Morgan Stanley at Work vs Certent Equity Management

MSMorgan Stanley at Work9.0Visit Certent Equity Management8.4Visit

Higher score MS Morgan Stanley at Work #3 in Stock Plan Administration Software 9.0/10 Pricing on request ✓ 5 of 6 features Visit site

vs

Certent Equity Management #8 in Stock Plan Administration Software 8.4/10 Pricing on request ✓ 5 of 6 features Visit Certent

• Morgan Stanley at Work fits best

  Mid-size and large employers with global equity plans

• Certent Equity Management fits best

  Companies needing compliance reporting and grant workflows

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Side by side

Feature	MSMorgan Stanley at Work 9.0/10 Visit ↗	Certent Equity Management 8.4/10 Visit ↗
At a glance
Editor score	9.0	8.4
Ranking	#3 in Stock Plan Administration Software	#8 in Stock Plan Administration Software
Best for	Mid-size and large employers with global equity plans	Companies needing compliance reporting and grant workflows
Pricing model	Paid	Paid
Starting price	Pricing on request	Pricing on request
Free plan	Not checked yet	Not checked yet
Free trial	—	—
Deployment	Cloud, Mobile	Cloud
Platforms	Web, iOS, Android	Web
Built for	Mid-market, Enterprise	Small business, Mid-market, Enterprise
Features Morgan Stanley at Work 5/6 · Certent Equity Management 5/6
Employee grants	✓	✓
ESPP administration	✓ (best)	Not checked yet
Option exercise	✓	✓
Tax withholding	Not checked yet	✓ (best)
Participant portal	✓	✓
Reporting and exports	✓	✓
Specs
Participant limit	Not checked yet	Not checked yet
Our review
Pros	Create customized global equity plans and track vesting and award balances Share data with HRIS systems through a real-time API Support participant grant acceptance, option exercises and share sales	Creates, approves, vests, and digitally signs equity grants with audit trails Supports participant exercise modeling, tax elections, and document access Files Section 16 forms directly with the SEC and supports SEC, FASB, and IFRS reporting
Cons	Pricing requires a request-a-demo sales path The named integration capability focuses on HRIS data sharing Its tools center on equity-plan administration, not general HR management	Pricing is quote-based and requires contacting sales Its broad administration and reporting scope may exceed basic grant-tracking needs The platform is cloud-based and web-only
Our verdict	Morgan Stanley at Work provides workplace stock-plan services, including Shareworks, for public and private companies. Its equity compensation tools cover plan creation and administration, while employees can review and accept awards,… Read the review →	Certent Equity Management supports stock plan and equity administration for private and public companies, with a scope that spans cap table management, grants, accounting outputs, reporting, and participant access. Companies that need… Read the review →

Strengths and trade-offs

• Morgan Stanley at Work — where it wins

  • Create customized global equity plans and track vesting and award balances
  • Share data with HRIS systems through a real-time API
  • Support participant grant acceptance, option exercises and share sales

  Where it doesn't

  • Pricing requires a request-a-demo sales path
  • The named integration capability focuses on HRIS data sharing
  • Its tools center on equity-plan administration, not general HR management

• Certent Equity Management — where it wins

  • Creates, approves, vests, and digitally signs equity grants with audit trails
  • Supports participant exercise modeling, tax elections, and document access
  • Files Section 16 forms directly with the SEC and supports SEC, FASB, and IFRS reporting

  Where it doesn't

  • Pricing is quote-based and requires contacting sales
  • Its broad administration and reporting scope may exceed basic grant-tracking needs
  • The platform is cloud-based and web-only

• MSMorgan Stanley at Work9.0/10 · Pricing on request

  Global plan administration connects grants, vesting, exercises, share sales and reporting.

  Visit siteFull verdict →
• Certent Equity Management8.4/10 · Pricing on request

  A full-lifecycle stock plan platform with participant workflows and public-company reporting.

  Visit CertentFull verdict →