The short answer
Crunchbase is a private-company intelligence platform (company profiles, funding rounds, valuations, forecasts) with published plans from $49/month billed annually. Zalarma is an investor database for startup founders: search 33,282 US startup investors by stage, check size, sector, state and investor type, with access by request and a free match list.
- Crunchbase starts from companies; Zalarma starts from investors and fit.
- Crunchbase Pro is $49/month billed annually (intro offer) or $99/month monthly; Business starts at $199/month billed annually (checked 2026-11-09).
- Zalarma has 33,282 US startup-investor records, each citing its public source (Zalarma investor database, as of 2026-11-01).
- Choose Crunchbase for company, market and competitor research; choose Zalarma for a fit-first investor list and warm-intro plan.
- Many founders use both.
Crunchbase and Zalarma both help you research investors, but they start from different places. Crunchbase is a private-company intelligence platform: company profiles, funding rounds, valuations, forecasts and investor activity, used by sales teams, investors, analysts and founders. Zalarma is an investor database built for one job: helping founders outside the usual circles find the angels, angel groups, micro-VCs, family offices and regional funds that fit their stage, sector and city, and plan a warm path in.
This page sets them side by side so you can pick the right tool (or use both). Crunchbase details come from its official pricing, product and help pages, checked on 2026-11-09. Prices change, so confirm on the vendor's site before you buy.
At a glance
| Zalarma | Crunchbase | |
|---|---|---|
| Who it's for | Pre-seed to Series A founders, especially outside Silicon Valley and the big accelerator circuit, who need investors that fit their round. | Individuals and teams researching private companies: sales and go-to-market teams, investors, analysts and entrepreneurs. |
| Data coverage focus | Investors. 85,848 investor and firm records in total, including 33,282 US records tagged as startup investors (angels, VCs, micro-VCs, family offices, corporate VCs, accelerators). Each record cites its public source. (Zalarma investor database, as of 2026-11-01) | Companies. Firmographics, funding history and rounds, investors, valuations, people and contacts, growth and heat scores, investor insights, "likely investors", and funding, acquisition and IPO forecasts. |
| Pricing (as published, checked 2026-11-09) | No published price. Request access to the database, or ask for a free match list. | Pro: $49/month billed annually (an introductory 38% off for new users' first year, shown against $79), or $99/month billed monthly Both billing options start with a free trial. Business: starting at $199/month billed annually. Custom Data Solutions: custom pricing. |
| Strengths | Filters built around investor fit: stage, check size, sector, state/metro and investor type. Investor profiles with focus, stages and portfolio signals. Watchlists, alerts, CSV export. A "Get matched with 5 investors" service. | Broad private-company coverage, funding-round history, market and valuation insights, private-company forecasts, saved searches and lists (up to 100 each on Pro, unlimited on Business), and CRM and workflow integrations on Business (Salesforce, HubSpot, Zapier, Outreach). |
| Limits | Not a company-intelligence platform: it doesn't try to track every private company's financials, valuations or exit forecasts. CSV export is quota-limited; research briefs are on premium. US startup-investor focus. | Built for many use cases, so a founder's investor search runs through company and funding-round records. Pro exports are capped at 2,000 rows a month (5,000 on Business) and search results at 1,000 per search. |
| Best for | Building a fit-first target list of investors for your round, especially local and non-obvious ones, and planning warm introductions. | Researching companies, competitors and markets, tracking funding news, and checking who has backed companies like yours. |
How they differ in practice
Starting point: companies vs investors
Crunchbase's own materials describe a product built around private companies: their profiles, funding, growth signals and forecasts. Investor information is there too (funding rounds list the investors, and Pro includes investor insights and a "likely investors" view), but the unit of the product is the company.
Zalarma's unit is the investor. You search by the things that decide whether an investor can say yes to you: the stages they write, their check size, the sectors they back, where they are, and what type of investor they are. If you're a healthcare founder in Columbus raising $750k, you start with investors who fit that, not with a list of companies to reverse-engineer.
Who's in the data
Founders outside the main tech hubs usually raise their early rounds from angels, angel groups, family offices, micro-VCs and regional funds. Zalarma is built to surface them: 10,508 of the US startup investors with a known state are based outside California, New York and Massachusetts, and 8,652 list pre-seed as a stage they invest in (Zalarma investor database, as of 2026-11-01). We publish investors by type and by stage so you can see the shape of your options before you search.
From list to introduction
Crunchbase gives you research, lists and exports. Zalarma aims at the next step too: each investor profile shows the context that makes a warm path possible (focus, stages, portfolio signals and the source behind the record), and the match service hands you 5 hand-picked investors for your round, each with a one-line why-they-fit. Our warm intro playbook covers the rest.
Pricing model
Crunchbase publishes self-serve prices for Pro and a starting price for Business. Zalarma doesn't publish a price; access is by request, and you can ask for a free match list to see whether the fit is right before anything else.
When to choose Crunchbase instead
- You need company intelligence, not just investors. Competitor research, market sizing, funding history and valuation estimates are Crunchbase's core.
- You're also using it for sales. If you'll prospect customers with the same tool, Crunchbase's company data and CRM integrations (on Business) cover both jobs.
- You want a published, self-serve price and a free trial you can start today.
- You're tracking specific companies and want alerts on their funding rounds and news.
Many founders use both: Crunchbase to understand their market and see who funded similar companies, and Zalarma to turn that into a fit-first investor list and a plan for introductions.
When Zalarma fits better
- You're raising pre-seed or seed and need investors who write your check size in your sector and region.
- You don't have an investor network and want to find angels, angel groups and family offices near you.
- You want each record's public source so you can check it before you reach out.
- You'd rather start from 5 hand-picked investors than from a blank search box.
How to decide in 10 minutes
- Write one sentence about your round: stage, amount, sector, city.
- Ask which tool answers "who should I talk to?" fastest for that sentence.
- If your main need is market and company research, start a Crunchbase trial.
- If your main need is a target list of investors who fit, read our pre-seed playbook and ask Zalarma for a free match list.
Frequently asked questions
Is Zalarma a replacement for Crunchbase?
Not for company research. Crunchbase covers private companies, funding rounds, valuations and forecasts. Zalarma focuses on investors and helping founders find the ones who fit their round.
How much does Crunchbase cost?
On 2026-11-09 Crunchbase's pricing page listed Pro at $49/month billed annually (an introductory offer for new users) or $99/month billed monthly, and Business starting at $199/month billed annually. Check crunchbase.com for current prices.
How much does Zalarma cost?
Zalarma doesn't publish a price. Access to the database is by request, and you can ask for a free match list of investors for your round.
Can I use both?
Yes. A common split is Crunchbase for market and competitor research and Zalarma for building the investor target list and planning introductions.
Where does Zalarma's data come from?
Every investor record cites the public source it came from, so you can check it yourself. Anyone can request a correction or removal.