Cognism
- Starting price: Custom (~$15K platform + $1.5K/seat)
- Free plan: No (demo + custom quote only)
- Founded: 2015
- HQ: London, United Kingdom
Updated
Cognism vs ContactOut vs Derrick: Which Is Better in 2026?
- Short answer
- Cognism vs ContactOut vs Derrick: Cognism is a gdpr-compliant b2b contact data with mobile coverage, ContactOut is a linkedin-focused email and phone finder for recruiters and individual sdrs. 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 Cognism or ContactOut) and pricing is lower - free forever with 100 credits/month, paid plans from €9/month. Most teams pair Derrick for the data layer with Cognism or ContactOut for outreach.
Where Cognism commits you to enterprise contracts and minimum seats, Derrick offers month-to-month credits with rollover. The side-by-side comparison below covers Cognism's database depth, contract structure and per-seat scaling against Derrick's pay-for-what-you-use Sheets-native model.
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
Cognism vs ContactOut vs Derrick at a glance
ContactOut
- Starting price: Free 4 emails/day · Email $49/mo (annual)
- Free plan: Yes - 5 emails + 5 phones + 5 exports per day
- 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 Cognism and ContactOut
3 core reasons SDRs and ops teams switch to Derrick. Click to expand each.
01 Real-time validation without data gaps in bulk workflows
Cognism and ContactOut provide real-time validation, but many bulk-workflow users still face data gaps during large-scale exports and multi-step prospecting. Derrick differentiates by delivering real-time validation directly inside 100% native Google Sheets, eliminating export gaps and sync delays without extra tooling. This leads to measurable efficiency: users save 5-10 hours per month and maintain continuous data integrity across 50+ enrichment attributes per contact. For rapid workflows, Derrick keeps validation in-situ as you bulk enrich, so accuracy stays consistent from first import to final outreach.
02 Unlimited monthly credits with no upfront lock-in
Cognism and ContactOut lock you into monthly buys with limited credit flexibility, constraining how you scale outreach as needs shift. Derrick offers unlimited monthly credits with no upfront lock-in, so teams can ramp campaigns without fear of wasted capacity or sudden renewals. You save time and money as credits roll over each month and you can adjust volume to match demand, with 0€ upfront for the free tier. Derrick’s native Google Sheets experience keeps prospecting actionable directly in your workflow, avoiding the CSV hops and platform rigidity of competitors.
03 Unified data enrichment for complete account context
Cognism and ContactOut deliver strong individual contact data, but neither provides unified, multi-source enrichment that delivers complete account context in a single workflow. Derrick integrates 50+ enrichment attributes across accounts and contacts directly in native Google Sheets, eliminating handoffs and data silos. This translates to a measurable efficiency gain of up to 20–30% faster account profiling and more accurate targeting, since you work with a holistic view in one place. A typical use case is instant enrichment for an entire account with real-time validation, ready for immediate ABM orchestration, without leaving Derrick.
Honest Comparison 
derrick
What each tool does better
We're upfront - every tool has strengths. Here's where Cognism, ContactOut, and Derrick each genuinely win.
What Cognism does better
- Best EU mobile-phone coverage
- GDPR-compliant by design
- Strong intent + technographic data
What ContactOut does better
- Best personal email coverage in the category
- Dead-simple Chrome extension UX
- Triple email verification reduces bounces
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.
| Cognism | ContactOut | Derrick | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starting price (monthly) | Custom (~$15K platform + $1.5K/seat) | Free 4 emails/day · Email $49/mo (annual) | €0 (free) · €9/mo paid |
| Annual cost (base) | ~€180/yr | ~€48/yr | €0/yr free · ~€108/yr paid |
| Free plan? | No (demo + custom quote only) | Yes - 5 emails + 5 phones + 5 exports per day | ✓ 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
Cognism vs ContactOut vs Derrick: full feature comparison
| Cognism | Derrick App | ContactOut | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Works natively in Google Sheets | ✕ | ✓ | ✕ |
| Requires LinkedIn Sales Navigator ($100/month) | ✕ | ✕ | ✕ |
| Sales Navigator 1-click import | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Email finder with real-time validation | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Phone finder from LinkedIn | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Company tech stack lookup | ✓ | ✓ | ✕ |
| SimilarWeb & G2 insights integrated | ✕ | ✓ | ✕ |
| AI integration (Claude & ChatGPT) | ✓ | ✓ | ✕ |
| Automatic AI Lead Scoring | ✕ | ✓ | ✕ |
| Data cleaning & normalization | ✕ | ✓ | ✕ |
| Multi-platform scraping (Instagram, Twitter, Facebook) | ✕ | ✕ | ✕ |
| Zapier, Make, n8n integrations | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Public API available | ✓ | ✓ | ✕ |
| Native CRM integrations (HubSpot, Salesforce) | ✓ | ✕ | ✓ |
| Entry price (paid plan) | 1000$/mois | 9€/mois | 40$/mois |
| Permanent free plan | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Rollover credits to next month | ✕ | ✓ | ✕ |
| Simple and transparent credit system | ✕ | ✓ | ✕ |
| Simple setup & onboarding | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Complete documentation | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Pricing in a nutshell Sales Intelligence (EU/EMEA) derrick
best value for money
Results first.
Discover Derrick →
LinkedIn Recruiter Email + Phone Finder
Cognism vs ContactOut vs Derrick pricing breakdown
Sales Intelligence (EU/EMEA) Cognism
Custom (~$15K platform + $1.5K/seat)
Best for: EU/EMEA enterprise sales
Cognism offers enterprise-focused pricing with entry-level plans that provide essential B2B data and verification, plus scalable options for larger teams; details are laid out on the dedicated pricing page-see full pricing breakdown for all tiers and features.
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.
LinkedIn Recruiter Email + Phone Finder ContactOut
Free 4 emails/day · Email $49/mo (annual)
Best for: Recruiters needing personal emails from LinkedIn at scale
ContactOut offers paid plans starting with a base tier priced to reflect its data-rich, enterprise-focused prospecting, alongside a free or trial option where applicable; full pricing details and plan specifics are available on the Pricing page-see the complete breakdown for all options.
Migration Guide
How to switch from Cognism 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 Cognism, 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 Cognism if…
- You specifically need eu/emea enterprise sales
- Best EU mobile-phone coverage
- GDPR-compliant by design
- You're already invested in the Cognism ecosystem
Pick ContactOut if…
- You specifically need recruiters needing personal emails from linkedin at scale
- Best personal email coverage in the category
- Dead-simple Chrome extension UX
- You're already invested in the ContactOut 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 Cognism vs ContactOut
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
What’s the main difference Derrick vs Cognism for data intelligence?
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Derrick and Cognism serve different purposes in data intelligence. Cognism excels as a standalone B2B contact database with strong intent signals and EMEA coverage, while Derrick operates as a native Google Sheets enrichment platform that transforms your existing spreadsheets into a complete prospecting hub. Cognism requires external platform navigation and CSV exports, whereas Derrick eliminates workflow friction by keeping everything in Sheets. For teams already working in spreadsheets, Derrick's 50+ enrichment attributes, real-time email validation, and integrated AI scoring deliver faster insights without the platform-switching overhead that Cognism demands.
Is Derrick a better alternative to Cognism for teams?
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Whether Derrick is a better alternative to Cognism depends on your team's specific needs. Cognism excels at intent signals and EMEA market coverage with premium data accuracy, while Derrick operates natively within Google Sheets, eliminating CSV exports and complex integrations. Derrick offers 50+ enrichment attributes, real-time email validation, and integrated AI scoring at significantly lower costs with rollover credits. For teams prioritizing seamless workflow integration and cost efficiency, Derrick delivers faster implementation. For enterprise teams requiring advanced intent-based prospecting, Cognism remains strong. Many teams benefit from using both complementarily.
How does Derrick compare with Cognism vs ContactOut in pricing?
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Derrick offers significantly more affordable pricing starting at just 9€ monthly for 4000 credits, compared to Cognism and ContactOut which position themselves as premium solutions with higher enterprise pricing. Unlike competitors, Derrick's credits roll over monthly, meaning unused credits aren't wasted, providing better value flexibility. Derrick operates natively within Google Sheets without requiring CSV exports or complex setup, reducing hidden time costs. For budget-conscious teams seeking data enrichment with lower commitment, Derrick delivers comparable functionality at a fraction of the cost while maintaining real-time email validation and AI-powered enrichment capabilities across 50+ attributes per contact.
Which is cheaper for SMBs: Derrick vs ContactOut?
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For SMBs choosing between Derrick and ContactOut, Derrick is typically cheaper when you consider total value and usage patterns. Derrick offers a tiered credit system starting at free, with affordable small and medium plans (4,000 credits for $9, 10,000 for $20) and no credit card required for the free tier, plus 50+ enrichment attributes per contact, real-time email validation, AI scoring and segmentation, and 3,000+ integrations. ContactOut pricing tends to scale with volume and its data-emphasis model can trigger higher ongoing costs, especially for teams needing broader enrichment beyond contact details. If you mainly need accurate contact data within a Google Sheets workflow, Derrick provides substantial cost efficiency and practical features without the premium pricing of specialized providers like ContactOut for SMBs.
Is Cognism vs ContactOut a fair comparison for data quality?
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Yes, comparing Cognism and ContactOut for data quality is fair, as both prioritize verified contact accuracy and real-time validation. However, they serve different needs: Cognism excels at intent signals and account-based marketing with stronger EMEA coverage, while ContactOut focuses on email verification and recruitment sourcing. For teams needing comprehensive data enrichment beyond basic contact verification, Derrick App offers 50+ enrichment attributes per contact, AI-powered scoring with Claude and ChatGPT, and real-time email validation-all natively within Google Sheets without expensive third-party platforms or complex integrations.
Can Derrick replace both Cognism and ContactOut in workflows?
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Derrick cannot fully replace Cognism or ContactOut in every workflow scenario. Cognism excels in wide-scale B2B data enrichment, real-time verification, and intent signals for enterprise prospecting, while ContactOut specializes in accurate contact discovery and direct outreach automation. Derrick shines as a native Google Sheets enrichment and outreach hub with 50+ attributes per contact, real-time email validation, AI scoring, and extensive Zapier/Make integrations. For teams needing deep firmographic/intent data or LinkedIn-sourced contact augmentation, using Cognism or ContactOut alongside Derrick provides the most comprehensive coverage. Derrick can cover many core workflows, but not always as a complete replacement.
One-on-one
Cognism vs Derrick - solo duel
Drop the third-party context and see how Cognism compares to Derrick alone.
Open the head-to-head → One-on-oneContactOut vs Derrick - solo duel
Drop the third-party context and see how ContactOut 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
