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The best cold email software, by what you need

There’s no single best tool. The right one depends on how much you send, whether you need a lead database or LinkedIn, and how you’d rather pay. Here are 10 tools, what each costs and who each one fits, from each vendor’s own pages.

The short answer

For a lead database with sending, look at Instantly, Saleshandy or Apollo. For agencies, Smartlead or Woodpecker. For LinkedIn as well as email, lemlist, QuickMail or Reply.io. For one sender at steady high volume, Mailshake. For small or uneven sending with no monthly plan, Inboxed.

Inboxed publishes this page and is one of the tools in it. Competitor prices are monthly list prices read on November 8, 2026; other facts were read on November 10, 2026. Every source is linked.

Quick picks

Who each cold email tool fits, and its entry price
ToolBest forEntry price (monthly billing)
InstantlyTeams that want a lead database, warmup and sending in one workspace, sending close to 5,000 or 125,000 emails a month.From $47 a month (Growth, 5,000 emails)
SmartleadAgencies that want client workspaces and white-labeling inside their sending tool.From $39 a month (Base, 6,000 emails)
LemlistTeams that want LinkedIn, calls and SMS next to email, or email-only tiers up to 1,000,000 a month with unlimited users.From $69 a month (Email 50k, 50,000 emails)
SaleshandySenders who want lead finder credits and done-for-you mailboxes from the same vendor, and send close to 100,000 or 200,000 emails every month.From $41 a month (Starter, 6,000 emails)
WoodpeckerAgencies that want a per-client Agency Panel with white label, and teams that add LinkedIn plans.From $39 a month (Email, 5,000 emails)
QuickMailTeams that want email plus unlimited LinkedIn accounts and users, sending close to 100,000 or 500,000 emails every month.From $49 a month (Starter, 5,000 emails)
MailshakeOne sender with steady, high volume, or a team that wants a dialer next to email.From $29 a month (Starter, 1 user, 1,500 emails)
Reply.ioSales teams that want LinkedIn, calls and SMS in one sequence, or an AI SDR product.From $59 a month (Email Volume 1k, 1,000 active contacts)
ApolloTeams that mainly need a large contact database, with sequences, calling and CRM features in one product.$65 per seat a month (Basic), $49 billed yearly
InboxedSenders whose volume is small or changes month to month, agencies that don’t want per-client fees, and teams that bring their own lead lists.No plan: $1 per 1,000 emails sent

How we compared them

  • Cost at your volume: the lowest published plan that covers each monthly volume, billed monthly, before mailboxes and domains (every tool here sends through mailboxes you provide).
  • Pricing model: per email, per tier, per contact or per seat, because it decides what a quiet month costs.
  • What’s included: warmup, lead verification, a reply inbox, API access and other channels.
  • Only primary sources: each vendor’s own pricing page or site, never review sites. We list no ratings or customer counts.

What each costs a month

Lowest published plan that covers each volume, billed monthly, in US dollars before tax. Scroll sideways on a phone.

Monthly cost by email volume
Tool5k25k100k250k
Inboxed$5$25$100$250
Instantly$47 (Growth)$107 (Hypergrowth)$107 (Hypergrowth)$194 (Hypergrowth + 1 Outreach add-on) *
Smartlead$39 (Base)$94 (Pro)$174 (Unlimited Smart)$379 (Unlimited Prime)
Lemlist$69 (Email 50k)$69 (Email 50k)$89 (Email 100k)$359 (Email 500k)
Saleshandy$41 (Starter)$99 (Pro)$99 (Pro)Not published
Woodpecker$39 (Email, 5,000 emails)Not publishedNot publishedNot published
QuickMail$49 (Starter)$99 (Growth)$99 (Growth)$299 (Agency)
Mailshake1 user$49 (Email Outreach, 1 user)$49 (Email Outreach, 1 user)$49 (Email Outreach, 1 user)$49 (Email Outreach, 1 user)
Reply.io$69 (Email Volume 2k) *$179 (Email Volume 10k) *$299 (Email Volume 25k) *$999 (Email Volume 100k) *
  • * Uses Instantly’s $87 Outreach add-on (+125,000 emails) on Hypergrowth, which we assume can be bought more than once. Above 500,000 emails Instantly quotes Enterprise pricing. We use the monthly add-on price for annual billing too.
  • * Above 200,000 emails a month Saleshandy quotes Enterprise pricing.
  • * Woodpecker lists Email plan tiers up to 1,000,000 emails a month, but the prices above the 5,000-email tier didn’t display when we read its pricing page, so we leave them out.
  • * Priced by active contacts: 1,250 contacts at 4 emails each.
  • * Priced by active contacts: 6,250 contacts at 4 emails each.
  • * Priced by active contacts: 25,000 contacts at 4 emails each.
  • * Priced by active contacts: 62,500 contacts at 4 emails each.
  • Apollo prices per seat with no published sending limit, so it isn’t in this table.

Where Inboxed costs more: Instantly Hypergrowth + 1 Outreach add-on at 250,000 emails ($194 against $250); Lemlist Email 100k at 100,000 emails ($89 against $100); Saleshandy Pro at 100,000 emails ($99 against $100); QuickMail Growth at 100,000 emails ($99 against $100); Mailshake Email Outreach, 1 user at 100,000 emails ($49 against $100); Mailshake Email Outreach, 1 user at 250,000 emails ($49 against $250). If you send close to a plan’s cap every month, a flat plan can be the better buy.

The full table from 5,000 to 1 million emails, with every assumption, is in our price comparison by volume. For when paying per email beats a subscription, read pay-as-you-go cold email.

The tools, one by one

Instantly

Best for: Teams that want a lead database, warmup and sending in one workspace, sending close to 5,000 or 125,000 emails a month.

Pricing: Per workspace per month, unlimited email accounts. From $47 a month (Growth, 5,000 emails).

Strengths

  • Warmup and unlimited email accounts on every plan
  • A built-in lead database, paid with credits (Instantly says 450M+ B2B contacts)
  • A large warmup network (Instantly says 4.2M+ accounts)

Worth knowing

  • Plans also cap uploaded contacts: 1,000 on Growth, 25,000 on Hypergrowth.
  • The full reply inbox starts on Hypergrowth; Growth shows a preview.
  • AI replies cost 5 credits each from a separate Credits plan, and credits on monthly plans expire 2 months after purchase.
Source: Instantly pricing (read November 8, 2026)Instantly pricing.md (credits and AI replies) (read November 10, 2026)Instantly llms.txt (warmup network and lead database, self-reported) (read November 10, 2026)Inboxed vs Instantly

Smartlead

Best for: Agencies that want client workspaces and white-labeling inside their sending tool.

Pricing: Per account per month, unlimited email accounts. From $39 a month (Base, 6,000 emails).

Strengths

  • Client workspaces and white-labeling for agencies
  • Warmup and unlimited mailboxes on every plan
  • Annual discounts for steady volume

Worth knowing

  • Client workspaces cost $29 a month each.
  • Base ($39) caps contacts at 2,000 and has no API or webhooks; the API starts on Pro.
Source: Smartlead pricing (read November 8, 2026)Inboxed vs Smartlead

Lemlist

Best for: Teams that want LinkedIn, calls and SMS next to email, or email-only tiers up to 1,000,000 a month with unlimited users.

Pricing: Per account per month on the Email plan, by volume, with unlimited users. From $69 a month (Email 50k, 50,000 emails).

Strengths

  • LinkedIn, calls and SMS on the Multichannel plan ($109 per user a month)
  • AI reply drafting on every plan
  • Large volume tiers at a low price per email

Worth knowing

  • The reply inbox isn’t on the Email plan; it comes with Multichannel.
  • Verification uses lead-data credits, from $20 a month.
Source: Lemlist pricing (read November 8, 2026)Inboxed vs Lemlist

Saleshandy

Best for: Senders who want lead finder credits and done-for-you mailboxes from the same vendor, and send close to 100,000 or 200,000 emails every month.

Pricing: Per account per month by emails sent and active prospects, with unlimited email accounts. From $41 a month (Starter, 6,000 emails).

Strengths

  • Lead finder credits every month (1,500 to 8,000 by plan)
  • Done-for-you mailboxes and domains in the same product
  • A unified inbox on all plans

Worth knowing

  • Plans cap active prospects: 2,000 on Starter, 30,000 on Pro.
  • Starter has 1 user and Pro 10; unlimited users start on Scale.
Source: Saleshandy pricing (read November 8, 2026)Inboxed vs Saleshandy

Woodpecker

Best for: Agencies that want a per-client Agency Panel with white label, and teams that add LinkedIn plans.

Pricing: Per account per month by emails sent, with unlimited email accounts and team members. From $39 a month (Email, 5,000 emails).

Strengths

  • Agency Panel priced per active client, with a white-label option
  • Unlimited email verification included
  • LinkedIn and Multichannel plans

Worth knowing

  • 3 warm-ups are included; more are a paid add-on.
  • The monthly limit resets each cycle and unsent emails don’t roll over, per Woodpecker’s help center.
  • API and webhooks are a paid add-on.
Source: Woodpecker pricing (read November 8, 2026)Inboxed vs Woodpecker

QuickMail

Best for: Teams that want email plus unlimited LinkedIn accounts and users, sending close to 100,000 or 500,000 emails every month.

Pricing: Per account per month by emails sent, with unlimited senders and users. From $49 a month (Starter, 5,000 emails).

Strengths

  • Unlimited senders, users and LinkedIn accounts on every plan
  • Free AutoWarmer (MailFlow)
  • Client workspaces on the Agency plan

Worth knowing

  • Starter has no API.
  • Extra workspaces on Agency are $49 each.
  • Verification isn’t mentioned on the pricing page.
Source: QuickMail pricing (read November 8, 2026)Inboxed vs QuickMail

Mailshake

Best for: One sender with steady, high volume, or a team that wants a dialer next to email.

Pricing: Per user per month. From $29 a month (Starter, 1 user, 1,500 emails).

Strengths

  • No send cap on Email Outreach for one user ($49 a month)
  • Phone numbers and a power dialer on Sales Engagement
  • Unlimited warmup and verification on paid plans

Worth knowing

  • Priced per user, and each user connects a limited number of mailboxes.
  • No free trial; payment is collected up front.
Source: Mailshake pricing (read November 8, 2026)Inboxed vs Mailshake

Reply.io

Best for: Sales teams that want LinkedIn, calls and SMS in one sequence, or an AI SDR product.

Pricing: By active contacts per month on the Email Volume plan. From $59 a month (Email Volume 1k, 1,000 active contacts).

Strengths

  • LinkedIn, calls and SMS in one sequence
  • A shared inbox and AI reply handling included
  • An AI SDR product, Jason, listed at $500 a month

Worth knowing

  • Priced by active contacts, so cost depends on emails per contact.
  • LinkedIn is $69 per account and calls and SMS $29 per account on top.
  • Email validation is extra, from $20 per 5,000.
Source: Reply.io pricing (read November 8, 2026)Reply.io Jason AI SDR page (read November 10, 2026)Inboxed vs Reply.io

Apollo

Best for: Teams that mainly need a large contact database, with sequences, calling and CRM features in one product.

Pricing: Per seat per month; no sending cap published. $65 per seat a month (Basic), $49 billed yearly.

Strengths

  • A large built-in contact database
  • Calling, enrichment and CRM features in one product
  • A free plan with no time limit

Worth knowing

  • Priced per seat with no published sending limit, so cost per email can’t be worked out.
  • Mailboxes and warmup use credits on top.
Source: Apollo pricing (read November 8, 2026)Inboxed vs Apollo

Inboxed

Best for: Senders whose volume is small or changes month to month, agencies that don’t want per-client fees, and teams that bring their own lead lists.

Pricing: $1 per 1,000 emails the receiving mail server accepts ($0.001 each), from a prepaid wallet. Card top-ups (opening soon) start at $5, the balance never expires, and top-ups aren’t refundable. No plans, seats or client fees.

Strengths

  • Free warmup for every mailbox you connect, and free lead checks for every campaign lead
  • A shared team inbox with assignment, private notes and approval before replies go out
  • Client workspaces and a read-only client portal with no per-client fee
  • AI first lines, rewrites and subject ideas on the AI account you connect (Google Gemini, Groq and OpenRouter have free tiers); Inboxed charges nothing for them
  • Sends at each lead’s local time, can stop the rest of a company when anyone there replies, and pauses a mailbox above 5% bounces
  • REST API, webhooks and an MCP server on every workspace

Limits to know

  • No contact database: bring leads from a CSV, a Google Sheet, the API, or your own Apollo, Hunter or Snov.io account.
  • Email only: no LinkedIn, calling or SMS steps.
  • Reply sorting by intent and AI reply drafts are coming soon. Today the inbox is sorted by you, not by AI.
  • A new product: no public reviews yet, and the warmup network is made only of customers’ own mailboxes, so it is small.
  • Gmail connects with an app password; Outlook and Microsoft 365 connect in one click.
  • A new workspace can send up to 300 emails in 24 hours until Inboxed raises the limit.
  • At steady, high volume some flat plans cost less. The cost table on this page shows where.

See Inboxed pricing and the cost calculator, or the AI features and what they need.

Also compared

These tools combine email with data, LinkedIn or a full sales platform, so they don’t fit a cold-email-only list:

Before you choose

  • Work out your real monthly volume: leads times steps. 2,000 leads with a first email and three follow-ups is 8,000 emails.
  • Check the second limit. Several tools cap contacts or prospects as well as emails, which can push you up a plan.
  • Budget for mailboxes and domains separately. None of the prices here include them.
  • Set up SPF, DKIM and DMARC before you send. Our free DMARC record generator and SPF, DKIM and DMARC checker help, and the deliverability guide covers the rest.

Questions

What is the best cold email software?

There isn’t one best tool for everyone. It depends on how much you send, whether you need a lead database or LinkedIn steps, and how you want to pay. This guide gives a “best for” verdict for each tool, with prices from each vendor’s own pricing page.

What does cold email software cost for 10,000 emails a month?

Instantly $107 (Hypergrowth); Smartlead $94 (Pro); Lemlist $69 (Email 50k); Saleshandy $99 (Pro); Woodpecker not published; QuickMail $99 (Growth); Mailshake $49 (Email Outreach, 1 user); Reply.io $79 (Email Volume 3k). Inboxed: $10. Monthly list prices read November 8, 2026, before mailboxes and domains.

Which cold email tools include a contact database?

Instantly, Apollo, Saleshandy and Snov.io sell lead data with sending, and lemlist sells lead-data credits as an add-on. Inboxed has no database: you import leads or connect your own data provider account.

Which tools do LinkedIn as well as email?

lemlist (Multichannel), Reply.io, QuickMail, Woodpecker (LinkedIn plans) and La Growth Machine, per their own sites. Inboxed is email only.

Is Inboxed included fairly?

Inboxed publishes this page and is one of the tools in it. We list its limits next to everyone else’s, link every competitor price to the vendor’s own page, and show the volumes where other tools cost less.

Sources

Instantly, Smartlead, Lemlist, Saleshandy, Woodpecker, QuickMail, Mailshake, Reply.io and Apollo are trademarks of their owners, named only to compare products. Inboxed isn’t affiliated with them.

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