StartEngine is an equity crowdfunding platform that allows everyday people to invest and own shares in startups and early-stage companies. StartEngine has helped over 300 entrepreneurs raise over $125M in capital.
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Is StartEngine legit?
StartEngine (www.startengine.com) has a 4.3 out of 5 rating on OK.one, based on 103 user reviews collected here. It is listed under Money & Insurance and its reputation is good. 84% of reviews are 4 stars or higher and 14% are 1 star; The business has replied to 94% of negative reviews; Reviews mostly discuss User experience, Customer service, Product. Last updated 2026-08-31.
What reviewers say
AI generated
Reviewers had a great experience with this company. Customers find the platform very easy to navigate and appreciate how simple it is to invest in various unique startups. People also mention that purchasing shares is remarkably straightforward, and communication throughout the entire investment process remains clear and helpful. Many users love the opportunity to support upcoming growth companies that are otherwise unavailable elsewhere.
However, some customers also noted that customer service can be slow and difficult to reach when questions or technical issues arise. Reviewers mentioned facing frustrating delays, explaining that getting timely answers or resolving account problems proved quite challenging.
Auto-generated from all reviews of this business. For reference only.
Good site for retail investors and entry price for some of them seems really good.
It would also help if there are more startups are included in the site. there are some other pre-IPO stocks like SPACE-X, ANDRUIL, etc are not present in the site while they seem to be present on some other locations even now.
This point needs to be worked on by the promoters/admin of Start Engine team.
Reply from StartEngine2026-05-26
Thanks for your feedback! We're glad you find StartEngine helpful for retail investors and appreciate your suggestion about adding more startups and pre-IPO opportunities. We'll share this with the team.
I am not an avid investor but I saw start engine on shark tank and gave it a try. This platform is doing better than two of my investors. No complaints here. You guys are great
Reply from StartEngine2026-05-26
Thanks for the 5 stars! We're glad you gave StartEngine a try and are having a great experience. We appreciate your support!
Timely listings. Good website interface. Easy to use. Responsive team for questions. PPS generally higher than other platforms.
Reply from StartEngine2026-05-26
Thanks for the thoughtful review! We're glad you find the listings timely, the website easy to use, and the team responsive. We appreciate your feedback and support!
My investment choice & the process of how this platform works was easy to understand. Communication was clear for what to expect as well, a seamless & concise experience. Thank you.
Reply from StartEngine2026-05-20
Thanks for the 5 stars! We’re happy to hear the investment process was easy to understand and that communication was clear throughout. We appreciate your support!
Easy to use platform. I really appreciate having access to so many pre-ipo companies. Hopefully one or more will really take off. Many have the potential.
I found out about it because of a local community coffee company was trying to expand. Now I have holding in a few companies. Definitely recomend checking it out.
Reply from StartEngine2026-05-20
Thanks for the 5 stars! We’re glad you find the platform easy to use and appreciate having access to a wide range of early-stage investment opportunities. It’s great to hear you discovered StartEngine through a local company and have continued exploring other investments.
I love the opportunities that StartEngine provides. My only negative is Gryphon. I invested in Gryphon about 15yrs ago and it still has not shown a profit and I cannot get rid of the stock and consider it a loss.
Reply from StartEngine2026-05-20
Thanks for your review, Kelvin. We’re glad to hear you value the opportunities StartEngine provides, and we appreciate your feedback regarding your past Gryphon investment. We understand how frustrating it can be when an investment does not perform as expected, and we appreciate you sharing your experience.
This company is the most easiest straight forward investing company to work with. It is so basic Im pretty sure everyone can do it. Everything is seemless and even the app on my phone works GREAT. Didn't even have to call customer service or anything. Everything done online or the app.
Reply from StartEngine2026-05-20
Thanks for the 5 stars! We’re thrilled to hear that the platform and app made the investing process seamless and easy to complete online.
Fast onboarding, excellent customer service, some good projects to invest in.
Reply from StartEngine2026-05-20
Thanks for the 5 stars, Philip! We’re happy to hear onboarding was fast and that you’ve had a positive experience with our customer service and investment opportunities.
I like being offered the opportunity to invest in companies that I care about AND I can afford to invest in. The “ground floor” opportunities allow me to encourage companies that are doing things to help the environment.
Reply from StartEngine2026-05-20
Thanks for the 5 stars, Sharon! We’re happy to hear you appreciate being able to invest in companies you care about, including those working toward positive environmental impact.
The linkage between Alto IRA and Start Engine makes all the difference in the world. Trust me, working with other IRA's (STRATA) is not nearly as straight forward as the interface between Alto/Start Engine.
Reply from StartEngine2026-05-20
Thanks for the 5 stars, John! We’re glad the Alto IRA and StartEngine experience has been straightforward and helpful for you.
Horrible customer support with responses often taking days and then just vague answers. Their disclaimers say they don’t recommend stocks, but their listings are at best “pushy”. As a relatively experienced investor with over 50 years in the markets, my opinion is that this site is very close to the line both ethically and professionally when it come to treating customers fairly, especially for those with little or no experience in the stock market.
I wrote this review on May 11th and just got a comment from their folks.... on May 26th. I rest my case!
I also tried several times to get answers from them and kept getting “we’ll get back to you” responses but no real answers to address issues. Their response to my post is essentially the same as what the say when you contact them with a question.
Reply from StartEngine2026-05-26
We’re sorry to hear you feel this way. We take feedback about support and investor experience seriously, and we previously requested more information so we could look into your concerns directly, but unfortunately, we did not receive a response. If you’re open to it, please contact our support team directly at [email protected] so we can better understand the situation and address any specific issues.
Oop! Another clean new energy innovations stifler, won't let anyone fund for stuff that is destructive to their current bought by investors money. Add this site to the long list of clean energy innovation stiflers and the reason your never going to get any new energy innovations. They just replied we don't do hardware technology innovations, only software... Hmm, they may want to change their info then.
Reply from StartEngine2026-05-01
Sorry for the frustration — we understand how that experience could be disappointing. To clarify, our platform has specific guidelines around the types of offerings we support, and we aim to communicate those as clearly as possible. We appreciate your feedback and will use it to improve how we present this information going forward. If you have any questions, please reach out to [email protected]
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