Best LinkedIn outreach tools
Sales Navigator finds people. Dripify, Expandi and Waalaxy message them automatically. What each costs and does, checked on vendor pricing pages.
LinkedIn Sales Navigator wins as the search and list-building layer almost everyone doing LinkedIn outreach at any real volume ends up paying for. On top of it, Expandi or Dripify win for actually sending, because both are cloud-based rather than a browser extension.
The short answer
- LinkedIn Sales Navigator Core costs $119.99/mo, or about $89.99/mo effective on the annual plan ($1,079.88/yr), and includes 50 InMails a month. It is LinkedIn's own product, not automation.
- Dripify prices per LinkedIn account: Basic $39/mo, Pro $59/mo, Advanced $79/mo, billed annually.
- Expandi is a flat $79/mo per seat, billed annually, cloud-based, with a 7-day trial.
- Waalaxy has a free tier capped at three actions a day per action type; its paid Business tier's current price was not confirmed on this pass.
How we compared these
We split this list by function: search and list-building versus automated sending, because they solve different problems and are frequently used together, not as substitutes. Pricing checked on each vendor's own site, September 2026.
We did not measure reply rates or account-restriction rates across these tools ourselves. Those depend heavily on message quality, targeting and account age, not only which tool sends the message.
LinkedIn outreach stack pricing
| Tool | Job | Starting price | Automation risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| LinkedIn Sales Navigator | Search, filtering, InMails | $119.99/mo (~$89.99/mo annual) | None; it is LinkedIn's own product, no automated sending |
| Expandi | Automated connection requests and messages | $79/mo/seat (annual) | Lower observed risk; cloud-based |
| Dripify | Automated connection requests and messages | $39/mo (Basic, annual) | Lower observed risk; cloud-based |
| Waalaxy | Automated connection requests and messages | Free tier; paid price not confirmed | Browser extension; observed risk profile differs from cloud tools |
Figures checked on each vendor's own pricing page, September 2026. 'Automation risk' reflects the general distinction between cloud-based and browser-extension tools, not a controlled test.
The field, ranked
1. LinkedIn Sales Navigator
The search depth nothing else here replicates: filters by title, seniority, company size, technology and more. Best for: building the target list before any automation tool touches it. Not for: sending messages automatically; it does not do that.
2. Expandi
Cloud-based automated sending, priced per seat, built for teams running multiple LinkedIn accounts. Best for: an agency or sales team automating outreach for several people at once. Not for: a single low-volume user; $79/mo per seat is steep for one account.
3. Dripify
Cloud-based automated sending, priced per LinkedIn account, generally cheaper than Expandi at entry tier. Best for: an individual rep or small team wanting a lower entry price. Not for: anyone who also wants email automation in the same tool.
4. Waalaxy
A browser extension with a genuine free tier for testing the category before paying. Best for: someone unsure whether LinkedIn automation is worth it at all. Not for: scaling past the free tier without knowing the current paid price, which was not confirmed here.
When none of these is the answer
If the target list is under a hundred people and the relationship matters more than volume, a person manually sending a handful of considered connection requests a day beats any automation tool. Automation earns its cost at volumes a person cannot sustain by hand, not below it.
Questions
- Is Sales Navigator the same category as Dripify or Expandi?
- No. Sales Navigator is LinkedIn's own paid search and list-building tool; it does not send messages automatically. Dripify, Expandi and Waalaxy automate sending connection requests and messages on top of a LinkedIn account, which is a different job and a different risk profile.
- Do I need Sales Navigator to use an automation tool?
- No, but many teams use both: Sales Navigator to build a precise list with its advanced search filters, then an automation tool to work that list. The automation tools do not include Sales Navigator's search depth on their own.
- What's the real cost of a LinkedIn outreach stack?
- Sales Navigator Core runs $119.99/mo, or roughly $89.99/mo effective on the annual plan, per seat. Add an automation tool at $39 to $79/mo per seat on top, and a real outreach setup for one person runs $130 to $200 a month before any lead database or CRM.
- Which is the actual reply-rate driver: the tool or the message?
- The message. None of these tools write good copy for you; they automate sending whatever you configure. A mediocre message sent perfectly on schedule still gets a mediocre reply rate. Tool choice affects volume and risk, not persuasiveness.