Median vs Fondo
Fondo is the better answer for a quiet pre-seed C-corp that mainly needs to file. Median is the better answer once you are making decisions from your numbers rather than filing them once a year.
| Median | Fondo | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | AI-native firm that keeps its own ledger | Startup accounting and tax firm for Delaware C-corps |
| How often books are touched | Updated every business day | Monthly, quarterly or annual, by the plan you buy |
| Pricing model | Flat fee, banded by annual revenue | Flat plans by reporting frequency |
| Starting price | $200 / mo under $250K revenue | $950 / yr annual plan; $399 / mo monthly plan (limited-time offer) |
| Tax filing | Add-on from $1,499 / yr | TaxPass at $1,450 / yr, regular $1,950 |
| R&D credits | $5,000 flat under a $50K estimated credit; 10% of the credit at $50K and above | Tax add-on from $500; pricing varies |
| Dedicated accountant | Yes, on every account | Yes, on every plan |
| Entity fit | US companies, C-corps and LLCs | Built around Delaware C-corps |
| AI assistant access | Read-only MCP server | In-app AI assistant listed; MCP access not stated |
Public pricing and terms as of September 2026. Models differ, so figures are not directly comparable. Confirm current details with each provider.
Where Fondo wins
For a specific and very common situation, a newly incorporated Delaware C-corp with a bank account, a little spend and a filing deadline, Fondo is priced better than anything else here, including Median.
- The tax bundle. TaxPass covers the federal 1120, Delaware franchise tax, one state filing and foreign shareholder filing for $1,450 a year, a limited-time price as of September 2026, which is a lot of compliance for the money.
- R&D credit studies listed as a tax add-on from $500 as of September 2026, with pricing that varies.
- An annual bookkeeping plan at $950 a year as of September 2026, which is the cheapest legitimate way for a quiet pre-seed company to stay clean.
- Deep familiarity with the Delaware C-corp path specifically, including foreign shareholder filings that trip up a lot of providers.
Where Median wins
The moment the company starts spending and hiring, the cheap plans stop being cheap in the way that matters, because what they buy is reporting frequency.
- Current books. Fondo's annual and quarterly plans deliver reporting on that schedule, so mid-year you are reading numbers that are months old. Median posts every business day.
- A model that does not assume a Delaware C-corp. LLCs and other structures get the same service, including non-resident-owned US LLCs.
- Pricing set by revenue rather than by reporting frequency. At $200 a month under $250K in annual revenue, an active company is not choosing between stale reporting and Fondo's $399 monthly plan, a limited-time price as of September 2026.
- A read-only MCP server, so Claude can answer questions straight from your live books.
How each one is built
Fondo is organized around the compliance calendar of a Delaware C-corp. That is why its plans are named by reporting frequency and why the tax product is the strongest part of the offering: the company is optimizing for getting a startup filed correctly and cheaply, with bookkeeping sized to whatever that requires. For a pre-seed company with low activity, that is a rational and well-priced design.
Median is organized around the operating question rather than the filing one. Software categorizes and posts transactions every business day, a dedicated accountant reviews the exceptions and owns the result, and the ledger is current whenever you look at it. Tax filing sits alongside that from $1,499 a year, built from books that are already current rather than reconstructed at year end.
Pricing compared
Fondo prices bookkeeping by reporting frequency: $399 a month, described as a limited-time offer against a regular $499, aimed at seed-plus startups; $1,198 a quarter; or $950 a year, the latter two aimed at pre-seed. Catch-up bookkeeping starts around $950. TaxPass is $1,450 a year, also marked a limited-time offer, against a regular $1,950, with add-ons including multi-state filings, international forms and an R&D credit study from $500. Fondo labels each price as a starting point that varies. Verified on fondo.com/pricing 2026-09-30.
Median publishes a flat monthly fee set by annual revenue: $200 a month under $250K with up to seven financial accounts, and $500 a month from $250K to $1M or at eight or more accounts, with reports, scenarios, daily bookkeeping and every seat included, and no setup fee. Above $1M the price is scoped on a call. Tax filing is an add-on from $1,499 per year, R&D credit work is $5,000 flat under a $50,000 estimated credit and 10 percent of the credit at $50,000 and above, and sales tax filing starts at $99 per month per jurisdiction. Read the two carefully, because they are not selling the same cadence: Fondo's cheapest plans buy annual or quarterly reporting, while Median's price buys books that are current the whole time.
Frequently asked questions
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