> SpecStream is the live web data engine for teams and agents. This is the Markdown copy of https://specstream.ai/alternatives/clay. Every page, with what SpecStream does and costs: https://specstream.ai/llms.txt

# Best Clay alternatives in 2026 | SpecStream

Compared on Nov 8, 2026.

# Clay alternatives: accounts that meet every condition, priced per row

Clay sells two meters, actions and data credits, and leaves you to build the table that spends them. SpecStream is the live web data engine for teams and agents. Describe the accounts you want, with the trait no filter lists, and Deep Search returns every account that has it as a structured row, checked against each condition, with a link to where each value shows. A row costs 5¢, 15¢ or $1, plus 5¢ for an email and 15¢ for a phone, and you approve the most a run can cost before it starts. SpecStream leads two public benchmarks: WideSearch, at 60.9 on the low-cost model, where the best other API scores 57.6 even on the larger model, and SimpleQA Verified, at 99. The scores and their sources are on [benchmarks](https://specstream.ai/benchmarks?utm_source=alternatives&utm_campaign=clay).

[Describe your data](https://specstream.ai/signup?src=alternatives-clay&utm_source=alternatives&utm_campaign=clay)

New accounts get $10 of credit for their first 30 days, no card.

## SpecStream and Clay side by side

|  | SpecStream | Clay |
| --- | --- | --- |
| What you send | The data you want in plain words, with the conditions every row must meet | A table you set up, with enrichments and actions that run on each row |
| What you get back | Structured rows, one record per company, place or filing, with facts from many sites joined. Source URL and read time on every value | The values your enrichments return, in your table. A source for each value: Not stated |
| Data already held | Public databases read every morning at [specstream.ai/data](https://specstream.ai/data?utm_source=alternatives&utm_campaign=clay): every company that filed a Form D since 2023 with its filing history, nearly 2 million US nonprofits, every US bank failure since 1934, federal rules, open federal contracts and grants, and local businesses. Signals such as funding rounds, new executives and layoffs at [specstream.ai/signals](https://specstream.ai/signals?utm_source=alternatives&utm_campaign=clay). Ask for your own cut of any of them | Not stated |
| A list you already have | Import a CSV, Excel file, Google Sheet or Airtable base of up to 20,000 rows. SpecStream fills in or checks each row and matches it to one identity, with any namesakes shown alongside their evidence. Import is free. A row that matches pays its rate, and a row that does not costs 5¢ | 200 rows per table on Free and 50,000 on Launch. Bulk enrichment over 50K records on Enterprise |
| What a row costs | A delivered row: 5¢, 15¢ or $1 by how much the row needs, plus 5¢ for an email and 15¢ for a phone. The same rate on every plan | Actions at under $0.01 each and data credits from $0.05 each. Credits used by each enrichment: Not stated. Extra data credits cost 30% more |
| Plans | $10 of credit for your first 30 days, no card. Pro $19, Scale $99 and Team $499 a month, all spent as credit at the same row rates. A yearly plan adds 20% more credit | Free: 500 actions and 100 data credits a month, no phone enrichment. Launch from $185 a month ($167 billed yearly): 15,000 actions and 2,500 data credits. Growth from $495 ($446 billed yearly): 40,000 actions and 6,000 data credits. Enterprise: custom, yearly |
| Failed or empty work | Nothing. Duplicates, rows you already own and rows a page contradicts are not charged, and a run that finds nothing costs nothing | Not stated |
| Before a run | The most the run can cost, quoted before it starts. Nothing runs until you approve it, and there are no automatic overages | Not stated |
| Reruns | Hourly to yearly. Each row comes back labeled changed, unchanged or no longer matching. A changed or new row costs half its rate, an unchanged row 1¢ | Not stated |
| API and delivery | MCP server, REST API, Python and TypeScript SDKs, a CLI and A2A. Rows go to Google Sheets, Excel, Airtable, Notion, monday.com, HubSpot, Salesforce, Pipedrive, Attio, Slack, Teams, Zapier, Make, n8n and signed webhooks | HTTP API and webhooks from Growth. Clay API access on Enterprise |

## Why Clay buyers move to SpecStream

### Describe the accounts once

In Clay you choose which enrichments run on each row and in what order. In SpecStream you write the accounts you want in plain words, such as software companies in Germany with 50 to 500 employees that are hiring salespeople, with the job post and a contact email. SpecStream reads the request into the conditions every row must meet and the facts to bring back, and you can change any of them before it runs.

Your best accounts share a trait no filter lists. Describe it, and every account that has it reaches your CRM with its buying committee and a link to where the trait shows.

### One price per row, known before the run

Clay's pricing page does not state how many data credits each enrichment uses, and extra credits cost 30% more than those in a plan. SpecStream prices the row: 5¢ for up to 5 facts, 15¢ for up to 15 facts and one set of related records, $1 for a deep row, plus 5¢ for an email and 15¢ for a phone. The rate is the same on every plan.

Before a run starts you see the most it can cost, and nothing runs until you approve it. Duplicates, rows you already own and rows a page contradicts are not charged.

### Data you start with, kept up to date

SpecStream reads public databases every morning: every company that filed a Form D since 2023, nearly 2 million US nonprofits, open federal contracts and grants, and signals such as funding rounds, new executives and layoffs at [specstream.ai/signals](https://specstream.ai/signals?utm_source=alternatives&utm_campaign=clay).

Set any request to rerun from hourly to yearly. Each row comes back labeled changed, unchanged or no longer matching. A changed or new row costs half its rate, and an unchanged row costs 1¢.

## How SpecStream scores

The same numbers as the benchmarks page, from the official tasks and scorers.

ResultsWideSearchCostSimpleQA Verified

|  | SpecStream | ![](https://specstream.ai/images/benchmarks/parallel.svg)Parallel | ![](https://specstream.ai/images/benchmarks/exa.svg)Exa | ![](https://specstream.ai/images/benchmarks/tavily.svg)Tavily | ![](https://specstream.ai/images/benchmarks/perplexity.svg)Perplexity |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| **Web research**WideSearch, GPT-5.6 Luna | 60.9 | 45.5 | 53.0 | 47.9 | 47.0 |
| **Factual accuracy**SimpleQA Verified, GPT-5.6 Luna | 96 | 94 | 91 | 94 | 94 |
| **Factual accuracy**SimpleQA Verified, GPT-5.6 Sol | 99 | 97 | 91 | 92 | 95 |

## How to switch from Clay

Write the accounts you want in plain words, in place of the table and enrichment columns you set up in Clay, or import your Clay table as a CSV and SpecStream fills in or checks each row. Sign up and you get $10 of credit for your first 30 days, no card. At 5¢ a row, that is up to 200 rows.

Or send the request from code. This call spends nothing: the `402` reply shows how SpecStream read the request, the columns and the most it can cost.

```
curl -i https://api.specstream.ai/v1/agent/lists \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"request": "Software companies in Germany with 50 to 500 employees that are hiring salespeople. Include the job post and contact email.", "count": 25}'
```

[Describe your data](https://specstream.ai/signup?src=alternatives-clay&utm_source=alternatives&utm_campaign=clay)

## Frequently asked questions

Something we didn't answer? [Talk to a human](https://specstream.ai/talk-to-a-human.md)

Is SpecStream cheaper than Clay?

Clay's paid plans start at $185 a month, or $167 billed yearly, and sell what its providers hold through actions and data credits. SpecStream starts with $10 of credit and no card, then charges per delivered row at 5¢, 15¢ or $1. It checks each account against your conditions, shows where it read each value and bills only rows delivered, under a maximum you approve.

Can I bring my Clay table to SpecStream?

Yes. Export it as a CSV and import up to 20,000 rows. Import is free. SpecStream matches each row to one identity and fills in or checks it. A row that matches pays its rate, and a row that does not costs 5¢.

How accurate is SpecStream?

SpecStream leads two public benchmarks: WideSearch, at 60.9 on the low-cost model, where the best other API scores 57.6 even on the larger model, and SimpleQA Verified, at 99. The scores and their sources are on [benchmarks](https://specstream.ai/benchmarks?utm_source=alternatives&utm_campaign=clay). Every value in a row carries the source URL and the time it was read.

Does SpecStream send rows to my CRM?

Yes. Rows go to HubSpot, Salesforce, Pipedrive and Attio, to Google Sheets, Excel and Airtable, and through Zapier, Make, n8n or a signed webhook. A rerun on a schedule sends only what changed.

What else does a SpecStream account include?

The same account runs the Search API at $5 per 1,000 searches and the Extract API at $0.80 per 1,000 pages, where a page with no text is not charged. Your agent can use all of it through the MCP server at `https://api.specstream.ai/mcp`.

### Sources

SpecStream wrote this page. Each rival figure comes from that company's own page.

1.  [SpecStream pricing](https://specstream.ai/pricing)specstream.ai/pricing, read Nov 8, 2026
2.  [SpecStream for agents](https://specstream.ai/agents.md)specstream.ai/agents.md, read Nov 8, 2026
3.  [SpecStream benchmarks](https://specstream.ai/benchmarks)specstream.ai/benchmarks, read Nov 8, 2026
4.  [Clay pricing](https://www.clay.com/pricing)clay.com/pricing, read Nov 8, 2026