Rent Butter
Rent Butter is a Chicago-based tenant screening platform that uses real-time bank transaction analytics, identity verification, and fraud detection to help U.S. property managers and landlords screen applicants in under five minutes via direct sales and PMS integrations.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2021
- HeadquartersChicago, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What Rent Butter does
Rent Butter is a Chicago-based tenant screening SaaS platform serving U.S. property managers, landlords, and manufactured housing operators with portfolios of 75+ units. The platform combines identity verification, real-time bank transaction analysis (12-month history via Plaid integration), income and employment verification, credit reporting, criminal/eviction background checks, and layered fraud detection into a single screening report delivered in under five minutes. Underlying technology includes an API-first architecture, computer vision-based government-ID authentication with biometric face matching, predictive credit-behavior analytics, and a Sidecar embedded workflow that runs natively inside major property management systems including AppFolio, ManageAmerica, Rent Manager, TurboTenant, and Propertyware.
The company sells through a sales-led go-to-market combining direct enterprise field sales, inside sales, and channel partnerships with PMS vendors and complementary partners (Plaid, CredHub, Rent Reporters, PadSplit). Pricing is pure transaction-based: $25 per screening for 75-500 unit portfolios (Standard), $35 per screening for 500-5,000 unit portfolios (Professional), and custom enterprise/API pricing for 5,000+ unit operators and large owner-operators building custom screening workflows against the Butter API. The company discloses 10,000+ units under customer management and claims outcome metrics including 67% fewer non-paying tenant placements and a 36% reduction in default rates. Rent Butter is privately held, has raised approximately $7.9M across prior rounds plus a $3M growth debt facility from Bigfoot Capital in June 2026, and operates with a 35+ person team led by CEO Christopher Rankin and COO Eric Olson.
Rent Butter firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Rent Butter
- Legal name
- Rent Butter, Inc.
- Website
- https://rentbutter.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2021
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Rent Butter is a Chicago-based tenant screening platform that uses real-time bank transaction analytics, identity verification, and fraud detection to help U.S. property managers and landlords screen applicants in under five minutes via direct sales and PMS integrations.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Rent Butter industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Tenant Screening Software
- NAICS
- Offices of Real Estate Agents and Brokers (53121)
- SIC
- Real Estate Agents & Managers (For Others) (6531), Services-Consumer Credit Reporting, Collection Agencies (7320)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Tenant & Rental Background Screening (BPAKAEAB)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Residential Lease Administration & Tenant Services (BPAJAFAL)
Keywords
Where Rent Butter is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Chicago
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Rent Butter business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Transaction-based Screening Fees: Rent Butter charges per-transaction fees for screening reports. Pricing tiers are based on portfolio size: Standard Plan ($25/transaction) for 75-500 units, Professional Plan ($35/transaction) for 500-5,000 units, and custom enterprise pricing for larger operators. No subscription fees; pure pay-per-use model.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Standard Plan - $25/transaction for 75-500 unit portfolios |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Professional Plan - $35/transaction for 500-5,000 unit portfolios |
| Transaction based/ take rate | Multi-year contract | Enterprise/Custom Plan - Custom pricing for large-scale operators and API clients |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Individual Landlord Plan - For 1-75 unit portfolios |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels7 records
Rent Butter product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Rent Butter sells a cloud-based tenant screening platform that consolidates identity verification, 12-month real-time bank transaction analysis, income and employment verification, credit reporting, criminal and eviction background checks, and layered fraud detection into a single predictive screening report delivered in under five minutes. The platform is offered directly to property managers and landlords and embedded inside major property management systems via the Sidecar integration, with a developer-facing Butter API for large owner-operators. Pricing is transaction-based ($25–$35 per screening) with custom enterprise contracts for portfolios above 5,000 units.
Product overview
Rent Butter is a unified tenant screening platform that combines identity verification, financial behavior analysis (bank transaction trending and income verification), credit reporting, criminal/eviction history, and compounding fraud protection into a single consolidated screening report. The platform operates across multiple go-to-market layers: the core Rent Butter Platform serves as the primary product delivering sub-five-minute end-to-end screening; Rent Butter Sidecar embeds the screening experience natively within property management systems (AppFolio, ManageAmerica, Rent Manager) without tab-switching; Butter API provides programmatic access for enterprise developers and large-scale operators; and the ROI Calculator serves as a free analysis tool that demonstrates the revenue impact of optimized screening. Pricing is tiered across Standard ($25/transaction), Professional ($35/transaction), and Enterprise/Custom plans, with the API included in the top tier. The platform serves individual landlords through large-scale owner operators across multifamily and manufactured housing sectors.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Rent Butter Platform Cloud-based tenant screening application for property managers and landlords that combines real-time bank transaction analysis, identity verification, income and employment verification, credit reporting, criminal and eviction history, and compounding fraud detection into a single predictive screening report delivered in under five minutes.
- Rent Butter Sidecar Embedded screening experience that runs full-power resident screening, income verification, and background checks directly inside a property manager's existing PMS side panel (AppFolio, ManageAmerica, Rent Manager), enabling approve-or-deny decisions in under five minutes without leaving the host system.
- Butter API Developer-facing RESTful API for large-scale owner operators that supports request of applicant screening reports, real-time status retrieval, webhook and email delivery, and report output in JSON, XML, HTML, or PDF formats for custom screening workflows.
Quantifiable outcome
- 67% fewer non-paying tenant placements compared to traditional screening
- +6 more outcomes
Companies that use Rent Butter
Customer profileNamed customers12 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Rent Butter technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- Yes
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration8 records
AI capability6 records
Feature8 records
Rent Butter partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core, strategic and minor.
- Rent ManagercoreRent Manager integration allows property managers to leverage Rent Butter screening and verification directly within the Rent Manager platform, creating a seamless lead-to-screening workflow without switching systems.
- AppFoliocoreRent Butter Sidecar embeds full-power resident screening, income verification, and background checks in a side panel alongside AppFolio. Property managers can track applicants, verify income/identity/criminal/credit, and make decisions without switching tabs.
- ManageAmericacoreRent Butter + ManageAmerica integration screens applicants without leaving the ManageAmerica platform. Full resident screening with income verification and background checks embedded alongside property management workflow.
- TurboTenantstrategicTurboTenant integrates Rent Butter's screening platform to provide near-instant credit and background checks, aiming to reduce vacancy losses and expedite approval times for property managers.
- PadSplitminorPadSplit is an online platform with thousands of affordable, private rooms for rent. Partnership provides screening services for PadSplit's shared housing marketplace.
- CredHubminorCredHub's rent payment credit reporting solution automatically reports rent payment status to credit bureaus. Partnership supports mutual customers in building resident credit while screening.
- Rent ReportersminorRent Reporters helps residents build and improve credit through rent payment reporting. Partnership supports inclusive screening approach for applicants building credit.
- PlaidcoreRent Butter uses Plaid Inc. to gather data from financial institutions. Users grant Rent Butter and Plaid the right to access and transmit personal and financial information from their financial institution for income verification and bank trending analysis.
Scale indicators9 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Rent Butter competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Avail: Landlord software (owned by Realtor.com / Move) providing tenant screening, applications, and rent collection; competes with Rent Butter for the same individual landlord and small-portfolio segment.
- RentRedi: Property management software for landlords offering built-in tenant screening, rent collection, and accounting; competes for the same landlord customer base with overlapping screening functionality.
- TransUnion SmartMove: Tenant screening service from TransUnion offering credit, criminal, and eviction reports to landlords and property managers; the most direct incumbent competitor to Rent Butter's screening product.
- Snappt: AI-powered fraud detection and document verification for rental applications; directly overlaps Rent Butter's identity verification and fraud-protection modules for property managers.
- TurboTenant: All-in-one landlord platform offering tenant screening (now integrated with Rent Butter) alongside listings, applications, and rent collection; a direct peer in landlord software and a distribution partner.
Broad incumbents
- Buildium: RealPage-owned property management platform serving small-to-mid-market landlords with built-in screening; a broad incumbent that competes with Rent Butter Sidecar's embedded screening on its own platform.
- Experian: Major credit bureau offering tenant screening and RentBureau rent-payment reporting to landlords; competes broadly with Rent Butter's credit and rental history components from a much larger data position.
Emerging players
- CheckpointID: Identity verification specialist for property managers using biometrics and document authentication; overlaps with Rent Butter's identity verification and fraud-detection features.
- LeaseTrack: Rent-payment reporting and resident screening platform; overlaps with Rent Butter's credit/tradeline behavior analysis and the broader resident-screening category.
Others
- Plaid: Bank-data connectivity provider that powers Rent Butter's real-time transaction and income verification; not a competitor but a critical infrastructure dependency with potential indirect impact on Rent Butter's moat.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Rent Butter social profiles
Digital presenceRent Butter compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance2 records
Rent Butter financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Rent Butter leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles10 records
Rent Butter funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds3 records
Investors3 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Rent Butter M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Rent Butter
What does Rent Butter do?
Rent Butter sells a cloud-based tenant screening platform that consolidates identity verification, 12-month real-time bank transaction analysis, income and employment verification, credit reporting, criminal and eviction background checks, and layered fraud detection into a single predictive screening report delivered in under five minutes. The platform is offered directly to property managers and landlords and embedded inside major property management systems via the Sidecar integration, with a developer-facing Butter API for large owner-operators. Pricing is transaction-based ($25–$35 per screening) with custom enterprise contracts for portfolios above 5,000 units.
Is Rent Butter a public or private company?
Rent Butter is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was Rent Butter founded?
Rent Butter was founded in 2021. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Rent Butter based?
Rent Butter is headquartered in Chicago, United States, in the North America region.
How does Rent Butter make money?
One revenue line is on record: transaction-based Screening Fees.
Who are Rent Butter's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Avail, RentRedi, TransUnion SmartMove, Snappt and TurboTenant. Broad incumbents are Buildium and Experian. Emerging players are CheckpointID and LeaseTrack. Plaid is listed as an others.
Does Rent Butter have an API?
Yes. Butter API is available to large-scale owner operators and developers who want to build against Rent Butter's screening API. Developers can request applicant screening reports, review credit/criminal/eviction reports per applicant, pull statuses anytime or receive results via webhooks or email, and apply screening results plus custom selection criteria to receive a recommendation. Reports return as JSON, XML, HTML, or PDF. Custom pricing is available based on portfolio size and screening volume. Developer documentation is at www.rentbutter.com/butter-api.
What industry is Rent Butter in?
Rent Butter's product category is Tenant Screening Software. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAKAEAB, Tenant & Rental Background Screening, with a secondary code of BPAJAFAL, Residential Lease Administration & Tenant Services. Its NAICS code is 53121 and its SIC code is 6531.