SeedLegals vs Carta: which platform to choose for cap table, SEIS/EIS, funding and options

The days of painstakingly tracking equity allocation on a series of spreadsheets are over. Today, startup founders can choose from platforms that help manage equity, issue shares, raise investment and run employee share schemes — all from a single dashboard.

In this guide, we compare SeedLegals and Carta across the areas that matter most to UK startups:

• Managing your cap table and shareholders
• Navigating the SEIS/EIS process, including Advance Assurance, confirming with HMRC and sending final certificates to investors
• Creating the legal agreements you need to take equity investment
• Running EMI and other share options schemes
• Getting experienced, to-the-point support when you need it

There’s obviously no point hiding our bias😉

Carta is a well-known equity management platform used by companies around the world. SeedLegals was built specifically for startup founders and investors, with a strong focus on the practical realities of fundraising and company building in the UK.

Here’s why we think SeedLegals is the better choice for UK startups – especially at an early stage:

• Clear, transparent pricing
• Unlimited support from startup specialists
• Market-leading expertise in SEIS/EIS and fundraising
• A founder and investor community designed to help you build momentum as you raise

Price: clear, capped costs with SeedLegals

Carta structures its plans around equity management and company growth stages. Its Launch plan is available free for eligible early-stage companies, with additional features available on higher-tier plans.

SeedLegals separates pricing based on what founders are trying to achieve. Access gives you the essentials to run your company, including cap table management, legal documents, board tools and document signing. As your needs evolve, you can choose dedicated plans for fundraising (Funding) or employee share schemes (Options).

This gives founders flexibility. If you’re not actively fundraising or running an option scheme, you don’t need to pay for those features. When you are ready, you can add specialist tools, support and discounts designed for that stage of your journey. For a full breakdown of the membership plans and services, head over to our pricing page.

For founders looking beyond cap table management, SeedLegals combines company administration, fundraising and employee equity tools with specialist support designed for UK startups.

🔍 To compare the services and functionalities SeedLegals and Carta offer for cap tables, fundraising and options, stay with us – we explain it all below.

SeedLegals or Carta: ratings and reviews

SeedLegals has earned 100s of 5-star ratings, many of which celebrate our helpful, fast customer service and how simple we make it to get important things done. Check out our Trustpilot page to see what UK founders are saying about us.

Cap table: Map, manage and model with SeedLegals or Carta

It all starts with your cap table. As the nerve centre of your business, a well-managed cap table keeps track of every stakeholder’s ownership, from your earliest investors to your expanding team. It also reflects the growth of your business, including capital injections and the creation of an option pool to incentivise your team with equity.

Investors will look closely at your cap table – it needs to be clear, without any inconsistencies or red flags. Software solutions, like those offered by SeedLegals and Carta, make it easy to maintain a clean, up-to-date cap table, ensuring transparency and confidence as you scale your business.

Funding: SEIS/EIS investment agreements and fundraising support

Both SeedLegals and Carta help founders manage fundraising and equity transactions. They also offer tools to support companies through the SEIS/EIS process, helping founders make their investment opportunity more attractive to UK investors.

Where SeedLegals stands out is its focus on the realities of fundraising for UK startups.

With SeedLegals, founders can raise through SeedFASTs (our version of an ASA, similar to a SAFE), complete a priced funding round, issue follow-on investments and manage the legal documents needed throughout the process. Everything is designed to work together, helping founders move quickly while keeping their cap table and legal documents organised.

Fundraising isn’t just about generating documents. Founders also need guidance on structuring their raise, navigating SEIS/EIS requirements and understanding the implications of the decisions they’re making. That’s why SeedLegals combines software with specialist support from experienced fundraising and legal teams.

SeedLegals is fully tuned in to the UK early-stage startup scene

When it comes to the UK early-stage startup scene, SeedLegals is completely in tune with the needs of founders.

No one handles more SEIS applications, pre-seed or seed-stage rounds in the UK than SeedLegals, making it the go-to platform for early-stage companies. While Carta brings incredible insights into later-stage funding and larger rounds, our deep knowledge of SEIS/EIS tax relief schemes and early-stage fundraising sets us apart.

SeedLegals is specifically designed for UK founders, with expert guidance and automated tools that simplify the process, helping startups secure investment and grow from the ground up.

SeedLegals Funding – the complete fundraising package from £1,199/year + VAT

The SeedLegals Funding plan gives founders everything they need to get investor-ready, reach out to investors, build momentum for their raise and close with confidence.

Funding includes:

• One free SEIS/EIS Advance Assurance or Compliance application
• Plus £100 off Compliance if you’ve already used your free Advance Assurance
• Discounted Flex credits for fundraising services
• No engagement fee to open a funding round or create a Term Sheet
• Dedicated support from your account manager
• Priority fundraising support from the SeedLegals team
• £100 off SeedLegals Boost – the fundraising package that helps you reach the right investors, build credibility and strengthen your SEIS/EIS Advance Assurance application
• Discount on your R&D tax credit opening fee, so you can start your claim for less
• Founder community access and invitations to exclusive events

Unlike a traditional legal engagement, Funding gives founders a predictable way to access fundraising tools, support and services throughout their raise.

No matter whether you’re raising through a SeedFAST, preparing for a priced round or managing follow-on investments, SeedLegals gives you the tools and support to keep momentum high and fundraising costs under control.

Share option schemes: EMI, Unapproved and growth shares

Option schemes reward employees with equity, giving them a stake in the business’s success. It’s a powerful way to align the team’s long-term incentives and attract top talent without upfront cash outlays.

Using platforms like SeedLegals or Carta makes this process seamless. These platforms handle all the complex legal documents, valuations, and compliance, allowing founders to focus on building their business while ensuring their team is motivated and invested in its future.

Companies have a few choices when it comes to option scheme types.

• EMI (Enterprise Management Incentives): A tax-advantaged option scheme designed for UK startups with fewer than 250 employees, offering significant tax benefits to both the company and employees.
• Unapproved Options: Flexible options for companies that don’t qualify for EMI or need to grant options to international employees or advisors, though without the same tax advantages.
• CSOP (Company Share Option Plan): A scheme aimed at larger companies (typically beyond the startup phase), offering tax advantages but with stricter eligibility criteria and higher limits on grant sizes.
• Growth Shares: These are typically used to reward employees for growth above a set valuation, aligning incentives with company performance, often in later-stage companies.

The SeedLegals Options plan covers all your employee equity requirements for just £2,699/ year + VAT, including unlimited EMI and unapproved option schemes, EMI valuations, and all the required legal documents​.

With Carta, you’ll need the Grow plan to create an EMI share option scheme and build an EMI valuation.

Talk to the startup experts

Fast and affordable access to top-quality legal documents and unlimited legal support – we make it simple to get SEIS/EIS Advance Assurance, all funding deal legals and option schemes done.

✅ Live platform chat support, plus unlimited task-specific support
✅ Fundraising strategy support from your dedicated account manager (with a Funding plan)
✅ Data insights from the 60,000 companies using SeedLegals – see how we use our data to help you make the right decisions for your business on the Termometer
✅ Guided workflow with built-in tutorials
✅ An invite to our exclusive Founder WhatsApp group
✅ A full programme of free webinars and events, plus networking opportunities and discounts on ticket prices
✅ Access to 500+ articles and guides, packed with expert insights from investors and successful entrepreneurs
✅ Exclusive offers and perks worth over £45k

We’ve supported over 60,000 companies to raise over £2B to date. Book a demo to find out how we can help you too.