Per inbox, per seat or flat. Here’s what cold email software really costs your setup.
Fourteen tools, each capping something different — emails per month, uploaded or active contacts, connected inboxes or paid seats. Enter your setup; we test every published plan from the official pricing pages and keep the cheapest one that covers you. Unknowns stay Not listed.
All cold email comparisons Best tools by use case Instantly, Smartlead & lemlist alternatives
3 users · 10 mailboxes · 30,000 emails/mo · 10,000 contacts · paid plans · billed annually — monthly-equivalent bill, cheapest qualifying plan per tool. Grey = needs a quote or a price the vendor doesn’t publish.
Mailmeteor 
lemlist 
PlusVibe 
Snov.io 
Saleshandy 
Smartlead 
Salesforge 
Instantly 
SmartReach 
QuickMail 
Hunter 
Mailshake 
Apollo 
Woodpecker Sortable comparison
Cheapest paid sticker, plus what three common setups really pay on paid plans (annual billing). Click a header to sort.
| Tool | From (annual) | Solo /mo | Small team /mo | Agency /mo | Free? | Visit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mailmeteor | $4.49/user/mo | $4.49 | $26.94 | $67.45 | Free plan | Visit |
| Mailshake | $25/user/mo | $85 | $225 | $425 | No | Visit |
| Woodpecker | $26/mo | $26 | Quote | Quote | 14-day trial | Visit |
| Snov.io | $29.25/mo | $29.25 | $74.25 | Not listed | No | Visit |
| PlusVibe | $30.80/mo | $30.80 | $64.20 | $64.20 | 14-day trial | Visit |
| Smartlead | $32/mo | $32 | $78 | $144 | No | Visit |
| Saleshandy | $34/mo | $34 | $76 | $149 | 7-day trial | Visit |
| Hunter | $34/mo | $34 | $104 | Quote | Free plan | Visit |
| SmartReach | $35/mo | $35 | $89 | $89 | No | Visit |
| Instantly | $37.60/mo | $37.60 | $85.58 | $286.30 | No | Visit |
| Salesforge | $40/mo | $40 | $80 | Not listed | 14-day trial | Visit |
| QuickMail | $49/mo | $49 | $99 | $299 | 14-day trial | Visit |
| Apollo | $49/user/mo | $79 | $237 | $395 | Free plan | Visit |
| lemlist | $55/mo | $55 | $55 | $870 | 14-day trial | Visit |
Alternatives & compares
Switching tools and head-to-heads, costed with the same engine.
Instantly alternatives
Flat plans with unlimited email accounts and warmup: Growth $47/mo ($37.60 yearly), Hypergrowth $107 ($85.58)
Smartlead alternatives
Flat cold email plans by contacts and sends: Base $39/mo ($32 yearly), Pro $94 ($78), unlimited contacts from $174
lemlist alternatives
Email plan $69/mo ($55 yearly) for unlimited users and senders; Multichannel $109 ($87) per user
Apollo alternatives
All-in-one prospecting + sequences, per seat: Basic $49/seat/mo yearly ($65 monthly), Professional $79 ($99)
Mailshake alternatives
Per-account pricing: Starter $29/mo ($25 yearly), Email Outreach $49 ($45), Sales Engagement $99 ($85)
Instantly vs Smartlead
From $37.60/mo vs $32/mo on annual billing.
Instantly vs lemlist
From $37.60/mo vs $55/mo on annual billing.
Smartlead vs lemlist
From $32/mo vs $55/mo on annual billing.
Instantly vs Saleshandy
From $37.60/mo vs $34/mo on annual billing.
Smartlead vs Saleshandy
From $32/mo vs $34/mo on annual billing.
Instantly vs Apollo
From $37.60/mo vs $49/user/mo on annual billing.
Smartlead vs Apollo
From $32/mo vs $49/user/mo on annual billing.
lemlist vs Apollo
From $55/mo vs $49/user/mo on annual billing.
Instantly vs Woodpecker
From $37.60/mo vs $26/mo on annual billing.
lemlist vs Woodpecker
From $55/mo vs $26/mo on annual billing.
Instantly vs Mailshake
From $37.60/mo vs $25/user/mo on annual billing.
lemlist vs Mailshake
From $55/mo vs $25/user/mo on annual billing.
Instantly vs QuickMail
From $37.60/mo vs $49/mo on annual billing.
Smartlead vs SmartReach
From $32/mo vs $35/mo on annual billing.
Instantly vs Salesforge
From $37.60/mo vs $40/mo on annual billing.
Instantly vs PlusVibe
From $37.60/mo vs $30.80/mo on annual billing.
Smartlead vs PlusVibe
From $32/mo vs $30.80/mo on annual billing.
Saleshandy vs Woodpecker
From $34/mo vs $26/mo on annual billing.
Apollo vs Hunter
From $49/user/mo vs $34/mo on annual billing.
Snov.io vs Hunter
From $29.25/mo vs $34/mo on annual billing.
Best-of shortlists
Each list is ranked for a stated setup — not “best for everyone.”
Cheapest cold email software
Lowest verified paid bill for 3 users, 10 mailboxes and 30,000 emails a month, billed annually.
Best cold email software for solo founders
1 user, 3 mailboxes, 5,000 emails a month on monthly billing so you can cancel.
Best cold email software for agencies
5 users, 50 mailboxes, 150,000 emails and 50,000 contacts a month, billed annually.
Best cold email tools with unlimited email accounts
3 users and 25 mailboxes at 20,000 emails a month — flat unlimited-mailbox plans vs per-account pricing.
Best free cold email software
Forever-free plans from official pricing pages, costed for 1 user, 1 mailbox and 500 emails a month.
Best cold email + LinkedIn (multichannel) tools
3 users, 6 mailboxes, 10,000 emails a month on annual billing — tools that add LinkedIn steps.
FAQ
How much does cold email software cost in 2026?
Verified on official pricing pages (2026-11-05), cheapest paid plan billed monthly: Mailmeteor Starter $5.99/user, Mailshake Starter $29/user, PlusVibe Personal $37/mo, Smartlead Base $39/mo, Woodpecker Email $39/mo, Snov.io Starter $39/mo, SmartReach Sales Engagement Basic $39/mo, Saleshandy Starter $41/mo, Instantly Growth $47/mo, Salesforge Pro $48/mo, QuickMail Starter $49/mo, Hunter Starter $49/mo, Apollo Basic $65/user, lemlist Email $69/mo.
Why can’t I compare cold email tools by sticker price?
Each vendor caps a different thing: Instantly and QuickMail cap uploaded contacts and emails per month, Smartlead caps contacts and sends, Saleshandy and SmartReach cap active prospects, Hunter caps connected email accounts (1/3/10/20), Mailshake and Apollo charge per user with a mailbox limit per user, and lemlist Multichannel charges per user with 5 senders each. The calculator applies all of those caps to your setup.
What is the cheapest cold email tool for a solo founder?
For 1 user, 3 mailboxes, 5,000 emails and 1,000 contacts a month on annual billing: Mailmeteor $4.49/mo (Starter), Woodpecker $26/mo (Email), Snov.io $29.25/mo (Starter), PlusVibe $30.80/mo (Personal).
What is the cheapest cold email tool for an agency?
For 5 users, 50 mailboxes, 150,000 emails and 50,000 contacts a month (annual): PlusVibe $64.20/mo (Business), Mailmeteor $67.45/mo (Premium), SmartReach $89/mo (Sales Engagement Plus), Smartlead $144/mo (Unlimited Smart). Caps knock out Woodpecker, Snov.io, Hunter, Salesforge at that size (or need a quote).
Is lemlist more expensive than Instantly for a team?
lemlist Multichannel is priced per user: 5 users is $435/mo on annual billing (5 × $87). Instantly Growth is a flat $37.60/mo yearly with unlimited email accounts, but caps uploaded contacts at 1,000 and emails at 5,000/mo. lemlist’s Email plan is a flat $55/mo yearly with 50,000 emails/mo.
Which cold email tools have a free plan?
3 of 14: Hunter ($0, 50 credits/mo, 1 connected email account, 500 recipients per sequence); Apollo ($0 with 2 sequences and 1 mailbox per user (250 sends/day); 14-day trial on Basic and Professional); Mailmeteor (500 emails/mo, no credit card). Most others offer a trial instead.
What does “Not listed” mean?
The official pricing page does not publish that number — for example Smartlead’s mailbox limit, QuickMail’s annual price or Snov.io’s Pro price (selector only). We never estimate it; rows that depend on an unpublished cap say so. Reply.io, Klenty and GMass are not listed yet because their prices could not be verified from the official page.
Are these affiliate links?
Visit buttons route through /go/ links marked nofollow sponsored. Rankings come from the cost engine and published prices only; commissions never change a price cell.