# AI data marketplaces, brokers and direct deals compared

URL: https://sellmydatatoai.net/guides/ai-data-marketplaces-compared
Reviewed: 2026-11-08

AI data marketplaces, brokers and direct deals differ mainly in who sets the price, who prepares the data and who decides where it goes. Marketplaces such as Opendatabay and Datarade let you list and price a dataset for a published commission. Direct buyers such as Polyshares pay a fixed sum with no fee. Brokers and licensing agents sit between, and most are paid only when a deal completes.

## Key takeaways

- Marketplaces publish commissions, from Opendatabay's 30% to 5% sliding scale to DataVendor's 20% on withdrawal. Most brokers and buyers do not publish a rate.
- A zero fee is not free. Direct buyers that license on to labs earn their margin inside the price they offer.
- Exclusivity varies more than price: Polyshares' published deals are all perpetual exclusive, while Endless Data licenses non-exclusively.
- Training-data companies and direct buyers usually de-identify for you, while marketplaces such as FileYield leave compliance to the seller.
- Ask every route the same questions in writing, about fees, onward transfer, exclusivity, timing and deletion.

A company with data to license has four broad routes: list it on a marketplace, use a broker or licensing agent, sell to a training-data company, or sign directly with a buyer that licenses on to AI labs. Each publishes different terms, and the differences matter more than the headline payouts.

This guide compares the routes using only what each company publishes on its own site, as checked for our [data buyers directory](https://sellmydatatoai.net/data-buyers) in November 2026. Sell My Data To AI is a broker, so we are one of the options compared. We describe our own terms in the same way as everyone else's and do not rank the routes.

## What is the difference between a data marketplace, a broker and a direct buyer?

The difference between a data marketplace, a broker and a direct buyer is who sets the price and who you sign with. On a [data marketplace](https://sellmydatatoai.net/glossary/data-marketplace) you usually set the price and deal with many buyers. A [data broker](https://sellmydatatoai.net/glossary/data-broker) finds a buyer and negotiates for you. A direct buyer signs with you itself and pays a fixed sum.

| Route | How it works | Who sets the price | Examples |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Data marketplace | Lists datasets for buyers to browse, request or buy | Usually the seller | Opendatabay, Datarade, AWS Data Exchange, DataVendor, FileYield, Defined.ai |
| Data broker | Prepares or packages data and finds buyers, usually paid on success | Agreed deal by deal | SellMyData, SimpleClosure AssetHub, Protege, Sell My Data To AI |
| Licensing agent | Licenses your data to several buyers on your behalf | The agent, with buyers | Troveo |
| Training-data company | Licenses records and supplies datasets to AI labs | The buyer, often from published ranges | micro1, Mercor, Scale AI, Handshake AI, Labelbox Prism |
| Direct buyer | Pays you a fixed sum and licenses on to labs itself | The buyer | Polyshares, Endless Data |

The lines blur. Endless Data says it places data with several labs at once and names micro1, Mercor and Handshake as examples, so it buys from sellers and sells to other buyers. SimpleClosure AssetHub handles both licenses and outright sales.

## How do fees compare across marketplaces, brokers and buyers?

Fees compare unevenly because marketplaces publish commission rates, while most brokers and buyers either charge the seller nothing or do not publish a rate. The table uses each company's own wording.

| Company | Route | Fee to seller |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Opendatabay | Marketplace | Free to list, commission from 30% on sales up to $100 falling to 5% above $250,000 |
| Datarade | Marketplace | $0 a year plus 30%, $6,000 a year plus 20%, or $12,000 a year plus 15% |
| DataVendor | Marketplace | 20% of vendor earnings, charged on withdrawal |
| AWS Data Exchange | Marketplace | AWS Marketplace service fees, rate not stated on the pages we checked |
| FileYield | Marketplace | Free to list, facilitation fees disclosed when you list, request or accept a deal |
| SellMyData | Broker | Commission when a sale closes, rate not published |
| SimpleClosure AssetHub | Broker | Percentage on a successful sale or license, rate not published |
| Troveo | Licensing agent | No fees, paid from its revenue share |
| Polyshares | Direct buyer | No fee and no commission |
| Endless Data | Direct buyer | None, Endless is paid by the labs |
| Mercor | Training-data company | None, Mercor covers extraction, anonymization and transfer |
| Sell My Data To AI | Broker | Success fee only when a deal completes, agreed in writing before any introduction |

A zero fee does not mean the intermediary earns nothing. Endless Data says it is paid by the labs, and Polyshares licenses the data on to AI labs itself, so their margin sits inside the price they offer you. Compare the net amount you receive, not the fee line. Our [fees page](https://sellmydatatoai.net/fees) sets out how our own success fee works.

## Which route pays sellers the most?

No route reliably pays sellers the most, because every published figure is a range and the final price depends on the data. The ranges below are the companies' own, and most are marked as estimates.

| Company | Route | Published payout |
| --- | --- | --- |
| micro1 | Training-data company | $100,000 to $500,000 for qualified partnerships, up to more than $3 million |
| Handshake AI | Training-data company | $100,000 to more than $4 million (headline) |
| Endless Data | Direct buyer | Up to $4 million (indicative) |
| Polyshares | Direct buyer | $100,000 to $2 million and above typical, four published deals of $110,000 to $450,000 |
| Labelbox Prism | Training-data company | Around $50,000 to more than $1 million |
| Scale AI | Training-data company | $10,000 to more than $1 million (illustrative) |
| SimpleClosure AssetHub | Broker | Tens to hundreds of thousands of dollars |
| Troveo | Licensing agent | Full-company deals start at six figures |
| Marketplaces | Marketplace | Seller sets the price |

Exclusivity moves price as much as route does. AIData.Broker estimates an exclusive deal at about 2.5 to 5 times a non-exclusive one, as reported by ddiy.co in October 2026. Every figure on our site, with its source, is in the [AI data price index](https://sellmydatatoai.net/ai-data-price-index).

## How do exclusivity and payment timing compare?

Exclusivity and payment timing compare more sharply than fees, and they are the terms most often left unpublished. Where a company does publish them, they range from perpetual exclusivity to none, and from 7 days to about 60.

| Company | Exclusivity | Payment timing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Polyshares | All four published deals perpetual and exclusive | Offer in one to two weeks, then net 30 to 60 days |
| Labelbox Prism | Exclusive by default | Upfront fee at signing plus revenue share, first call to first wire under 21 days |
| Troveo | Time-limited, with exit terms | Revenue share on every sale |
| Endless Data | Non-exclusive | Fixed sum paid after signing, preparation and transfer |
| FileYield | Seller chooses | Arranged between seller and buyer |
| micro1 | Not published | Within 30 days of acceptance, or about 60 days on its FAQ |
| Mercor | Not published | Typically 2 to 4 weeks after the signed agreement |
| SellMyData | Not published | Target of 7 days after a sale closes |
| Opendatabay | Not published | Within 30 days of the end of the month |
| AWS Data Exchange | Not published | Monthly, after funds are collected from subscribers |

A perpetual exclusive license ends your ability to license the same records again. A non-exclusive one lets a single archive earn from several buyers. Our guide to [exclusive and non-exclusive licenses](https://sellmydatatoai.net/guides/exclusive-vs-non-exclusive-data-licenses) sets out the trade-off.

## Who prepares and de-identifies the data on each route?

Training-data companies and direct buyers usually prepare and de-identify the data for you, marketplaces usually leave it to you, and brokers vary. The access model differs too, which affects your security exposure.

- Mercor says an automated process masks more than 60 categories of sensitive identifiers, and its process links company accounts to its extraction tooling.
- Scale AI says it anonymizes data inside the seller's own environment before anything is extracted.
- micro1 says it removes or transforms personal information before sharing data with third parties.
- Polyshares says a specialist personal data partner strips identifying fields before Polyshares or any lab sees the record.
- SimpleClosure says every AssetHub dataset is processed for personal information and credentials before licensing.
- SellMyData says the lab receives the de-identified dataset, never the seller's raw data.
- FileYield says sellers handle data transfer, personal data and compliance directly with the buyer.
- Datarade says data on its marketplace may not contain unanonymized sensitive personal data.

When a buyer de-identifies for you, ask for its written method and test results before signing. We do not take custody of raw data. Buyers see redacted samples under a mutual NDA, and full data moves only after you sign a license directly with the buyer.

## How much control do you keep over who receives the data?

How much control you keep over who receives the data depends on who you sign with. If your contract is with an intermediary that licenses on to labs, onward transfer is the point of the deal, so the question becomes which labs and on what terms.

- SellMyData says you approve every buyer and every term.
- DataVendor's buy-now purchases are anonymous to the vendor, while offers name the buyer organization so you can choose whom to accept.
- Polyshares does not disclose which labs take which data, and says use is bounded by the license.
- micro1 says it licenses data only to labs and enterprises in the US and allied countries.
- Handshake AI says you review who may receive the data and how it may be used before committing.
- With us, you approve every buyer, every sample and every license term, and you can withdraw at any point before signing.

## Which route suits which seller?

Which route suits you depends on what you hold, how big your company is and how much of the work you want to do yourself. The table matches common situations to the routes whose published terms fit them.

| Your situation | Routes whose terms fit | Why |
| --- | --- | --- |
| A packaged dataset you can price and sell repeatedly | Opendatabay, Datarade, AWS Data Exchange | Published commissions and many buyers |
| Private codebases or RL tasksets | DataVendor, SimpleClosure AssetHub | Built for code and engineering assets |
| 30 or more staff with years of operational records | micro1, Endless Data, Scale AI (40 or more preferred) | Published size thresholds |
| A small company below headcount thresholds | Polyshares, SellMyData | No headcount minimum published |
| A startup winding down | SimpleClosure AssetHub | Serves operating and closing companies |
| A video or audio archive | Troveo, Versos, Protege | Media-focused licensing |
| Ready to run your own diligence and contracts | FileYield | Direct negotiation with buyers |
| A sensitive archive where you want to compare buyers | A broker such as SellMyData or Sell My Data To AI | Offers compared before you commit |

## What should you ask any marketplace, broker or buyer?

You should ask any marketplace, broker or buyer the same set of questions in writing, so that the answers can be compared line by line.

1. What is the fee or margin, and how is it calculated?
2. Who signs the license with me, and who else will receive the data?
3. Is the license exclusive, for how long, and with what exit terms?
4. When am I paid, and what has to happen first?
5. Who de-identifies the data, by what method, and can I see the test results?
6. Will you take an exported copy, or do your tools need access to our systems?
7. When are raw copies deleted, and what happens to trained models if a problem emerges?
8. Do I approve each buyer and each license term?

Our [licensing agreement checklist](https://sellmydatatoai.net/guides/ai-data-licensing-agreement-checklist) covers the clauses behind each question. For a view of which routes and buyers fit your records, start with a [free data valuation](https://sellmydatatoai.net/data-valuation) or [book a consultation](https://sellmydatatoai.net/book-a-consultation?side=seller).

## Frequently asked questions

### Is a data broker better than a data marketplace?

Neither is better in general. A marketplace suits a packaged dataset you can price yourself and sell many times, at a published commission such as Opendatabay's 30% to 5% scale. A broker suits a one-off or sensitive archive where finding the right buyer and negotiating terms matters more. Compare the net amount, the exclusivity and who carries the preparation work.

### Do AI data marketplaces check that I own the data?

Marketplaces generally place responsibility on the seller. FileYield says sellers handle personal data and compliance directly with the buyer, and Datarade bars unanonymized sensitive personal data from listings. Some review listings before they go live. Whatever the route, buyers will ask about ownership and chain of title, so check your rights before you list.

### Why do some buyers charge sellers no fee?

Buyers that charge no fee earn elsewhere. Endless Data says it is paid by the labs it licenses to, and Polyshares licenses data on to AI labs itself, so their margin sits inside the price they offer. Mercor covers extraction and anonymization costs. A zero fee can still be the best net offer, but compare the amount you actually receive.

### Can I use more than one route at the same time?

You can if every license you sign is non-exclusive. Endless Data licenses non-exclusively, while all four of Polyshares' published deals were perpetual and exclusive, and Labelbox Prism is exclusive by default. Troveo asks for time-limited exclusivity. Check the exclusivity terms before sharing samples with a second route, and record each license in your data manifest.

### How long does each route take to pay?

Published timings range widely. SellMyData targets payment within 7 days of a sale closing, Mercor typically pays within 2 to 4 weeks of a signed agreement, and Labelbox Prism says first call to first wire takes under 21 days. Polyshares pays net 30 to 60 days, and FileYield says enterprise deal cycles run from a few weeks to a few months.

## Sources

- [Opendatabay homepage](https://www.opendatabay.com/), Opendatabay, accessed November 2026
- [Fees and pricing](https://www.opendatabay.com/legal/fees), Opendatabay, accessed November 2026
- [Datarade homepage](https://datarade.ai/), Datarade, accessed November 2026
- [Apply as a data provider](https://providers.datarade.ai/apply), Datarade, accessed November 2026
- [FAQ](https://docs.datavendor.ai/overview/faq.md), DataVendor, accessed November 2026
- [Provider financials](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/data-exchange/latest/userguide/provider-financials.html), Amazon Web Services, accessed November 2026
- [Terms of service](https://www.fileyield.com/terms), FileYield, accessed November 2026
- [How it works](https://www.fileyield.com/how-it-works), FileYield, accessed November 2026
- [SellMyData homepage and FAQ](https://www.sellmydata.com/), SellMyData, accessed November 2026
- [AssetHub](https://simpleclosure.com/product/assethub/index.html), SimpleClosure, accessed November 2026
- [Business data](https://www.troveo.ai/business-data), Troveo, accessed November 2026
- [Polyshares homepage](https://polyshares.com/), Polyshares, accessed November 2026
- [Track record](https://polyshares.com/track-record), Polyshares, accessed November 2026
- [Endless Data homepage and FAQ](https://endless-data.com/), Endless Data, accessed November 2026
- [Data monetization](https://www.mercor.com/data/), Mercor, accessed November 2026
- [Data partnerships](https://www.micro1.ai/data-partnerships), micro1, accessed November 2026
- [Data partnership](https://scale.com/data-partnership), Scale AI, accessed November 2026
- [Data partnerships](https://joinhandshake.com/ai/data-partnerships/), Handshake, accessed November 2026
- [Prism](https://prism.labelbox.com/), Labelbox, accessed November 2026
- [How much is company data worth to AI?](https://ddiy.co/how-much-is-company-data-worth-to-ai/), ddiy.co, accessed November 2026

---

Book a free consultation: https://sellmydatatoai.net/book-a-consultation