Finding the right tool for your cold email outreach can be a daunting task. If you’re looking for an Instantly.ai alternative for your cold email outreach, search algorithms have guided you to the right place.
In this article, we explore the latest list of tools that serve as viable instantly.ai alternatives for cold email outreach. Our aim is to provide you with a comprehensive comparison of features, benefits, and potential drawbacks of each Instantly.ai alternative.
We understand that every business has unique needs and preferences when it comes to cold email outreach. So, we’ve made sure to include a diverse range of instantly alternative tools in our review, catering to different business sizes, and industries.
Whether you’re a startup looking for cost-effective solutions, a growing business seeking scalability, or an established organization in need of advanced features, this blog will guide you toward making an informed decision.
So, let’s dive into the tools, beyond Instantly.ai.
What is Instantly.ai ?
Instantly.ai (also known as ‘Instantly’) is a cold email automation software that allows users to automate their email outreach and follow-ups for lead generation. It also offers a range of email personalization features to improve the effectiveness of your sales outreach efforts.
What are the main limitations of Instantly.ai ?
Instantly.ai has got some serious drawbacks in terms of overall functionality for sales outreach. If you have already been an Instantly user, you can relate to at least one of them given below.
#1 Lack of multichannel capabilities ❌
Instantly.ai users can’t send multichannel outreach campaigns. That means they miss the chance of engaging with prospects via top channels such as LinkedIn, email, calling and whatsapp.
#2 Limited API Integration ❌
Instantly provides limited API integration compared to its competitors. Also, some users report that their CRM integration doesn’t sync data properly.
#3 Skyhigh pricing and plan limitations ❌
Some instantly users find the pricing to be unreasonably high for an email automation software.
For instance, their uploaded leads limit counts any contact that you have uploaded to Instantly.ai and that is in a campaign (active or paused). These do not reset every month. So if you need more space, you would need to upgrade your account or delete old campaigns and leads.
Best Instantly.ai alternative: SmartReach.io
User ratings
⭐G2 – 4.8/5
⭐Capterra – 4.8/5
SmartReach.io is a powerful AI-powered sales engagement platform built to enhance your sales outreach campaigns using multiple channels such as email, LinkedIn, calling, text messages and WhatsApp.
It is the best Instantly.ai alternative for running automated sales outreach campaigns with added personaiization and security. Also, It comes at an affordable and flexible pricing plan for agencies as well as for SMBs.
Currently, SmartReach proudly serves over 3000+ businesses all over the world.
Key features of SmartReach.io
✅ Multi-channel capabilities – Automated, semi-automated and manual uutreach using highly engaging channels such as email, LinkedIn, cold calling, text messages and Whatsapp.
✅ Human-like sending – Send automated follow-ups using human like sending algorithm to save emails from catching spam.
✅ Email deliverability – Enhance email deliverability rate using features such as email validation, spam test report, spintax and campaign soft-start.
✅ Email Warmup – Automated email warmup using SmartReach’s in-built tool WarmupHero .
✅ Content AI – Generate email content and subject lines using AI, tailored to your specifications such as the context of the email, information about the audience, and your preferred writing style. You also have the option to revise or condense any particular sentence as needed.
✅ Inbox rotation – Leverage the Inbox rotation feature to enhance your email campaigns by adjusting sender information and monitoring results. Customize sender particulars for improved interaction.
✅ Spintax – Minimize the risk of being flagged by spam filters by delivering distinct and personalized emails to the prospects Spintax.
✅ LinkedIn outreach automation – Send LinkedIn messages, InMails, connection requests and more using LinkedIn on semi-automation and end-to-end automation.
✅ Shared Inbox – Find all the prospect replies from your different campaigns in one single place. More transparency and collaboration.
✅ PowerDialer – Reach out to your prospects globally with a personalized caller ID using SmartReach’s exclusive cold calling software. Manage your calling task in one place. Also, record the calls for coaching and review of your team.
✅ Meeting scheduler – Maintain a synchronized calendar for seamless coordination with the prospects. Allow automated alerts to manage the specifics, freeing you to concentrate on interacting with leads.
✅ Prospect Finder – Build prospect list by finding professional email addresses of the prospects using SmartReach’s proprietary email finder tool ProspectDaddy.
✅ Opportunities Pipeline – Forecast ready to close deals with data sets such as deal revenue, closing date, closing confidence and more to predict future cash flow.
✅ Reports and analytics – Monitor and gain deep insights into your campaign results. Use advanced reports and analytics to dive deeper into the data.
✅ APIs and Integrations – Bi-directional sync with CRM platforms such as Hubspot, Pipedrive, Zoho, and Salesforce. Synchronize campaign data with your CRM through the use of webhooks and APIs.
Benefits of using SmartReach for cold outreach
1. Reach prospects everywhere: With SmartReach’s multi-channel capabilities, you can reach your prospects on the platforms they use most, increasing your chances of engagement and conversion.
2. Land in prospect’s primary inbox – Using SmartReach’s features like email validation, spam test report and campaign soft start increase your email deliverability for higher response rate and engagement.
2. Persoonalization at scale: SmartReach’s content AI crafts compelling content tailored to your specific needs, ensuring your messaging resonates with your prospects and enhances engagement. Also, personalized emails help building better relationship.
3. Centralized communication: Shared inbox feature consolidates all prospect interactions, providing a holistic view of your communication and enabling better decision-making.
4. Dynamic email content: Create and deliver unique and personalized emails to each prospect for increased email deliverability and open rate using features like Spintax and conditional statement.
5. Optimized sender reputation: By adjusting sender information and tracking performance, the Inbox rotation feature helps you maintain a healthy sender reputation, crucial for scaling up sales email outreach.
6. Efficient and coordinated scheduling: SmartReach’s in-built meeting scheduler automates scheduling process by sending meeting notifications, create tailored links on the basis of time,location availability and more factors. It saves you time to focus on preparing for meetings with leads.
7. Accelerated prospecting: Using SmartReach’s proprietary prospect finder tool, ProspectDaddy, accelerate your sales prospecting process. Find relevant professional email addresses from LinkedIn and build effective lead list faster..
8. Automated workflow:: Native integration with with CRMs such as Zoho, Salesforce, Hubspot etc helps you automate data sync between your sales outreach platform and CRM. Also you can automate workflows using APIs with any platform you want. This ensures zero admin work in lead data base management to your CRM, automating your workflow and improving efficiency.
10. Authentic engagement: Unlike other tools, SmartReach’s automated follow-ups are sent with a human-like sending pattern that feels natural and legit to the recipient as well as the spam filters. It saves your emails from landing in spam.
11. Unified efforts: Team inbox feature lets you monitor team outreach progress and distribute templates and prospect lists, fostering a collaborative environment for your sales team.
12. Data-driven decisions: SmartReach reports and analytics provide deep insights into your campaign outreach results, enabling you to make data-driven decisions and continuously improve your B2B sales outreach efforts.
13. Optimize Your Outreach: SmartReach allows you to A/B test your email subject lines, email copies etc, helping you understand what works best for your audience and continuously improve your outreach strategy.
14. Protect Your Data: SmartReach prioritizes security, ensuring that your data and your prospects’ data are well-protected.
SmartReach pricing
Currently, SmartReach.io provides 4 plans and pricing such as –
| Details | Email Outreach | Sales engagement | Agency | Enterprise |
| Price | *$29 | $49 | Quotation basis | Quotation basis |
| Ideal for | B2B email outreach for lead generation | Multichannel outreach with team collaboration | Agencies of all sizes | Large sales teams looking to scale up outreach process |
*Please note that all the prices are billed monthly.
Apart from that, SmartReach also offers a 14 day FREE trial. No credit card required.
SmartReach customer support
SmartReach offers 24X6 customer support through:
- Live chat: Available on the SmartReach website with an average response time of about 5 minutes during working hours.
- Email support: Users can email their queries to [email protected]
- Scheduled calls: Available for paid plan users to discuss product workflow, integrations, or any other product-related issues.
- Dedicated success manager: Provided for enterprise plan users. Get personalized assistance and guidance.
Other Instantly.ai alternatives
Here are some more Instantly.ai alternatives for sales outreach.
#1 Instantly.ai alternative
Quickmail.io
User ratings
⭐G2 – 4.6/5
⭐Capterra – 4.8/5
Quickmail, founded in 2014, is a platform designed to automate your personal email outreach for sales. It helps sales reps build a predictable sales pipeline by reaching out to cold prospects via email.
It also enables sales teams to run multichannel outreach campaigns, allowing sales reps to use emails, phone calls, SMS, and Slack to reach prospects.
It offers features like built-in deliverability, automated follow-ups, optimized sending days and times, and hyper-personalization at scale with custom attributes and conditional send logic. This makes it a valuable tool for sales reps, sales leadership, agencies, and demand generation teams.
Pros of using Quickmail
✅ Email automation: Users can automate follow-ups and scale up ther email outreach faster.
✅ Multichannel communication: It supports a multi-channel strategy, including email, calls, SMS, and Slack, for a well-rounded outreach.
✅ Personalization: Quickmail allows for detailed personalization using custom fields and logic, which can lead to better engagement.
Cons of using Quickmail
❌ Complex integration process: Users find it very difficult to integrate Quickmail with other software and tools effectively.
❌ High pricing: The cost of Quickmail is on the higher side when compared to its competitors such as SmartReach, which could be a consideration for some early stage businesses.
❌ Steep learning curve: New users may find the initial setup, especially the configuration of follow-up emails, somewhat daunting, suggesting a steeper learning curve.
❌ Basic multichannel features: While Quickmail excels in email, its limited multichannel support hinders broader sales engagement.
Quickmail Pricing
Quickmail offers a 3 tiered pricing structure. Also, they offer a 14 day free trial.
| Details | Basic plan | Pro plan | Expert plan |
| Pricing | $49/month | $89/month | $129/month |
| Sender email | Upto 5 email adresses | Upto 20 email adresses | Upto 50 email adresses |
Quickmail customer support
Quickmail.io offers customer support through email. You can reach them at [email protected].
Additionally, their customer support team is available via chat on their website.
#2 Instantly.ai alternative
Saleshandy
User ratings
⭐G2 – 4.6/5
⭐Capterra – 4.5/5
SalesHandy is an email outreach tool that enhances sales productivity by enabling personalized campaigns, tracking email metrics, and automating follow-ups.
It integrates with popular email services, offering features like mail merge, email templates, and detailed analytics to optimize engagement and streamline the sales process. Its user-friendly interface and actionable insights make it a valuable asset for sales teams aiming to improve their email outreach efforts.
Pros of using Saleshandy
✅ Email tracking: It provides detailed insights into email interactions, helping to tailor follow-up strategies effectively.
✅ Personalized campaigns: The mail merge feature allows for highly personalized emails, improving engagement and response rates.
✅ Automated follow-ups: SalesHandy automates follow-ups based on recipient behavior, ensuring consistent communication.
✅ Email Templates: A variety of templates streamline the creation of professional emails quickly.
Cons of using Saleshandy
❌ Lack of multichannel outreach: Unlike its competitors such as SmartReach or Quickmail, Saleshandy currently doesn’t offer any multichannel outreach beyond email.
❌ Technical bugs: Some users have reported occasional technical issues from loading campaigns which can disrupt sales operation.
❌ Poor email deliverability: SalesHandy users have reported low email deliverability and limited reporting/tracking. They struggle to identify individual engagement within group emails. Also, reading reports for bulk campaigns is difficult.
❌ Limited customer support: According to the user reviews, the quality of support and the company’s handling of billing issues is poor.
Saleshandy pricing
Saleshandy currently offers a 4 tiered pricing structure along with a 7-day initial FREE trial.
| Details | Outreach Starter | Outreach Pro | Outreach Scale | Outreach Scale Plus |
| Pricing | $36/month | $99/month | $199/month | $299/month |
| Ideal for | For individuals to get started with cold email outreach | For those who want to scale up their outreach | For sales teams to maximize outreach | Enterprise level sales teams |
| Sender email | unlimited | unlimited | unlimited | unlimited |
Saleshandy customer support
Saleshandy offers multiple options for customer support:
Live Chat: Available on their website during business hours (typically Monday-Saturday, specific timings can be found on their website).
Email: You can reach them at [email protected] for product-related inquiries.
Web Conference: They offer the option to schedule a web conference for specific scenarios.
#3 Instantly.ai alternative
Gmass
User ratings
⭐G2 – 4.8/5
⭐Capterra – 4.8/5
GMass is a powerful email outreach tool that integrates with Gmail to facilitate mass emailing and mail merge campaigns.
It offers a suite of features such as automated follow-up emails, detailed analytics on email opens and clicks, and the ability to schedule emails for optimal engagement.
Its seamless integration with Google Sheets for personalization and its user-friendly Chrome extension make GMass a popular choice for enhancing email outreach strategies within the familiar Gmail environment.
Pros of using Gmass
The pros of using GMass for email outreach are:
✅ Seamless Gmail integration: GMass operates directly within Gmail, offering a familiar interface and eliminating the need to learn new software.
✅ Automated Personalization: It allows for the automatic personalization of emails, which can include various elements like the prospect’s name, company, and other details.
✅ Email Scheduling: Users can schedule emails to be sent at optimal times, increasing the likelihood of emails being read.
✅ Automated Follow-Ups: GMass can send follow-up emails automatically, based on recipient actions.
✅ Email Tracking: The tool provides real-time analytics on email opens, clicks, and responses, enabling users to measure campaign effectiveness.
Cons of using Gmass
❌ Limited integration: : GMass works within Gmail and lacks broader integration with other email service providers, which can be restrictive for users not on the Gmail platform.
❌ No multichannel functionality: Currently Gmass users can send their sales outreach campaigns using email only which may result in lower engagement and conversion compared to a standard multichannel campaign.
❌ No standalone platform: Gmass doesn’t have any app or software. It only operates as an extension which limits advanced user experience.
❌ Lack of direct CRM integration: While Gmass offers integration using Zapier, it doesn’t offer a direct CRM integration which is often a necessary for large sales teams.
Gmass Pricing
It offers a 3 tiered pricing structure along with a FREE trial that offers 50 emails/day.
| Details | Standard | Premium | Professional |
| Pricing | $25/month | $35/month | $55/month |
Gmass customer support
GMass primarily operates through a self-service support system. They don’t offer phone or live chat support. Here’s how to get help with GMass:
Support Portal: Visit their Support Center: https://www.gmass.co/support for a comprehensive collection of articles covering various topics.
Support Form: If you can’t find the answer yourself, submit a ticket via their Support Form: https://www.gmass.co/blog/support/.
#4 Instantly.ai alternative
Woodpecker
User ratings
⭐G2 – 4.1/5
⭐Capterra – 4.5/5
Woodpecker.co is a comprehensive email automation tool tailored for sales teams, focusing on cold email campaigns and lead management.
It automates the outreach process with personalized emails, ensuring high deliverability with features like Inbox Rotation and Bounce Shield. It also offers features such as A/B testing for emails and CRM integration for data sync.
Pros of using Woodpecker
✅ Easy prospect management: It provides a clear view of where each prospect stands in the campaign and tracks their engagement.
✅ Competititve pricing: Woodpecker offers good value for money pricing compared to other tools such as Quickmail.
✅ Helpful customer support: Woodpecker provides responsive and helpful support to the users.
Cons of using Woodpecker
❌ No multichannel support: Woodpecker currently doesn’t offer any multichannel campaign option other than emails which limits your overall campaign response and conversion.
❌ Attachment restriction: There is no option to send attachments with your emails which can limit prospect engagement.
❌ Limited campaign reporting: Woodpecker lacks advanced reporting, hindering in-depth campaign analysis and data-driven optimization for sales reps.
❌ Expensive: Compared to many other instantly.ai alternatives in this list, it’s expensive. Their pricing creates a barrier for early stage startups, solopreneurs to use the tool.
Woodpecker pricing
Woodpecker pricing starts at $29/month. Also, they offer a 7 day Free trial.
Woodpecker customer support
Woodpecker provides customer support through the following channels:
Live chat: Users can reach out to their customer support team with the chat option available on their website.
Email support: You can reach their support team directly at [email protected].
#5 Instantly.ai alternative
Mailshake
User ratings
⭐G2 – 4.7/5
⭐Capterra – 4.6/5
Mailshake is a sales engagement platform that automates personalized outreach across email, social media, and phone.
It enables sales teams to send bulk emails, track campaign metrics, and manage multi-channel campaigns from one dashboard. With features like list cleaning, AI-driven content creation, and native CRM integrations, Mailshake stands one of the best instantly.ai campaigns.
Pros of using Mailshake
✅ Custom sending schedule: User’s can customize their sending schedule as per the prospect’s time zone.
✅ Email personalization: Users can send personalized text and links through the emails.
✅ Multi-channel campaigns: Mailshake enables users to automate outreach across email, phone and social media channels.
✅ CRM integration: Direct integration with various CRMs makes it easy for sales teams to automatically push lead data to CRM databases.
Cons of using Mailshake
❌ No free trial: Without free trial, users are not able to test out the platform before purchasing a subscription plan.
❌ Reasonably high pricing: Their basic plan starts at $44/user/month which is considerably higher than other Instantly.ai alternatives offering the same features.
❌ Poor call quality: Some users have reported poor call quality which could negatively impact the calling outreach.
❌ No goal setting for sales reps: It lacks pre-defined outreach goals, making it difficult for reps to stay focused on daily objectives and for managers to track individual performance. This absence of a clear roadmap can hinder focused effort and effective oversight.
Mailshake pricing
Mailshake offers 2 tiered pricing plan as mentioned below
| Details | Email Outreach | Sales Engagement |
| Pricing | $59/month/user | $99/month/user |
| Ideal for | Marketers, founders, small agencies | Sales teams of all sizes |
Mailshake customer support
Currently they provide customer support through the following:
Live chat: Mailshake offers live chat during their business hours on their website for resolving customer issues.
Email support: They also offer customer support via email.
Help center: Mailshake maintains a comprehensive Help Center accessible through their website. This resource hub provides a wealth of information, including articles, FAQs, getting started guides, video tutorials etc.
#6 Instantly.ai alternative
Salesloft
User ratings
⭐G2 – 4.5/5
⭐Capterra – 4.3/5
Salesloft is also another sales engagement platform that enhances team efficiency with features like AI-driven workflows, CRM integration, and mobile access. It offers tools for email tracking, call dialing, and analytics, alongside a prioritized task system to optimize sales actions.
As an instantly.ai alternative, Salesloft’s features aim to boost conversion rates and streamline sales processes, making it a valuable tool for sales outreach.
Pros of using Salesloft
✅ Multichannel outreach: Users can set up multi setp cadences for their sales outreach.
✅ CRM integration: Salesloft provides a centralized workspace that integrates with multiple CRMs directly and through Zapier integration.
✅ In-depth reporting: It provides in-depth reports even on granular activities.
Cons of using Salesloft
❌ Steep learning curve: The comprehensive nature of Salesloft’s features can be daunting for new users, requiring time to use the platform effectively.
❌ Higher cost: Salesloft’s pricing can be a barrier for smaller companies or those with limited budgets, as it may not align with their ROI expectations.
❌ Poor call quality: Users report the Salesloft calling feature to be poor especially during the international calls. Also, some users have mentioned that Salesloft sometimes don’t record or log daily calls.
❌ No free trial: Without a free trial users may not be ready commit for a paid plan.
Salesloft pricing
The pricing of Salesloft is not currently publicly available on their website.
They offer customized plans and pricing based on the business needs and team sizes. Their basic plan starts at $75/month per user.
Salesloft customer support
Salesloft offers different tiers of support such as
Live Chat: Users may ask their questions through the website live chat option and can also ask for callbacks.
Contact form: For any kind of detailed queries apart from product related queries users can submit a contact form for support.
Email support: For some plans they offer email support as well.
10 checklists for choosing an Instantly.ai alternative
When selecting an Instantly.ai alternative for sales outreach, check out the following factors to ensure the tool fits your unique needs:
✅ Integration and compatibility
Verify that the tool integrates with your current tech stack, including CRM, marketing automation, email service providers etc. to ensure a smooth workflow and data synchronization.
✅ Feature set
Look for key features that align with your sales process, such as lead generation, email automation,cold calling, multichannel capabilities etc. Ensure these features are robust enough to handle your team’s outreach volume.
✅ Ease of use
The tool should have an intuitive interface that requires minimal training. This is crucial for adoption across the team, especially for the beginners and non-tech persons.
✅ Scalability
The instantly.ai alternative must be able to scale with your business, accommodating growth in team size, lead volume, and complexity of sales campaigns without a drop in performance.
✅ Customer support
Consider the level of customer support provided. Look for services that offer comprehensive support through multiple channels, including phone, email, and chat, as well as a rich knowledge base for self-service.
✅ Pricing structure
Evaluate the pricing model to ensure it fits within your budget while providing the necessary features. Consider the long-term cost implications of subscription models versus one-time purchases.
✅ Security and compliance
Ensure the tool complies with industry standards and regulations, especially for data protection and privacy such as GDPR, SOC-2. This is critical for maintaining customer trust and avoiding legal issues.
✅ Performance analytics
The instantly.ai alternative must provide detailed reporting and analytics features that provide insights into the effectiveness of your sales outreach efforts, helping you make data-driven decisions.
✅ User reviews and sentiments
Research user reviews and testimonials to gauge the tool’s reliability and effectiveness in real-world scenarios. A tool with a strong reputation in the market is likely to be a safer bet. Leverage sites like G2, Capterra, TrustRadius etc. for the reviews.
✅ Trial and demos
Opt for tools that offer a free trial or demo. This allows your team to test the tool’s capabilities and ensure it meets your expectations before making a financial commitment.
By thoroughly assessing these factors, sales teams can choose an Instantly.ai alternative that not only meets their current needs but also supports their future growth and success.
F.A.Q: Instantly.ai alternatives
1. What is Instantly.ai ?
Instantly.ai is an email outreach platform that scales campaigns with features like unlimited email accounts, warm-up services, and AI-driven personalization. It’s designed for sending cold sales emails, aiming to improve deliverability and engagement rates.
2. Does Instantly.ai have an mobile app?
Yes, Instantly.ai does have a mobile app available for Android devices. It allows users to manage multiple inboxes and handle email campaigns directly from their smartphones.
3. What are some alternatives to Instantly.ai?
Some of the instantly.ai alternatives are SmartReach, Quickmail, Saleshandy, Gmass, Woodpecker, Mailshake, Salesloft etc.
4. What does Instantly AI do?
Instantly automates the cold email outreach process for B2B sales and lead generation.
5. What is email warmup?
Email warmup is the process of gradually increasing the volume of emails sent from a new account to build a positive sender reputation with email providers, ensuring emails reach the inbox and not the spam folder.
