Startnext

What Startnext does

Startnext is a German crowdfunding platform founded in 2010 and headquartered in Dresden, operating as the largest crowdfunding community in German-speaking countries (DACH). The platform enables creators — including independent journalists, musicians, social enterprises, activists, NGOs, and small businesses — to raise capital from the crowd through self-serve campaigns without giving up equity, using either an Alles-oder-Nichts (all-or-nothing) or flexible funding model. The proprietary platform supports four tiered plans (Basis 5%, Pro 11%, Premium 14%, Enterprise custom) with features spanning campaign management, multi-language pages, AI translations, payment processing via Stripe (with PayPal, Apple Pay, and Google Pay), API access on higher tiers, and integrations with Shopify, Notion, Spotify, SoundCloud, YouTube, Vimeo, Meta Pixel, and Google Tag Manager.

The business operates on a success-based commission model with no upfront fees, supplemented by cofunding/matchfunding partnerships with corporate sponsors and foundations (e.g., Krombacher Naturstarter, Aventis kulturMut) that distribute matching funds to qualifying projects, plus government-funded programmes such as SONAR for social innovations. Startnext has facilitated €164.4M in cumulative funding across 18,711 successful projects since founding, serving 2.2M+ registered users. The company is independently owned by founders Denis Bartelt (CEO) and Tino Kressner, with no external investors, is certified as a B Corporation, and operates with a small team of approximately 16 named members across product development, community management, AI innovation, and partnerships from offices in Dresden and Berlin.

Name

Startnext

Legal name

Startnext GmbH

Website

https://startnext.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2010

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Startnext is a German crowdfunding platform founded in 2010, serving creators, social enterprises, and activists in the DACH region through success-based commission plans (5–14%), cofounding partnerships, and AI-enabled campaign tools across web and mobile.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Crowdfunding Platform

NAICS

Educational Support Services (61171)

SIC

Services-Prepackaged Software (7372)

akta.pro primary industry

Creator Fundraising & Crowdfunding Platforms (Recurring/Project-Based) (MPACAFAJ)

Keywords

• Crowdfunding platform
• Community fundraising
• Match-funding services
• Creative project financing
• Donation platform

Headquarters

HQ city

Dresden

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations

Revenue model

1. Success-based Commission: Startnext charges a success-based commission (Erfolgsprovision) on funded amounts only. No upfront costs are charged. The commission rate varies by plan tier: Basis (5%), Pro (11%), Premium (14%), Enterprise (custom). The platform also offers volume discounts on commissions for large funding amounts.
2. Cofunding Partnership Services: Partners (companies, NGOs, foundations) engage Startnext to run cofunding campaigns where they provide matching funds for projects. Startnext provides platform infrastructure, campaign management, visibility, and community access. Revenue comes from partner campaign budgets.
3. Premium Plan Upgrades: Additional revenue from premium features and services including extended campaign durations, additional team members, multiple translations, hidden perks, and dedicated support. Voluntary contributions from the crowd also support platform operations.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion4 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Startnext operates a German-language crowdfunding marketplace that enables project creators to raise funds from a community of supporters ("Crowdies") through reward-based campaigns. The platform supports both All-or-Nothing (AON) and flexible funding models, charging success-based commissions only when projects reach their goals. In addition to the core crowdfunding SaaS, Startnext runs the SONAR growth programme for social innovations, Cofunding/Matchfunding partnerships where corporate and foundation partners provide matching funds, and AI-assisted features such as the NEXA chatbot, SONAR Coach, and AI Translations.

Product overview

Startnext is a German crowdfunding platform founded in 2010, operating as a multi-tier SaaS platform for community-based project financing. The core offering consists of four subscription plans — Basis (5% commission), Pro (11% commission), Premium (14% commission), and Enterprise (custom pricing) — which provide escalating access to campaign management tools, AI-powered features, integrations, and support services. The platform supports two crowdfunding models: AON (Alles oder Nichts / All-or-Nothing), where creators only receive funds if goals are met, and Flex (Flexible Campaigns), where all raised funds are kept regardless of goal attainment. Startnext's product portfolio extends beyond pure crowdfunding through sub-brands and add-on modules including SONAR (a growth program for social innovations with its own AI-powered SONAR Coach), NEXA (the general AI chatbot assistant), AI Translations (automated multilingual page translation), Cofunding/Matchfunding (partner-led matching campaigns), the Funding Fieber Podcast, Startnext Academy (educational resources), Startnext Office Hour (daily Zoom support sessions), Startnext Live (interactive events platform), and a specialized Artist Relations program for musicians. The platform's revenue model is success-based, charging commissions only on successfully raised funds.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• SONAR: Growth program for social innovations and common-good-oriented companies (SIGU) offering free support and consultation for qualifying projects.
• Cofunding

Products and services

• Startnext Crowdfunding Platform Self-serve SaaS crowdfunding marketplace that lets individual creators, startups, NGOs and small businesses launch reward-based fundraising campaigns in either All-or-Nothing or flexible funding mode, with multi-language support, Stripe-backed payments, tiered plan features (Basis, Pro, Premium, Enterprise), reward management, community building tools, and post-campaign shop/fulfilment options. Targeted at creators raising capital without giving up equity, building a supporter community, and validating market demand.
• SONAR Growth Programme

Quantifiable outcome

• €164,365,761 funded by the crowd across 18,711 successful projects since 2010
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers10 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

Yes

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration14 records

AI capability8 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

13 partnerships are on record, tiered core, flagship and minor.

• tyclipso.netcoreTechnology or IntegrationRelated-party technology company. Denis Bartelt founded tyclipso.net in 2003 before co-founding Startnext. The connection indicates potential ongoing technology services relationship.
• B Lab (B Corporation)coreOthersB Lab is the non-profit organization that certifies B Corporations. Startnext is certified as a B Corp, meaning it meets social and environmental performance standards.
• Krombacher Gruppe (Naturstarter)flagshipGTM or Marketing PartnerMajor German brewery running the 'Naturstarter' cofounding campaign on Startnext. Campaign has distributed €4,335,230 in matching funds across 295 projects with 40,608 supporters.
• Aventis Foundation (kulturMut)flagshipGTM or Marketing PartnerFoundation running kulturMut Rhein-Main cofounding campaign. Partnership has distributed €3,553,507 in matching funds across 350 projects with 22,382 supporters.
• Wir gestalten DresdenminorGTM or Marketing PartnerCultural and creative industries association running Dresden-focused matching fund campaign. Distributed €162,325 across 29 projects with 1,717 supporters.
• MITWIRKEN (Hertie Foundation)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerFoundation programme for living democracy running matching fund campaigns. Distributed €316,554 across 12 projects with 690 supporters.
• Impact Hub Berlin & DresdenminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-working and innovation spaces for social entrepreneurs. Startnext is listed in their network, indicating mutual referral and community relationship.
• Entrepreneurs PledgeminorOthersInitiative where founders commit to reinvest profits into social impact. Denis Bartelt is a co-founder of Entrepreneurs Pledge.
• Reflecta NetworkminorOthersNetwork for refugee support and integration initiatives. Listed as part of Startnext's broader network of partners.
• Stiftung VerantwortungseigentumminorOthersFoundation promoting responsible ownership models. Aligns with Startnext's independent, investor-free ownership structure.
• Publix BerlinminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommunity and event space in Berlin where Startnext team members (Denis Bartelt) record podcast episodes and hold community events.
• La Barca (Tiny Boat Sessions)minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorMusic venue running Tiny Boat Sessions partnership with Startnext. Selects 6 artists who have crowdfunded on Startnext for each season's performances.
• Bundesministerium für Wirtschaft und Energie / Europäischer Sozialfonds PluscoreOthersGerman Federal Ministry and EU funding body supporting the SONAR programme (Crowd Powered Growth Programme) for social innovations and common-good companies through 'Nachhaltig wirken - Förderung gemeinwohlorientierter Unternehmen' programme.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights7 records

Direct peers

• Ulule: European reward-based crowdfunding platform headquartered in France with strong presence in Southern Europe. Closely comparable business model and target creator segments to Startnext, with overlapping continental footprint.
• Indiegogo: Reward-based crowdfunding platform offering both all-or-nothing and flexible funding models. Directly comparable to Startnext's AON and Flex product offerings, with broader international reach.
• Kickstarter: Global reward-based crowdfunding pioneer. Directly comparable to Startnext as a platform enabling creators to raise funds from backers for creative projects, with success-based fees and all-or-nothing mechanics.
• StartSomeGood: Crowdfunding platform purpose-built for social enterprises, nonprofits, and impact-driven projects. Closely comparable to Startnext's SIGU and SONAR-focused positioning, with overlap in mission-driven creator segments.

Regional players

• Companisto: Berlin-based equity crowdfunding platform for startups and growth companies. Comparable to Startnext as a German-headquartered capital-formation platform, though Companisto operates on an equity-investment model rather than rewards.
• Betterplace.org: Germany-focused online donation and charitable fundraising platform. Comparable to Startnext's charitable and social-innovation use cases, but focused on donations rather than rewards-based project financing.
• Spacehive: UK-based crowdfunding platform focused on community and civic projects. Comparable to Startnext's community-driven, social-impact positioning and cofounding/matchfunding approach.

Emerging players

• Seedrs: European equity-crowdfunding platform for startups. Adjacent peer to Startnext given overlapping creator/founder audience and European footprint, though the underlying funding mechanism (equity vs. rewards) differs.
• Patreon: Recurring creator-membership and fan-funding platform. Comparable to Startnext's creator-monetization use case, though Patreon focuses on subscription-based fan support rather than project-based campaigns.

Broad incumbents

• GoFundMe: Largest personal-cause and charitable crowdfunding platform globally. Comparable to Startnext's charitable-giving segment, but serves a much broader international market with donations rather than rewards.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@startnext
• Facebookfacebook.com/startnext
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/startnext
• Instagraminstagram.com/startnext
• TikToktiktok.com/@startnext
• Xx.com/startnext

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments3 records

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Startnext