⏱ 12 min read
📅 Updated July 2026
✅ Used by PE, VC, M&A, and search fund operators
Every deal team screens targets before opening the data room. The problem: most checklists are either 200-item monsters nobody finishes, or 5-item bullet lists that miss the deal-breakers. This one is the 47 items that actually matter for a first-pass screen — the questions that decide whether to invest another 40 hours of analyst time.
Each item is sourced from public information. No NDA needed. No data room access. You can run this checklist on any company in the world in under 10 minutes using the right tools — or have dodilligence do it automatically and deliver a structured PDF.
0 of 47 checked
Turn This Checklist Into a Finished Report from $49
Manual research can take days and cost $10K–$50K+. dodilligence runs 200+ public sources into a structured PDF in minutes from $49 — use the checklist as your IC briefing companion.
Get the Full Report — $49
Preview sample PDF
1. Identity & Corporate Structure PE M&A
Verify the company is what it claims to be. This is table stakes — but you'd be surprised how often it surfaces problems.
- Legal entity name matches across website, filings, and registry records
- Jurisdiction of incorporation confirmed (Delaware C-corp? UK Ltd? Cayman exempted?)
- Ultimate parent company and ownership chain traced via public registry
- Subsidiaries and affiliate entities identified — look for dormant shells
- Trade names / DBAs / former names (check Wayback Machine for rebrands)
- Domain registration date and registrar (is the company older than its website?)
- Key leadership team cross-referenced: website vs LinkedIn vs SEC filings vs press
- Executive tenure — are C-suite members brand new or have they been through a cycle?
2. Financial & Commercial Signals PE VC
You won't get audited financials pre-LOI. But public signals tell you a lot about whether the revenue story holds up.
- Revenue scale claim: does it match any public filing, press release, or third-party estimate?
- Growth rate narrative: consistent across press, pitch decks, LinkedIn employee count trend?
- Funding history: total raised, last round, valuation trajectory (Crunchbase, PitchBook signals)
- Burn rate indicators: headcount growth vs revenue trajectory, office expansions, hiring velocity
- Customer concentration signals: how many logos on the website? Any named Fortune 500 accounts?
- Pricing model: published pricing page? Consistent with positioning (enterprise vs self-serve)?
- Revenue mix: recurring vs one-time vs services — can you infer from job postings and product pages?
- Gross margin hints: third-party estimates, industry benchmarks, cloud spend signals
- Debt or lien filings (UCC-1 filings, court records for larger claims)
3. Legal, Regulatory & Compliance M&A Search
A single enforcement action or license gap can kill a deal. Check early.
- Active litigation: federal and state court records, PACER search for named party
- Regulatory actions: SEC, FTC, FDA, CFPB, or industry-specific enforcement
- Sanctions screening: OFAC SDN list, EU consolidated sanctions, UK HMT
- Required licenses: does the business model require specific licenses? (fintech, health, insurance, etc.)
- Data breach history: search breach databases, state AG notifications, HHS breach portal
- Privacy compliance posture: GDPR/CCPA signals — do they mention DPO, data processing terms?
- Employment claims: labor board filings, EEOC complaints, Glassdoor legal red flags
- IP litigation: patent infringement suits, trademark disputes (USPTO TTAB, TTABviz)
4. Market Position & Competition VC PE
Is this company a leader, a follower, or a pretender? The answer shapes your entire deal thesis.
- Category definition: what do they call themselves vs how do analysts/buyers categorize them?
- Market size (TAM) claim: sourced from a credible third party or self-estimated?
- Direct competitors: identify 3–5 and rank by revenue/size/funding
- Differentiation: what is falsifiable? Can a customer verify the claim independently?
- Customer reviews/ratings: G2, Capterra, Trustpilot, App Store — average score and volume
- Analyst coverage: Gartner, Forrester, IDC mentions — or absent entirely?
- SEO footprint: ranking for category keywords? Organic traffic estimate (Similarweb/Ahrefs)?
- Social proof quality: real case studies with named customers, or generic logos?
- Switching costs: what lock-in exists? Integration ecosystem depth?
5. Technology & Intellectual Property VC M&A
For tech and IP-heavy targets, this category can be the entire deal thesis.
- Patent portfolio: USPTO and WIPO filings — quantity, quality, recency, claims scope
- Trademark registrations: registered marks, pending applications, any oppositions
- Open-source dependencies: do they publish on GitHub? What licenses are in the stack?
- Engineering team depth: LinkedIn search for senior engineers, team size, tenure
- Technical blog / engineering culture: do they write about architecture publicly?
- Security posture: SOC 2 / ISO 27001 mentions, bug bounty, security.txt
- Cloud infrastructure signals: AWS/GCP/Azure partner status, job posting tech stack
- API / integration availability: developer docs, API status page, webhook ecosystem
6. Kill Gates — Stop Before You Waste Time Search PE
These are the questions where a wrong answer means walk away. Ask them first.
- Integrity red flag: Any founder/leadership criminal record, fraud, or bankruptcy?
- Unfixable compliance gap: Operating without a required license in the core market?
- Sanctions exposure: Any beneficial owner on a sanctions list?
- Revenue mirage: Is >60% of revenue from a single customer who could walk?
- IP house of cards: Does the company own its core IP, or license it from a related party?
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a business due diligence checklist?
A business due diligence checklist is a structured list of investigation items used by investors, acquirers, and lenders to evaluate a target company before committing capital. It covers financial health, legal compliance, market position, technology, and risk factors. A good checklist helps you decide quickly whether to proceed to a deeper investigation or walk away.
How long does due diligence take?
Traditional due diligence takes 30–90 days for a full M&A process. However, first-pass diligence — the initial screen before you open a data room — should take hours, not weeks. The checklist above can be completed in 10–15 minutes using automated tools or 2–3 days with a manual analyst.
What's the difference between commercial and legal due diligence?
Commercial due diligence evaluates the business model, market, and competitive position — "is this a good business?" Legal due diligence examines contracts, litigation, compliance, and corporate structure — "are there hidden legal risks?" Both are essential, but commercial diligence comes first because it determines whether the deal is worth pursuing at all.
Can I do due diligence without access to a data room?
Yes. The checklist above is designed for pre-data-room screening using only public information. SEC filings, court records, patent databases, company websites, LinkedIn, and third-party data providers can answer 80% of deal-breaker questions before you sign an NDA.
How much does due diligence cost?
A full third-party due diligence engagement from a Big 4 firm costs $50,000–$250,000+. First-pass screening by an internal analyst costs $1,500–$5,000 in analyst time. Automated tools like dodilligence deliver the same first-pass screen for $39–$49 per target, with results in minutes instead of days.
See a real due diligence report
Download a 20-page sample PDF showing exactly what automated first-pass diligence looks like.
View Sample Report →
Related Resources
Disclaimer: This checklist is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal, financial, investment, tax, audit, or accounting advice. No professional relationship is created by using this checklist. Always engage qualified professionals for transaction-specific diligence.
dodilligence · Free report · Order · Sample · Quick checklist