At 500 participants the per-participant rate, not the platform fee, drives the bill, and the choice between Core and Full Platform turns on one number: average participants active each month. Here are the tables, with the break-even point worked out.
Free sandbox · No credit card · 21 CFR Part 11 aligned
Months live
30
Participant-months
6,000
Core total
$330,000
Full Platform total
$330,000
$30,000
$300,000
$150,000
$180,000
The short answer
Scale changes the question
In the 100-patient worksheet fixed costs dominate: build, platform fee and validation spread over few people. At 500 the proportions invert. The per-participant rate is applied to thousands of participant-months, so a $20 difference in the rate is worth more than the whole monthly platform fee. This is why the published structure (monthly fee plus rate per participant per month) is the right thing to model, and why asking about the lower rates that apply above 100 participants is the most valuable question for a larger study.
Scale also brings requirements a small study can skip: many sites, stratified and blinded randomisation, drug supply, a trial master file and site tracking, unblinded roles for the CRO and statistician. Those are exactly the features that separate Core from Full Platform on the pricing page. Capture is suitable for Phase 1 to 3, and a multi-site pivotal study is a normal use case; see EDC for Phase 3 clinical trials.
The market context is in the EDC software pricing guide: commonly cited industry research puts enterprise multi-region Phase 3 EDC deals at $150,000 to $500,000 and above, with implementation overhead on top. Those are market ranges, not Capture prices, and the tables below are separate arithmetic from the published list.
Worked examples
List-rate arithmetic. Participant-months = participants × follow-up months. Months live = enrolment months + follow-up months.
| Design | Months live | Participant-months | Core total | Core per patient | Full total | Full per patient |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Enrol over 15 months, follow 6 | 21 | 3,000 | $171,000 | $342 | $195,000 | $390 |
| Enrol over 18 months, follow 12 | 30 | 6,000 | $330,000 | $660 | $330,000 | $660 |
| Enrol over 24 months, follow 24 | 48 | 12,000 | $648,000 | $1,296 | $600,000 | $1,200 |
Core = $1,000 × months live + $50 × participant-months. Full Platform = $5,000 × months live + $30 × participant-months. Full adds eTMF, CTMS, drug supply and stratified, blinded randomisation; compare it with the separate systems you would otherwise buy.
Choosing a plan
Set the two totals equal: 1,000m + 50p = 5,000m + 30p, where m is months live and p is participant-months. Solving gives p = 200m, or an average of 200 participants active per month. The 12-month-follow-up row sits exactly on that line (6,000 participant-months over 30 months). Shorter or smaller studies are cheaper on Core; denser, longer ones are cheaper on Full Platform before you count what Full includes.
The comparison is about software features as much as price. If your 500-patient study needs stratified, blinded randomisation and drug supply, the choice is made by the feature list, not by the break-even point, because Core offers simple randomisation only. For the supply side, see RTSM software for clinical trials. If it is investigator-led with simple allocation and no sponsor-side trial master file, Core covers a large study cheaply.
Everything here assumes participants are billed for follow-up months only. Screening time, early withdrawals and the rule for when a participant stops counting change the real figure, so settle those definitions in writing alongside the lower rates.
| Core | Full Platform | |
|---|---|---|
| Under 200 active per month | Lower cost | Higher cost |
| Over 200 active per month | Higher cost | Lower cost |
| Stratified, blinded randomisation | ||
| eTMF and CTMS | ||
| EDC, ePRO and eConsent |
Free tool
This planning aid places a study in a market pricing tier from sites, participants and months. It describes the wider market, not Capture's list prices, and runs in your browser.
Typical EDC license + setup, this size
$50,000 - $150,000
Mid-market (multi-site, 50-300 participants). Typical mid-market EDC license and build for a Phase 2 program.
With Capture
No setup fee and no per-seat license to negotiate. Build and test this exact study free, at any size, and pay only once you go live. That matters most with a longer study window, giving setup costs more time to pay off.
Based on commonly cited industry pricing research for enterprise, mid-market and small-trial EDC deals, not a quote for a specific vendor. A planning reference, not a quote.
Build the study in the free sandbox, then ask for the volume rate that applies above 100 participants. No credit card, pay only once you are live.
Before the first call
Not published on the pricing page; ask for it in writing.
Enrolled from screening per the pricing page; confirm withdrawals and completers.
Include a 3 to 6 month enrolment delay in your scenario.
The pricing page lists no per-site fee or per-seat licence; confirm for your tier.
Stratified randomisation, drug supply, eTMF, CTMS, unblinded roles, branded portal.
Study teams edit forms and visits themselves; ask about turnaround for anything vendor-built.
Full Platform includes 1 app or wearable integration; Enterprise has unlimited custom integrations.
Related reading
Even at $330,000 the software is a fraction of a 500-patient trial, where sites, monitoring and staff time usually dominate; see how much a clinical trial costs and the cost-per-patient calculator for the whole budget. The mechanics of the rates are in EDC per-patient pricing explained. For lean teams, see low-cost clinical trial software.
At the published list rates, a 500-patient trial enrolled over 18 months and followed for 12 comes to about $330,000 on either Core or Full Platform, or $660 per patient. Shorter follow-up costs much less, and rates above 100 participants are lower but not published.
Core is cheaper when average active participants are below 200 per month; Full Platform is cheaper above that, because its per-participant rate is $30 against $50. Full Platform also includes eTMF, CTMS and stratified, blinded randomisation.
The pricing page says rates are lower above 100 participants. The lower rates are not published, so ask for them in writing. Enterprise is a custom price across all studies.
The pricing page lists none. Pricing is a monthly fee plus a per-participant monthly rate.
Yes for the build. It has every feature with no credit card and no time limit, so you can test forms, edit checks, randomisation and e-signatures before going live.
Yes. Capture is suitable for Phase 1 to 3.
Yes. Both are included in Core and Full Platform, so there is no module line to add.
Keep exploring
Pricing
Core, Full Platform and Enterprise.
EDC cost for a 100-patient trial
Worksheet at small scale.
EDC per-patient pricing explained
How the rates become cost per patient.
EDC for Phase 3 trials
Multi-site pivotal studies.
EDC software pricing guide (2026)
Market tiers.
RTSM software
Randomisation and supply.
Test free with every feature, then ask for the volume rate. You pay only once the first participant is screened.