Last verified: 23 October 2026. Every price, free plan and feature below was checked against the vendor's own pricing page, product page or help centre on this date. Prices are in USD per month unless noted.
By Kabandi Saikia, co-founder and Chief M-aa-rket-er at maarket.ai and a growth marketer who previously co-founded Omnify. Picks are editorial, based on vendor documentation, not hands-on testing. This page carries no affiliate links.
Quick answer: AI prospecting tools find the right companies and people to sell to, enrich them with contact data, and help write or send outreach. The best in October 2026: Apollo.io (free plan; all-in-one database and outreach), Clay (AI research and enrichment workflows), Agent Jesse (live-web prospect research from $9/mo), Unify (signal-led outbound; free for 3 seats, paid from $20/seat), Instantly and lemlist (AI-assisted cold email), and Reply.io, Artisan and 11x for AI SDR agents that write, send and reply for you.
What is AI prospecting?
AI prospecting is using AI to do the research half of outbound sales: finding companies that match your ideal customer profile, identifying the right people there, finding their verified email and phone, and spotting buying signals such as funding, hiring or job changes. Some tools stop at research and data; others also write personalised messages, send them and handle replies. That second group is usually called an AI SDR (AI sales development rep).
AI prospecting tools fall into four groups, and most teams combine two:
- All-in-one platforms: a contact database plus sequencing in one tool (Apollo.io, Amplemarket, Unify).
- AI research and enrichment tools: build and enrich lead lists using many data sources or the live web (Clay, Agent Jesse, Persana AI).
- AI-assisted outreach tools: send cold email or multichannel sequences with AI writing and deliverability built in (Instantly, lemlist).
- AI SDR agents: run prospecting end to end: find leads, write, send, reply and book meetings (Reply.io's Jason AI, Artisan's Ava, 11x).
Top picks by use case
- Best free AI prospecting tool: Apollo.io, with a free plan that includes contact data and 2 sequences
- Best for custom research workflows: Clay
- Cheapest AI research agent: Agent Jesse, from $9/mo
- Best for cold email at volume: Instantly
- Best for multichannel outreach (email + LinkedIn + calls): lemlist
- Lowest published AI SDR price: Reply.io Jason AI, from $500/mo billed annually
AI prospecting tools compared
| # | Tool | Type | Free plan or trial | Paid from | Contact data | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Apollo.io | All-in-one | Free plan; 14-day trial of paid plans | Basic $49/seat/mo billed annually ($65 monthly) | 240M contacts, 30M companies | Most teams starting outbound |
| 2 | Amplemarket | All-in-one | Free trial | Startup $600/mo, annual term, 2 users | 200M+ contacts | Sales teams wanting one platform |
| 3 | Unify | All-in-one, signal-based | Free plan (up to 3 seats) | Base $20/seat/mo | 1.1B+ people, 65M+ companies | Signal-triggered outbound |
| 4 | Clay | Research and enrichment | Free plan (200 rows per table) | Launch $167/mo billed annually | Provider marketplace | Custom enrichment workflows |
| 5 | Agent Jesse | Research and enrichment | Free plan (1,000 credits) | Pro $9/mo | Live web (no static database) | Fresh, buying-ready leads |
| 6 | Persana AI | Research and enrichment | Free plan (50 credits) | Starter $68/mo billed annually ($85 monthly) | 100+ data sources (waterfall) | Waterfall enrichment |
| 7 | Instantly | AI-assisted outreach | 14-day trial | Growth $37.60/mo billed yearly ($47 monthly) | 450M+ contacts (credits, separate plan) | Cold email at volume |
| 8 | lemlist | AI-assisted outreach | Free trial | Email $55/user/mo billed yearly ($69 monthly) | 650M+ leads | Multichannel sequences |
| 9 | Reply.io Jason AI | AI SDR agent | 14-day trial | Jason from $500/mo billed annually | 1B+ contacts | Lowest published AI SDR price |
| 10 | Artisan (Ava) | AI SDR agent | Demo only | Pricing on request | 250M+ contacts | Done-for-you AI BDR |
| 11 | 11x | AI SDR agent | Demo only | Growth from $3,750/mo billed annually | Not stated | Enterprise AI SDR |
Paid prices are the cheapest published plan. Clay's Launch price combines its platform "Actions" meter (from $54/mo) with data credits. 11x's pages give more than one entry price ($3,750/mo on its pricing page, $36,000/year in its FAQ). Artisan doesn't publish prices.
How we picked: a tool qualified if it uses AI to find, research or contact prospects (not just store them), publishes its plans or plan structure, and serves B2B sales teams. We grouped tools by the job they do, because a research tool and an AI SDR aren't substitutes. Entries are numbered for navigation; the "best for" labels are editorial picks.
Also considered: ZoomInfo, Lusha, Seamless.AI, Cognism and LinkedIn Sales Navigator. They're widely used for B2B contact data and often come up as Apollo.io alternatives, but we treated them as data sources rather than AI prospecting tools, so they aren't ranked here.
Why this list matters: AI prospecting in 2026
- The category split in two. Research tools (Clay, Agent Jesse, Persana) help reps build better lists; AI SDR agents (Reply.io Jason, Artisan, 11x) replace parts of the rep's job by writing, sending and replying. Their prices differ by an order of magnitude: entry plans run from $9 to $167 a month for research tools, versus $500 to $3,750+ a month for AI SDRs.
- Credits are the real price. Almost every tool meters usage in credits: Apollo grants 2,500 credits per seat per month on monthly Basic, Agent Jesse charges 10 credits per search and 30 per phone number, and Persana charges 1 credit per email and 10 per phone. Compare cost per verified contact, not the headline plan.
- Signals beat static lists. Unify, Artisan and 11x trigger outreach on funding rounds, hiring and job changes, and Agent Jesse searches the live web instead of a stored database, so lists reflect who is buying now.
- Your AI assistant can now prospect for you. Apollo, Clay, Amplemarket and Agent Jesse (Business plan) run official MCP servers, so Claude or ChatGPT can search and enrich leads directly. See our guide to official MCP servers.
- Clay changed its pricing in March 2026. It split one credit into "Data Credits" (for third-party data and AI) and "Actions" (platform usage), and replaced its old Starter, Explorer and Pro plans with Launch and Growth.
All-in-one prospecting platforms
1. Apollo.io: best all-in-one prospecting platform
Is Apollo.io free? Yes. Apollo.io's free plan includes contact and account data, AI research, 2 sequences and 900 credits per seat per year, granted monthly. Basic is $49 a seat per month billed annually ($65 monthly, 2,500 credits a month), Professional $79 ($99 monthly, 4,000 credits a month) and Organization $119 billed annually (minimum 3 seats). Apollo says its database covers 240 million contacts and 30 million companies, and it runs an official MCP server for Claude and ChatGPT.
Watch out: the free plan connects Gmail only, and credits don't roll over.
Best for: startups and small sales teams that want data, sequences and a dialer in one place.
2. Amplemarket: best single platform for a sales team
How much does Amplemarket cost? The Startup plan is $600 a month on an annual term for 2 users, with 27,000 contacts; Growth and Elite are custom-priced. Amplemarket combines a 200M+ contact database with signals, multichannel sequences (email, calls, LinkedIn, WhatsApp) and deliverability tools. Its Duo AI agents prepare outreach for reps to review, and it has an official MCP server.
Watch out: no monthly billing or per-user price is published.
Best for: sales teams that want to replace several tools with one contract.
3. Unify: best for signal-based outbound
Is Unify free? Yes: the Free plan covers up to 3 seats. Unify Base is $20 a seat per month (800 credits) and Pro $60 (2,400 credits, with read-only HubSpot and Salesforce sync). Unify is built around buying signals such as job changes, hiring and website visits, on a database of 1.1 billion+ people and 65 million+ companies. Base and Pro cover its data, credits and sequences.
Watch out: website-intent signals, signal-triggered automations and two-way CRM sync are on the sales-led Business plan, so the full signal-based workflow costs more than $20 a seat.
Best for: teams that want to reach accounts the moment a buying signal appears.
AI research and enrichment tools
4. Clay: best for AI research and enrichment workflows
Is Clay free? Yes: the free plan includes 6,000 actions and 1,200 data credits a year, up to 200 rows per table, and Claygent, Clay's web-research AI agent. Clay lets you chain many data providers in "waterfalls" so each lead is enriched from the first source that has the data. Launch is $167 a month billed annually and Growth $446, which adds CRM sync. Clay runs an official MCP server.
Watch out: Clay is a workflow builder, so it takes time to learn, and its pricing mixes two meters (Actions and Data Credits).
Best for: growth and RevOps teams building custom, multi-source lead lists.
5. Agent Jesse: best for live-web prospect research
Is Agent Jesse free? Yes: the free plan includes 1,000 credits, people and company search and saved lists, with no card. Agent Jesse, from Floworks, is an AI research agent that crawls the live web for leads instead of using a static database, with company search, people search, enrichment (50+ data points), contact finding and lookalikes. Pro is $9 a month (1,000 credits a month, plus CSV export, lookalikes and email and phone enrichment), Business $29 (8,000 credits, MCP server, API and n8n) and Max $100 (30,000 credits). Searches cost 10 credits, emails 5 and phone numbers 30.
Watch out: it researches and enriches but doesn't send emails, and CRM integrations are still in development (CSV export for now).
Best for: founders and small teams who want fresh, buying-ready leads cheaply.
6. Persana AI: best for waterfall enrichment
Is Persana AI free? Yes: the free plan includes 50 credits. Persana AI enriches leads across 100+ data sources and includes an AI research agent on every plan, plus a built-in sequencer. Starter is $68 a month billed annually ($85 monthly, 24,000 credits a year) and Growth $151 billed annually. Every plan has unlimited users; emails cost 1 credit and phone numbers 10.
Watch out: HubSpot and Salesforce integrations start on Pro ($400/mo billed annually), and the full-service AI SDR is Enterprise only.
Best for: teams that want high email and phone coverage without managing data vendors.
AI-assisted outreach tools
7. Instantly: best for cold email at volume
How much does Instantly cost? Outreach starts at $47 a month ($37.60 billed yearly) for 5,000 emails a month. Instantly prices sending and its 450M+ contact database separately: lead credits start at $47 a month, and bundles that combine both start at $94 a month. It includes unlimited mailboxes and warm-up, and its AI Sales Agent and AI Reply Agent cost 5 credits per lead or reply. There's a 14-day free trial.
Watch out: the pricing page lists email only, not LinkedIn or calls.
Best for: agencies and founders sending high volumes of cold email.
8. lemlist: best for multichannel sequences
How much does lemlist cost? The Email plan is $69 a user per month ($55 billed yearly) for up to 50,000 emails a month, and Multichannel is $109 ($87 yearly), adding LinkedIn, calls and SMS. lemlist includes a 650M+ lead database (enrichment is a $16–$20 add-on), lemwarm deliverability on every plan, and AI agents for messaging, signals and enrichment. HubSpot, Salesforce and Pipedrive integrations are built in.
Watch out: contact data is an add-on, not included in the base price.
Best for: teams that want email, LinkedIn and calls in one sequence.
AI SDR agents
9. Reply.io Jason AI: lowest published AI SDR price
How much does Reply.io's AI SDR cost? Jason AI starts at $500 a month billed annually for 1,000 active contacts. Reply.io's Jason builds your ideal customer profile, finds prospects in its 1 billion+ contact database, writes personalised messages with source links, replies automatically or with approval, and books meetings. Reply.io's sales engagement plans (without the AI SDR) start at $49 a user per month billed annually.
Watch out: LinkedIn automation ($69/account) and calls and SMS ($29/account) are add-ons.
Best for: small teams trying an AI SDR without an enterprise contract.
10. Artisan (Ava): best done-for-you AI BDR
How much does Artisan cost? Artisan doesn't publish prices; its Team plan covers about 2,500 leads contacted a month and Scale about 6,000. Artisan's Ava finds leads from a 250M+ contact database using intent signals, writes and sends sequences from your own domains, replies, qualifies and books meetings, with guardrails such as approval before sending and banned phrases.
Watch out: no free trial (demo only), and phone steps are queued for reps rather than automated.
Best for: companies that want an AI BDR with onboarding and support included.
11. 11x: best enterprise AI SDR
How much does 11x cost? 11x's pricing page lists Growth from $3,750 a month billed annually for up to 5 users and 2,000 new prospects a month; Pro and Enterprise are custom. 11x's Outbound agent (formerly Alice) researches accounts, writes multichannel sequences and handles replies, with managed Gmail mailboxes and warm-up included on Growth. It syncs two ways with Salesforce, HubSpot and Pipedrive.
Watch out: annual contracts only, no trial, and 11x's own pages quote different entry prices.
Best for: larger sales organisations replacing or extending an SDR team.
How to choose an AI prospecting tool
- Decide how much you want to automate. Want better lists for your reps? Choose a research tool (Clay, Agent Jesse, Persana). Want outreach sent for you? Choose an AI SDR (Reply.io, Artisan, 11x). Want both in one tool? Start with Apollo.io or Amplemarket.
- Price per verified contact, not per plan. Check how many credits an email and a phone number cost, and whether credits roll over.
- Check your channels. Instantly is email-first; lemlist, Reply.io and Amplemarket add LinkedIn and calls.
- Protect deliverability. Use warm-up and separate sending domains (Instantly, lemlist and 11x include these) so outreach doesn't hurt your main domain.
- Confirm the CRM sync. Unify (read-only on Pro), Clay (Growth plan) and Persana (Pro plan) gate CRM sync behind higher tiers; Agent Jesse is CSV-only for now.
A simple AI prospecting stack for a startup
- Find and enrich: Apollo.io's free plan or Agent Jesse ($9/mo) to build a list of companies and contacts that match your ideal customer profile.
- Go deeper on top accounts: Clay's Claygent or Agent Jesse's research to add signals and personalisation points.
- Send: Instantly or lemlist with warm-up turned on, starting with a small daily volume.
- Scale: once a sequence works, consider an AI SDR (Reply.io Jason from $500/mo) to run it at volume.
Key terms
- AI SDR: an AI agent that does a sales development rep's job: finding leads, writing outreach, sending it, replying and booking meetings.
- Enrichment: adding missing details (email, phone, title, company size) to a lead record.
- Waterfall enrichment: checking several data providers in order until one returns the data you need.
- Buying or intent signals: events that suggest a company may buy soon, such as funding, hiring or a job change.
- Credits: the usage unit most tools charge in, for example per email found or per lead contacted.
- Warm-up: gradually increasing sending volume from a new mailbox so email providers trust it.
FAQ
What are the best AI prospecting tools in 2026?
Apollo.io for an all-in-one free start, Clay for custom research workflows, Agent Jesse for cheap live-web research ($9/mo), Unify for signal-led outbound, Instantly and lemlist for AI-assisted outreach, and Reply.io's Jason AI, Artisan and 11x for AI SDR agents.
What is AI prospecting?
AI prospecting is using AI to find companies and people that match your ideal customer profile, enrich them with verified contact data, spot buying signals, and help write or send outreach. It automates the research-heavy first stage of outbound sales.
What is the best free AI prospecting tool?
Apollo.io's free plan includes contact data, AI research and 2 sequences. Agent Jesse (1,000 credits), Clay (200 rows per table), Unify (up to 3 seats) and Persana AI (50 credits) also have free plans.
What is an AI SDR, and how is it different from an AI prospecting tool?
An AI SDR is an AI agent that runs outbound end to end: it finds leads, writes and sends messages, replies and books meetings. Many AI prospecting tools only do the research and data part and leave the outreach to your reps or a separate sequencing tool.
How much do AI SDRs cost?
Among published prices, Reply.io's Jason AI starts at $500 a month billed annually for 1,000 contacts, and 11x lists Growth from $3,750 a month billed annually. Artisan prices on request. Research-only tools cost far less: entry plans run from $9 a month (Agent Jesse) to $167 a month (Clay Launch).
What are the best Apollo.io alternatives?
Amplemarket for a single all-in-one platform with a 200M+ database, Unify for signal-led outbound (free for up to 3 seats), Clay for deeper multi-source enrichment, and Instantly or lemlist if you mainly need sending. If you only need contact data, ZoomInfo, Lusha and Cognism are the usual options (not reviewed here).
What are the best Clay alternatives?
Persana AI for waterfall enrichment with unlimited users (from $68/mo billed annually), Agent Jesse for a simpler live-web research agent (from $9/mo), and Apollo.io if you'd rather have a built-in database and sequences than build workflows.
Can I use Claude or ChatGPT for prospecting?
Yes. Apollo.io, Clay, Amplemarket and Agent Jesse (Business plan) run official MCP servers, so you can connect them to Claude or ChatGPT and search or enrich leads in a chat. Searches and enrichment still use your plan's credits. Without a connected tool, ChatGPT's or Claude's web research can shortlist companies and summarise public information, but it can't supply verified emails or phone numbers.
Are AI prospecting tools accurate?
Accuracy varies by data source. Waterfall tools such as Clay and Persana AI check several providers in turn to raise coverage, and live-web and signal-based tools aim to stay current, but no vendor here publishes an independent accuracy audit. Test any tool on a sample of 50–100 of your own target accounts before committing.
Update log: first published 23 October 2026, Next scheduled review: January 2027.
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