Clay
- Starting price: Free / $134/mo (annual)
- Free plan: Yes (limited credits)
- Founded: 2017
- HQ: New York, NY
Updated
Clay vs Apollo vs Derrick: Which Is Better in 2026?
- Short answer
- Clay vs Apollo vs Derrick: Clay is a multi-source data enrichment with ai workflows, Apollo is a b2b sales intelligence and outreach. 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 Clay or Apollo) and pricing is lower - free forever with 100 credits/month, paid plans from €9/month. Most teams pair Derrick for the data layer with Clay or Apollo for outreach.
Email + phone finders like Clay live on data freshness and source diversity. The side-by-side comparison below pits Clay's coverage by region, free-tier ceiling and credit-burn rate against Derrick's flat-credit pool that funds email + phone + LinkedIn + firmographics from one wallet.
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.
CURSOR Quick Facts
Clay vs Apollo vs Derrick at a glance
Apollo
- Starting price: Free / $49 annual or $59 monthly /seat (post-2026 price increase)
- Free plan: Yes (Free forever)
- Founded: 2015
- HQ: San Francisco, CA
Derrick
★ Recommended- Starting price: Free · Paid from €9/mo
- Free plan: Yes - 100 credits/mo permanent
- Founded: 2023
- HQ: Marseille, FR
Why Derrick wins 01
02
03
Why teams pick Derrick over Clay and Apollo
3 core reasons SDRs and ops teams switch to Derrick. Click to expand each.
01 Time savings with native Google Sheets enrichment
Clay and Apollo struggle with real-time, native Google Sheets enrichment, often requiring manual steps or complex setups to keep data fresh. Derrick operates 100% inside Google Sheets, eliminating exports and extra tooling to speed up prospecting. By enriching with 50+ attributes directly in Sheets and auto-validating emails in place, Derrick can save 5-10 hours per month on data prep and list building. A quick use case: refresh a live contact list without leaving Sheets, ready for immediate outreach.
02 Scalable, flexible integrations without custom development friction
Clay and Apollo struggle with scalable, frictionless integrations due to setup complexity and limited real-time customization. Derrick delivers 100% native Google Sheets integrations with 3000+ connectors via Zapier/Make/n8n, eliminating custom development friction. Teams can implement scalable workflows quickly, reducing integration maintenance by up to 40% and saving hours per month. Derrick also enables flexible data enrichment and AI-powered segmentation within Sheets, enabling rapid, automated prospecting without code.
03 Real-time data quality assurance with AI validation
Real-time data quality assurance with AI validation highlights a critical gap Clay and Apollo face: inconsistent, manual data verification slows high-velocity campaigns. Derrick delivers seamless AI-powered validation directly inside 100% native Google Sheets, leveraging Claude and ChatGPT for scoring, segmentation, and automatic quality checks, without exporting data or complex setups. Teams see measurable benefits, such as improved deliverability and faster decision-making, with validation that reduces invalid records by up to 40% in real-time. A typical use case: auto-correct and validate contact data on entry to ensure clean pipelines before outreach launches.
Honest Comparison 
derrick
What each tool does better
We're upfront - every tool has strengths. Here's where Clay, Apollo, and Derrick each genuinely win.
What Clay does better
- Best-in-class waterfall enrichment
- Claygent AI for research at scale
- Open architecture (HTTP API + custom functions)
What Apollo does better
- Massive 250M+ contact database
- All-in-one stack at SMB price
- Intuitive list-builder
What Derrick does better
- Free forever - €0/mo with 100 credits permanent in Google Sheets
- 100+ data points per lead - verified emails, phones, LinkedIn, tech stack, SIRET
- Zero LinkedIn ban risk + real-time email verification built in
- Pair with any sequencer - LaGrowthMachine, Smartlead, Lemlist, HeyReach
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.
| Clay | Apollo | Derrick | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starting price (monthly) | Free / $134/mo (annual) | Free / $49 annual or $59 monthly /seat (post-2026 price increase) | €0 (free) · €9/mo paid |
| Annual cost (base) | ~€1,608/yr | ~€588/yr | €0/yr free · ~€108/yr paid |
| Free plan? | Yes (limited credits) | Yes (Free forever) | ✓ 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
Clay vs Apollo vs Derrick: full feature comparison
| Clay | Derrick App | apollo | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Works natively in Google Sheets | ✕ | ✓ | ✕ |
| Requires LinkedIn Sales Navigator ($100/month) | ✕ | ✕ | ✕ |
| Sales Navigator 1-click import | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Email finder with real-time validation | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Phone finder from LinkedIn | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Company tech stack lookup | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| SimilarWeb & G2 insights integrated | ✓ | ✓ | ✕ |
| AI integration (Claude & ChatGPT) | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Automatic AI Lead Scoring | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Data cleaning & normalization | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Multi-platform scraping (Instagram, Twitter, Facebook) | ✓ | ✕ | ✕ |
| Zapier, Make, n8n integrations | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Public API available | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Native CRM integrations (HubSpot, Salesforce) | ✓ | ✕ | ✓ |
| Entry price (paid plan) | 149$/mois | 9€/mois | 59$/mois |
| Permanent free plan | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Rollover credits to next month | ✕ | ✓ | ✕ |
| Simple and transparent credit system | ✕ | ✓ | ✕ |
| Simple setup & onboarding | ✕ | ✓ | ✕ |
| Complete documentation | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Pricing in a nutshell Data Enrichment derrick
best value for money
Results first.
Discover Derrick →
Sales Intelligence
Clay vs Apollo vs Derrick pricing breakdown
Data Enrichment Clay
Free / $134/mo (annual)
Best for: GTM ops & technical SDR teams
Clay offers real-time data enrichment with flexible outbound automation, starting with a free tier and paid plans that scale by usage-details available on the pricing page. See full pricing breakdown for all plans and limits.
Results first.
Complexity removed.
Free · Paid plans from €9/mo
While other tools pile on features, complex setups, and pricing tiers that grow faster than your results, Derrick focuses on what actually matters:
getting usable leads, directly in Google Sheets.
No heavy workflows, No endless configuration. No learning curve.
Sales Intelligence Apollo
Free / $49 annual or $59 monthly /seat (post-2026 price increase)
Best for: SMB & mid-market outbound
Apollo offers scalable pricing with entry-level plans starting at affordable monthly rates and a free tier for initial use; for full details, see the pricing page for a complete breakdown of plans and features.
Migration Guide
How to switch from Clay 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 Clay, 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 Clay if…
- You specifically need gtm ops & technical sdr teams
- Best-in-class waterfall enrichment
- Claygent AI for research at scale
- You're already invested in the Clay ecosystem
Pick Apollo if…
- You specifically need smb & mid-market outbound
- Massive 250M+ contact database
- All-in-one stack at SMB price
- You're already invested in the Apollo ecosystem
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
What teams say after switching from Clay vs Apollo
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
"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
"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
"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
"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
"This app is fantastic. Brilliantly created to help small and mid sized businesses."
Dan Hughes
Founder/CEO, AlmanacIO
"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
"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
"Have tested over 10+ LI scraper apps, Derrick beats them all. Simple to use, accurate data, and affordable price."
AJ Alexander
Opportunity Prospector
Frequently Asked Questions
Derrick vs Clay: which is better for simple setup?
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For simple setup, Derrick has a clear advantage because it's 100% native to Google Sheets with zero external configuration needed. Clay and Apollo both require separate platforms, CSV exports, and complex workflow setup that can take hours. Derrick lets you start enriching data immediately within your existing spreadsheet without technical knowledge. Plus, Derrick's free tier requires no credit card and includes 100 credits to test, while Clay and Apollo demand upfront commitment. If straightforward, fast implementation is your priority, Derrick's plug-and-play approach wins significantly.
Is Derrick a good alternative to Clay for outbound?
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Yes, Derrick is an excellent alternative to Clay for outbound, especially if you prioritize simplicity and speed. While Clay excels at complex workflow automation, Derrick operates natively within Google Sheets, eliminating the need for CSV exports or external platforms. This streamlines your prospecting directly where your data lives. Both platforms offer data enrichment and email validation, but Derrick includes integrated AI with Claude and ChatGPT for automatic scoring and segmentation. Additionally, Derrick's rollover credits and free tier require no credit card, providing more flexibility than Clay for teams with variable outbound volumes. The choice depends on whether you need Clay's advanced workflow customization or Derrick's native spreadsheet efficiency.
Derrick vs Clay vs apollo: which offers better pricing?
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Pricing varies significantly across the three platforms based on your prospecting volume and feature needs. Clay and Apollo typically operate on higher monthly commitments with less flexible credit systems, while Derrick offers rollover credits starting at just nine dollars monthly with no credit card required for the free tier. Derrick's transparent per-credit model means you only pay for what you use, and unused credits carry forward each month, making it ideal for teams with fluctuating prospecting demands. Both Clay and Apollo require larger upfront investments for comparable functionality, particularly if you need advanced enrichment features or higher contact volumes.
What’s the difference between Derrick and apollo in features?
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Derrick and Apollo differ primarily in how they handle data and workflow automation. Derrick is a 100% native Google Sheets enrichment platform that adds 50+ attributes per contact, real-time email validation, and integrated AI (Claude and ChatGPT) for scoring and segmentation, all without exporting via CSV and with extensive Zapier/Make/n8n integrations. Apollo excels at a large, verified contact database and robust outreach tooling, but its enrichment capabilities can feel less granular and real-time than Derrick’s. If you want seamless sheet-centric prospecting with AI-driven scoring and no banking info to start, Derrick offers a smoother, more flexible approach; Apollo provides breadth and speed for large-scale outreach but with standard enrichment that may require supplementary tools for deeper data quality.
Which tool is easier to replace Clay with Derrick?
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Replacing Clay with Derrick is straightforward because Derrick operates natively within Google Sheets, eliminating the need for complex CSV exports or external platform management that Clay requires. While Clay excels at workflow automation, Derrick streamlines the transition by offering real-time email validation, fifty-plus enrichment attributes, and integrated AI scoring directly in your spreadsheet. Derrick's rollover credits and no credit card requirement for the free tier provide greater flexibility than Clay's pricing model, making it easier for teams to test and scale without commitment friction.
Does Clay have a better review than Derrick for SMB teams?
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Short answer: No. Based on the available reviews, Clay’s strengths lie in real-time data enrichment and multi-source prospecting automation, with strong workflow capabilities and integrations, but users report data accuracy variability and a learning curve. Derrick, by contrast, emphasizes native Google Sheets enrichment, 50+ attributes per contact, real-time email validation, AI-powered scoring and segmentation, and generous, roll-over credits with no credit card required for the free tier. For SMB teams prioritizing ease, speed, and cost flexibility, Derrick often provides a more streamlined, approachable experience, whereas Clay may appeal to teams needing complex, large-scale enrichment workflows.
One-on-one
Clay vs Derrick - solo duel
Drop the third-party context and see how Clay compares to Derrick alone.
Open the head-to-head → One-on-oneapollo vs Derrick - solo duel
Drop the third-party context and see how apollo compares to Derrick alone.
Open the head-to-head → Curated stackAll B2B sales tools we reviewed in depth
Step back from the duel - see our hand-picked sales-tool selection and how every category fits together.
See the full curation → Keep Exploring
