Clay vs Hightouch
Clay and Hightouch are both data integration & ETL tools. Clay is aimed at small businesses and enterprise, while Hightouch is aimed at enterprise and small businesses. Both have a free plan.
| Pricing | Freemium · $185 | Freemium |
| Starting price | $185/mo | Not published |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | 14 days | — |
| Built for | Small businesses, Enterprise | Enterprise, Small businesses |
| Platforms | web | web |
| Country | US · 2017 | US · 2018 |
| Rating | — | — |
Choose Clay if
GTM operations and outbound teams with volume and a willingness to learn.
- Dramatically better enrichment coverage via waterfalls
- AI research personalization at scale
- Flexible, spreadsheet mental model
Look elsewhere if: Solo founders who need a simple list (Apollo) or teams without ops capacity.
Choose Hightouch if
Companies with a warehouse and data team wanting to activate data.
- Warehouse-native, no duplicate data
- Marketer-friendly audience builder
- Broad destinations
Look elsewhere if: Companies without a warehouse (Segment).
Clay vs Hightouch pricing
Clay
- Free$0500 actions and 100 data credits per month
- Launch$185/mo$167/mo billed annually; 15K actions, 2.5K data credits
- Growth$495/mo$446/mo billed annually; 40K actions, 6K data credits
- EnterpriseCustom100K+ data credits, 200K+ actions, annual contract
Hightouch
- Basic Reverse ETL$0Free tier; up to 2 active syncs, unlimited destinations
- Agentic Marketing PlatformCustomUsage-based; demo required
- Composable CDPCustomUsage-based; unlimited user seats
Clay · Key features
- Waterfall enrichment across 100+ data providers
- Claygent AI agents for custom web research
- Formulas, conditional logic and scoring
- CRM and sequencer integrations with two-way sync
- Signals: job changes, hiring, funding, tech installs
- Templates and shared workspaces
Cons
- Credit costs add up quickly
- Steep learning curve
- Easy to build fragile tables
Hightouch · Key features
- Reverse ETL to 250+ destinations
- Customer Studio audience builder
- Identity resolution in the warehouse
- Journeys and AI decisioning
- Match booster for ad platforms
- Observability and alerting
Cons
- Requires a mature warehouse
- Pricing scales with usage
- Business features are enterprise-priced
Clay vs Hightouch: FAQ
Do Clay and Hightouch have a free plan?
Yes, both Clay and Hightouch have a free plan; paid plans add more usage and features.