UpNest
UpNest is a private residential real estate marketplace founded in 2013 in San Mateo, California, connecting home buyers and sellers with competing real estate agents through a reverse-bidding platform. The company operates with 11-50 employees and serves consumers seeking agent representation alongside participating real estate agents.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2013
- HeadquartersSan Mateo, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingDigital Commerce or Content
What UpNest does
UpNest is a private, for-profit residential real estate marketplace founded in 2013 and headquartered in San Mateo, California. The platform connects home buyers and sellers with competing real estate agents in an auction-style or reverse-bidding format, where agents compete for client business rather than consumers searching agent-by-agent. The core product is a lead-generation and matching layer that aggregates consumer demand and distributes it to a network of participating agents.
The underlying technology is not publicly documented in the available data — no API, SDK, or integration surface is disclosed, and no proprietary AI/ML or matching algorithms are described. The company operates with a small team of 11-50 employees, suggesting a relatively lightweight technology and operations stack focused on marketplace curation and agent recruitment rather than deep technology differentiation.
UpNest's business model is a marketplace intermediation play in residential real estate, monetizing the connection between consumer demand (buyers/sellers) and agent supply. Specific pricing mechanics, referral fee structures, and revenue-per-lead figures are not disclosed in the provided data. The company raised a single $2.8 million funding round in November 2014 from Foxhaven Asset Management (lead) and Sequoia Capital, and has not announced follow-on financing since. Operating geographies, named customers, and partnerships are also not disclosed in the input.
UpNest firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- UpNest
- Website
- https://upnest.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2013
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- UpNest is a private residential real estate marketplace founded in 2013 in San Mateo, California, connecting home buyers and sellers with competing real estate agents through a reverse-bidding platform. The company operates with 11-50 employees and serves consumers seeking agent representation alongside participating real estate agents.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
UpNest industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Real Estate Marketplace
- NAICS
- Offices of Real Estate Agents and Brokers (5312), Offices of Real Estate Agents and Brokers (531210)
- SIC
- Real Estate Agents & Managers (For Others) (6531), Real Estate (6500)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Online/Virtual Real Estate Auctions (Marketplace Platforms) (BPAJAEAJ)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Real Estate Auction Services (FSAEAJAL)
Keywords
Where UpNest is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- San Mateo
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Markets served
UpNest business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Digital Commerce or Content
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Personnel, Operations
UpNest product offering
Product offeringCore offering
UpNest operates an online marketplace that connects home buyers and sellers with competing real estate agents. Consumers submit their real estate needs to the platform, and pre-screened agents bid for their business, providing price and service competition. The company generates qualified leads for agents while offering consumers multiple agent options in one place.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- UpNest Agent Marketplace Online marketplace platform that matches home buyers and sellers with competing real estate agents. Consumers submit their real estate transaction needs, and agents bid for the business, allowing consumers to compare options. Built for home buyers and home sellers seeking agent representation.
Companies that use UpNest
Customer profileIdeal customer profiles2 records
UpNest technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
UpNest partnerships and signals
Strategic signalRecent moves3 records
Expansion highlights2 records
UpNest competitors and assessment
Company assessmentEmerging players
- Offerpad: Offerpad is an iBuyer and residential real estate platform that also targets home sellers with instant-offer products. It is adjacent rather than direct: different transaction model, but overlapping seller-intent consumer.
- Opendoor: Opendoor is an iBuyer that purchases homes directly from sellers and competes for the same seller consumer UpNest serves. While the business model differs (principal buyer vs. agent marketplace), the seller acquisition funnel is directly competitive.
Broad incumbents
- Compass: Compass is a large national residential brokerage with a technology platform and agent-matching capabilities. It competes with UpNest for high-intent home buyer and seller leads through its owned agent network rather than an open marketplace.
- Realtor.com (Move, Inc.): Realtor.com is a major U.S. real estate listings portal that connects consumers with agents via advertising and lead-generation products. It competes for the same agent-matching wallet UpNest targets, backed by significant media scale.
- Zillow Group: Zillow operates the dominant U.S. real estate search portal and an agent-matching/advertising business (Premier Agent). It competes with UpNest by capturing agent demand for leads at massive scale and offering consumer-facing matching features.
- Redfin: Redfin is a publicly-traded residential brokerage and technology platform with its own agent-matching and lead-generation flows. It competes for the same home buyer/seller consumer UpNest serves, but as a much broader full-stack brokerage rather than a pure marketplace.
Direct peers
- Clever Real Estate: Clever Real Estate is a direct competitor to UpNest, operating an agent-matching marketplace where agents compete for home buyer and seller business. Both platforms pursue the same reverse-auction, consumer-first value proposition in the residential brokerage space.
- HomeLight: HomeLight runs a marketplace that matches consumers with top-performing real estate agents and has expanded into cash offers and mortgages. It directly overlaps UpNest's core agent-matching business with broader fintech ambitions.
- Trelora: Trelora is a tech-enabled discount residential brokerage offering flat-fee agent services. It competes with UpNest's value proposition of cost savings for consumers on agent commissions, though via a flat-fee model rather than a reverse-auction marketplace.
Regional players
- Idealista: Idealista is a leading European real estate portal with agent-matching and listing services in Spain, Italy, and Portugal. While geographically separate from UpNest, it is a comparable marketplace model connecting buyers and sellers with competing agents in residential real estate.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat3 records
Key risks4 records
Key highlights4 records
Customer concentration
UpNest social profiles
Digital presenceUpNest financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
UpNest leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
UpNest funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds1 record
Investors2 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
UpNest 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 UpNest
What does UpNest do?
UpNest operates an online marketplace that connects home buyers and sellers with competing real estate agents. Consumers submit their real estate needs to the platform, and pre-screened agents bid for their business, providing price and service competition. The company generates qualified leads for agents while offering consumers multiple agent options in one place.
When was UpNest founded?
UpNest was founded in 2013. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is UpNest based?
UpNest is headquartered in San Mateo, United States, in the North America region.
Who are UpNest's main competitors?
Emerging players on record are Offerpad and Opendoor. Broad incumbents are Compass, Realtor.com (Move, Inc.), Zillow Group and Redfin. Direct peers are Clever Real Estate, HomeLight and Trelora. Idealista is listed as a regional player.
Does UpNest have an API?
No public API is recorded for UpNest.
What industry is UpNest in?
UpNest's product category is Real Estate Marketplace. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAJAEAJ, Online/Virtual Real Estate Auctions (Marketplace Platforms), with a secondary code of FSAEAJAL, Real Estate Auction Services. Its NAICS code is 5312 and its SIC code is 6531.