How do you research a private company without a PitchBook subscription?
You can build a reliable first view of most private companies from public sources in about 2 hours. Start with the company's own disclosures, then check regulatory filings, hiring activity, legal records and customer evidence, and write down every question you could not answer. The gaps tell you what to ask management.
Why research private companies yourself?
Commercial databases are thinnest exactly where small funds and corporate development teams look. PitchBook's G2 reviewers mention outdated information 36 times and thin data on smaller companies 29 times (G2). A PitchBook subscription also starts in the tens of thousands of dollars a year, according to 2026 buyer guides (VC Beast).
Even with a database, someone has to check the record. A short, repeatable method makes that check fast.
Step 1. What does the company say about itself?
Read the website, product pages, press releases and leadership bios. Note the claims that matter: customers, size, funding and geography. Treat each as a claim to verify, and save the page with a date, since companies edit their sites.
Step 2. What do regulatory filings show?
In the US, companies raising money under Regulation D usually file a Form D with the SEC, which shows the offering amount and the people involved. Search the company name on SEC EDGAR. In the UK, Companies House holds accounts, officers and charges for registered companies. State business registries show incorporation dates and registered agents.
Step 3. Is the company hiring, and where?
Job postings show which teams are growing, which tools the company uses and which markets it is entering. Headcount trends on professional networks show whether the company is growing or shrinking. A company announcing expansion while cutting staff deserves a second look.
Step 4. Are there legal or credit records?
Search court records for lawsuits, and search UCC filings to see whether lenders hold liens on the company's assets. Liens are normal for a borrowing business, but a recent cluster of them can signal stress.
Step 5. What do customers and partners say?
Look for named customers in case studies, partner directories and conference talks. Read customer reviews where they exist. A named, checkable customer counts for more than a logo wall.
Step 6. How do you estimate revenue?
Private companies rarely disclose revenue, so most estimates triangulate. Common inputs are headcount multiplied by a typical revenue per employee for the sector, pricing multiplied by an estimate of customers and any figures disclosed in funding announcements. Write the estimate as a range and record each input, so a colleague can challenge it.
Step 7. What could you not find?
Finish with a list of open questions: missing financials, unverified customers, unclear ownership. This list is the most useful part of the work. It shows how much weight the research can carry, and it becomes the agenda for a management call.
How does Tamarly Intelligence help?
Tamarly Intelligence is Tamarly's research platform on companies, funds, countries and markets, built from official filings and open data. It applies this method at scale: every figure links to the filing or record it came from, and when Tamarly does not cover a company it says so. On Level 2 and above you can have Tamarly research a company from your portfolio and build a sourced profile of it.
Run a sourced read on any private company free for 7 days
Frequently asked questions
Can you find a private company's revenue?
Rarely from a direct disclosure. Most researchers estimate a range from headcount, pricing and customer counts, and record each input so the estimate can be tested.
Is Crunchbase enough to research a private company?
Crunchbase is useful for funding history and high-level company facts, but 2026 guides note it carries little fund-level or deal-term data (VCBacked). Use it as one source among several.
How long should a first-pass private company review take?
About 2 hours for a first view using the 7 steps above. Deeper diligence takes longer and should start from the list of open questions.
About the author. Melvine Manchau is the founder of Tamarly and author of the Tamarly Newsletter. He previously worked at PwC, Salesforce, BlackRock/eFront and Lazard.
About Tamarly Research. Tamarly Research is part of Tamarly Media, which holds no investment positions. Tamarly is a New York research house that studies how AI is changing regulated institutions.