How to Build an Investor List (With a Free 25-Row Starter List)

By Muhammad Tayyab Shabbir. Last updated 10 Nov 2026. Data as of November 2026. Markdown version

To build an investor list, write down your stage, sector and place, pull every fund that fits from a dated source, and keep eight columns for each one. Below is a free starter list of 25 US venture firms, the most recent filers in our data of 4,178 investors as of November 2026.

What are the steps to build an investor list?

1. Define the fit. One stage, up to three sectors, and the places you can raise from.
2. Pull the candidates. Use SEC Form D for US funds, a register for UK and European funds, or a list page that already does the filtering.
3. Add stage and sector. Read each firm's own site and portfolio. What a firm has backed tells you more than what it says.
4. Find the contact route. A pitch form if the firm has one, a named partner if not, a firm address as a last resort.
5. Rank by recency. A firm with a new fund or a deal this year goes above one that has gone quiet.
6. Date and source every row. Write down when you checked it and where the fact came from.

Which columns should an investor list have?

These eight. The last column shows how many of our 4,178 rows carry each one, so you can see where any list, ours included, runs thin.

A free starter list: 25 US venture firms with a new fund

Rule for this table: US firms with the most recent Form D filing date in our data, where we also hold a stage and a sector. The filing date is SEC Form D data. Stage and sector are our research.

You are seeing 25 of 3,019 US investors. Narrow it to your own stage, sector and state with the matching tool, or browse the list pages, which show 25 rows each.

How long should an investor list be?

Long enough to fill your calendar and short enough that you can research every name. How many investors should you pitch? has a calculator that turns the round you need into a number.

Should you build the list or buy one?

Build it if you have more time than money and only need a few dozen names. Buy one if your time is the scarce thing: the US file is $197 and a single list is $49, both one-time. Either way you still do the last step yourself: reading each firm before you write to it. Where to buy an investor list compares the options.

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