Clay
Data enrichment tables that query 150+ data providers in one place
Clay report card
Good · out of 4.0 · graded Oct 17, 2026
Best for building custom lead lists from many data sources
Clay is a spreadsheet that fills itself in: each column asks one data provider after another, from 150-plus, until one finds the email or number, and an AI agent researches the gaps. Seats are unlimited, so five people share Launch at $167 a month billed yearly. But there's real setup, and two meters to watch.
Who Clay is for
- Great if you build lists with odd criteria no single database sells
- Handy when you want several data providers behind one bill
- A treat if you like spreadsheet-style workflows and tinkering with them
Who Clay is not for
- Pricey if you're on your own, as the first paid plan is $167 a month
- Tight if you need phone numbers for free, since the free plan has no phone enrichment
- Skip it if you just want to look someone up, as it's built for building workflows
Why Clay gets a 2.8
Five grades, each with its reason. The GPA is their average: an A is 4 points, an F is none.
- BValue for moneyLaunch is $167 a month billed yearly with unlimited seats, about $33.40 a head for five, just inside this category's cheaper quarter ($34). It buys 2,500 data credits and 15,000 actions a month. On your own, the whole $167 is yours to pay.
- CFree plan and trialA free plan with 100 data credits and 500 actions a month, unlimited seats, waterfalls and Claygent, plus a 14-day trial. But tables stop at 200 rows and there's no phone enrichment.
- AFeaturesWaterfalls across 150-plus providers, where a lookup that finds nothing costs nothing, plus Claygent for web research, job-change signals, its own sequencer and CRM and warehouse sync. No rival here draws on so many sources.
- CEase of useNo App Store rating on record, and this is a web app where the work is building the table itself. If spreadsheet formulas make you nervous, expect a learning curve.
- BPlatforms and integrationsWeb only, but with HubSpot, Pipedrive, Attio, Outreach, Instantly, lemlist, Apollo.io and Snowflake on the list, and webhooks from Growth. No desktop or phone apps.
What these grades rest on. Graded from this listing, whose facts were read from Clay's own pages on 17 October 2026. Not based on using the product, and shorter than our full reviews. How we review and grade.
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<a href="https://toolgpa.com/tools/clay#review"><img src="https://toolgpa.com/badge/clay.svg" alt="Clay: 2.8 GPA on ToolGPA" width="196" height="56"></a>Where Clay stands among lead and email finders
Clay's GPA of 2.8 is higher than 13 of the 19 other lead and email finders we grade, and level with 6.
It stands best on features (A, above 18 of 19) and worst on ease of use (C, above 0).
Its paid plans start at $167 a month, against a middle price of $39 for the category: 14 of the 14 others that charge start lower.
On features, ease of use and platforms it scores 3.0 out of 4. Nothing scores higher for less, though at least one tool matches that score at a lower price.
Each grade against the category
Every bar is all 20 lead and email finders we grade, cut by the letter each got. Clay’s own letter is outlined.
- BValue for moneyAbove 11 of 19, level with 1
- CFree plan and trialAbove 2 of 19, level with 17
- AFeaturesAbove 18 of 19, level with 1
- CEase of useAbove 0 of 19, level with 9
- BPlatforms and integrationsAbove 1 of 19, level with 18
Price against what you get
Each dot is one of 15 lead and email finders. Further left costs less, and higher up scores better on features, ease of use and platforms. Point at a dot to see which tool it is.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Keep Clay, or make your own?
Keep it
To replace Clay you would be making connections to other products, each kept working as those products change. That is not a weekend's work, with an AI app builder or without one.
It is one of the better ones too: its GPA of 2.8 is higher than 13 of the 19 other lead and email finders we grade. It costs $2,004 a year.
What you could not
- Connections to other products, each kept working as those products change.
- Newsletters sent to thousands of people that still reach the inbox.
- AI features, unless you pay a model provider for each request yourself.
- The depth: we grade its features A, which means it covers the whole job.
What this rests on. Clay’s listing: what it does, where it runs, what it plugs into and what it costs. It is a judgement about the kind of software this is. We have not built a replacement for it, and making your own means looking after it too. How we decide, and every tool’s verdict.
What is Clay?
Clay is a table-based workspace for building and enriching lead lists. Each row is a company or person, and columns call data from more than 150 providers in turn until one finds an email, phone number or company detail, or run Claygent, an AI agent that researches the web. Finished lists can be synced to a CRM, pushed to ad platforms or sent into email campaigns.
Clay has a free plan. Paid plans start at $167 per month for 2,500 data credits, billed annually. See every plan
Good for
- Growth and operations teams building custom lead lists
- Teams that want several data providers behind one bill
- People comfortable setting up spreadsheet-style workflows
Worth knowing
- Two meters apply: data credits pay providers for data, and actions count each enrichment or export. Both are sized separately on paid plans.
- Data credits start at $0.05 each; extra credits cost 30% more than plan credits on Launch and Growth.
- Actions reset each billing cycle; data credits roll over up to twice the monthly amount on Launch and Growth.
- The free plan has no phone number enrichment and stops at 200 rows per table.
Key features
- Waterfall enrichment
- A column asks one data provider after another until a value is found, drawing on more than 150 providers. A lookup that returns nothing costs nothing.
- Claygent
- An AI agent with web research that fills in custom data points a provider does not sell. It is included on every plan, the free one too.
- Audiences and search
- Build lists of companies and people from Clay's search and imports. Paid plans add unlimited search and CSV uploads.
- Signals
- Track job changes, promotions, new hires, company news and social posts from Launch, and website intent from Growth.
- Sequencer and integrations
- Send email from Clay's own sequencer or push leads to Instantly, lemlist, Outreach and HubSpot sequences.
- CRM and warehouse sync
- Growth syncs and enriches CRM records automatically and connects to Snowflake, BigQuery, Databricks and Postgres.
Clay pricing
- Starts at
- $167 per month for 2,500 data credits, billed annually
- Free plan
- 100 data credits and 500 actions a month, unlimited seats and tables, up to 200 rows per table, waterfalls and Claygent. No phone number enrichment.
- Free trial
- 14-day trial of paid plans
| Plan | Price | What you get |
|---|---|---|
| Free | $0 | 100 data credits and 500 actions a month, unlimited seats, 200 rows per table, waterfalls, Claygent and your own API keys. |
| Launch | $167per month for 2,500 data credits, billed annually ($185 monthly) | Plus 15,000 actions a month, phone enrichment, job-change signals and email sending. Data credits alone are $414 a month at 10,000 a month, billed annually. |
| Growth | $446per month for 6,000 data credits, billed annually ($495 monthly) | Plus 40,000 actions a month, CRM auto-sync, HTTP API and webhook automation, web intent signals, ad audiences and priority support. |
| Enterprise | Custom | Annual commitment, 100,000+ data credits, Clay API access, SSO, SCIM, role-based access and a dedicated growth strategist. |
Read from clay.com on Oct 17, 2026. Prices change, so confirm with Clay before you buy.
Ways to pay less
- Annual discountSave 10% with annual billing
Clay's pricing page marks annual billing as a 10% saving: Launch starts at $167 a month billed yearly against $185 billed monthly.
Stated on clay.com
Works with
Clay alternatives
- Clay vs Apollo.io
Free plan · from $49/mo
- Clay vs PhantomBuster
Free plan · from $56/mo
- Clay vs ZoomInfo
Free plan
- Clay vs Findymail
Free trial
- Clay vs Prospeo
Free plan · from $37/mo
Common questions
Is Clay free?
Clay has a free plan. 100 data credits and 500 actions a month, unlimited seats and tables, up to 200 rows per table, waterfalls and Claygent. No phone number enrichment. Paid plans start at $167 per month for 2,500 data credits, billed annually.
How much does Clay cost?
Clay lists 4 plans. Free: $0. Launch: $167 per month for 2,500 data credits, billed annually ($185 monthly). Growth: $446 per month for 6,000 data credits, billed annually ($495 monthly). Enterprise: custom pricing. Prices were read from clay.com on Oct 17, 2026.
What platforms does Clay work on?
Clay is available on Web.
Does Clay offer any discounts?
Clay publicly lists the following: Save 10% with annual billing.
Does Clay have an Android app?
No Android app was listed when its pages were read on Oct 17, 2026. Clay is listed for Web.
Does Clay have an iPhone app?
No iPhone app was listed when its pages were read on Oct 17, 2026. Clay is listed for Web.
Is Clay open source?
Clay is not described as open source on its own site, as read on Oct 17, 2026.
Does Clay have an API?
Yes. Clay offers a public API, according to its own site.
What does Clay integrate with?
Clay's listing names HubSpot, Pipedrive, Attio, Outreach, Instantly, lemlist, Apollo.io and Snowflake. A listing names up to eight integrations, so it may connect to more.
Does Clay have a free trial?
Yes. 14-day trial of paid plans.
Who makes Clay?
Clay is made by Clay Labs Inc. It dates from 2017.
What are the alternatives to Clay?
The closest alternatives to Clay in our directory are Apollo.io, PhantomBuster, ZoomInfo, Findymail and Prospeo. Each one has a side-by-side comparison with Clay.
How does Clay compare with other lead and email finders?
Clay's GPA of 2.8 is higher than 13 of the 19 other lead and email finders we grade, and level with 6. It stands best on features (A, above 18 of 19) and worst on ease of use (C, above 0).
Is Clay good value for money?
ToolGPA grades Clay B for value for money. Its paid plans start at $167 a month, against a middle price of $39 for the category: 14 of the 14 others that charge start lower. On features, ease of use and platforms it scores 3.0 out of 4. Nothing scores higher for less, though at least one tool matches that score at a lower price.
Could I make my own version of Clay?
To replace Clay you would be making connections to other products, each kept working as those products change. That is not a weekend's work, with an AI app builder or without one. It is one of the better ones too: its GPA of 2.8 is higher than 13 of the 19 other lead and email finders we grade. It costs $2,004 a year. What you could not make: Connections to other products, each kept working as those products change. Newsletters sent to thousands of people that still reach the inbox. AI features, unless you pay a model provider for each request yourself. The depth: we grade its features A, which means it covers the whole job. This is a judgement from its listing. We have not built one.
Sources for this page
The prices, plans, platforms and features above were read from these pages on Oct 17, 2026.