PhantomBuster alternatives: where to go for each job, and how to leave cleanly
Nine tools broken down, one pick per use case, and a six-step exit plan.
The short answer: Evaboot if you mostly used PhantomBuster to export Sales Navigator searches, HeyReach if you run outreach across many LinkedIn accounts, Apify if you scrape several sites (LinkedIn, Google Maps, Instagram), Kaspr if you were really after emails and phone numbers, Waalaxy if you want LinkedIn and email outreach without configuring Phantoms, and Linked Helper if you need volume on a tight budget. One thing before you cancel: download your results as CSV and JSON, because PhantomBuster doesn't say how long it keeps them after you leave. We compared these nine tools and their official 2026 prices.
The ranking is editorial: a sponsored spot is always labeled on its card, and no affiliate link changes a score.
Why people end up leaving PhantomBuster
PhantomBuster is a Swiss Army knife: hundreds of small cloud bots (Phantoms) that scrape or automate actions on LinkedIn, Instagram, Google Maps and more. People who leave rarely say it lacks features. They say the bill tracks machine time, the setup takes work, and their LinkedIn account feels exposed. Six reasons come up again and again.
Execution hours burn faster than you planned
PhantomBuster bills for machine time and slots (how many Phantoms run in parallel), not contacts. Start gives you 20 hours and 5 slots for $69 a month, Grow 80 hours and 15 slots for $159, Scale 300 hours and 50 slots for $439. One reviewer notes that 80 hours go fast when 15 slots run nonstop. Credits reset every month with no rollover, and you can't top up hours or slots mid-cycle.
Free plan and trial capped at 10 rows
The free plan gives you 30 minutes of execution a month, one slot, and exports limited to 10 rows. The 14-day trial is bigger (2 hours, 5 slots), but downloads are still capped at 10 rows. You can see it works, you just can't take your data with you. Upgrading to a paid plan ends the trial on the spot.
Your LinkedIn account is on the line
LinkedIn Phantoms run on your session cookie from PhantomBuster's cloud servers, on an IP address that isn't yours. LinkedIn's User Agreement (section 8.2) bans software, scripts, bots and extensions used to scrape profiles or add connections. PhantomBuster itself suggests staying around 100 invites a week and warns that no limit is a guarantee. Some users report warnings and restrictions even while staying under it.
A steep learning curve
Chaining Phantoms, feeding them URLs, scheduling recurring launches: it's powerful, but it takes a technical mind. The learning curve is the most common complaint in reviews, right next to price, and one user spent the whole 14-day trial getting a first workflow to run. If you just want an invite campaign, that's a lot of effort.
Support and cancellation
On Trustpilot, PhantomBuster shows 3.5 out of 5 from 114 reviews, with 34% at one star. One reviewer sums it up: "Horrible Support that takes days to respond." Another: "it's a scam, you can't unsuscribe!" Part of the problem is structural: only the workspace Owner can cancel, and you can't pause the plan. Ratings are kinder on G2 (4.4) and Capterra (4.5), so the product lands better than the service.
It scrapes and sends, then stops
PhantomBuster sends the first message, then you handle replies by hand inside LinkedIn. There's no real multichannel sequence (LinkedIn, then email, then a follow-up) and no outreach dashboard: reporting gets rebuilt from CSV files. For a sales team tracking a pipeline, that's where a dedicated outreach tool gets simpler.
You used PhantomBuster to… go with…
The right PhantomBuster replacement depends on the Phantom you ran most. Usually only one line applies to you. Each card jumps to the full breakdown below.
Paste your search URL, get a clean file back. From $9 a month.
Run outreach across many LinkedIn accountsHeyReachPriced per sender, built for agencies.
Scrape Google Maps, Instagram or other sitesApifyOne bot per site, pay as you go, $5 free every month.
Find emails and phone numbersKasprA browser extension on LinkedIn, with a free plan to try.
Send LinkedIn invites and messages without setupWaalaxyReady-made campaigns from €19 a month, billed yearly.
Get LinkedIn volume on a small budgetLinked HelperDesktop app from $15 per license a month.
PhantomBuster alternatives, tool by tool
For each tool: why switch to it, who it's for, its catch, its price, and how to pick up your work there. Prices are what each vendor lists in 2026, in the currency the vendor bills in.
Evaboot: if you mostly exported Sales Navigator
Sales NavigatorWhy switch to Evaboot. Plenty of PhantomBuster users only ever ran one Phantom: the Sales Navigator search export. Evaboot does just that, and does it cleanly. You paste your search URL and get back a file with cleaned-up names, companies and the emails it found. No slots, no machine hours: you pay for credits, and unlike PhantomBuster's credits, they roll over month to month as long as you stay subscribed.
Who it's for. SDRs and recruiters who already pay for Sales Navigator and want clean lists.
Who it's not for. Anyone without Sales Navigator, or anyone who wants to send invites: Evaboot exports, it doesn't do outreach.
The catch. It requires a Sales Navigator seat, doesn't find phone numbers, and caps each search at 2,500 leads. Split big searches by region or company size.
Pricing. Starter is $9 a month for 100 credits, Grow $29 for 400, Scale $49 for 1,000, up to $299 for 15,000. Tip: you can pause the plan for one to three months, which PhantomBuster won't let you do.
How to migrate. Nothing to import. Reopen your Sales Navigator searches and paste their URLs into Evaboot.
- Price
- from $9/mo (100 credits)
- Credits
- roll over while subscribed
- Pause
- 1 to 3 months
- Catch
- needs Sales Navigator
HeyReach: for agencies running many LinkedIn accounts
AgenciesWhy switch to HeyReach. An agency prospecting for ten clients on PhantomBuster juggles ten session cookies, ten sets of Phantoms and slots that max out. HeyReach is built around senders: you connect several LinkedIn accounts and spread one campaign across them from a single screen, with a shared inbox for replies.
Who it's for. Lead gen agencies and sales teams running lots of LinkedIn accounts.
Who it's not for. A solo founder: per-sender pricing makes it expensive for one profile.
The catch. Growth costs $79 per sender per month ($64 billed yearly). Agency jumps to $999 a month for 25 to 50 senders, and Unlimited is $2,999. There's nothing in between, so run the math carefully if you're at 12 to 25 accounts.
How to migrate. Import your lists as CSV or straight from a Sales Navigator search. The 14-day trial needs no card: connect two accounts and watch how it splits the load before you pay.
- Price
- $79/sender/mo
- Yearly
- $64/sender/mo
- Trial
- 14 days, no card
- Catch
- pricey for solo users
Apify: scrape many sites, pay for what you use
Multi-siteWhy switch to Apify. If PhantomBuster was your all-purpose scraping tool, Apify is the broadest replacement. Its marketplace lists thousands of ready-made bots called Actors: Google Maps, Instagram, LinkedIn, ecommerce sites. You pay for what you consume, with no 10-row export cap.
Who it's for. Growth marketers and data teams pulling from several sources who don't mind a slightly technical tool.
Who it's not for. Anyone who wants LinkedIn invite campaigns on autopilot: Apify extracts data, it doesn't run outreach.
The catch. It's more technical than PhantomBuster, and cost is measured in compute units (about $0.20 each), which is hard to predict before your first run. Always run a small batch to measure before you point it at a big list.
Pricing. A free plan with $5 of usage a month, no card. Starter is $19 a month, $17 billed yearly. Our score: 4.2 out of 5, broken down in our Apify review.
How to migrate. For each Phantom, find the matching Actor in the marketplace, then feed it the same inputs (URLs, a CSV file). The free $5 is enough to check the output matches what you used to get.
- Our score
- 4.2/5
- Free
- $5 usage/mo
- Paid
- Starter $19/mo
- Catch
- usage cost to measure
Kaspr: if you were really after emails and phone numbers
Contact dataWhy switch to Kaspr. Some PhantomBuster users ran it mainly to find emails, with its email credits and URL Finder. Kaspr is built for exactly that: a Chrome extension that shows a LinkedIn profile's email and phone number, plus CSV enrichment.
Who it's for. Reps who call or email prospects and want contact details in one click.
Who it's not for. Anyone who wants to automate invites or scrape other sites.
The catch. Phone credits stay limited, even on paid plans. The free plan gives you 15 B2B emails and 5 phone numbers, enough to judge data quality on your own targets.
Pricing. Starter is $49 a month, Business $79.
How to migrate. Install the extension, then run the CSV you exported from PhantomBuster through enrichment.
- Free
- 15 emails, 5 phones
- Paid
- Starter $49/mo
- Format
- Chrome extension + CSV
- Catch
- limited phone credits
Waalaxy: LinkedIn outreach without Phantoms
EasiestWhy switch to Waalaxy. Where PhantomBuster has you assemble Phantoms, Waalaxy hands you ready-made campaigns: profile visit, invite, message, follow-up. Pick a list, pick a campaign template, launch. If you only used PhantomBuster to invite and follow up, it's the simplest move.
Who it's for. Freelancers, consultants and small sales teams whose main channel is LinkedIn.
Who it's not for. Anyone who also scraped Google Maps or Instagram, since Waalaxy stays LinkedIn-first. Also not for teams that want heavily customized sequences.
The catch. The advertised prices (€19, €49 and €69 a month) assume a year paid upfront; month to month, Business climbs to €139. Invites are capped monthly: 300 on Pro, 800 on Advanced and Business. Cold email is Business only. Our score: 3.8 out of 5, explained in our Waalaxy review and our Waalaxy pricing breakdown.
How to migrate. Import your PhantomBuster CSV into a Waalaxy list, or rerun your Sales Navigator search directly. Then rebuild your sequence from a template. Tip: load your lists during the 14-day trial, and mark the end date, because the trial rolls into a paid plan if you don't stop it.
- Our score
- 3.8/5
- Price
- from €19/mo, yearly
- Trial
- 14 days
- Catch
- 300 invites/mo on Pro
Linked Helper: LinkedIn volume on a budget
BudgetWhy switch to Linked Helper. It's the cheapest way to automate LinkedIn at volume. It's a desktop app: it runs on your own computer, and your data stays with you instead of sitting in a vendor's cloud.
Who it's for. Freelancers and small teams on a tight budget who are fine installing software.
Who it's not for. Teams that want everything in a browser, or several reps on one tool: one license covers one LinkedIn account.
The catch. Your computer (or a rented server) has to stay on for campaigns to run. The Standard plan caps about ten actions at 20 a day.
Pricing. Standard is $15 per license per month. Pay for 12 months and you get 45% off: from $8.25 a month for the local version, $16.50 for cloud. The 14-day trial unlocks Pro with no card, and nothing renews on its own, so there's no surprise charge.
How to migrate. Import the CSV of profile URLs your scraping Phantom used to give you.
- Price
- $15/license/mo
- Yearly
- from $8.25/mo
- Trial
- 14 days, no card
- Catch
- computer must stay on
Dripify: cloud LinkedIn outreach with set quotas
CloudWhy switch to Dripify. Dripify does what many people wanted from PhantomBuster on LinkedIn, minus the assembly: drip sequences of visits, invites and messages, daily quotas you can set, and an email step. It all runs in the cloud, so your browser can stay closed.
Who it's for. Reps who want a simple LinkedIn sequence and a tracking dashboard.
Who it's not for. Anyone scraping sites beyond LinkedIn.
The catch. LinkedIn only, plus email. Its advertised quotas go up to 75 invites a day, well above the 15 to 25 a day PhantomBuster itself suggests for an established account. Set them lower.
Pricing. Pro is $79 a month ($59 billed yearly), Advanced $99 ($79 yearly). The 7-day trial needs no card and doesn't auto-charge.
How to migrate. Import your list as CSV, then rebuild the sequence in the editor.
- Price
- Pro $79/mo
- Yearly
- $59/mo
- Trial
- 7 days, no card
- Catch
- LinkedIn and email only
Expandi: a dedicated IP for your account
CautionWhy switch to Expandi. If what bugs you about PhantomBuster is your cookie running from a shared server IP, Expandi's pitch is a dedicated IP address matched to your country. Keep it in perspective: a dedicated IP removes one signal, it doesn't make automation compliant with LinkedIn's rules.
Who it's for. Reps doing heavy LinkedIn outreach who want fewer red flags.
Who it's not for. Small budgets: there's one public plan, and it isn't cheap.
The catch. Business costs $99 a month ($79 billed yearly); Agency is quote-only. The trial lasts 7 days and billing starts afterward unless you cancel, so put the date in your calendar.
How to migrate. Import your list as CSV and rebuild the campaign. Keep volume low in week one while your account gets used to the new IP.
- Price
- Business $99/mo
- Yearly
- $79/mo
- Trial
- 7 days, then billed
- Catch
- one public plan
TexAu: the closest thing to PhantomBuster
Closest matchWhy switch to TexAu. If you like the PhantomBuster idea (automation recipes across several platforms) but not the rest, TexAu is the closest match. Same logic: automations you chain together, on LinkedIn and other sources.
Who it's for. Growth folks with established workflows who want to rebuild them almost one for one.
Who it's not for. Anyone leaving because of complexity, or anyone on a small budget.
The catch. The entry price. Solo is $79 a month billed yearly, so $948 upfront; Starter is $199 and Teams $549 a month. The pricing page shows no monthly option.
How to migrate. Nothing imports: you rebuild your recipes one by one. Use the 14-day no-card trial to rebuild your two main workflows and check the output before paying for the year.
- Price
- Solo $79/mo, yearly
- Commitment
- $948 upfront
- Trial
- 14 days, no card
- Catch
- high entry price
PhantomBuster and 9 alternatives at a glance
Our default pick: Evaboot if your main Phantom exported Sales Navigator, HeyReach if you run many accounts, Apify if you scrape beyond LinkedIn. Comparing prices means comparing units: PhantomBuster bills machine hours, HeyReach bills per sender, Linked Helper per license, Evaboot and Kaspr in credits, Apify by usage. Example: a solo rep doing LinkedIn outreach pays $69 a month on PhantomBuster Start, $15 on Linked Helper Standard, $79 on Dripify Pro.
| Who it's for, and the catch | Entry price and migration | |
|---|---|---|
| PhantomBusterWhere you're starting | Multi-site scraping and automation; limited hours and slots | Start $69/mo ($56 yearly), 20 execution hours |
| EvabootSales Navigator | Sales Navigator export; 2,500 leads per search, no phones | Starter $9/mo; paste search URL |
| HeyReachAgencies | Many LinkedIn accounts; pricey solo | $79 per sender/mo; CSV or Sales Navigator |
| ApifyMulti-site | Scraping across many sites; more technical | $5 free/mo, Starter $19; one Actor per Phantom |
| KasprContact data | Emails and phones; limited phone credits | Free tier, then Starter $49/mo; extension and CSV |
| WaalaxyEasiest | LinkedIn and email outreach; 300 invites/mo on Pro | €19/mo yearly; CSV or Sales Navigator import |
| Linked HelperBudget | LinkedIn volume; desktop app must stay on | $15 per license/mo; CSV import |
| DripifyCloud | LinkedIn and email sequences | Pro $79/mo ($59 yearly); CSV import |
| ExpandiDedicated IP | Dedicated IP by country; one public plan | Business $99/mo ($79 yearly); CSV import |
| TexAuClosest match | Multi-platform recipes; steep entry price | Solo $79/mo billed yearly; rebuild recipes |
Entry prices before tax, subject to change. Check the price for your real volume before you commit.
Leaving PhantomBuster in six steps
Order matters. The goal: lose no data, never run two tools on the same LinkedIn account at once, and not pay for an extra month.
List what's actually running
Day 1Open every Phantom and every Workflow and write down what it does, how often it launches, and what it reads (a Google Sheet, a Sales Navigator search, a list of URLs). Also note who owns the workspace: that person is the only one who can cancel.
You'll often find that one or two Phantoms do 90% of the work. Those decide where you go.
- Time
- about an hour
- If you skip it
- a forgotten use case
Download every result as CSV and JSON
CriticalFor each Phantom, open the Results tab and hit "Download results" to get a CSV. From the More menu, also grab the JSON and all files. The CSV stacks every launch, the JSON keeps only the latest one, so take both. Workflows have no Results tab, just a download.
Do this before you cancel. PhantomBuster doesn't document how long it keeps your data after you leave, so assume it's gone.
- Formats
- CSV (all runs), JSON (last run)
- If you skip it
- lost data
Turn off recurring launches on LinkedIn Phantoms
Before you switchLinkedIn looks at your account's total activity, not each tool's. If PhantomBuster still sends 20 invites a day and your new tool sends 20 more, your account sends 40. Disable recurring launches on your LinkedIn Phantoms before the first campaign goes out elsewhere.
If you pipe Phantom results into Google Sheets with IMPORTDATA (the CSV link refreshes every two hours while the Phantom runs), list those sheets: they'll stop updating.
- Rule
- one tool per account at a time
Import your lists into the new tool
Depending on the tool: the exported CSV (Waalaxy, Linked Helper, HeyReach, Dripify, Expandi, Kaspr), your Sales Navigator search URL (Evaboot, Waalaxy, HeyReach), or the same inputs in the matching Actor (Apify). Before importing, strip out anyone you've already contacted, or they'll get a second invite.
- Tip
- remove people already contacted
Restart at low volume
Week 1PhantomBuster's own guidelines work for any tool: 15 to 25 invites a day on an established account, 10 to 15 on an account under 90 days old, 20 to 40 profile visits a day when you start, and about 100 invites a week. Set your new tool to those numbers even if it allows more. Staying under them guarantees nothing, but going over stacks the odds against you.
- Established account
- 15 to 25 invites/day
- New account
- 10 to 15/day
Cancel the right way
LastThe workspace Owner opens settings, then Billing, and clicks "Cancel subscription" at the bottom of the page. An admin can't do it for them, and the plan can't be paused. For a refund, cancel first, then contact support: refunds are handled case by case.
Tip: your hours and credits reset monthly with no rollover. Finish your exports during the month you've already paid for, then cancel before the renewal date.
- Who
- workspace Owner only
- Pause
- not available
Is your tool missing from this page? Email us: hello@hackceleration.com
What makes a PhantomBuster exit go wrong
The same mistakes show up in reviews and forum threads. None of them is technical. They're oversights, and the most expensive one hits your LinkedIn account, not your bill.
Running two tools on one account
During the switch, the old Phantom keeps inviting and so does the new tool. To LinkedIn, that's one account doubling its volume. Shut off the old one before you turn on the new one.
Canceling before you export
Nothing says how long your results stay available after you cancel. And if you only grabbed the JSON, you only have the last run. Download each Phantom's cumulative CSV, then cancel.
Trusting a "safe" tool to protect you
Plenty of vendors pitch themselves as safer than PhantomBuster (browser-based, dedicated IP). That can cut down some signals, but section 8.2 of LinkedIn's User Agreement bans unauthorized automation whatever the tool. Volume and message quality are the real levers. Our guide on automating LinkedIn prospecting covers the method.
Going full throttle on day one
An account that changes tool, IP or pace sends a signal. Restart at 10 to 15 invites a day for the first week, then ramp up slowly. An account under 90 days old should stay at that level.
Comparing prices without comparing units
$69 of machine hours, $79 per sender, $15 per license, $9 of credits: those numbers don't line up as is. Do the math on your real usage: number of LinkedIn accounts, leads per month, number of sources. Our ranking of B2B prospecting tools helps you decide.
Forgetting what depended on your Phantoms
A Google Sheet fed by a CSV link, a CRM sync, a reporting dashboard: everything stops when the Phantoms stop. Note those dependencies during the inventory and replace them before you cancel (our PhantomBuster and Make page shows how those links are built, and our PhantomBuster agency can handle it). For pure data extraction, our list of the best scraping tools has more options.
- Every Phantom and Workflow listed, with inputs and schedule
- Workspace Owner identified
- CSV and JSON for every Phantom downloaded and stored outside PhantomBuster
- Recurring launches disabled on LinkedIn Phantoms
- Already-contacted people removed from import lists
- Starting volume set to 15 to 25 invites a day, or 10 to 15 on a new account
- Google Sheets and integrations replaced
- Cancellation done by the Owner before the renewal date
PhantomBuster alternatives: frequently asked questions
Is PhantomBuster free?
Yes, but barely: 30 minutes of execution a month, one Phantom at a time, 50 MB of storage, and exports capped at 10 rows. The 14-day no-card trial goes up to 2 hours and 5 slots, still with 10-row downloads. Enough to see a Phantom work, not enough to do real work.
How much does PhantomBuster cost in 2026?
Start is $69 a month ($56 billed yearly) for 20 execution hours and 5 slots, Grow $159 ($128) for 80 hours and 15 slots, Scale $439 ($352) for 300 hours and 50 slots, before tax. If you see Starter, Pro or Team plans at $59 or $139, those are old names and old prices.
Is PhantomBuster against LinkedIn's terms?
Yes. Section 8.2 of LinkedIn's User Agreement bans software, scripts, bots and extensions used to scrape profiles, and unauthorized automated methods to add connections or send messages. That applies to PhantomBuster and to every alternative on this page. You manage the risk through volume; you don't make it go away.
What's the best free PhantomBuster alternative?
For scraping, Apify: $5 of free usage every month, no card, no 10-row cap. For contact data, Kaspr's free plan (15 emails, 5 phone numbers). For outreach there's no real free tier: Linked Helper's 14-day trial, which doesn't auto-renew, is the safest way to try without a surprise charge.
What's the best alternative for scraping Google Maps?
Apify, with a Google Maps Actor: give it a query and an area and it returns the listings. Reviewers often find the Google Maps Phantom slow, and machine-time billing climbs with volume. Run a small batch first to see what Apify actually burns.
How do I cancel PhantomBuster and get a refund?
Only the workspace Owner can cancel: settings, Billing, "Cancel subscription" at the bottom of the page. The plan can't be paused. Refunds are case by case: cancel first, then email support. Download your results beforehand, since retention after cancellation isn't documented.
Is Captain Data still a PhantomBuster alternative?
Not for the same job anymore. Captain Data shut down its no-code product at the end of 2025 and now sells a credit-based data API (€59.99 per 1,000 base credits, with a 100-credit trial). It's a developer tool, not a point-and-click Phantom replacement.
Should I actually leave PhantomBuster?
Not always. If you scrape LinkedIn, Instagram and Google Maps from one dashboard and your volumes stay modest, no single tool here replaces it outright. Keep it and size your plan to the hours you really use. Our PhantomBuster training helps you get more out of it. If one Phantom does most of your work, a dedicated tool will cost less and need less tinkering.
What about Clay or lemlist instead of PhantomBuster?
They solve different problems. Clay enriches lists from many data sources ($185 a month, $167 billed yearly) but doesn't automate LinkedIn: see our Clay review. lemlist runs email and multichannel sequences ($69 for email, $109 for multichannel): see our lemlist review. If you're moving away from LinkedIn as a channel altogether, our LinkedIn alternatives page can help.
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