Mercor: what they pay for company data
Mercor is an AI data company that licenses company records such as Slack, email, CRM, code and documents, de-identifies them and licenses them to frontier AI labs. Its referral portal lists 24 company types with payouts from $20K to $1.5M. Mercor says it pays by wire on delivery, typically 2 to 4 weeks after the agreement is signed, with no fees to the company.
What does Mercor buy?
- Slack and Microsoft Teams history
- Gmail and Outlook email
- Salesforce and CRM records
- GitHub repositories, commits and issues
- Drive, Notion and Confluence documents
- Industry files: legal matters, accounting workpapers, deal records, shop-floor and construction records, design and game assets
How it works
As Mercor describes it on its own pages.
- Scope: choose which tools to share. Mercor says more tools means a higher payout.
- Connect: link accounts from 100+ supported tools.
- Process: Mercor's platform extracts and de-identifies the data into an asset.
- Payout: paid when processing is complete and the dataset is delivered.
What we know about Mercor
Each fact links to its source below.
- Mercor's 24 referral listings give a payout range for each company type, for example $50K to $1.2M for a law firm, $100K to $1.5M for a manufacturer and $50K to $500K for a software company's private code.2
- Each listing names a size band, for example 5 to 300 attorneys and staff for law firms or 15 to 500 employees for software companies. The CEO's October 2026 referral post targeted firms with 100+ employees.24
- Mercor says payment is wired on delivery of the anonymized dataset to the buyer, typically within 2 to 4 weeks of the signed agreement, depending on extraction and processing time.1
- Mercor says it covers extraction, anonymization and transfer costs, with no upfront costs, setup fees or deductions from the payment.1
- Referral listings show up to $85,000 per company type, including a $10K bonus. The referrer is paid when the company goes live as a paid partner.21
- Mercor's referral portal says it has paid $50M+ to companies for their data, and $2M+ to referrers in 2026. These are the company's own figures.2
- Mercor says extraction and anonymization are fully automated and that no AI lab buyer or third-party vendor sees raw data. Its homepage says the anonymization masks 60+ categories of sensitive identifiers.13
- On October 23, 2026, CEO Brendan Foody said Mercor had partnered with more than 500 companies and offered up to $100K per referral, seeking firms with 100+ employees in software, gaming, manufacturing, healthcare or professional services.4
- Google won the August 2026 bankruptcy auction for Spirit Airlines' business records with a $10 million bid. Mercor was the next-highest bidder at $7.5 million. In September, micro1 offered $12.5 million.568
- Business Insider reported that Mercor first countered at $5.2 million and said it would pay $7 million if it could take the raw data and anonymize it itself.6
- The court hearing on the Spirit sale was moved to November 6, 2026, so the sale was not final as of October 29, 2026.7
- Compensation is based on data volume, the tools connected and the depth of the data, per Mercor's FAQ.1
Is it a good fit?
Good fit
- Companies in a type Mercor lists, such as law, accounting, investment, fintech, cybersecurity, manufacturing, construction, game studios, agencies and SaaS.
- Companies that can connect several tools, since Mercor says more tools raise the payout.
- Owners who want a fast, fee-free process with payment soon after delivery.
Worth checking
- Ranges are wide within each listing (for example $20K to $890K for a design agency). Ask what drives your figure before connecting tools.
- Payment is tied to delivery of the anonymized dataset to the buyer. Ask what happens if delivery is delayed or the buyer rejects the dataset.
- Mercor connects to your accounts to extract data. Ask what access it needs, for how long, and how credentials are revoked afterwards.
- Ask which labs will receive the data and for how long they may use it.
Mercor FAQ
How much does Mercor pay for company data?
Mercor's referral portal lists 24 company types with payout ranges from $20K to $1.5M (checked October 2026), for example $50K to $1.2M for a law firm and $100K to $1.5M for a manufacturer. Pay depends on data volume, tools connected and depth of history.
How long does Mercor take to pay?
Mercor says it pays by wire on delivery of the anonymized dataset to the buyer, typically within 2 to 4 weeks of the signed agreement (data page, October 2026).
Does Mercor charge fees to license company data?
No. Mercor says it covers extraction, anonymization and transfer costs and takes no deductions from the payment.
Is Mercor legit?
Mercor is an operating AI data company. Axios and Business Insider reported that it bid $7.5 million for Spirit Airlines' records in the August 2026 bankruptcy auction, and Mercor says it has paid $50M+ to companies for data. We could not independently confirm individual payouts.
How much does Mercor pay for referrals?
Up to $100,000 per referred company that licenses its data, per Mercor's referral portal and its CEO's October 2026 post. Listings show up to $85,000 including a $10K bonus.
Alternatives to Mercor
Other companies that pay for, broker or resell the same kinds of records. Sorted by name.
Comparisons with Mercor
Side-by-side tables of price, payment, fees and terms, with a short verdict.
- micro1 vs Mercor: which pays more for company data?How micro1 and Mercor price company records, when they pay, who qualifies and what to ask each before you sign. Checked October 2026.
Guides that mention Mercor
Guides for owners that cite Mercor's terms or prices.
- AI data partnership programs: who runs them, what they pay (2026)Basics · 5 min read · Updated
- Can an accounting firm license its data to AI labs? What it is worth and what the rules allowIndustries · 6 min read · Updated
- Dark data: the old records in your inboxes and drives that AI labs now pay forBasics · 5 min read · Updated
- How de-identification works for company data licensed to AIPrivacy and legal · 6 min read · Updated
- How to sell company data to AI labs: a step-by-step guide (2026)Basics · 5 min read · Updated
- Is it legal to sell your company's data to AI? Ownership, employees and privacy lawPrivacy and legal · 6 min read · Updated
- Sell your startup's codebase to AI labs: prices, buyers and checks (2026)Shutting down · 5 min read · Updated
- Sell your startup's data before you shut down: what closed companies get paidShutting down · 5 min read · Updated
- What is a marketing or creative agency's data worth to AI labs? Client work, contracts and IPIndustries · 5 min read · Updated
Sources
Numbers in the text link here. See every player in the buyer index and reported deals in the deal ledger.
- Mercor Data: Monetize your dataMercor · Publish date not shown · Accessed 29 Oct 2026
- Refer a companyMercor · Publish date not shown · Accessed 29 Oct 2026
- Mercor homepageMercor · Publish date not shown · Accessed 29 Oct 2026
- Mercor offers up to $100K for companies willing to license data to AI labsRuntimeWire · Published 23 Oct 2026 · Accessed 29 Oct 2026
- Google wins bankruptcy auction for Spirit Airlines emails, chats, documentsAxios · Published 17 Aug 2026 · Accessed 29 Oct 2026
- Google buys Spirit Airlines data for AI model developmentBusiness Insider · Published 17 Aug 2026 · Accessed 29 Oct 2026
- Spirit Airlines' $10 Million Data Sale to Google Delayed as Lawmakers Raise ConcernsTravelPulse · Published 10 Oct 2026 · Accessed 28 Oct 2026
- Little-known AI startup Micro1 tries to trump Google's bid for bankrupt Spirit Airlines' dataFortune · Published 14 Sep 2026 · Accessed 29 Oct 2026
Data Licensors, the company that publishes this page, also licenses company records. This page is written from public sources and was checked on 29 Oct 2026. Something wrong or out of date? Email hello@datalicensors.com and we will correct it.
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