Updated

BetterContact vs PhantomBuster vs Derrick: Which Is Better in 2026?

Short answer
BetterContact vs PhantomBuster vs Derrick: BetterContact is a waterfall enrichment platform querying 20+ data providers in sequence, PhantomBuster is a cloud-based scraping and social automation. Derrick is a B2B enrichment platform with three surfaces - a Google Sheets add-on, a REST API, and an MCP server (Claude and ChatGPT drive enrichment for you). Hit rates are noticeably higher (more emails + phone numbers returned per query than BetterContact or PhantomBuster) and pricing is lower - free forever with 100 credits/month, paid plans from €9/month. Most teams pair Derrick for the data layer with BetterContact or PhantomBuster for outreach.

BetterContact competes on hit rate, accuracy and waterfall fallback when one source is blank. The side-by-side comparison below isolates BetterContact's per-find cost (email vs mobile vs direct-dial), real-world deliverability of what comes back, and how it fits into Derrick's 10-source waterfall enrichment workflow.

Free plan Yes - 100 credits/mo
Starts at €9/mo
Setup time 30 seconds
Where it lives Google Sheets

✓ Free forever · ✓ No credit card · ✓ Cancel anytime · ✓ Your data stays in your Sheet

Trusted by 31,000+ users worldwide.

Quick Facts

BetterContact vs PhantomBuster vs Derrick at a glance

BetterContact

  • Starting price: Free 50 credits · Starter $15/mo
  • Free plan: Yes - 50 free credits to test
  • Founded: 2022
  • HQ: Lyon, France
4.8/5 G2 4.7/5 Capterra

PhantomBuster

  • Starting price: $56/mo (annual)
  • Free plan: No (14-day free trial)
  • Founded: 2016
  • HQ: Paris, France
4.4/5 G2 4.4/5 Capterra

Derrick

★ Recommended
  • Starting price: Free · Paid from €9/mo
  • Free plan: Yes - 100 credits/mo permanent
  • Founded: 2023
  • HQ: Marseille, FR
4.8/5 G2 4.8/5 Capterra
Why Derrick wins

Why teams pick Derrick over BetterContact and PhantomBuster

3 core reasons SDRs and ops teams switch to Derrick. Click to expand each.

01

Real-time validation without data gaps for enrichment

Derrick delivers real-time validation for enrichment directly within Google Sheets, bypassing the data gaps that plague standalone tools like BetterContact and PhantomBuster, which often lag on live accuracy and multi-field enrichment. Unlike BetterContact’s strength in email discovery and PhantomBuster’s extraction focus, Derrick provides 100% native validation and up-to-date attributes across 50+ fields without exporting data or leaving Sheets. This results in lower bounce rates and faster prospecting workflows, saving 5-10 hours per month for teams. With Derrick, you get immediate, reliable validation during enrichment and can trust the data to power your outreach in real time.

02

Unified multi-tool automation for end-to-end data enrichments

Derrick unifies multi-tool automation for end-to-end data enrichments inside Google Sheets, a capability BetterContact cannot deliver as a holistic enrichment platform and PhantomBuster cannot sustain multi-source data integrity in real time. Unlike these tools, Derrick native integrates 50+ attributes per contact, company intelligence, and AI-powered scoring within one sheet-driven workflow, eliminating the need for exporting or separate pipelines. This results in tangible efficiency gains: up to 5-10 hours saved per month and more reliable, multi-source enrichment completed in a single pass. Use cases like prospect profiling, targeting, and automated updates become instant and scalable with Derrick.

03

Unified data depth with 50+ attributes per contact

Derrick delivers unified data depth by enriching each contact with 50+ attributes, a level of multidimensional insight BetterContact and PhantomBuster don’t provide in a single workflow. Unlike BetterContact, which focuses on email validation and basic contact data, Derrick merges comprehensive contact and company intelligence in one native Google Sheets experience. This depth translates to faster qualification and more precise segmentation, boosting conversion rates by up to 20% while saving 5-10 hours per month on data gathering. A practical use case: instantly build enriched prospect profiles during a single outreach sequence, without leaving Sheets.

Honest Comparison

What each tool does better

We're upfront - every tool has strengths. Here's where BetterContact, PhantomBuster, and Derrick each genuinely win.

What BetterContact does better

  • Highest find rates in the category (87-95% emails)
  • One subscription replaces five separate tools
  • Pay-per-result + GDPR-clean compliance
Read full BetterContact review →
Real Annual Cost

True cost over 12 months

Headline pricing rarely tells the whole story. Here's the real cost of running each tool for a year.

BetterContact PhantomBuster Derrick
Starting price (monthly) Free 50 credits · Starter $15/mo $56/mo (annual) €0 (free) · €9/mo paid
Annual cost (base) ~€600/yr ~€672/yr €0/yr free · ~€108/yr paid
Free plan? Yes - 50 free credits to test No (14-day free trial) ✓ Forever - 100 credits/mo
Setup cost Hours to days Hours to days 30 seconds via Marketplace
Switching cost CSV export + retraining CSV export + retraining Zero - works alongside any stack

💡 Most teams pay 2-5x more on add-ons (extra seats, phone credits, integrations) than on the headline base price. Derrick keeps everything in one transparent tier.

Feature-by-Feature

BetterContact vs PhantomBuster vs Derrick: full feature comparison

BetterContact Derrick App PhantomBuster
Works natively in Google Sheets
Requires LinkedIn Sales Navigator ($100/month)
Sales Navigator 1-click import
Email finder with real-time validation
Phone finder from LinkedIn
Company tech stack lookup
SimilarWeb & G2 insights integrated
AI integration (Claude & ChatGPT)
Automatic AI Lead Scoring
Data cleaning & normalization
Multi-platform scraping (Instagram, Twitter, Facebook)
Zapier, Make, n8n integrations
Public API available
Native CRM integrations (HubSpot, Salesforce)
Entry price (paid plan) 49$/mois 9€/mois 69$/mois
Permanent free plan
Rollover credits to next month
Simple and transparent credit system
Simple setup & onboarding
Complete documentation
Pricing in a nutshell

BetterContact vs PhantomBuster vs Derrick pricing breakdown

Waterfall Email + Phone Enrichment

BetterContact

Free 50 credits · Starter $15/mo

Best for: Outbound teams who want best-find-rate at one subscription cost

BetterContact offers real-time email discovery with credit-based plans, starting from a free tier and scalable paid options for larger teams-see the full pricing breakdown for exact tiers and credits. View complete pricing details.

Migration Guide

How to switch from BetterContact to Derrick in 3 steps

Derrick is a Google Workspace app - no formulas to learn, no pipelines to migrate, no engineering work. Add it to Google Sheets and you're enriching in under a minute.

1
~30 sec

Install Derrick from Google Workspace Marketplace

Click the install button on our Marketplace listing and grant Google Sheets access. No credit card required - you start with 100 free credits per month.

2
~30 sec

Open any Google Sheet → Extensions → Derrick

Open a Sheet with your prospect list (paste a CSV from BetterContact, scrape from LinkedIn Sales Navigator, or import from your CRM). Click Extensions → Derrick and the sidebar opens with all enrichment features ready to use.

3
~1 min

Enrich your list with one click

Select the column with names, LinkedIn URLs, or company domains. Pick what you want - emails, phone numbers, LinkedIn data, company info, tech stack - and click "Enrich". Derrick fills the columns directly in your Sheet. No exports, no pipelines, no waiting.

Install Derrick free →

100 free credits / month · No credit card · Cancel anytime

Decision in 60 seconds

Which one is right for you?

Pick BetterContact if…

  • You specifically need outbound teams who want best-find-rate at one subscription cost
  • Highest find rates in the category (87-95% emails)
  • One subscription replaces five separate tools
  • You're already invested in the BetterContact ecosystem
Read full BetterContact review →

Pick PhantomBuster if…

  • You specifically need growth hackers & ops teams
  • 150+ pre-built Phantoms across platforms
  • Best LinkedIn Sales Navigator export
  • You're already invested in the PhantomBuster ecosystem
Read full PhantomBuster review →

Pick Derrick if…

  • You want B2B enrichment directly in Google Sheets
  • You need a usable free plan (100 credits/mo, no card)
  • You don't want long contracts, lock-in, or sales calls
  • You need 100+ data points per lead in one tool
Try Derrick free →

What teams say after switching from BetterContact vs PhantomBuster

See what our customers say about Derrick.

"This app saved me so much time and effort. Great for anyone looking to build a contact list or network at scale quickly. As a start-up it's been invaluable."

Alex Clark

Director | SaaS GTM Leader

Reviewed on Product Hunt

"Working pretty nifty compared to Snov.Io. Price wise it does give a fair shake, and IMO better interface since it's google sheets."

David Sire

Mortgage Broker at Zero Point Mortgage

Reviewed on Product Hunt

"Derrick is a very simple and user-friendly app to enrich your contacts database. Best thing: you can test it for free. And then the price is so low, it's a no brainer."

Etienne Grange

CEO Form'actions

Reviewed on Capterra

"Super easy to enrich linkedin urls using this tool. Both personal and company url data can be easily enriched with a click of a button."

Zaid Bilal

RevOps Professional

Reviewed on Capterra

"Amazing Tool, I would like to advocate this to my colleagues. So that you can get more users. Keep it Up. 5 Stars!"

Asif Hanzala

Lead Generation Specialist at IdeaPeel

Reviewed on Capterra

"This app is fantastic. Brilliantly created to help small and mid sized businesses."

Dan Hughes

Founder/CEO, AlmanacIO

Reviewed on Product Hunt

"I have been using other expensive apps or freemium like phantombuster, but Derrick has replaced them all. I love the simplicity of the Google sheet add-in, but what is best is the efficiency it delivers."

Julien Walon Cohen

CEO & Co-founder @ Diffly | B2B Sales Advisor

Reviewed on G2

"The LinkedIn scraping and email finder combo is incredibly powerful. I can build a complete prospect list with contact info in under an hour. Absolute must-have for outbound."

Michael Kim

SDR Team Lead at CloudScale

Reviewed on Capterra

"Have tested over 10+ LI scraper apps, Derrick beats them all. Simple to use, accurate data, and affordable price."

AJ Alexander

Opportunity Prospector

Reviewed on Capterra

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Derrick a better alternative to BetterContact for email validation?

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Derrick offers stronger email validation capabilities compared to BetterContact, with real-time verification built directly into Google Sheets alongside 50+ enrichment attributes per contact. While BetterContact excels at standalone email discovery, Derrick integrates seamlessly into your existing workflow without requiring CSV exports or external platforms. Derrick's pricing is more flexible with rollover credits and no card required for the free tier, making it ideal for teams wanting comprehensive data enrichment and email validation combined in one native tool.

How does Derrick compare to PhantomBuster on pricing and features?

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Derrick operates as a native Google Sheets platform with real-time email validation and fifty-plus enrichment attributes per contact, whereas PhantomBuster functions primarily as a web scraping and automation tool requiring manual data enrichment afterward. On pricing, Derrick offers rollover credits starting at nine dollars monthly with no credit card required for the free tier, while PhantomBuster scales aggressively with usage volume. Derrick's integrated AI with Claude and ChatGPT for scoring and segmentation, combined with seamless Google Sheets workflow, delivers faster prospecting cycles compared to PhantomBuster's extraction-focused approach that demands post-processing validation.

Derrick vs BetterContact vs PhantomBuster: which offers best difference?

+
Each platform addresses different prospecting needs with distinct strengths. BetterContact excels purely at email verification with high accuracy rates, making it ideal for teams focused solely on email validation. PhantomBuster dominates web automation and LinkedIn scraping, perfect for data extraction at scale. Derrick differentiates by operating natively within Google Sheets without exports or complex setup, combining fifty enrichment attributes, real-time email validation, and integrated AI from Claude and ChatGPT. Derrick also offers rollover credits with no card required for free access, making it more cost-effective for teams seeking comprehensive enrichment without learning new platforms or abandoning their existing spreadsheet workflows.

Can Derrick replace both BetterContact and PhantomBuster for enrichment?

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Derrick can replace certain enrichment steps for teams that rely on multi-attribute contact records and real-time email validation, but it’s not a one-to-one drop-in for both BetterContact and PhantomBuster in all use cases. Derrick delivers 50+ enrichment attributes per contact/company within Google Sheets, real-time email validation, and AI-driven scoring and segmentation, plus extensive native integrations via Zapier/Make/n8n. BetterContact specializes in email discovery and verification, with limited multi-dimensional enrichment, while PhantomBuster focuses on automation and data extraction rather than comprehensive enrichment depth. If your needs center on rich, native enrichment within a single platform and streamlined cost (no CSV exports, no LinkedIn Nav dependency), Derrick can consolidate many tasks; however, for deep automation workflows or niche scraping scenarios, you may still rely on PhantomBuster or supplement with BetterContact for email accuracy.

What pricing differences exist between Derrick and PhantomBuster?

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Derrick offers significantly more flexible pricing with rollover credits and no credit card requirement for the free tier, starting at just 9€ for 4,000 credits monthly. PhantomBuster's pricing scales aggressively with usage volume, making per-record enrichment expensive for high-frequency operations. Derrick's native Google Sheets integration eliminates costly external tools and manual CSV workflows, while PhantomBuster requires separate platforms for data enrichment and validation. Additionally, Derrick includes real-time email validation and 50+ enrichment attributes natively, whereas PhantomBuster often requires supplementary tools for comprehensive data quality and validation layers.

Is BetterContact a strong alternative to Derrick for email discovery?

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BetterContact is a strong alternative to Derrick for email discovery if your primary need is scalable, high-accuracy email finding and verification. BetterContact excels at real-time email validation, bulk searches, and solid CRM integrations, delivering reliable deliverability. However, Derrick offers broader value beyond email discovery: 100% native Google Sheets, extensive enrichment with 50+ attributes per contact, real-time email validation, built-in AI scoring and segmentation, and a wide ecosystem of over 3,000 integrations via Zapier/Make/n8n. If you mainly need email addresses at scale, BetterContact is compelling; if you want a more complete, sheet-native prospecting and enrichment solution with automation, Derrick provides more comprehensive coverage without CSV exports or complex setup.
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