Directory / AI for a task / Cold email outreach
The best AI to run cold email outreach
Instantly, because deliverability decides whether outbound works at all: inbox rotation and automated warmup keep your mail out of spam, from $37.60/mo billed annually. Clay does the research before the send, enriching each prospect from source after source, but at $167/mo it only pays with a real sales motion behind it. Neither writes good copy for you; that part is still yours.
- 01 Instantly: Getting cold email into the inbox at all
- 02 Clay: Research-heavy outbound at scale
- 03 Copy.ai: Sales and outbound copy workflows
Top pick
Instantly
From $37.60/mo (annual) / $47/mo (monthly)
Solves getting into the inbox: unlimited sending accounts with warmup, and inbox rotation to protect your sender reputation. Growth is $37.60/mo billed annually or $47/mo monthly for 5,000 emails a month.
- Free tier
- None confirmed (no-card signup mentioned but no specific free-trial length found)
- Entry plan
- $37.60/mo billed annually or $47/mo billed monthly (Growth: 5,000 emails/mo, 1,000 uploaded contacts, unlimited email accounts/warmup)
Pick 02
Clay
Free · from $167/mo
The strongest research layer: waterfall enrichment fills each field from one source after another, and agents research each prospect before the message is drafted. Free for 500 actions a month; Launch is $167/mo.
- Free tier
- Free (500 actions/mo, 100 data credits/mo)
- Entry plan
- $167/mo (Launch, 15,000 actions/mo)
Pick 03
Copy.ai
Chat from $29/mo ($24/mo billed annually) · Workflows from $1,000/mo
Automates the research-then-draft step, and table mode runs a prompt across hundreds of rows at once. The Chat plan is $29/mo ($24/mo billed annually) for 5 seats; the workflow engine it is really priced for starts at $1,000/mo.
- Free tier
- Not present on the current direct-fetch pricing page; third-party trackers describe a 'Free Forever' tier (1 seat, 2,000 words/month of chat, 200 bonus credits, no card required) that could not be confirmed live
- Entry plan
- Chat plan, $29/mo billed monthly or $24/mo billed annually ($288/yr): 5 seats, unlimited chat words, unlimited chat projects
Skip if
Skip all three without a legitimate, permission-respecting list, and skip Clay below a few hundred emails a month, where it is overkill.
The free option
Clay's free plan (500 actions and 100 data credits a month) is enough to test enrichment on a small list. Instantly has no confirmed free tier. Clay profile.
Prices side by side
Is there a free AI to run cold email outreach?
Clay's free plan (500 actions and 100 data credits a month) is enough to test enrichment on a small list. Instantly has no confirmed free tier.
When is Instantly the wrong choice?
Anyone without a legitimate, permission-respecting list.
Deciding between these
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Some outbound links are affiliate links, marked sponsored. Several tools on this page pay us nothing. Affiliate status never decides what is picked or the order it appears in.