Sell Source Code: What It's Worth to AI Buyers
Thinking about whether to sell source code? How AI buyers value source code, what moves the price, and guides for every source code system we cover.
Repositories with full commit history, pull request reviews and issues show how software actually gets built and debugged. Wind-down platforms have made code one of the most traded assets in this market. Source code is usually licensed together with a company's other systems, and its value depends on years of history, how much real detail it holds, and how consistently the team used the tool.
Source Code at a glance
Source code systems we cover
Pick your system to see where to find the size of your history, how to export it, and a quick estimate for that system alone.
What makes source code worth more or less
| Raises value | Lowers value |
|---|---|
| Full commit history and PR reviews | A single snapshot with no history |
| Issues and discussions linked to code | Mostly vendored or generated code |
| Production code with tests | Forks of open-source projects |
| Clean IP assignments from every contributor | Code owned by clients or contractors |
How size affects the estimate
Buyers size source code in GB. In our calculator, size multiplies the category's base value like this:
| Tier | Typical size | Multiplier |
|---|---|---|
| Smaller | Under 5 GB | 0.5x |
| Mid-size | 5 to 50 GB | 1.0x |
| Large | 50 GB+ | 1.6x |
Years of history, headcount and how much work happens in writing matter as much as raw size. Run the full calculator to combine source code with your other systems.
How to sell or license source code
- Keep everything. Don't delete accounts or history, including former employees.
- Measure it. Each system guide above shows where to find your total GB.
- Estimate it. Use the value calculator with all your systems selected.
- Request an offer. A direct buyer reviews a sample and pays after anonymized delivery. Start with Polyshares, or compare buyers first.
Who's buying code
- AI training firms like Turing, which reportedly pays five-figure sums per codebase from failed startups.
- Big tech, like Google's confidential pilot paying some Android developers for app code in 2026.
- Direct data buyers that license code alongside chat, tickets and docs as part of a company's full record.
- Wind-down platforms that bundle code into a startup's asset sale.
What makes code valuable
| Raises value | Lowers value |
|---|---|
| Full commit history | A single snapshot |
| Pull request reviews and discussion | No review process |
| Linked issues and tickets | Code with no context |
| Real production use | Prototypes and abandoned repos |
| Tests and documentation | Untested, undocumented code |
Check before you sell
- Ownership. Make sure employees and contractors assigned IP to the company.
- Open source. Identify open-source code and its licenses. You can't license someone else's code as yours.
- Client work. Code built for clients may belong to them.
- Secrets. Remove API keys, passwords and credentials from the code and its history.
- Customer data. Strip any real customer data from fixtures, seeds and logs.
Code plus context is worth more
A repo on its own is worth something. The same repo with its issues, pull request discussions and the team's Slack conversations shows how software actually gets built, which is what coding agents need. See GitHub, GitLab and Jira.
Selling vs licensing code
If the company is continuing, a non-exclusive license lets you keep building. If it's closing, an outright sale may be simpler. See licensing vs selling, or request an offer from Polyshares for the code plus your other records.
Common questions
Can a company sell its source code?
Generally yes, when the company owns the account and the records are about its own operations. Source code is licensed with names and contact details removed, and anything held on behalf of clients is excluded.
How much is source code worth?
On its own, usually a fraction of a full deal. Published Polyshares deals run from about $100K to $2M+ for a company's combined records. Source code carries a 0.9x weight in our calculator, ranking #3 of 18 categories.
What gets removed before a buyer sees it?
Names, emails, phone numbers, account numbers and other identifying details are stripped by a privacy specialist before delivery. Buyers want the patterns of work, not who your customers are.
Can I sell my startup's code to AI companies?
Yes, if the company owns it. Buyers like Turing have reportedly paid tens of thousands per codebase.
What do AI companies want in a codebase?
Production code with full commit history, pull request reviews, linked issues and tests.
Can I sell code that includes open source?
Only the parts you own. Open-source components stay under their own licenses.
Should I sell code with my other data?
Usually yes. Code plus tickets and chat shows the whole engineering process and is worth more together.