comparisons · frontrun vs cb insights
frontrun vs CB Insights
CB Insights is a research subscription. Frontrun is a sourcing edge.
CB Insights is a enterprise market intelligence + research - market maps, analyst research, announced-activity database. Frontrun is a different bet: it watches what 1,000+ venture investors do on X (who they follow) and flags companies months before a round, at $99/mo.
| CB Insights | Frontrun | |
|---|---|---|
| Signal type | Announced activity + analyst research | Investor follow-graph (pre-round) |
| Earliest you hear about a company | When it's already public knowledge | Before the round |
| Price | Enterprise, quote-based | $99/mo, 7-day trial |
| Best for | Market reports, corp strategy | Early-stage sourcing |
| Agent access | Platform | API + MCP server (npx) |
the honest verdict
If the goal is finding companies first (not writing a market report), a pre-round signal layer does it for a fraction of the price.
the receipts
Frontrun's flags carry dated provenance, so "we saw it early" is checkable per company:
- @techdollarhq - flagged at 13 followers, $3M pre-seed 123 days later
- @orthogonal_sh - flagged 184 days before a $4.3M round led by Pantera
- @rialto_xyz - flagged at 18 followers, 26 days before its Robinhood partner announcement
see the signal before you switch
7-day free trial · $99/mo · API + MCP for agents
read the full CB Insights alternatives guide · all comparisons · trending startups