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Carta vs Mercury: startup credits compared

Side-by-side amounts, eligibility and access paths, both verified against the official program pages.

At a glance

FactCartaMercury
ValueFree cap table (Carta Launch) up to 25 stakeholders and $1M raised; 20% off paid plans via perks platformsPartner perks for Mercury customers (e.g. $5,000 AWS, $10,000 GitHub, 6 months Notion)
TypeFree planCredits + discount
DurationNot statedNot stated
StagesPre-seed, Seed, BootstrappedPre-seed, Seed, Series A, Series B+, Bootstrapped
RegionsGlobalUnited States
Max funding raised$1,000,000Not stated
Max company ageNot statedNot stated
Ways to get it
  • Apply directly — Free Carta Launch plan
  • Ramp — 20% off first year + waived implementation fees
  • Brex — 20% off first year
  • Mercury — 20% off
  • Apply directly — Full perks catalogue in the Mercury dashboard
Requirements
  • Up to 25 stakeholders on the cap table
  • Up to $1 million raised
  • Certificate of incorporation available at sign-up
  • US-incorporated company with an approved Mercury account
  • Qualified customer status for each perk (partner terms apply)
Not eligible
  • Companies above 25 stakeholders or $1M raised (must upgrade to a paid plan)
  • Companies needing a 409A valuation (paid Grow plan or higher)
  • Perks with partner gates you do not meet (e.g. bootstrapped companies for the GitHub perk)
  • Existing customers of a partner where the perk is new-customer only
VerificationVerified· Nov 3, 2026Partially verified· Nov 3, 2026

Which should you pick?

The two programs are not directly comparable on dollar value. Mercury accepts a wider range of funding stages, while Carta is more targeted. Carta is available worldwide; the other is region-restricted. Note that only Carta is fully verified against its official page; double-check the other before relying on it. If you qualify for both, there is usually no reason not to apply to both; the programs are independent.