Clerky is the incorporation and fundraising paperwork platform built specifically for venture-track US startups.

 

It is what most YC companies and a sizeable share of post-Series-A teams use to handle Delaware C-corp formation, SAFEs, board consents, equity grants and the long tail of corporate paperwork that piles up between incorporation and a priced round.

 

In 2026 it is also the most misunderstood tool in early-stage startup tooling, because people keep treating it as a direct competitor to Stripe Atlas when the two products solve different problems.

 

This review is the honest one.

 

We work with founders right after incorporation, on launch videos and waitlists and the rest, and we see which incorporation choice causes pain six months later.

 

What Clerky is, in one sentence

 

Clerky is a self-serve legal automation platform that turns the standard startup paperwork (incorporation, SAFEs, board consents, equity grants, 83(b) elections) into one-click document workflows reviewed by the same Silicon Valley law firms founders would otherwise hire directly.

 

It is not a registered agent service with a UI bolted on.

 

It is not a generic LegalZoom.

 

It is built by ex-Orrick and ex-Wilson Sonsini lawyers who decided the standard early-stage paperwork should be free at the margin once you have paid for the software, so that founders stop paying $400-an-hour to fill in a SAFE template they have used six times before.

 

Clerky pricing in 2026

 

Two paths.

 

Pick by how committed you are to the venture-track model.

 

Pay-per-use: $427 to incorporate as a Delaware C-corp, plus the third-party state filing fees.

 

$299 for post-incorporation setup (issuing founder stock, 83(b) filings, the board's initial consent).

 

Individual documents priced from $9 (SAFE) to $19 (convertible note) to $79 (priced-round consents) each.

 

Company Lifetime Package: $819 for incorporation plus a year of registered agent, expedited Delaware filing, annual report reminders, and full lifetime access to every document workflow Clerky ships.

 

SAFEs unlimited at $99 for six months, or unlimited at $0 after the lifetime upgrade in the year you bought it.

 

State fees on top, $89 for Delaware, $50 if you need expedited turnaround.

 

Registered agent renewal after year one is around $100.

 

No subscription beyond that.

 

For comparison: Stripe Atlas is $500 one-time with $2,500 in Stripe credits and $50k+ partner perks.

 

Firstbase is $399.

 

Capbase is $999/year with cap table software bundled in.

 

Northwest is $39 for the agent alone, no incorporation included.

 

What Clerky does better than anyone else

 

SAFE workflows.

 

The single best thing Clerky does.

 

You draft, sign, countersign, escrow and store SAFEs in one tool, with the cap table side correctly reflected, with both parties using the same audited template.

 

A typical YC company will issue eight to fifteen SAFEs between the first cheque and a priced seed, and Clerky reduces each one from "send a Google Doc to your lawyer for $300" to "click the workflow for $9".

 

Over the life of a seed-stage company that one workflow saves real money.

 

Post-incorporation paperwork.

 

The 83(b) election, the initial board consent, the founder stock issuance, the IP assignment, the at-will employment agreements.

 

Most incorporation tools dump you on a Delaware filing and walk away.

 

Clerky walks you through what to file with the IRS in the first 30 days, what your co-founder needs to sign, and what to put in a digital safe for the day a VC asks for it.

 

Document escrow.

 

When you close a round you need every signature in one place, time-stamped, with a clean audit trail.

 

Clerky's escrow is built for the closing, not as a generic e-signature tool.

 

Lawyers on the other side of the table know it and trust it, which speeds things up at the end.

 

Lawyer-grade defaults.

 

Every template ships from the same firms VCs work with.

 

There is no "did we use the right SAFE?" anxiety, because Clerky's SAFE is the one your investors already expect.

 

Where Clerky falls short

 

Delaware-only.

 

If you need to incorporate in Wyoming, California or your home state, Clerky cannot help you.

 

This is rare for venture-track companies (Delaware is the answer 95% of the time) but disqualifying if you are not.

 

No founder hand-holding.

 

The UI is precise but assumes you know what an 83(b) election is and why you are doing it.

 

First-time founders can feel lost.

 

Atlas wraps the same paperwork in a friendlier guided flow.

 

No cap table software.

 

Clerky generates the paperwork that creates equity but does not maintain the live cap table the way Carta or Capbase does.

 

After your second round you will likely move to one of those for ongoing management.

 

No tax, no compliance, no banking.

 

Clerky is paperwork.

 

It does not file your franchise tax, it does not give you a bank account, it does not handle the post-incorporation odds and ends that Firstbase bundles.

 

If you want one tool for everything, Clerky is not it.

 

Four real alternatives, ranked by founder type

 

1. Stripe Atlas, for the first-time founder who wants the easiest start

 

$500 one-time.

 

Best onboarding flow in the category, $2,500 in Stripe credits, $50k+ in partner perks (AWS, OpenAI, Notion, others), and a registered agent year one.

 

The Atlas community is real, the Slack is active, and the founder forms guide you through choices that would otherwise be coin flips.

 

The tradeoff is the SAFE workflow after year one is less elegant than Clerky and lifetime document access is not included.

 

If you are first-time, first-cheque pre-seed, start with Atlas.

 

Switch to Clerky for SAFEs if you start raising heavily.

 

2. Firstbase, for the international founder incorporating in the US

 

$399 for incorporation plus EIN, US business address, registered agent and ongoing compliance reminders.

 

Stronger than Clerky for non-US founders because the international payment and tax handling is built in.

 

Weaker than Clerky for fundraising workflows.

 

If you are based outside the US and you want to raise from US investors, Firstbase plus Mercury is the standard 2026 stack.

 

3. Capbase, for the team that wants cap table and paperwork in one place

 

$999/year.

 

Bundles incorporation, cap table software, equity issuance, compliance calendar, registered agent, fundraising tools and a lawyer review channel.

 

The annual fee model is the right pick if you want a single tool to live with for the long run, especially through a priced round.

 

The downside is the cost compounds over five years, where Clerky's one-time fee does not.

 

4. Northwest Registered Agent, for the founder who only needs the agent

 

$39 for the registered agent service, no incorporation bundled.

 

The right pick if you already have your formation paperwork done by a lawyer and just need a Delaware registered agent.

 

Privacy-focused, no upsells.

 

The wrong pick for anyone trying to use it as an incorporation platform, that is not what it is for.

 

Real pick by founder type

 

First-time founder, pre-seed, US-based: Stripe Atlas.

 

Onboarding wins matter more than long-term SAFE economics when you are still figuring out what you are building.

 

Venture-track, planning to raise within 12 months: Clerky Lifetime Package.

 

The SAFE workflow alone justifies the $819 once you cross five drafts.

 

International founder raising from US investors: Firstbase.

 

Bundles the parts Clerky leaves to you (US address, payment rails, compliance).

 

Post-seed, building a finance function: Capbase or Carta.

 

You will outgrow paperwork-only tools the moment you have a real cap table to manage.

 

Already incorporated, just need an agent: Northwest, every time.

 

What incorporation choice actually affects six months later

 

We see this part because our work starts after incorporation.

 

The choice matters in three concrete ways.

 

How fast you can issue your first SAFEs.

 

Founders who picked Clerky issue their first SAFE in under an hour.

 

Founders who picked a cheaper non-startup tool spend two weeks getting their lawyer to template one, and by then the investor's enthusiasm has cooled.

 

Whether your 83(b) election is on file.

 

If you miss the 30-day window after founder stock issuance, the tax bill on a future acquisition can be six or seven figures.

 

Clerky and Atlas both walk you through this.

 

Cheap tools and most lawyers leave it as a footnote you have to remember.

 

Whether your closing is a fire drill.

 

A clean SAFE escrow and signed board consents on the day of close is the difference between a calm Friday and a panicked weekend.

 

Clerky was built for this moment specifically.

 

Generic tools are not.

 

If you are about to launch and the incorporation question feels like a distraction, our waitlist landing page guide covers the next thing you should be obsessing over, and our YC application guide covers what comes after that.

 

The two-paragraph summary if you only read this far

 

Clerky is the right answer if you are venture-track, US-based, planning to raise SAFEs in the next year, and willing to learn the paperwork yourself.

 

The $819 Lifetime Package pays back inside the first five SAFEs and the workflow quality at closing is genuinely best-in-class.

 

If you are first-time and pre-product, start with Atlas, and switch to Clerky the moment you raise your first cheque.

 

If you are mid-launch and the paperwork question is taking up brain cycles that should be on the product, get it done in a single afternoon with whichever of the four fits you above.

 

The right answer is not the cheapest, it is the one that gets out of the way fastest.

 

See State of Launch Videos 2026 for what to do with the time you save.

 

Authoritative sources used in this review: Y Combinator's resources library, the SEC for Reg D guidance, IRS for 83(b) filing rules, Delaware Division of Corporations for filing fees.

 

Frequently asked questions

 

How much does Clerky cost in 2026?

 

Two main paths.

 

Pay-per-use incorporation is $427 plus third-party state fees.

 

The Company Lifetime Package is $819 and bundles incorporation, expedited filing, one year of registered agent, annual report reminders and lifetime document workflows.

 

SAFEs are $9 each or $99 for six months of unlimited drafts.

 

Convertible notes are $19 each or $99 for six months unlimited.

 

Is Clerky better than Stripe Atlas?

 

Different products.

 

Atlas is $500 one-time, optimised for the first 90 days (Stripe credits, partner perks, registered agent year one) and easier if you have never incorporated.

 

Clerky's edge shows up later: lifetime SAFE and board consent workflows, cleaner cap table paperwork through fundraising, and better document escrow at closing.

 

If you plan to raise in the next 12 months, Clerky pays for itself.

 

Who is Clerky NOT for?

 

Solo bootstrappers who will never raise outside capital, US founders incorporating in their home state (Clerky is Delaware-only), and anyone who needs hand-holding through the actual filing.

 

Clerky is a self-serve power tool.

 

If you want a concierge, look at Firstbase or Capbase.

 

Can Clerky replace a startup lawyer?

 

For the standard paperwork yes.

 

Incorporation, post-incorporation setup, SAFEs, board consents, advisor agreements, 83(b) elections, employee equity grants.

 

Where you still want a lawyer: priced equity rounds, IP assignments from prior employers, anything custom in your charter, and acquisition diligence.

 

Clerky reduces lawyer hours, it does not eliminate them.

 

Is Clerky's lifetime package worth $819?

 

If you are venture-track, yes.

 

The break-even is roughly four to five SAFEs over the life of the company, which most YC-style companies cross in their first 18 months.

 

If you are unsure whether you'll raise, start with the $427 pay-per-use plan and upgrade later.

 

The price difference is not the reason to choose Clerky, the workflow quality is.

 

If you are a venture-track founder gearing up for a launch, we make the launch videos.