Co-founder platforms compared: Bay of Ideas and the alternatives
What each service says it does, what it costs, and who it suits. Another service is often the better choice.
Updated
If you want a co-founder for a startup and a large pool of people to choose from, the bigger services below, Y Combinator's Co-Founder Matching first of all, reach many more people than Bay of Ideas does: we are small. Bay of Ideas is built differently: you start from the idea, publish it, name the competences it lacks, and members who have them can find it and offer to help, as co-founders or in smaller ways. This page compares the services we could verify, using what each says on its own site.
At a glance
Co-founder and collaborator services, as described by each service, checked on 13 November 2026
Service
How it works, in its own words
Cost, as stated
Bay of Ideas
You post an idea with a public side and a private side and name the competences it lacks. Members with those competences can offer to help. Ideas in Swedish and English; any stage.
You create a profile, a matching engine shows profiles that fit your preferences, you invite someone to connect, and if they accept you arrange a conversation. Profiles are visible only to approved users.
"A completely free product"; "no commitment, no equity, no strings attached"
An investor, not a matching site: it calls itself "an inception-stage VC". Says it can "help you find the right co-founder or team", and that you do not need a co-founder to apply.
Invests: the standard deal on its page is €500K, of which €200K upfront
Swedish partner ads: browse ads by place, post your own ad, and get e-mail alerts for an industry. "All you need is an idea" to start. Created by Coompanion.
Online pitch sessions of up to three minutes each, then breakout rooms where people can help or join a startup.
Free to attend; optional donations
What we found, service by service
YC Co-Founder Matching. Its page says over 100K matches have been made and lists active profiles in cities including San Francisco (3,200) and New York City (3,000). It also runs in-person matching meetups in San Francisco and New York. Sign-in goes through Startup School. It is a large, free service with a structured match flow.
CoFoundersLab. Describes itself as "the largest startup community on the Internet" and states 700,000+ entrepreneurs in 200+ cities. These are its own figures and we have not verified them. Premium lists unlimited search, weekly live events, a learning centre and partner discounts.
Antler. Its Nordic page covers Stockholm, Oslo, Copenhagen and Helsinki, takes founders in "as they come", and answers "Neither" to whether it is an accelerator or an incubator. Its standard deal is €100K for 8.5% equity plus €100K on an uncapped convertible, with up to €300K more in the next round. An Antler blog post dated 3 July 2023 describes how it helps founders find each other: a pre-program community, a founder assessment, conversation prompts, design sprints and coaching, and says every entrepreneur is vetted in an interview.
Kompanjoner.se. Created by Coompanion, whose work is financed by Tillväxtverket, the Swedish Agency for Economic and Regional Growth, together with regional co-financing. The site is in Swedish; English is offered through automatic translation. Coompanion also offers free advice, including on partnership agreements. The site shows no totals of members or matches.
Stockholm meetup. The group presents itself as Startup Oasis and says it "will always be free for anyone to attend"; the page showed 107 members. The events listed are online.
When another service is the better choice
You want the largest pool of possible co-founders, or to meet people in San Francisco or New York: start with YC Co-Founder Matching.
You want to build a venture-backed company and have an investor behind you from the start: Antler invests in the companies it backs.
You want partner ads in Swedish for a local business, a cooperative or something not aimed at venture capital, with free advice on the agreement: Kompanjoner.se and Coompanion.
You would rather hear short pitches and talk to people live, online: the Stockholm meetup.
You are willing to pay for a large community with events and a learning centre: look at CoFoundersLab Premium, and check its figures yourself.
Where Bay of Ideas may fit
You have an idea and want to put it in the open before you have found anyone, and name the competences you lack rather than describe yourself.
You want to start in Swedish or English, with an idea at any stage, and not necessarily a startup.
You want a public side that anyone can read and a private side only the people you accept can see.
You are happy to be early: how many people are here today is on the state of ideas page, with its date. It is small, so a quiet week is normal.
How we checked, and what we left out
We read each service's own pages on 13 November 2026 and wrote down what they say. Prices, numbers and features change; check the service before you decide. We run Bay of Ideas, so read this comparison with that in mind.
We did not include Indie Hackers, whose Partner Up group is often mentioned for finding collaborators: its pages refused our automated requests, so we could not verify anything and left it out. Nor did we include services we could only find third-party descriptions of.