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- Pluralsight
Pluralsight Acquisition, Valuation, Funding & Investors
Pluralsight was acquired by Blue Owl Capital Inc., Ares Management, Oaktree Capital Management and Goldman Sachs in August 2024.
Pluralsight acquisition price
Undisclosed
Acquired by Blue Owl Capital Inc., Ares Management +2 · Aug 2024
Pluralsight revenue
$132M
Series C · Dec 2016
Cumulative funding Pluralsight raised
$193M
across 3 funding rounds
Key investors in Pluralsight
Insight Partners
ICONIQ Capital
Felicis
GSV Ventures
Sorenson Capital
About Pluralsight
Pluralsight is an American online technology-skills company headquartered in Westlake, Texas, a Dallas suburb. It sells subscriptions to video training courses, hands-on labs and skills assessments for software developers, IT administrators and creative professionals, and offers a full SaaS platform to enterprise customers. By 2018 its catalogue held more than 7,000 courses written by over 1,400 subject-matter experts, whom it pays royalties based on how often their videos are viewed. In 2020 it had 18,000 corporate clients, including 70% of Fortune 500 companies, and it reported revenue of $500.2 million in 2019; it employed about 2,000 people in 2025. Pluralsight was founded in 2004 by Aaron Skonnard, Keith Brown, Fritz Onion and Bill Williams as a classroom training business and moved to online video in 2007. It grew through acquisitions including Digital-Tutors, Code School, GitPrime for $170 million in 2019 and cloud-training platform A Cloud Guru in 2021, and it listed on Nasdaq in May 2018. Vista Equity Partners took it private for $3.5 billion in April 2021, but in August 2024 lenders led by Blue Owl and Ares Management took full ownership, wiping out Vista's equity, the same year it moved its headquarters from Draper, Utah to Texas. Erin Gajdalo is chief executive.
Founded
2004
HQ
Website
Status
Acquired
Customer focus
B2B
Revenue model
Subscription
Revenue
$132M (Dec 2016)
Valuation
$1B (Dec 2016)
Pluralsight Acquisition
Pluralsight was acquired by Blue Owl Capital Inc., Ares Management, Oaktree Capital Management and Goldman Sachs for an undisclosed price on 28 August 2024.
Before the acquisition Pluralsight had raised $193M across 3 funding rounds.
Pluralsight announced an agreement to transfer ownership to a group of existing lenders on August 28, 2024 as part of a recapitalization of the technology learning business. Funds managed by Blue Owl Capital led the group, which also included funds managed by Ares Management, Goldman Sachs Asset Management and Oaktree Capital Management, among others. Under the agreement, the investor group would own 100 percent of Pluralsight, ending Vista Equity Partners’ ownership following its earlier take-private acquisition. The recapitalization substantially reduced outstanding debt and provided more than USD 200 million of additional capital to support the company’s growth plans. Pluralsight continued to provide expert-authored content, skills assessments and hands-on learning experiences for organizations and individual technology professionals. Management emphasized improved customer retention and bookings as it pursued a more customer-focused strategy. The ownership change combined a balance sheet restructuring with resources intended to support product delivery and continuity for customers and partners.
| Acquirer | Date | Type |
|---|---|---|
| 28 Aug 2024 | PE buyout |
Sources: pluralsight.com, blueowltechnologyfinance.com, blueowl.com, aresmgmt.com, am.gs.com
Pluralsight Valuation
Pluralsight is currently valued at $1B, based on its Series C in December 2016. Read the announcement ↗
The $30M round was led by ICONIQ Capital and Insight Partners.
Pluralsight's valuation has moved from $1B at its Series B in August 2014 to $1B in December 2016, across 2 priced rounds.
Pluralsight valuation by funding round
Revenue multiple| Date | Stage | Valuation | Revenue Multiple |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 2016 | Series C | $1B | 7.6x |
| Aug 2014 | Series B | $1B | 10.0x |
Pluralsight Revenue
Pluralsight's latest recorded revenue is $132M, as of its Series C in December 2016. At a $1B valuation, that implies a 7.6x revenue multiple.
Revenue grew from $100M in August 2014 to $132M in December 2016, while the revenue multiple moved from 10.0x to 7.6x.
Pluralsight revenue by funding round
| Date | Revenue * | Valuation | Revenue Multiple | Stage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 2016 | $132M | $1B | 7.6x | Series C |
| Aug 2014 | $100M | $1B | 10.0x | Series B |
* Revenue (or ARR) figures are the values recorded alongside each funding round. Typically run-rate revenue at the time of the deal, or a reported LTM (last 12 months) revenue.
Pluralsight Funding History
Pluralsight has raised a total of $193M across 3 funding rounds.
Pluralsight's first fundraising round was a $28M Series A in January 2013. The most recent completed round was a $30M Series C in December 2016.
Pluralsight funding rounds
| Date | Stage | Investors | Raised | Valuation | Deal Summary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 2016 | Series C | ICONIQ Capital (lead); Insight Partners (lead) | $30M | $1B | Pluralsight is an online learning platform providing over 5,000 technical, design, and business courses for technology professionals and enterprises. Founded in 2004, the company bootstrapped profitably for nearly a decade before raising venture funding starting in 2013. In December 2016, Pluralsight closed a $30 million Series C round led by existing investors Insight Venture Partners and ICONIQ Capital. The company used this funding to expand its enterprise learning solutions, develop platform intelligence, pay off acquisition debt, and hire additional sales staff. As of 2016, Pluralsight generated $131.8 million in revenue, growing to $166.8 million in 2017, representing 26.5% year-over-year growth. Billings from business customers grew 55% in 2017 to $163 million. Prior to the December 2016 round, Pluralsight had raised $135 million in Series B funding in August 2014 at a post-money valuation of $1 billion. CNBC reported the December 2016 round valued the company at more than $1 billion. Pluralsight went public in June 2018, raising $310.5 million through its IPO at $15 per share. |
| Aug 2014 | Series B | Insight Partners (lead); ICONIQ Capital; Felicis; Sorenson Capital; GSV Ventures | $135M | $1B | Pluralsight, an online technology training platform offering a library of over 3,000 courses for professionals, businesses, and institutions, raised $135 million in an August 27, 2014 Series B round led by Insight Venture Partners, with participation from ICONIQ Capital and Sorenson Capital. This brought total funding to nearly $165 million following a prior $27.5 million round in 2013. The post-money valuation approached $1 billion, with CEO Aaron Skonnard stating the pre-money was in the high sevens (hundreds of millions), rounding up after the investment. The funds were allocated to accelerate enterprise customer growth, develop new content, enhance features, and pursue acquisitions, having already spent over $70 million on deals the prior year. Pluralsight targeted enterprise expansion, with enterprise customers comprising about two-thirds of its base, including Microsoft, Dell, Intel, Disney, Bank of America, and Thomson Reuters, alongside over 6,000 companies total. Financially, Pluralsight projected $85-100 million in revenue for 2014, following rapid growth from $5 million in 2011, $16 million in 2012, and $38 million in 2013. Pricing included $29/month for individuals and $300 per-seat per-year for businesses. The company had bootstrapped profitably since 2004 before venture funding. This round positioned Pluralsight as one of Utah's largest private investments, supporting its vision as a standard for tech training and certification in corporate environments. |
| Jan 2013 | Series A | Insight Partners (lead) | $28M | - | Pluralsight, founded in 2004 as a classroom-based training company for software developers, pivoted in 2008 to an online subscription model and achieved profitable growth bootstrapped until receiving its first outside investment of $27.5 million from Insight Venture Partners on January 3, 2013. The funding, announced via PR Newswire and covered by TechCrunch and VC News Daily, was aimed at accelerating expansion of its course library, particularly in areas like Salesforce, Microsoft technologies, Java, Android, iOS, social platforms, and cloud services such as AWS and Azure, while also supporting hiring to scale the business globally. CEO Aaron Skonnard emphasized the investment as a major leap to enhance content quality, breadth, and depth for developers worldwide, building on Pluralsight's established reputation for timely and relevant courses unmatched by peers. By December 2012, ahead of the round, the company's valuation was less than $100 million according to Skonnard in a 2014 Business Insider interview. Revenue grew rapidly in the lead-up to and during 2013: $5 million in 2011, $16 million in 2012, and $38 million in 2013, as reported by CEO Skonnard. The company bootstrapped profitably prior to this investment, positioning it for further enterprise-focused growth. This round preceded a larger $135 million Series B in August 2014 led by Insight Partners with ICONIQ Capital and Sorenson Capital participation, bringing total funding to nearly $165 million and valuing Pluralsight at close to $1 billion at that time per EdSurge and Pluralsight's press release. The 2013 funding fueled library expansion to over 3,000 courses by 2014. |
Who has invested in Pluralsight?
5 investors have backed Pluralsight across its funding rounds, including Insight Partners, ICONIQ Capital, Felicis, GSV Ventures and Sorenson Capital.
Lead investors include ICONIQ Capital and Insight Partners.
Pluralsight Investors
| Investor | HQ | Rounds | Role | First check |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | Lead | Jan 2013 | ||
| 2 | Lead | Aug 2014 | ||
| 1 | Participant | Aug 2014 | ||
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Start Free TrialAcquisitions by Pluralsight
Pluralsight has acquired 9 companies to date.
Last acquisition by Pluralsight was on June 2nd 2021. Pluralsight acquired A Cloud Guru for $2B.
Latest Acquisitions by Pluralsight
| Description | A Cloud Guru is an Austin-headquartered online training platform specializing in cloud certifications for Amazon Web Services, Google Cloud Platform, and Microsoft Azure. It offers interactive courses, hands-on labs, and exam simulators used by over two million professionals worldwide. Acquired by Pluralsight in 2020, the platform delivers content through a subscription model with video lessons from certified instructors. A Cloud Guru partners with cloud providers for official exam prep materials and operates learning paths tailored to roles like solutions architect and data engineer. | Next Tech is a cloud-based integrated development environment allowing secure execution of code and Linux applications in browsers. Users run untrusted programs via WebAssembly sandboxes without local installations, supporting languages from Python to Rust. Targeted at educators and developers, the platform hosts collaborative sessions and integrates Git for version control. Founded in 2022, it powers online coding bootcamps and hackathons globally. | DevelopIntelligence is a Phoenix-headquartered provider of engineering upskilling programs. The company delivers customized courses in Java, React, AWS, and DevOps for enterprises including Cisco and Dell. Its platform tracks progress for 250,000 learners annually through hands-on labs and assessments. Acquired by Pluralsight in 2021, DevelopIntelligence operates globally with content in 12 languages. | GitPrime is a software engineering intelligence platform that analyzes data from Git repositories, Jira tickets, and pull requests. It delivers metrics on cycle time, deployment frequency, and team productivity through dashboards. Engineering leaders use insights to optimize processes and align initiatives with business outcomes. Founded in 2015 and based in Durango, Colorado, GitPrime was acquired by LinearB in 2021, expanding its observability tools. | |
| HQ Country | |||||
| HQ City | - | San Francisco, CA | Louisville, KY | Durango, CO | |
| Deal Date | 2 Jun 2021 | 12 Jan 2021 | 14 Oct 2020 | 1 May 2019 | |
| Valuation | $2B | $25M | $49M | $170M | |
| EV/Revenue | |||||
| EV/EBITDA | |||||
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Investments by Pluralsight
Pluralsight has invested in 1 company to date.
Latest investment by Pluralsight was on December 11th 2014. Pluralsight invested in Grow in their $2M Seed round.
Latest Investments by Pluralsight
| Description | Grow is a business intelligence dashboard software for small and medium enterprises headquartered in Orem, Utah. Founded in 2014, it integrates data from QuickBooks, Salesforce, Zendesk, databases, and spreadsheets to create customizable dashboards in minutes. The platform equips teams with real-time metrics for decision-making across sales, operations, and customer service. |
| HQ Country | |
| HQ City | Salt Lake City, UT |
| Deal Date | 11 Dec 2014 |
| Round | Seed |
| Raised | $2M |
| Investors | Peterson Ventures; Kickstart; Haxee Ventures; BYU Cougar Capital; Aaron Skonnard; Pelion Venture Partners |
| Valuation | undisclosed |
| EV/Revenue | |
| EV/EBITDA | |
This data is available for Pro users. Sign up to see all Pluralsight investments and their VC round multiples. Start Free Trial | |
Pluralsight Competitors
Pluralsight competitors include listed companies like Stride, East Buy and Youdao, and private ones like Articulate, VIPKID and Kajabi.
| Company | HQ | Status | Revenue | EBITDA | Valuation | Revenue Multiple |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Private | - | - | $3.8B | - | ||
| Publicly listed | $2.5B | $580M | $3.2B | 1.2x | ||
| Publicly listed | $856M | $99M | $4.1B | 3.4x | ||
| Private | $750M | - | $4.5B | - | ||
| Publicly listed | $887M | $30M | $2.4B | 2.6x | ||
| Private | $100M | - | $2B | 20.0x |
Pluralsight Public Comps
Pluralsight is no longer listed, but its public comps include IPE Universal, Stride, East Buy, COL Global, Blackbaud, Youdao, McGraw Hill, Graham Holdings, Alef Education and Cengage.
| Last FY | EV/Revenue | EV/EBITDA | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | EBITDA | Last FY | LTM | 2027E | Last FY | LTM | 2027E | |
| $15M | $3M | 236.1x | - | 1350.5x | - | |||
| $2.5B | $580M | 1.2x | 1.2x | 5.1x | 4.7x | |||
| $856M | $99M | 3.9x | 3.4x | 33.7x | 27.7x | |||
| $249M | ($78M) | 11.7x | 8.9x | (37.1x) | (48.0x) | |||
| $1.1B | $278M | 3.1x | 2.9x | 12.4x | 8.0x | |||
| $887M | $30M | 2.8x | 2.6x | 84.7x | 43.0x | |||
| $2.1B | $613M | 2.1x | 2.1x | 7.2x | 5.9x | |||
| $4.9B | $682M | 1.1x | 1.0x | 7.6x | - | |||
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Common questions about Pluralsight
| When was Pluralsight founded? | Pluralsight was founded in 2004. |
| Where is Pluralsight headquartered? | Pluralsight is headquartered in Westlake, TX, United States. |
| Is Pluralsight publicly listed? | No, Pluralsight was acquired by Blue Owl Capital Inc., Ares Management, Oaktree Capital Management and 1 other investor in August 2024. |
| Who acquired Pluralsight? | Pluralsight was acquired by Blue Owl Capital Inc., Ares Management, Oaktree Capital Management and Goldman Sachs in August 2024. |
| What is Pluralsight's valuation? | Pluralsight was last valued at $1B in its Series C in December 2016. |
| How much funding has Pluralsight raised? | Pluralsight has raised $193M across 3 funding rounds. |
| What was Pluralsight's last funding round? | Pluralsight's last funding round was a $30M Series C in December 2016, led by ICONIQ Capital and Insight Partners. |
| Who are Pluralsight's investors? | Pluralsight's investors include Insight Partners, ICONIQ Capital, Felicis, Sorenson Capital and GSV Ventures. |
| What is Pluralsight's revenue? | Pluralsight's latest recorded revenue is $132M (December 2016). |
| What is Pluralsight's revenue multiple? | Pluralsight's latest valuation implies a 7.6x revenue multiple ($1B valuation on $132M of revenue). |
| Which companies are comparable to Pluralsight? | Companies comparable to Pluralsight include Articulate, Stride, East Buy, VIPKID, Youdao and Kajabi. |
| How many companies has Pluralsight acquired? | Pluralsight has acquired 9 companies, including A Cloud Guru, Next Tech, DevelopIntelligence, GitPrime and Train Simple. |
| What was the largest acquisition by Pluralsight? | The $2B acquisition of A Cloud Guru in June 2021 is the largest acquisition Pluralsight has made to date. |
| How many companies has Pluralsight invested in? | Pluralsight has invested in 1 company, including Grow. |
| What was Pluralsight's last investment? | In December 2014, Pluralsight invested in Grow's $2M seed round alongside Peterson Ventures, Kickstart, Haxee Ventures and 3 other investors. |
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