30-Second Summary

Picking the right cold email software can make or break your outreach. It’s the difference between landing in someone’s inbox or disappearing into spam. In this guide, we break down 14 top cold email tools by their deliverability features, pricing, and multichannel options. You’ll find out which ones are best for agencies sending at scale, which include built-in lead databases, and why CRMs or newsletter platforms just don’t cut it for cold outreach.

What is Cold Email Software?

Cold email software lets you reach out to people who haven’t connected with your business yet. It takes care of the heavy lifting, from scheduling sends and managing multiple inboxes to warming them up and tracking replies. In B2B lead generation, it’s one of the smartest, most direct ways to start meaningful conversations with potential clients.

Cold email software isn’t your average email marketing tool. It’s built for a completely different job. While newsletter platforms focus on design and bulk sends, cold email tools zero in on deliverability and sender reputation. They use clever tactics like domain rotation, random send windows, and bounce detection to keep your emails out of spam.

Most connect directly to your inbox through SMTP or API. You craft your message, upload your prospect list, and the software sends emails in a way that looks and feels human. Many platforms also let you personalize messages, A/B test subject lines, and automate follow-ups based on how recipients respond.

Is Cold Emailing Legal?

Cold emailing is legal as long as you play by the rules. In the U.S., the CAN-SPAM Act allows cold emailing if you’re transparent about who you are, include an unsubscribe link, and remove anyone who opts out within 10 days.

Europe takes a stricter approach under GDPR. You need a legitimate business reason to reach out, and every email must include a clear, easy way to opt out. In Canada, CASL goes even further, requiring either implied or express consent before you hit send.

The line between a legal cold email and spam really comes down to three things: have a valid business reason to reach out, make opting out effortless, and always be honest about who you are and why you’re contacting them.

How is Cold Email Software Different from Email Marketing Software?

Email marketing software like Mailchimp or HubSpot is built for people who opted in to hear from you. These platforms optimize for high volume sends to large lists of subscribers. They prioritize design templates, segmentation, and campaign analytics.

Cold email software is designed to reach people who haven’t subscribed and still land in their inbox. These tools focus on deliverability, with features like inbox warm-up, domain health tracking, and smart sending patterns that stay under spam filters’ radar. They also send smaller, more personalized batches of emails, so your outreach feels human instead of automated.

Most marketing platforms strictly forbid cold outreach in their terms of service. Mailchimp, for example, bans purchased lists and unsolicited emails outright. HubSpot also discourages cold emailing and closely monitors sender reputation. Try using these tools for cold outreach, and you’ll likely get flagged or lose your account altogether.

Using the wrong tool for cold email hurts your deliverability. Marketing ESPs share IP addresses across customers. If you send cold emails through a shared IP, spam complaints from your messages damage deliverability for everyone on that IP. Your messages land in spam, and the platform shuts down your account.

Some context before we start and a small ask

Now let’s look at each tool. We did this research by reading community discussions and testing platforms ourselves. We have no referral fees or sponsorships from any of these companies.

Our goal is to help you understand what each cold email tool does and how it works. Cold email outreach brings results when you do it right. The wrong approach wastes your time and annoys prospects.

One more thing before we start. We never promote spamming. We hate spam, you hate spam, and most likely your ICP hates it as well. Do not spam. Clean lists, relevant messages, and easy opt-outs are not optional.

Please do not be that person that adds to the noise.

Let’s start

Instantly

Instantly is built for agencies scaling cold email volume fast. The platform starts at $37 per month and includes a built-in lead finder.

The tool offers unlimited email warmup across all connected accounts. You set per-inbox sending caps to avoid triggering spam filters. The smart throttling feature adjusts send speed based on engagement rates. Pool sending rotates messages across multiple domains to spread reputation risk.

Instantly added AI sales agents that write instant replies to prospect responses. This helps you maintain conversation momentum without manual monitoring.

Deliverability stays strong when you follow the setup guidelines. Clean your lists before uploading. Start with low daily send limits and increase gradually. Turn on inbox warmup at least two weeks before your first campaign. The platform handles primary inbox placement well at scale if you maintain good list hygiene.

The software focuses on email only. You cannot add LinkedIn or SMS touchpoints. If you need multichannel outreach, you’ll need a different tool.

OUR NOTE: This is the tool we usually use for our campaigns. For us it works pretty well for hyper-targeted, hyper-personalized, small size campaigns. Why this one? We grabbed a lifetime AppSumo deal years ago. The price made sense. Still does.

Smartlead

Smartlead specializes in multidomain rotation for agencies running cold email at scale. Pricing starts at $39 per month with unlimited email warmup included.

The platform auto-rotates sending across your connected domains. This spreads volume and reduces the risk of any single domain getting flagged. The unified inbox consolidates replies from all your sending addresses into one view. When an email account hits a high bounce rate, Smartlead auto-pauses that inbox to protect your other domains.

Deliverability stays reliable when you use clean prospect data and ramp up sending gradually. The multidomain architecture handles scale smoothly. Messages land in the primary inbox consistently if you follow recommended sending limits.

Smartlead focuses on email only. You cannot run LinkedIn sequences or add other channels to your outreach campaign.

Saleshandy

Saleshandy targets solo entrepreneurs, small teams and growing agencies. Its entry-level “Outreach Starter” plan is listed at $25/month (billed monthly) and supports up to ~6,000 emails/month and ~2,000 prospects (on the starter tier).

The platform includes inbox-warm-up (via TrulyInbox), sender-rotation (multiple sending accounts) and other deliverability tools like ramp-up and spam-word checks. These help healthy inbox placement at modest volumes.

The tool focuses squarely on cold-email rather than full multi-channel outreach; although its documentation now references “multichannel sequences”, the core functionality remains email-first.

It’s a solid fit for tech founders, B2B marketers and small sales teams who want email outreach automation without needing large budgets or over-engineered systems, though larger teams and agencies may step into the mid/upper tiers for more capacity, client-management or agency-specific features.

Lemlist

Lemlist leans into standout outreach by letting you embed images/videos in emails and personalise at scale across channels. As of the writing of this article, its “Email Pro” plan is listed at $69/month per user (for email-only outreach) and the “Multichannel Expert” plan at $99/month per user (adding LinkedIn, voice/call and campaign-step support).

The built-in warm-up tool (Lemwarm), inbox-rotation and deliverability-boost features help with placement, but as always your success still hinges on domain health, list quality and smart sending behaviour.

On the multichannel tier you can sequence email + LinkedIn visits/invites/messages + phone-calls (via built-in VoIP or integrations like Aircall/Ringover). SMS isn’t native, but integration via API or workflow is possible.

Best fit: founders, B2B marketers and growing outbound teams who want more than plain cold-email blasts, especially if you’re ready to step into multichannel outreach. If you’re only planning small-volume email sends, consider the email-only tier; but if calls/LinkedIn are part of your mix, budget accordingly.

Woodpecker

Woodpecker leans into a deliverability-first setup: warm-up built-in, safe sending caps, time-zone delivery and automatic reply-detection to pause sequences when a prospect responds. It’s ideal for small and medium B2B teams who prioritise inbox placement over blasting volume.

Pricing begins around $29/month per slot for the Starter plan (one sending inbox). LinkedIn outreach is available via an optional “LinkedIn slot” (~$29/month) where you can add LinkedIn tasks (visits, connection requests, messages) in your sequences. The base Starter plan supports email only.

You can schedule campaigns by sending windows, throttle send speed, rotate sender accounts, and leverage reply detection, all features that support safe delivery. Sending volumes remain modest in starter tiers (e.g., ~500 emails/day) and scale upwards in higher plans.

While Woodpecker does support multichannel sequences (email + LinkedIn + SMS via integrations + manual tasks) it’s not yet a fully automated “email+call+SMS+LinkedIn” stack out of the box. So if you want a multi-touch playbook across many channels you’ll need to account for extra slots or integrations.

Best fit: tech founders, small sales teams and outbound marketers who want solid inbox placement and ease of use. If you anticipate many inboxes, high sends, or heavy SMS/voice tasks you’ll want to evaluate higher-tier plans and ensure your multichannel needs are covered.

QuickMail

QuickMail is built for teams, agencies and outreach operations focused on deliverability first. Pricing begins at $49/month for the Single Basic plan (one inbox + 30 k emails/month), and scales to hundreds of thousands or even millions of sends per month in the agency tiers.

The platform includes inbox-rotation (spread sending across multiple accounts), deliverability-AI that monitors sender health and pauses underperforming inboxes, and built-in warm-up/blacklist monitoring, all designed to protect your sending reputation.

You can build email + LinkedIn campaigns (i.e., connect multiple email accounts + LinkedIn accounts in a sequence).

Native phone call or SMS touch-points are not core to the platform, they may require third-party integrations or additional workflow setup, so if your outreach play includes heavy voice/SMS you’ll want to check that in before you commit.

QuickMail is a strong fit for B2B SaaS firms, lead-gen agencies and sales teams that prioritise inbox placement and sender reputation over simple volume. If you’re blasting hundreds of thousands of emails a month and want multichannel (email + LinkedIn + calls + SMS) built-in, this tool can scale, but you’ll likely land on one of the higher-tier agency plans (and upgrade your process accordingly).

Reply.io

Reply.io is built for sales teams and agencies focused on multichannel outreach at scale. Its entry-level “Email Volume” plan starts around $49/user/month (annual billing) and expands to $89-$99/user/month (or more) for full multichannel support (email + LinkedIn + SMS + calls).

The platform supports email, LinkedIn, SMS, calls (and even WhatsApp on higher tiers) all within unified sequences.

Deliverability features include warm-up (often built-in), sender-rotation, unlimited mailboxes (on certain plans), and a deliverability/anti-spam suite to help protect your reputation.

For reliable inbox placement you still need to: verify your prospect lists, control your send volumes/day, monitor each channel’s health, and avoid aggressive blasting. If you follow those principles, Reply.io can handle true multichannel sequences without killing your email reputation.

This tool is a smart choice for B2B SaaS firms, outbound sales teams and agencies that want more than simple cold email. If you’re just doing small-volume email outreach, you might not need the full multichannel machinery; but if you’re planning LinkedIn + SMS + calls plus email in one cadence, the multichannel plan is where you’ll land.

Mailshake

Mailshake is built for SDR teams and sales-driven organisations that want email outreach plus voice calls and social/LinkedIn touchpoints. Basic plans begin around $29 per user/month (annual billing) while full-feature plans extend to $59–99/user/month (monthly billing) depending on features and user count.

The platform offers a built-in spam-checker/deliverability tool that analyses message content (links, trigger words, unsubscribe compliance), plus warm-up and throttling settings to protect your sender reputation. Higher-tier plans include a power dialer (phone calls from the platform) and LinkedIn automation/tasks such as connection requests and messages.

Deliverability at the SMB level is strong, when you verify your prospect lists, control daily send volumes, use best-behaviour practices and leverage Mailshake’s safeguards, your emails are more likely to land in the primary inbox. However, if you’re scaling heavily (many users, large volumes, multi-channel sequences) you’ll need to check the higher tier plans and ensure your domain/sender setup is solid.

Best for: B2B SaaS firms, SDR teams and growth marketers looking to run structured outreach sequences involving email + calls + LinkedIn. If you’re only doing small-volume email outreach and don’t need phone or LinkedIn built-in, you could start on the lower tier and evaluate upgrade path when you expand.

Snov.io

Snov.io combines prospect-discovery, lead-verification and cold-email automation in one tool. Pricing starts around $39/month for the Starter plan (e.g., ~1,000 credits + 5,000 recipient limit) but usage (credits, LinkedIn slots, higher recipient volumes) often pushes real costs significantly higher.

The tool includes a built-in email verifier (7-tier check) to improve list hygiene, and warm-up tools (on many plans) to help new sender domains build reputation. While it remains email-first, Snov.io now supports multichannel campaigns (email plus LinkedIn steps) as part of its “Campaigns” module.

If you use verified leads (either via Snov.io’s finder or your own lists), avoid overly rich templates (keeping them plain text helps), and pace your sends properly, you can achieve reliable inbox placement at moderate scale. This tool is well suited to B2B SaaS and marketing teams that want an all-in-one lead-find + outreach stack without stitching multiple vendors.

Fit: Ideal for small-to-mid teams focused on generating & nurturing leads via email + LinkedIn. If you’re planning high-volume SMS/voice sequences or want deep multichannel orchestration (calls + SMS + social) you’ll still want to check whether Snov.io’s current plan supports that or integrate with external tools.

Apollo.io

Apollo.io is best known for its large prospect-database and sales-intelligence capabilities, with built-in outreach features to boot. The platform offers a free tier and paid plans starting at around $49 per user/month when billed annually (≈ $59/month if billed monthly) for the Basic plan.

What you get: access to one of the biggest B2B contact datasets in the market + email-sequence automation (sending from connected inboxes, follow-ups, tracking). Over the past year Apollo has added deeper deliverability tools (warm-up, inbox/domain health, IP rotation) to support stronger inbox placement.

While Apollo is traditionally thought of as a prospecting & enrichment engine, it can handle outreach at scale, provided you follow best-practices (authenticated domains, ramp-up, clean lists). That said, if you’re running huge volumes, multi-touch channels (calls, SMS, LinkedIn) across multiple inboxes, you may still hit limits or want a dedicated email-deliverability tool tuned for that heavy use-case.

Channel-support note: Although email remains core, Apollo supports tasks or outreach via calls/mobile numbers in higher tiers, so “email-only” is no longer strictly correct, just check which features your plan includes.

Bottom line: Use Apollo.io as a strong prospect-discovery + outreach combo especially suited to B2B SaaS and growth teams that need one tool for both “get the list” and “send the message.” If you foresee ultra-high volume or many channels and inboxes, treat Apollo as one leg of your stack (data + outreach) and layer in a best-in-class deliverability specialist if needed.

GMass

GMass lives inside Gmail (via a Chrome extension) and is built for people who want to run cold-email campaigns from their own inbox. Plans start at around $25/month for the Standard tier (annual billing) and ~$35/month for the Premium tier.

The platform offers mail-merge personalization, sequence follow-ups, scheduling by time-zone/pauses, tracking of opens/clicks/replies and deliverability-aids (spam solver, inbox rotation, optional SMTP rerouting) to manage Gmail’s sending limits. Users still need to follow best-practices: clean lists, conservative send volumes, simple templates.

Because it uses a Gmail account, you’re subject to Gmail’s inherent sending limits (~500/day for free Gmail; ~2,000/day for Google Workspace), though GMass provides features to distribute or reroute sends. For safe cold outreach, many recommend staying well below those limits per inbox.

The tool supports email only (no built-in LinkedIn, SMS or phone-dialer channels), making it a smart choice for small teams or solo founders focused purely on email outreach. If you plan multi-channel sequences or high-volume sends across many inboxes, you’ll want to ensure you’re scaling carefully (or consider a dedicated deliverability/outreach platform).

PlusVibe.ai

PlusVibe.ai is built around AI-powered personalization and deliverability support for cold-email outreach. The entry-level “Personal” plan is listed at around $39/month per workspace (feature/credit limits apply).

The platform offers advanced personalization features (AI-generated email variants, personalized images/GIFs, dynamic content), plus warm-up routines, domain/inbox health monitoring and multi-inbox / account rotation for sending volume spread-out.

While primarily designed for email outreach, PlusVibe also includes prospect-data enrichment and built-in email validation, meaning you can find leads and then reach them from the same tool. It does not yet offer deep native support for other channels (e.g., LinkedIn messages, SMS or phone calls) as part of standard sequences.

Deliverability can be strong, especially when you verify your lists, ramp your sending gradually, and keep messaging simple and personalised. That said, if you plan very high-volume campaigns, extensive multi-channel sequences or need very advanced deliverability analytics, a more specialist tool may be required.

Best fit: B2B SaaS founders, small growth-teams and outreach agencies who want one tool that merges personalization + warm-up + outreach without building a complex stack. If your scale or channel mix grows significantly, you might need to layer additional tools.

EmailBison

EmailBison is built for high-end agencies and outbound teams that place deliverability and inbox rates above all else. The flagship “Agency” plan is listed at $499/month, and includes up to 500,000 emails/month, on a dedicated sending infrastructure.

The platform emphasizes private sender infrastructure, each client or workspace receives isolated IP pools, fully separate email routing, and no “shared” sending reputation.

Core features include extended email sequencing, adaptive throttling, built-in warm-up, unlimited contact/lead storage, unlimited workspaces and white-label support. Make no mistake: this is a tool meant for scale and serious outreach operations.

That said, the tool focuses solely on email outreach (no advertised native support for LinkedIn, SMS, or calls), so if you’re planning multi-channel sequences you’ll either need to integrate externally or consider a tool that supports all channels natively.

Best fit: large agencies or B2B GTM teams running client work or high-volume campaigns where inbox placement, domain/IP hygiene and segmented infrastructure matter. For smaller teams, or those just starting with cold outreach, the cost/complexity may be more than they need.

Mails.ai

Mails.ai is designed for AI-powered, cold-email outreach at scale, especially for teams looking to manage multiple sending inboxes and large outreach programs. Pricing starts at around $24/month for the “Startup” tier (1,000 active contacts/month) with the “Growth” tier at ~$49/month (5,000 active contacts), and a “Pro” tier at ~$99/month (unlimited active contacts) when billed annually.

Key features include unlimited email accounts/inboxes, automated warm-up (built-in), sender-account rotation, real-time email verification, and an AI-email-writer/spintax engine to craft personalized variations. The tool emphasizes deliverability via ramp-up, list hygiene and proper sender infrastructure.

While you’re able to connect unlimited email accounts and send large volumes, there are still usage-triggers to watch (e.g., active contact caps in mid-tiers). For best results you’ll want to verify your lists, ramp your sends slowly, keep templates focused and clean, and monitor sender health.

The platform focuses solely on email outreach, as of now there’s no built-in support for LinkedIn messaging, SMS or phone-call sequences.

Ideal for B2B SaaS, marketing agencies and outreach teams who want one platform to combine campaign setup, warm-up and automation. If you’re doing multi-channel sequences (calls + SMS + social) or ultra-high-volume senders with complex infrastructure, you may still want to pair it with a dedicated deliverability/stack specialist.

Conclusion

Here’s what to remember when choosing cold email software:

  • Instantly works best for agencies scaling fast with AI reply agents and pool sending at $37 per month
  • Smartlead handles multidomain rotation smoothly for high-volume senders at $39 per month
  • Lemlist offers pattern-breaking personalization with Lemwarm and multichannel sequences at $59 per month
  • Woodpecker prioritizes deliverability-first setup with conservative pacing at $29 per month
  • Reply.io combines email, SMS, calls, and LinkedIn for full multichannel outreach at $49 per month
  • Never use Mailchimp, HubSpot, or Close for cold email because they prohibit unsolicited outreach and will damage your deliverability
  • Clean your prospect lists before uploading to any cold email tool
  • Start with low daily send limits and increase gradually over weeks
  • Turn on inbox warmup at least two weeks before launching your first cold email campaign
  • Plain text messages with minimal links perform better in deliverability tests
  • Dedicated cold email software gives you better inbox placement than prospecting tools like Apollo.io

Comparison

Tool Best For Features Deliverability Multi-channel? Leads finder Starting Price (month) Free Trial?
Instantly Agencies that need to scale outreach fast Inbox warm-up, smart throttling, domain caps, AI reply agents Scales smoothly when lists are clean and settings are optimized; may drop with poor data. Email only (AI reply agents) Finder built-in $37 Yes
Smartlead Teams managing multiple domains at agency scale Domain rotation, automatic warm-up, unified inbox, bounce control Consistent inboxing at scale with proper warm-up and clean lists. Email only No $39 Yes
Saleshandy Solo founders, small teams, and growing agencies Warm-up (TrulyInbox), sender rotation, time-based send windows, multichannel tasks Reliable inboxing at modest volumes; defaults protect sender reputation. Email + manual LinkedIn tasks No $25 Yes
Lemlist Marketers focused on visual personalization and multichannel outreach Lemwarm, image/video personalization, inbox rotation, smart send scheduling Strong results with Lemwarm; maintain clean domains and warm-up before scaling. Email + LinkedIn + Calls No $69 (email) / $99 (multichannel) Yes
Woodpecker SMBs that prioritize reliability and deliverability Reply detection, safety caps, time zone delivery, optional LinkedIn & SMS steps Excellent inbox rates for small businesses; safe pacing maintains placement. Email + LinkedIn (+SMS via integrations) No $29 per slot Yes
QuickMail Agencies managing multiple inboxes at scale Inbox rotation, deliverability AI, sender health monitoring, warm-up High deliverability at scale with controlled sending and clean data. Email + LinkedIn No From $49 Yes
Reply.io Sales teams running true multichannel sequences Email, LinkedIn, SMS, calls, WhatsApp, built-in warm-up Strong deliverability when paced; built-in anti-spam suite helps maintain reputation. Email + LinkedIn + SMS + Calls No $49–$99 Yes
Mailshake SDR and sales teams needing integrated calls & LinkedIn Spam checker, power dialer, LinkedIn tasks, warm-up Good deliverability for SMBs; spam-check prevents common issues. Email + LinkedIn + Calls No $29–$99 Yes
Snov.io Startups wanting lead finder + email automation Email finder, verifier, warm-up, multichannel (email + LinkedIn) Performs best at moderate volume with verified contacts; keep templates clean. Email + LinkedIn Finder built-in From $39 Yes
Apollo.io Prospecting & enrichment with light outreach Sequencer, send windows, warm-up, call tasks Fine for smaller sequences; for heavy outreach use dedicated sender tools. Email + Call tasks Massive DB (275M+ contacts) Free, then $49–$59 Yes
GMass Power users running campaigns inside Gmail Gmail-native sending, mail merge, scheduling, follow-ups Strong for small-scale; follow Gmail limits (~500/day personal, ~2,000 Workspace). Email only (Gmail) No $25–$35 Yes
PlusVibe.ai Teams seeking AI-driven personalization + deliverability AI copywriter, warm-up, inbox rotation, lead enrichment, email verification Solid inbox rates with proper ramp-up; suited for small/mid teams. Email only Finder built-in $39+ Yes
EmailBison Agencies prioritizing private infrastructure & inbox placement Dedicated IPs, adaptive throttling, warm-up, unlimited leads Excellent deliverability from isolated sending servers. Email only No $499 (agency plan) No
Mails.ai Teams scaling AI-powered cold email automation Unlimited inboxes, rotation, AI writer, verification, warm-up Dependable deliverability with verified lists and gradual ramping. Email only No $24–$99 Free plan available

FAQ

What is the best cold email software for beginners?

Saleshandy offers the lowest barrier to entry at $29 per month with safe default settings. GMass works well if you want to stay inside Gmail and send under 500 emails per day.

Do I need multiple email accounts for cold email?

Yes. Spreading sends across multiple accounts protects your domain reputation. If one account gets flagged, your other domains stay clean. Most cold email platforms support unlimited email accounts.

How many cold emails should I send per day per account?

Start with 20 to 30 emails per day per account. Increase by 5 to 10 emails per week if deliverability stays strong. Never exceed 100 emails per day per account.

What is email warmup and why does it matter?

Email warmup builds positive engagement history for new email accounts. The tool sends messages to other users in the warmup network who open, reply, and mark as important. This signals to email providers that your account sends wanted messages.

Can I use cold email software for newsletters?

No. Cold email tools are built for small batch sends to prospects who haven’t opted in. Use email marketing software like Mailchimp for newsletters to subscribers who signed up.

How do I improve cold email deliverability?

Use verified email addresses, turn on inbox warmup, start with low send volumes, keep messages in plain text, limit links in early emails, and monitor bounce rates daily.

Is it better to use one tool or multiple tools?

Use one dedicated cold email sender. Switching between platforms splits your engagement data and makes troubleshooting harder. Pick a tool based on your volume needs and stick with it.