PeopleSearch.im vs ContactOut
ContactOut lives on the LinkedIn profile: its Chrome extension surfaces work and personal emails and phone numbers as recruiters and sourcers browse, and its personal-email coverage is genuinely strong. The catches are the plan shape, its "unlimited" tiers carry undisclosed fair-use ceilings and monthly export caps, and the best price needs a twelve-month upfront commitment. PeopleSearch.im is metered honestly instead: describe the people you want, pay per profile, and there is no ceiling to hit because cost scales exactly with what you reveal.
The short version
Choose PeopleSearch.im
Choose PeopleSearch.im if you want clean pay-per-profile pricing with no annual commitment and no fair-use ceiling, for verified work emails on demand.
Choose ContactOut
Choose ContactOut if you source inside LinkedIn all day, need personal emails and direct dials, and run steady monthly volume that justifies an annual plan.
PeopleSearch.im vs ContactOut, side by side
| PeopleSearch.im | ContactOut | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | Pay per profile, prepaid credits | Subscription with monthly volume caps |
| Starts at | $5 for 25 profiles (3 free to start) | Free ~5 lookups/day; paid from ~$49/mo (billed annually) |
| Commitment | None. Credits don't expire monthly | 12-month upfront for the best price; caps don't roll over |
| How you find people | Describe who you want in plain English | LinkedIn Chrome extension on profiles and search |
| Pay for misses? | No. The email credit is refunded if none is found | Fixed monthly allowance; no refund on a miss |
| Phone numbers | ||
| Email sending / sequencing | ||
| Best for | One-off and low-volume sourcing | LinkedIn recruiters needing personal emails |
Where PeopleSearch.im fits better
No hidden fair-use ceiling to slam into. ContactOut's "unlimited" plans quietly cap you near 2,000 emails a month and throttle exports; here the cost simply tracks the profiles you actually reveal.
Nothing is locked in for a year: ContactOut's discounted rate needs a 12-month upfront plan, while a prepaid pack is bought when you need it and used whenever.
Source by describing the shortlist, say "clinical directors at regional hospital groups", instead of clicking through LinkedIn profiles one at a time.
A month with few searches is genuinely cheap, because you are billed per revealed profile rather than for a fixed monthly allowance you paid for regardless.
Where ContactOut wins
Unusually strong personal-email coverage (personal Gmail/Outlook) that most B2B-only tools do not attempt.
A fast LinkedIn-native workflow: the extension surfaces contacts directly on profiles and recruiter pages.
Direct-dial phone numbers on the phone-inclusive plans, plus list builder and bulk export.
CRM/ATS integrations and a built-in email writer/campaign features for recruiting teams.
Pricing, plainly
PeopleSearch.im
Pay per profile, no subscription. 3 free credits to start, then prepaid packs:
- Starter$5 / 25 profiles ($0.20 each)
- Pro$20 / 120 profiles ($0.17 each)
- Scale$50 / 350 profiles ($0.14 each)
ContactOut
ContactOut has a limited free tier (around 5 lookups/day). Paid plans start near $49/month (Sales/email) when billed annually, with Email+Phone and Recruiter tiers above. Plans marketed as "unlimited" carry undisclosed fair-use ceilings (roughly 2,000 emails/month) and monthly export caps, the discounted prices need a 12-month upfront commitment, and unused allowance does not roll over.
Indicative, last reviewed August 2026. Confirm on ContactOut(opens in a new tab).Questions
Does ContactOut require an annual commitment?
Its discounted headline prices require a 12-month upfront annual plan; there is no month-to-month at the discounted rate. If a year upfront is the blocker, PeopleSearch.im is prepaid pay-as-you-go with nothing to commit to.
Are ContactOut's unlimited plans really unlimited?
The "unlimited" tiers carry undisclosed fair-use ceilings (around 2,000 emails/month) and hard monthly export caps in the terms. PeopleSearch.im has no ceiling: you simply pay per profile you reveal, so there is nothing to throttle.
What does PeopleSearch.im find that ContactOut does?
Both find verified work emails. ContactOut also specializes in personal emails and provides phone numbers, which PeopleSearch.im does not. PeopleSearch.im's edge is discovery by plain-English description and clean pay-per-profile pricing.
Compare other tools
See what PeopleSearch.im returns before you commit to ContactOut
Describe the people you need and preview real matches for free. Only pay for the profiles you keep.