The Best Clay Alternative for Marketing Agencies
While Clay gives you freedom to build your own sales intelligence system, Ecommerce Leads delivers ready-to-use ecommerce leads with decision maker contacts—no API setup, no hidden costs, no months of configuration.
All data is publicly verifiable by you. Leads detected on October 27, 2025.
Clay vs Ecommerce Leads
Here's the TL;DR: Clay is a powerful generalist tool that requires you to build your own sales intelligence system from scratch. Ecommerce Leads is a specialized ecommerce tool that works immediately with everything included.
Ease of Use
Clay
You build your own sales intelligence system from scratch. Requires months of setup, API connections, and configuration.
Ecommerce Leads
Works from day one. No setup required—you get qualified leads delivered weekly with all data included.
Pricing & Hidden Costs
Clay
Free plan is generous, but to get valuable data you need to connect APIs (SimilarWeb, Ahrefs, contact finders) which add $200-500+/month in costs. Total cost can be 2-3x more than Ecommerce Leads.
Ecommerce Leads
Starts at $299/month with everything included: decision maker contacts, traffic data, buying signals, and all 50+ data points. No hidden API costs.
Decision Maker Contacts
Clay
Not included. You need to connect a separate contact finder API (Apollo, Hunter.io, etc.) which adds another monthly subscription cost.
Ecommerce Leads
Decision maker emails (CEO, CMO, Head of Ecommerce) are included with every lead—no extra API needed.
Ecommerce Focus
Clay
Generalist tool for any industry. Doesn't account for ecommerce specificities like seasonality, traffic patterns, or how stores operate. You have to figure it out yourself.
Ecommerce Leads
Custom-built for ecommerce. Understands seasonality, traffic patterns, and store operations. Built specifically for agencies doing SEO and paid media outreach.
Lead Discovery
Clay
You need to figure out which stores to target and build your own list. No pre-qualified leads or buying signals provided.
Ecommerce Leads
Pre-qualified leads delivered weekly. We identify stores losing revenue and traction in your ICP, so you know they're ready to hire.
| Features | Clay | Ecommerce Leads |
|---|---|---|
| Ease of Use | You build your own sales intelligence system from scratch. Requires months of setup, API connections, and configuration. | Works from day one. No setup required—you get qualified leads delivered weekly with all data included. |
| Pricing & Hidden Costs | Free plan is generous, but to get valuable data you need to connect APIs (SimilarWeb, Ahrefs, contact finders) which add $200-500+/month in costs. Total cost can be 2-3x more than Ecommerce Leads. | Starts at $299/month with everything included: decision maker contacts, traffic data, buying signals, and all 50+ data points. No hidden API costs. |
| Decision Maker Contacts | Not included. You need to connect a separate contact finder API (Apollo, Hunter.io, etc.) which adds another monthly subscription cost. | Decision maker emails (CEO, CMO, Head of Ecommerce) are included with every lead—no extra API needed. |
| Ecommerce Focus | Generalist tool for any industry. Doesn't account for ecommerce specificities like seasonality, traffic patterns, or how stores operate. You have to figure it out yourself. | Custom-built for ecommerce. Understands seasonality, traffic patterns, and store operations. Built specifically for agencies doing SEO and paid media outreach. |
| Lead Discovery | You need to figure out which stores to target and build your own list. No pre-qualified leads or buying signals provided. | Pre-qualified leads delivered weekly. We identify stores losing revenue and traction in your ICP, so you know they're ready to hire. |
The Problem with Clay
Clay is powerful and flexible, but that flexibility comes with significant costs and complexity for ecommerce agencies.
Hidden API Costs Add Up Fast
To get traffic data, you need SimilarWeb or Ahrefs API ($200-400/month). For decision maker contacts, you need Apollo or Hunter.io ($50-150/month). Stack these costs and you're paying 2-3x more than Ecommerce Leads, which includes everything.
Months Before You See Results
You have to build your entire sales intelligence system from scratch: figure out which stores to target, connect multiple APIs, configure workflows, and test everything. This can take 2-3 months before you get your first qualified lead.
Not Built for Ecommerce
Clay is a generalist tool. It doesn't understand ecommerce seasonality, traffic patterns, or how stores operate. As a marketing agency doing SEO or paid media outreach, you'll have to figure out all the ecommerce specificities yourself.
"Before Ecommerce Leads we were manually sourcing and researching cold leads. Now we have laser-focused data and a 2% lead-to-opportunity conversion rate. A game-changer for our outreach strategy."
Alex Robinson, SEO Director of Novus Digital
What are the Pros & Cons of Clay
A comprehensive look at Clay's capabilities and limitations for ecommerce agencies
What they do well
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Unlimited Customization
Connect any API you want and build exactly the system you need. Great for teams with technical resources.
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Generous Free Plan
100 company searches per month on the free plan lets you test and explore the platform
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Powerful Automation
Once set up, Clay can automate complex workflows and data enrichment processes
Where they fall short
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Hidden API Costs
To get valuable data (traffic, contacts), you need to connect expensive APIs that add $200-500+/month
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Months of Setup Required
You have to build your entire system from scratch, which can take 2-3 months before you see results
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Not Ecommerce Specific
Generalist tool that doesn't understand ecommerce seasonality or store operations. You have to figure it out yourself.
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No Pre-qualified Leads
You need to figure out which stores to target and build your own list. No buying signals or pre-qualification provided.
The Bottom Line: Clay gives you unlimited customization, but Ecommerce Leads delivers ready-to-use ecommerce leads with decision maker contacts, buying signals, and ecommerce expertise—all included from day one, with no hidden costs.
How Ecommerce Leads Works
We track hundreds of thousands of stores, analyze their data, and deliver only the ones that match your ICP and show signs of struggle.
We collect dozens of data points
Over 50 of them across Paid Media, SEO, Social Media, Website Performance, and more, across 500,000+ stores.
We detect stores losing traction
Our algorithm scans through the data and detects stores losing revenue and traction in your ICP.
We find decision makers for you
Every lead includes verified emails of CEOs, CMOs, Heads of Ecommerce, or other relevant people who you should be talking to.
Clay vs Ecommerce Leads:
Which Should You Choose?
An honest comparison to help you make the right decision
Choose Clay If:
- You have 2-3 months to build and configure your own sales intelligence system
- You have technical resources to connect and manage multiple APIs
- You have budget for Clay ($299/month) plus APIs ($200-500+/month) for traffic data and contacts
- You need to target multiple industries, not just ecommerce
- You want unlimited customization and control over your data sources
- You're comfortable figuring out ecommerce specificities (seasonality, traffic patterns) yourself
Choose Ecommerce Leads If:
- You want to start getting qualified leads immediately—no setup or configuration needed
- You need decision maker contacts included—no separate contact finder API required
- You want predictable pricing with no hidden API costs—everything included for $299/month
- You're an ecommerce agency doing SEO or paid media outreach and need ecommerce expertise
- You want pre-qualified leads with buying signals—stores losing revenue and traction in your ICP
- You prefer a service that understands ecommerce seasonality and store operations out of the box
ROI Consideration:
While Clay's free plan is generous, to get valuable data you'll need to connect APIs: SimilarWeb/Ahrefs for traffic ($200-400/month), Apollo/Hunter.io for contacts ($50-150/month), plus Clay's paid plan ($299/month). That's $550-850+/month total. Ecommerce Leads costs $299/month with everything included: decision maker contacts, traffic data, buying signals, and ecommerce expertise. Most agencies see positive ROI within weeks—you only need 1-2 new clients for Ecommerce Leads to pay for itself for a year.
Frequently Asked Questions
Here are the most common questions agencies ask when comparing Clay and Ecommerce Leads.
How much does Clay really cost when you include all the APIs?
How long does it take to set up Clay before I can start getting leads?
Does Clay include decision maker contacts?
Is Clay built specifically for ecommerce agencies?
Do I need to build my own list of stores to target with Clay?
Can I get traffic data with Clay?
Which tool is better for agencies that want to start immediately?
Does Clay provide buying signals or pre-qualified leads?
What technical resources do I need to use Clay effectively?
Which tool offers better ROI for ecommerce agencies?
Clay's free plan is generous (100 company searches/month), but to get valuable data you need to connect APIs: SimilarWeb or Ahrefs for traffic data ($200-400/month), Apollo or Hunter.io for decision maker contacts ($50-150/month), plus Clay's paid plan ($299/month). Total cost: $550-850+/month. Ecommerce Leads costs $299/month with everything included—no hidden API costs.
Setting up Clay typically takes 2-3 months: you need to figure out which stores to target, build your list, connect multiple APIs, configure workflows, test everything, and iterate. Ecommerce Leads works from day one—you start receiving qualified leads within days of subscription with all data and contacts included.
No, Clay doesn't include decision maker contacts. You need to connect a separate contact finder API like Apollo, Hunter.io, or Lusha, which adds another $50-150/month to your costs. Ecommerce Leads includes verified decision maker emails (CEO, CMO, Head of Ecommerce) with every lead—no extra API needed.
No, Clay is a generalist tool for any industry. It doesn't account for ecommerce specificities like seasonality, traffic patterns, or how stores operate. As a marketing agency doing SEO or paid media outreach, you'll have to figure out all the ecommerce nuances yourself. Ecommerce Leads is custom-built for ecommerce and understands these specificities out of the box.
Yes, with Clay you need to figure out which stores to target and build your own list. There's no pre-qualification or buying signals provided. Ecommerce Leads delivers pre-qualified leads weekly—we identify stores losing revenue and traction in your ICP, so you know they're ready to hire.
Yes, but you need to connect a separate API like SimilarWeb or Ahrefs, which costs $200-400/month. This is on top of Clay's subscription. Ecommerce Leads includes traffic data and trends as part of the $299/month subscription—no extra API needed.
Ecommerce Leads is better if you want to start immediately. You get qualified leads within days of subscription with all data and contacts included. Clay requires 2-3 months of setup before you can start getting leads—you need to build your system, connect APIs, and configure workflows.
No, Clay doesn't provide buying signals or pre-qualified leads. You need to build your own system to identify which stores are struggling and ready to hire. Ecommerce Leads delivers pre-qualified leads with buying signals—stores losing revenue and traction in your ICP—so you know they're ready to hire.
Clay requires technical resources to connect and manage multiple APIs, configure workflows, and troubleshoot issues. You'll need someone on your team who can handle API integrations and system configuration. Ecommerce Leads requires no technical setup—it works immediately with everything included.
Ecommerce Leads typically offers better ROI for ecommerce agencies. Clay costs $550-850+/month (including APIs), requires 2-3 months of setup, and you still need to figure out ecommerce specificities yourself. Ecommerce Leads costs $299/month with everything included, works immediately, and is built specifically for ecommerce. Most agencies see positive ROI within weeks—you only need 1-2 new clients for it to pay for itself for a year.
Get weekly reports of stores in your ICP losing traction
Get new clients for your agency consistently with our sales intelligence. Know which stores are losing revenue and traction, so you can reach out with a personalized and relevant offer that gets you the meeting.