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All industries · head to head

Calendly vs Clay

Calendly logo

Calendly

All industries

Scheduling automation platform for eliminating back-and-forth

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Clay logo

Clay

CRM & Sales

Data platform for sales teams

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Calendly has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Calendly the free plan allows one event type and one calendar connection, so it cannot handle different meeting formats; Clay two separate meters run at once, actions and data credits, and a plan can exhaust either independently
  • They diverge on capability: Calendly covers Calendar sync, Clay covers Data enrichment.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Calendly and Clay actually diverge.

Attributes where Calendly and Clay differ
AttributeCalendlyClay
Starting priceFreeOn request
Pricing modelUnknownquote
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWeb, iOS, AndroidWeb
CategoryAll industriesCRM & Sales
Founded20132021

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Calendly

  • Calendar sync
  • Automated scheduling
  • Custom availability
  • Time zone detection
  • Reminder emails
  • Buffer time
  • Meeting polls
  • Embed on website

Only in Clay

  • Data enrichment
  • Contact management
  • Workflow automation
  • Integration
  • API access
  • Zapier
  • Cloud deployment
  • Web support

Both cover

  • Salesforce
  • HubSpot
  • Slack
  • GDPR

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Calendly

  • Sales meetingsnot Clay
  • Interview schedulingnot Clay
  • Customer callsnot Clay
  • Office hoursnot Clay
  • Webinar registrationnot Clay

Clay

  • Enriching prospect lists from multiple data providers in one tablenot Calendly
  • Building automated outbound research and outreach workflowsnot Calendly

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Calendly

  • The free plan allows one event type and one calendar connection, so it cannot handle different meeting formats
  • Automated reminders and multiple calendars need Standard at $10 per seat per month
  • Round-robin routing, lead qualification and Salesforce integration require Teams at $16 per seat per month
  • SAML single sign-on, audit logs and domain control are Enterprise only, starting at $15,000 a year
  • Advertised prices are the annual rates

Clay

  • Two separate meters run at once, actions and data credits, and a plan can exhaust either independently
  • Data credit overage is sold at a 30% premium over the plan rate, so exceeding the allowance costs more per unit than planning for it
  • The free plan allows 500 actions, 100 data credits and 200 rows per table
  • The entry paid plan starts at $167 a month, and both paid prices are starting figures rather than fixed
  • The free plan cannot buy overage at all, so hitting the limit stops work rather than billing for it

Pricing, plan by plan

Calendly

Free
  • FreeFree
    • 1 event type
    • 1 calendar connection
    • Basic confirmation email
  • Standard$10/month
    • Unlimited event types
    • Multiple calendars (up to 6)
    • Integrations with HubSpot, Mailchimp, Stripe, PayPal
  • Teams$16/month
    • All Standard features
    • Salesforce integration
    • Round-robin meetings
  • Enterprise$15000/year
    • All Teams features
    • Salesforce routing lookup
    • Microsoft Dynamics 365

Clay

On request
  • Pricing upon request$undefined/month
    • Data enrichment
    • Integration
    • Support

Which should you pick?

Choose Calendly if

  • You need calendar sync.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want automated scheduling.
Calendly review

Choose Clay if

  • You need data enrichment.
  • You also want contact management.
Clay review

Questions people ask

Is Calendly or Clay better?
Neither clearly leads. Calendly starts at Free and Clay at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Calendly or Clay?
Calendly has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Calendly and On request for Clay.
Does Calendly or Clay run on more platforms?
Calendly runs on Web, iOS, Android. Clay runs on Web.
Can I use Calendly for free?
Yes. Calendly has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Clay starts at On request.
What is Calendly best used for?
Calendly is most often used for sales meetings, interview scheduling, customer calls, office hours. Of those, sales meetings and interview scheduling are not what Clay is typically brought in for.
What can Calendly do that Clay cannot?
Calendly covers Calendar sync, Automated scheduling, Custom availability, Time zone detection. Clay covers Data enrichment, Contact management, Workflow automation, Integration. Both handle Salesforce, HubSpot, Slack, GDPR.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Calendly: Does the free tier include automatic reminders?

No. The free plan only includes a basic confirmation email when someone books. Automated reminder workflows, SMS reminders, and follow-up sequences require the Standard plan ($10/month or higher).

Source
Calendly: Can I offer multiple meeting types on the free plan?

Only one event type can be active at a time. You can create multiple event types, but only one booking link works simultaneously. Switching between different meeting lengths requires manually activating another event type.

Source
Calendly: Does Calendly work with Apple Calendar and iCloud?

No longer for new users. As of August 20, 2024, new users cannot connect iCloud or Apple Calendar. Existing connections continue to work, but Calendly ended support for new Apple Calendar integrations citing Apple's security changes.

Source
Calendly: What platforms can I use Calendly on?

Calendly is available on Web, iOS, and Android. Browser extensions are available for Safari. There are no dedicated Windows or Mac desktop applications.

Source
Calendly: What does the Standard plan ($10/month) add over free?

Unlimited event types, multiple calendar connections (up to 6), integrations with HubSpot, Mailchimp, Salesforce, Stripe, PayPal, Zapier, and webhooks, plus automated reminders and email sequences.

Source
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