2026, only Owler lists a browser extension. Both list a web app. A platform missing from a listing is one its maker's pages did not mention.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.