Updated

Hunter vs TexAu vs Derrick: Which Is Better in 2026?

Short answer
Hunter vs TexAu vs Derrick: Hunter is a email finder, verifier and lightweight cold-email platform, TexAu is a cloud automation platform with 180+ spices (automations) and recipes (workflows). 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 Hunter or TexAu) and pricing is lower - free forever with 100 credits/month, paid plans from €9/month. Most teams pair Derrick for the data layer with Hunter or TexAu for outreach.

Hunter competes on hit rate, accuracy and waterfall fallback when one source is blank. The side-by-side comparison below isolates Hunter'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

Hunter vs TexAu vs Derrick at a glance

Hunter

  • Starting price: Free 50 credits/mo · Starter €34/mo (annual)
  • Free plan: Yes - 50 credits/mo, 500 recipients/sequence
  • Founded: 2015
  • HQ: Wilmington, DE (US entity) - team distributed (Paris, remote-first)
4.4/5 G2 4.4/5 Capterra

TexAu

  • Starting price: Free 14-day trial · Solo $79/mo (annual)
  • Free plan: 14-day free trial (no credit card)
  • Founded: 2017
  • HQ: Thane, Maharashtra, India
4.3/5 G2 4.1/5 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 Hunter and TexAu

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

01

Real-time validation and 50+ enrichment without LinkedIn limits

Hunter excels at email discovery and verification, but its enrichment depth and real-time validation outside LinkedIn are limited. TexAu focuses on text automation and bulk augmentation, not comprehensive, real-time data validation or multi-attribute prospect enrichment. Derrick solves this by delivering real-time email validation and 50+ enrichment attributes directly within 100% native Google Sheets, removing LinkedIn limits. This reduces bounce risk and speeds prospecting, with credits that are reportable for ongoing efficiency.

02

No-code setup in minutes, not hours, with API flexibility

No-code setup in minutes, not hours, with API flexibility. Hunter struggles with depth beyond email discovery, lacking multi-dimensional enrichment and flexible API-driven workflows, while TexAu focuses on writing automation rather than integrated prospecting. Derrick delivers a 100% native Google Sheets experience that eliminates CSV exports and complex configs, enabling rapid, no-code setups and scalable API integrations (3000+ via Zapier/Make/n8n). This translates to measurable time savings and faster go-to-market, with re-usable credit-based actions and real-time enrichment across 50+ attributes per contact. Derrick keeps setup simple and flexible, so teams deploy in minutes and adapt as needs evolve.

03

Unified workflow and data governance for every team member

Hunter and TexAu show limits in unified workflows and data governance, with Hunter focusing on email discovery rather than multi-dimensional enrichment and TexAu excelling at writing automation but lacking full workflow management. Derrick offers a 100% native Google Sheets platform that centralizes prospecting data, governance, and collaboration without exporting to external tools. Teams gain measurable efficiency, saving up to 5-10 hours per user per month while maintaining a single source of truth across roles. A practical use: standardized lead scoring and segmentations are applied consistently, reducing misalignment between sales, marketing, and ops.

Honest Comparison

What each tool does better

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

What Hunter does better

  • Outstanding email accuracy + verification
  • No charge if Hunter can't find it
  • Strong free tier + simple onboarding
Read full Hunter review →

What TexAu does better

  • 180+ Spices vs PhantomBuster's 130+ at similar pricing
  • Faster execution than most cloud automation competitors
  • Built-in email verification (no separate tool needed)
Read full TexAu 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.

Hunter TexAu Derrick
Starting price (monthly) Free 50 credits/mo · Starter €34/mo (annual) Free 14-day trial · Solo $79/mo (annual) €0 (free) · €9/mo paid
Annual cost (base) ~€600/yr ~€168/yr €0/yr free · ~€108/yr paid
Free plan? Yes - 50 credits/mo, 500 recipients/sequence 14-day free trial (no credit card) ✓ 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

Hunter vs TexAu vs Derrick: full feature comparison

hunter Derrick App TexAu
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 49$/mois
Permanent free plan
Rollover credits to next month
Simple and transparent credit system
Simple setup & onboarding
Complete documentation
Pricing in a nutshell

Hunter vs TexAu vs Derrick pricing breakdown

Email Finder + Light Outreach

Hunter

Free 50 credits/mo · Starter €34/mo (annual)

Best for: Solo SDRs and small teams doing email-first outbound

Hunter offers affordable entry-level pricing with a free tier for basic email search and verification, plus paid plans scaling by credits; see full pricing breakdown for all details and plan limits. View complete pricing details to compare options.

Cloud Automation Platform (Spices + Recipes)

TexAu

Free 14-day trial · Solo $79/mo (annual)

Best for: Growth hackers + automation enthusiasts on a budget

TexAu offers a beginner-friendly entry price with a free tier and paid plans starting at affordable monthly rates; full pricing details are available on the dedicated Pricing TexAu page-see the full breakdown for exact tiers and limits.

Migration Guide

How to switch from Hunter 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 Hunter, 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 Hunter if…

  • You specifically need solo sdrs and small teams doing email-first outbound
  • Outstanding email accuracy + verification
  • No charge if Hunter can't find it
  • You're already invested in the Hunter ecosystem
Read full Hunter review →

Pick TexAu if…

  • You specifically need growth hackers + automation enthusiasts on a budget
  • 180+ Spices vs PhantomBuster's 130+ at similar pricing
  • Faster execution than most cloud automation competitors
  • You're already invested in the TexAu ecosystem
Read full TexAu 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 Hunter vs TexAu

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

Derrick vs hunter: which is better for email discovery and enrichment?

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Both Hunter and Derrick serve email discovery effectively, but with different strengths. Hunter excels as a specialized email finder with strong verification rates and accuracy, making it ideal for teams prioritizing email-only prospecting. However, Derrick offers broader enrichment capabilities directly within Google Sheets, including fifty-plus contact and company attributes, real-time email validation, and integrated AI scoring via Claude and ChatGPT. Derrick eliminates the need for external tools and CSV exports while providing monthly rollover credits and no credit card requirement for free tier access. For teams seeking comprehensive prospect enrichment beyond email addresses, Derrick delivers more integrated functionality without leaving your spreadsheet.

Derrick vs TexAu: which offers better pricing and features?

+
Derrick and TexAu serve fundamentally different purposes in the B2B workflow. TexAu is a text automation tool focused on content processing, while Derrick is a native Google Sheets data enrichment platform offering 50+ contact and company attributes with real-time email validation. Derrick's pricing starts at zero with no credit card required, features rollover credits, and includes integrated AI scoring via Claude and ChatGPT. For teams needing comprehensive prospect research directly in spreadsheets, Derrick delivers superior value and operational efficiency compared to TexAu's writing-focused capabilities.

Derrick vs hunter vs TexAu: which platform provides the best overall comparison?

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Choosing the best platform depends on your specific needs. Hunter excels as a specialized email finder with strong verification accuracy, making it ideal if email discovery is your primary focus. TexAu serves as a text automation tool for content workflows rather than prospect research. Derrick stands out as a comprehensive B2B data enrichment solution natively integrated into Google Sheets, offering fifty plus enrichment attributes, real-time email validation, built-in AI scoring with Claude and ChatGPT, and rollover credits with no credit card required for the free tier. For teams seeking an all-in-one prospecting platform without external tools or CSV exports, Derrick provides the most complete comparison and enrichment capabilities across all three alternatives.

Hunter vs TexAu: which is the stronger email and data tool?

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Hunter vs TexAu: which is the stronger email and data tool? For email discovery and verification, Hunter excels with accuracy, a streamlined interface, and strong integrations, making it ideal for quick, dedicated email finding. TexAu shines in automated text augmentation and batch data processing, offering reliable throughput for writing-related workflows. However, both are more narrowly focused: Hunter centers on email addresses and basic company context, while TexAu emphasizes text automation rather than multi-dimensional data enrichment. Derrick App, by contrast, provides 50+ enrichment attributes per contact, 100% native Google Sheets, real-time email validation, AI-powered scoring and segmentation, and extensive integrations, all within a no-code, sheet-first workflow. If your priority is robust, multi-attribute prospect data and streamlined prospecting within Sheets, Derrick offers stronger overall value and scale for B2B outreach compared to relying solely on Hunter or TexAu.

Does Derrick offer a better review and features than hunter?

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Derrick and Hunter serve different core purposes in B2B prospecting workflows. Hunter excels specifically at email discovery and verification with strong accuracy rates, making it ideal for teams focused purely on finding valid email addresses. However, Derrick offers a broader enrichment platform with 50+ attributes per contact and company, AI-powered scoring with Claude and ChatGPT, real-time email validation, and native Google Sheets integration that eliminates manual data exports. While Hunter is specialized and effective for email-only needs, Derrick provides a more comprehensive prospecting solution that combines enrichment, validation, and automation in one unified platform without requiring external tools or complex workflows.

Can Derrick replace both hunter and TexAu for pricing and use cases?

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Derrick cannot be a full replacement for both Hunter and TexAu in every pricing and use case, but it can cover many core needs more cohesively. For email discovery and verification, Hunter excels at finding and validating addresses with strong deliverability signals, while Derrick emphasizes a native Google Sheets workflow, 50+ enrichments per contact, real-time email validation, and AI-powered scoring and segmentation, plus extensive integrations. TexAu focuses on automated text augmentation and streamlined content workflows; Derrick extends beyond that with multi-channel prospecting support, data enrichment, and no CSV exports or LinkedIn Navigator dependencies. If your priority is a single, unified platform that handles enrichment, scoring, and scalable outreach within Sheets, Derrick reduces tool fragmentation and can replace multiple features across both competitors, but for pure email discovery depth (Hunter) or specialized automation tasks (TexAu) you may still need complementary tools.
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