Read on because we’re spotlighting the best email enrichment APIs, a game-changer for businesses aiming to understand their audience better.
Email data enrichment is the process of improving the quality of your user data. If you run a business that relies on email to communicate with your users (for example, through a mailing list) or to follow up with prospective leads, then you likely have a large list of names and email addresses in your database.
Data enrichment fills in the gaps in your user data, appending information like company profile and social profile data, online habits, purchasing history, geographical location, click and open behavioral data, and more. These data points can help you create personalized messaging for marketing campaigns and create precise targeting for prospecting efforts.
Key takeaways
- Email data enrichment is a process that can help businesses improve the quality of their user data by filling in gaps and appending additional information to create personalized messaging for marketing campaigns and precise targeting for prospecting efforts.
- There are several email enrichment APIs available, each with its own pros and cons, and it’s important to evaluate options and find the solution that will give the most accurate data at the lowest price while also adhering to privacy and security laws.
- Each API has its own features and limitations, as well as pricing and usage limits, so it’s important to evaluate them carefully before choosing the one that best fits your needs.
What is an Email Enrichment Service?
An email enrichment API can be accessed to enrich company data: simply provide the API with an email address and receive data points about that user. However, not every data enrichment API is created equal.
Before you choose a data enrichment API, it’s important to evaluate the options and find the solution that will give you the most accurate data at the lowest price while also adhering to applicable privacy and security laws.
Top Email Enrichment APIs
We’ve researched and evaluated the best email enrichment APIs available. We looked at data quality, pricing, customer reviews, and support to help you choose the best data enrichment API for your business email needs.
1. Clearbit API: Best for Businesses of All Sizes
Clearbit is one of the most powerful APIs for data enrichment. Their results are powered by machine learning and backed by a rigorous QA process that guarantees the most correct data to give you better context about the location of contacts in your database.
Signing up for a free trial was very easy, and the dashboard is clear and intuitive. They also offer a free Chrome extension which you can install to find the emails for employees at various companies just by visiting their website. I gave it a spin and found it fairly accurate.
Pros
- Backed by machine learning and automated to quickly and reliably enhance contact data
- All data is automatically refreshed every 30 days
- Contact details are verified by highly trained QA technicians
Cons
- No B2C data – B2B only
- No mobile app
- Occasional data inaccuracies
Customer Reviews
“Clearbit is a good platform to get quality B2B data for new business development. Being a part of the sales team I need to work on new data all the time in order to get more new business. I am using Clearbit because the quality of data they have is great.”
“Clearbit is an amazing marketing data engine or platform. It is so simple that I can able to see the results or desired contact information in just one click with their Google Chrome extension.
“Wow, awesome tool for sales and marketing team.”
Pricing and Usage Limits
Clearbit has several pricing tiers. You can get started for free with a suite of tools that include the ability to de-anonymize site traffic, calculate TAM, determine ideal prospect profiles, and find and enrich email addresses through the data enrichment API.
For businesses needing a more complete solution, a business-level tier is offered with flexible pricing plans to fit every need. Contact Clearbit for pricing options or to request a free demo.
2. FullContact API: Best for Small Businesses and Individuals
FullContact has a vast contact database and extensive contact files that you can utilize to get complete data about the contacts in your mailing list or database. Their raw data can be used to create rich customer segmentation, improve website conversion, and generate more engagement from your users.
I personally didn’t love that in order to get started with the service you have to contact the company and request a demo. I’d like to be able to easily sign up for a free account or trial so I can get in and click around myself.
Pros
- Easy-to-use, well-documented, and stable API with a sleek, modern user interface
- Webhooks to allow for asynchronous processing
- Very large database with lots of raw data to be gleaned
Cons
- Does not integrate with Outlook, and some users report issues with Gmail
- Some customers report syncing problems and duplicated data
- Does not always handle typos and misspellings effectively
- Cumbersome to get started
Customer Reviews
“…system is stable, fast and easy to integrate with, and we get back useful information in most cases.”
“A technical marketer can use the API successfully. The UI is clean and the docs are easy to understand.”
“Very often I get no data by people emails which I requested through API from FullContact, but I can find extra info about requested people using another methods and services.”
Pricing and Usage Limits
FullContact has a Pay-As-You-Go model that is flexible enough for businesses of any size and even individuals to use. A free trial is available but you will need to contact the company to start and discuss a pricing plan that fits your needs.
3. Snov.io API: Mid-to-large-sized businesses
Snov.io exposes a simple REST API with endpoints to help companies find emails, sync leads, enrich email data, manage prospects, and more. Businesses can use the API to bolster customer profiles and improve company information, and they offer additional services to verify emails, run drip campaigns, and improve lead conversion through AI-generated lead warm up.
They have a tutorial that leads you through the interface after sign-up, which was useful but a little long. The interface is very slick, but quite crowded as they offer a lot of solutions, which can feel overwhelming if all you want is to enrich a contact list.
Pros
- Powerful email verification API (to help weed out invalid addresses from your list)
- Seamless Gmail integration
- Exceptional customer support
Cons
- The user interface can be daunting at first
- The accuracy of the email verifier is moderate – some emails still bounce even after being verified
- Some customers report inaccurate data
Customer Reviews
Snov.io is an invaluable resource for anyone looking to enhance their email outreach and grow their business. And the best part I like is the extension used while finding LinkedIn prospects from the Domain directly. I loved this feature the most.”
“Sometimes not all emails can be found or verified. But this percentage is very low compared to how many valid email addresses we get regularly.”
“I can’t help but mention the Snov.io support team. They are awesome! I had several issues (at night time), and they helped me to solve them immediately.”
Pricing and Usage Limits
You can get started with Snovio with a free trial. From there, plans start at $39/month for access to basic features, including 1000 credits for the API, integrations with Zapier and Pipedrive, plus the ability to add team members. Additional plans range up to $738/month for 100000 API credits, unlimited users and recipients, and advanced features.
4. Pipl API: Best for Individuals, Entrepreneurs, and Small Businesses
Pipl collects and cross-references data from numerous trusted sources to create digital identities comprised of accurate data that can help businesses better understand customers and enhance lead enrichment and build detailed customer profiles.
As with Full Contact, you have to get in touch with the company to request a demo, so you can’t just sign up for a free account and get started. This feels cumbersome and seems like a turnoff for smaller companies and developers looking to test the service and make a decision. Perhaps it’s better suited for larger companies that already have some idea of what they need.
Pros
- Generous free tier
- Good for building ABM campaigns with advanced data enrichment options
- Easy-to-use APIs for both email search and verification
Cons
- Customer support can be lacking
- If your IP sends too many people searches, it will block the IP for a day or so
- Some customers report that they continually try to upsell you
- Data quality has been reported to be poor in some cases
Customer Reviews
“Great way to verify identities, usernames, contact info, etc. Probably the best collection of online user data.”
“Their match rate and accuracy are well above industry standard. They were also very communicative throughout our initial conversations and onboarding for use.”
“Can become expensive to use if the house list is very large.”
Pricing and Usage limits
Information about Pipl’s pricing plans could not be found online. They do offer a free tier, and you can contact the company through their website for a free demo and custom pricing information.
5. Hunter.io API: Best for Small Teams
Hunter.io offers both email enrichment tools and email-finding capabilities. Either enter an email to get enriched data like company name, job title, phone number, social media profiles, and more. Alternatively, enter a person’s full name and company to find their email address.
Hunter’s interface is incredibly simple and easy to use. I found it to be the easiest service to get started with on the list. Simply sign up for a free account, tell Hunter what you plan to use it for, and you are landed on a dashboard that provides input for you to immediately start looking up email addresses from known names or domains, or looking up names from email addresses.
Hunter also provides a simple email verifier input and a list of bulk options. All of the interfaces from this are extremely clear and simple.
Pros
- Large database and high success rate for finding emails provided with just a full name and company website
- Straightforward and easy to use
- The generous free plan is reported to be immensely valuable
Cons
- Their popular “Author Finder” feature has been discontinued
- Sometimes returns inaccurate data
- The price is quite high
Customer Reviews
“I work with Hunter daily as part of the marketing process for one of my clients. This tool helps me find corporate emails that I use to send marketing campaigns to prospect clients.”
“Hunter.io’s continuous addition of new features and excellent customer support make it a top choice for anyone seeking an efficient and accurate email-hunting tool.”
“Unfortunately Hunter does not work all the time. Oftentimes the emails that it reveals are generic or out-of date/not correct. Free plan can be restrictive at times.”
Pricing and Usage Limits
The Free Plan provides access to 25 Search and 50 Verification Credits every month. You are limited to one email account and 500 recipients. From there, plans start at $49/month for up to 500 searches and 1000 verifications, up to $499/month for 50,000 searches and 100,000 verifications.
6. AbstractAPI’s Email Verification API: Best for Freelancers and Entrepreneurs
The AbstractAPI Email Verification and Validation API provides an endpoint for validating email addresses to ensure they are active and are not spam traps, fake email addresses, misspelled, or otherwise invalid.
Abstract is easy to get started with – sign up with an email address and password and you are immediately landed on the dashboard where you will find your API key and links to documentation. Abstract provides code snippets for the most popular languages and Postman, as well as a testing sandbox for you to send simple requests to the API (note that these count against your monthly usage limit.)
Pros
- Simple REST API secured by an API key allows real-time email verification, while the bulk uploader allows you to upload a CSV file of many addresses for validation
- The generous free email verification API tier is easy to get started with
- Well-documented
Cons
- Email verification service only – not possible to get enriched data to determine qualified website visitors
- Support only available for paid tiers
- Some users report high bounce rates even after emails have been verified
Customer Reviews
“This is nice. Well executed.”
“Love the simplicity and the pre-built code snippets.”
Pricing and Usage Limits
The free tier allows up to 100 verification requests per month. From there, plans start at $9/month for up to 5000 requests per month, $49 for 50,000 requests per month, and up to $499 for 750,000 calls per month.
7. Lead411 API: Best for B2B Enterprise Companies
Lead411 has a powerful data enrichment API that offers large and B2B-focused companies the ability to enhance lead follow-up and improve marketing return by eliminating outdated and inaccurate data and integrating seamlessly with platforms like Salesforce and Hubspot.
Again, access to the service is blocked by a demo request. They also have a Chrome extension which is free to download from the Chrome store. The extension allows you to extract email and other contact info from LinkedIn and other websites – unfortunately, it requires a Lead411 subscription to work so is also useless until you contact the company for a demo.
Pros
- Excellent customer service
- Easy-to-use interface
- Powerful search functions and integrations with major platforms
Cons
- Some users report that industry classifications can be misleading or information on top execs can be outdated
- Getting started is cumbersome – developers and small businesses looking to quickly test a solution should look elsewhere
- Chrome extension doesn’t work at all without a Lead411 account
Customer Reviews
“At this time, the platform has been very helpful to our organizational needs.”
“I did not find much that I did not like. Now that they updated the website, everything has been better than ever!”
“Not all leads have a cell number or office number.”
Pricing and Usage Limits
A free trial is available, and after that, plans are based on an annual subscription. The basic plan is $900/year for 1 user, up to 24000 contacts, and unlimited emails. There are custom pricing plans available for enterprise users, and a pro plan available for $4500/year.
APIs Compared Side-By-Side
| Email search | Email enrichment | Email verification | Free trial? | Price for Basic | Price for Pro | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clearbit | X | X | X | X | contact for pricing | contact for pricing |
| FullContact | X | X | X | pay-as-you-go | pay-as-you-go | |
| Snov.io | X | X | X | X | $39/month | $738/month |
| Pipl | X | X | X | X | contact for pricing | contact for pricing |
| Hunter | X | X | X | $49/month | $499/month | |
| AbstractAPI | X | X | $9/month | $99/month | ||
| Lead411 | X | X | $900/year | $4500/year |
Data Privacy and Security
When using a data enrichment API, it’s important to be aware of the regulations and data privacy laws surrounding the use of such services.
There is a difference between how data enrichment can be used for B2B (Business to Business) vs B2C (Business to Consumer) users. It is not legal to transfer B2C contact data from one database to another without consent. They have to be aware that their contact data is being shared, and must opt-in.
In B2B enrichment, you are legally allowed to transfer data and email prospects for the profession in which the prospect is engaged. However, that person has the right to opt out of any communications.
Additionally, you should make sure that whatever enrichment service you choose complies with GDPR, CCPA, and other data privacy policies.
Enhancing Email Campaigns
With enhanced data, you can run targeted content marketing campaigns that reach your ideal customers and result in more conversions, optimized engagement, and an overall better-greased sales machine. You can target consumers within specific industries and waste less time contacting people who won’t be interested in your services.
You can also use the additional information gained through enrichment to segment your audience and target market in valuable ways and target people throughout the customer lifecycle. From cold leads to qualified leads to engaged customers, you’ll gain an intimate understanding of the contacts on your list that will allow you to reach them at the best possible time and with the best possible message.
Not only that, email enrichment services provide excellent tracking and analysis to help you get the most out of your data. Learn which metrics are most important for your business and tailor your solution to optimize for those metrics.
Summary
Email enrichment is a necessary part of online marketing, for both B2B and B2C enterprises. With real-time enrichment and easy-to-integrate API solutions, you’ll get high-quality data about your contacts at lightning-fast speed and learn more about your leads and consumers than you ever knew before.
FAQs
What is email enrichment?
Email data enrichment is the process of filling in the gaps in your database by adding contact details about users. Provided with an email address, an email enrichment solution can return information like a phone number, company name, employee count, job title, social media profiles, and more. Additionally, email enrichment APIs can be used to look up email addresses for known individuals at a business.
How can email enrichment APIs help my business?
Email enrichment APIs improve marketing return and lead follow-up by providing detailed and accurate information about database contacts that can then be used to target those contacts with highly effective messaging.
Are there any legal concerns with using email enrichment APIs?
Yes. You should be aware of the differences between enriching B2B vs B2c customer data. With B2C (Business to Consumer) enrichment, users must be aware that their data is being shared and they must explicitly opt-in before their data can be shared.
In B2B (Business to Business) enrichment, an opt-out model is used instead: business data may be shared, but users must be given an easily accessible way to opt out of communications and future sharing.
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