Cap Collectif
Cap Collectif is a Paris-based civic tech company, founded in 2014, that provides an open source citizen participation platform with 12 integrated tools for French local governments, higher education institutions, enterprises, and national public bodies, with growing international reach.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2014
- HeadquartersParis, France
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What Cap Collectif does
Cap Collectif is a Paris-based civic technology company founded in 2014 that builds an open source citizen participation platform used primarily by French local and regional governments, with additional deployments in higher education, enterprises, and national institutions. The platform is a comprehensive suite of 12 integrated participatory tools — including participatory budgeting, citizen consultation, dematerialized registers, citizen voting, idea boxes, interactive mapping, petitions, debates, and Q&A — built primarily in PHP and JavaScript on the Symfony framework with ReactJS, a GraphQL API, Docker, ElasticSearch, Redis, RabbitMQ, and MariaDB. Since October 2022 the entire codebase (over 1 million lines) has been released under an open source license, with companion contributions such as GraphQL Doctor and an open Design System. Hosting is sovereign in France or Europe under GDPR compliance.
The company operates a hybrid go-to-market combining direct enterprise sales with a self-serve lower-cost tier called Purpoz (a mutualized multi-tenant platform launched in 2021, priced €650-€1,500/yr HT across Starter/Zen/Illimité tiers) plus a free open source self-hosting option. Revenue streams therefore include custom SaaS subscriptions (quote-based, on customer-specific URLs with managed hosting and CloudFlare Enterprise security), Purpoz tier subscriptions, free open source distribution as a top-of-funnel channel, and professional services (training via an approved training organization, strategic consulting, and custom development with a 2-hour response SLA). Distribution is augmented by two strategic channels: the Banque des Territoires partnership (free Purpoz access for 1,600+ Petites Villes de Demain municipalities) and a joint commercial offer with Groupe La Poste for hybrid digital/in-person campaigns. The customer base spans 600+ decision-makers and 1,500+ participatory projects, anchored by flagship deployments including the 2019 Grand Débat National (nearly 2 million contributions) and recurring work with CNDP, CESE, Région Occitanie, and major French cities. International expansion has begun with a 2023 deployment in Québec, Canada. The company is venture-backed, with Caisse des Dépôts having entered the capital in 2017.
Cap Collectif firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Cap Collectif
- Legal name
- Cap Collectif SAS
- Website
- https://cap-collectif.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2014
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Cap Collectif is a Paris-based civic tech company, founded in 2014, that provides an open source citizen participation platform with 12 integrated tools for French local governments, higher education institutions, enterprises, and national public bodies, with growing international reach.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Where Cap Collectif is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Paris
- HQ country
- France
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices1 record
Markets served
Cap Collectif business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Operations
Revenue model
- SaaS Platform Subscription: Custom SaaS platform delivered on a customer-specific URL, fully customizable and managed by Cap Collectif including hosting in France, technical support, hourly backups, third-party integrations, and CloudFlare Enterprise security.
- Purpoz Mutualized Platform Tiers: Tiered subscription model for the Purpoz mutualized platform: Starter (1 project, €650/yr HT), Zen (2 projects, €1,000/yr HT), and Illimité (unlimited projects, €1,500/yr HT). Includes moderation, technical support, expert dedicated account, and access to all features.
- Open Source Self-Hosting: Free open source download with self-management model where customers handle hosting, maintenance, backups, updates, third-party service integrations (email, SMS, mapping), and platform security independently.
- Professional Services: Additional services including training (approved training organization), strategic consulting for project framing and results analysis, technical support with 2-hour maximum response SLA, and custom development prioritization.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Freemium | Pay-as-you-go | Open Source (Free) - Self-hosted |
| Subscription | Annual | Sur-mesure SaaS (Custom) - On quote |
| Subscription | Annual | Purpoz Starter - 1 project/year |
| Subscription | Annual | Purpoz Zen - 2 projects/year |
| Subscription | Annual | Purpoz Illimité - Unlimited projects/year |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels5 records
Marketing channels6 records
Cap Collectif product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Cap Collectif develops and operates an open source civic technology platform that enables governments, enterprises, universities, and institutions to consult their communities through 12 integrated participatory tools, including participatory budgeting, citizen consultations, voting, petitions, debates, idea boxes, and interactive mapping. The company delivers this as either a custom SaaS platform or a lower-cost mutualized multi-tenant platform called Purpoz, complemented by professional services such as training, strategic consulting, and custom development.
Product overview
Cap Collectif is a French civic tech company offering a comprehensive citizen participation platform with 12 integrated participatory tools. The core product is the Cap Collectif Platform (customizable dedicated SaaS or open-source), while Purpoz is a lower-cost mutualized sub-brand launched in 2021. The product portfolio includes: Budget Participatif (participatory budgeting), Consultation Citoyenne (consultation/voting), Registre Dématérialisé (public inquiry), Questionnaire Citoyen (surveys), Appel à Projets (project calls), Boîte à Idées (idea submission), Votation Citoyenne (binding votes), Carte Interactive (participatory mapping), Pétition (petitions), Débat (discussion forums), Questions/Réponses (Q&A), and Mise en Relation (networking). The platform targets local authorities, enterprises, higher education institutions, and public institutions. The company is open source since 2022 and GDPR compliant with French/European hosting.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Purpoz: A mutualized citizen participation platform launched in 2021, offering the lowest market prices for participatory projects. It enables collectives, associations and organizations to consult their stakeholders without deploying a dedicated platform.
Products and services
- Cap Collectif Platform (Sur-mesure SaaS) A fully customizable citizen participation SaaS platform delivered on a customer-specific URL. Cap Collectif manages sovereign French hosting, technical support with 2-hour maximum response SLA, hourly backups, online documentation, integrated third-party services (email, SMS, mapping), and CloudFlare Enterprise security. Priced on request; for organizations requiring personalized deployment and full-service management.
- Purpoz A mutualized multi-tenant citizen participation platform offering all 12 participatory tools (participatory budget, questionnaire, idea box, citizen voting, consultation, petition, debate, Q&A, interactive map, project calls, dematerialized register, networking) in a shared secure interface. Sold via tiered annual subscriptions: Starter (1 project, €650/year HT), Zen (2 projects, €1,000/year HT), and Illimité (unlimited projects, €1,500/year HT). Free access is provided to municipalities in the Petites Villes de Demain program via the Banque des Territoires partnership. Targets local authorities, associations, and organizations wanting to launch participatory projects without deploying a dedicated platform.
- Cap Collectif Open Source Edition Free open source download of the complete Cap Collectif platform available on GitHub for technically capable organizations to self-host and manage their own participatory platform instance. Customer handles all hosting, maintenance, backups, updates, third-party integrations (email, SMS, mapping), and platform security.
- Cap Collectif Professional Services
Quantifiable outcome
- 94% customer satisfaction rate across 600+ clients and 1,500+ projects
- +6 more outcomes
Companies that use Cap Collectif
Customer profileNamed customers11 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Cap Collectif technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- Yes
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration5 records
Feature6 records
Cap Collectif partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- Groupe La PosteflagshipA joint exclusive commercial offer combining Cap Collectif's digital participation platform with Groupe La Poste's physical presence (post offices, mail carriers, ambassadors) to conduct large-scale hybrid participation campaigns. Used notably for the CESE's consultation on sustainable mobility in French overseas territories and the CNDP's lithium mine debate, reaching ~30,000 households through physical mailings and in-person engagement at post offices.
Scale indicators8 records
Recent moves8 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Cap Collectif competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Decidim: Barcelona-originated open-source participatory democracy platform used by municipalities, governments, and organizations. Directly comparable to Cap Collectif on technology model (open source), feature scope (consultations, votes, assemblies), and target buyer (public-sector).
- CitizenLab: Brussels-based SaaS platform for citizen participation serving European and North American municipalities. Closely comparable to Cap Collectif on target market (local government), feature set (consultations, participatory budgeting, ideation), and SaaS delivery model — though proprietary rather than open source.
- Consul: Madrid-originated open-source civic participation platform developed by Ayuntamiento de Madrid. Comparable to Cap Collectif as an open-source civic tech alternative in Europe with similar participatory modules (proposals, debates, voting) and municipal-government focus.
- Bang the Table (EngagementHQ): Australian-origin SaaS for community and stakeholder engagement, now part of Granicus. Directly comparable to Cap Collectif on target buyer (local government), product category (consultations, surveys, participatory budgeting), and B2B SaaS delivery model.
Emerging players
- Loomio: New Zealand-based cooperative offering an open-source participatory decision-making tool. Comparable to Cap Collectif on the open-source ethos and citizen-participation category, but with a narrower feature scope (deliberation and proposals rather than full participation suites).
- LiquidFeedback: German-origin open-source deliberation and proposal platform for liquid democracy. Comparable to Cap Collectif on open-source civic-tech positioning and deliberation features, but more narrowly focused on structured proposal/voting workflows rather than full participation suites.
- DemocracyOS: Argentina-origin open-source civic participation platform for deliberation and voting. Comparable to Cap Collectif on the open-source civic-tech model and government-facing participation use cases, though smaller in scale and primarily Latin American footprint.
Broad incumbents
- OpenGov: US-headquartered government technology vendor offering budgeting, procurement, and citizen engagement modules. Comparable to Cap Collectif on overlapping citizen-engagement capabilities, but operates at significantly larger scale across a much broader government-software portfolio.
- Granicus (Citizen Engagement suite): US-based government experience platform with a citizen engagement product line acquired via Bang the Table. Overlaps Cap Collectif's municipal participation offerings but operates across a much broader portfolio including communications, records, and workflow software.
Regional players
- PlaceSpeak: Canada-based civic engagement platform with verified-location participation. Comparable to Cap Collectif on the citizen-consultation category and public-sector target, but with a primarily North American footprint rather than European.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Cap Collectif social profiles
Digital presenceCap Collectif compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance2 records
Cap Collectif financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Cap Collectif leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles3 records
Cap Collectif funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds1 record
Investors1 record
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Cap Collectif 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 Cap Collectif
What does Cap Collectif do?
Cap Collectif develops and operates an open source civic technology platform that enables governments, enterprises, universities, and institutions to consult their communities through 12 integrated participatory tools, including participatory budgeting, citizen consultations, voting, petitions, debates, idea boxes, and interactive mapping. The company delivers this as either a custom SaaS platform or a lower-cost mutualized multi-tenant platform called Purpoz, complemented by professional services such as training, strategic consulting, and custom development.
Is Cap Collectif a public or private company?
Cap Collectif is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was Cap Collectif founded?
Cap Collectif was founded in 2014. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Cap Collectif based?
Cap Collectif is headquartered in Paris, France, in the Europe region.
How does Cap Collectif make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. SaaS Platform Subscription is the primary driver. The others are purpoz Mutualized Platform Tiers, open Source Self-Hosting and professional Services.
Who are Cap Collectif's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Decidim, CitizenLab, Consul and Bang the Table (EngagementHQ). Emerging players are Loomio, LiquidFeedback and DemocracyOS. Broad incumbents are OpenGov and Granicus (Citizen Engagement suite). PlaceSpeak is listed as a regional player.
Does Cap Collectif have an API?
Yes. Cap Collectif has developed an open API that provides access to all data flowing through the platform including vote counters, participant counts, and contribution data (excluding personal data). This open data approach allows follow-up committees to access figures for fraud detection. The API is described as complete, stable, documented, accessible, and free to use. The platform code is primarily written in PHP and JavaScript, using GraphQL implementation.