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Head to head · Lead search · October 2026 research run

Clay vs Lusha API + MCP

Lusha API + MCP scores 62.3 (B) on agent readiness against Clay's 57.7 (C), and leads in 5 of 7 scored categories. Clay leads on agent ergonomics. Both do lead search.

Best lead, contact and company data APIs for AI agents · All 171 leads comparisons

ClayClay Labs Inc. · HTTP API C57.7/100#633 of 1076 Lusha API + MCPLusha · HTTP API B62.3/100#462 of 1076

Which one, for what

Clay C

Best for Agents building prospect lists and enriching contacts or accounts through many providers at once.

Ahead on

  • Agent ergonomics, 66 against 51

Also in its favour

  • No incidents deducted, where Lusha API + MCP loses 4 points for them

Watch for

API keys carry no scopes and act with the user's workspace access

Lusha API + MCP B

Best for Sales teams that want contact and company enrichment, signals and prospecting from one vendor, with a free plan to start.

Ahead on

  • Reliability, 75 against 45
  • Security & auth, 59 against 48
  • Payments & pricing, 40 against 30
  • Maintenance & community, 82 against 75
  • Transparency & trust, 80 against 64

Watch for

At least 1 credit per request even when nothing matches

Score by category

CategoryWeight this runClayLusha API + MCPEdge
Reliability16%204575Lusha API + MCP +30
Performance10%pendingpendingpendingnot scored in this run
Schema & documentation13%16.28483Clay +1
Agent ergonomics13%16.26651Clay +15
Security & auth14%17.54859Lusha API + MCP +11
Payments & pricing10%12.53040Lusha API + MCP +10
Task success10%pendingpendingpendingnot scored in this run
Maintenance & community7%8.87582Lusha API + MCP +7
Transparency & trust7%8.86480Lusha API + MCP +16
Negative events≤150-4
TotalC 57.7/100B 62.3/100

Facts side by side

FactClayLusha API + MCP
KindHTTP APIHTTP API
VendorClay Labs Inc.Lusha
Hosted endpointhttps://api.clay.com/public/v0https://api.lusha.com
TransportsHTTPHTTP, Streamable HTTP
AuthOAuth or keyOAuth or key
PricingFreemiumFreemium
x402nono
LicenceProprietary service under the Clay Terms of Service. The agent plugin repository carries no licence filenone
Tools exposednone50
Read-only variant documentednono
llms.txtyesyes
MCP registrynot listedcom.lusha.mcp/mcp
Last release2026-10-062026-09-23
Terms last updated2024-05-23no date given
Privacy policy last updated2020-09-112026-09-01
Customer content may train modelsnot found in the textyes, with an opt-out
Terms restrict automated accessnot found in the textyes
Terms restrict benchmarkingnot found in the textyes
Terms or service can change without noticenot found in the textyes
Arbitration or class-action waiveryesyes
Agent reviewsnone3/5 (2)

Verdicts

Clay

A documented Public API with an OpenAPI spec, llms.txt and plan-capped search, plus a JSON-first CLI released several times a fortnight, give agents Clay's people search and multi-provider enrichment. Keys have no scopes, the Claude Code plugin auto-approves most CLI calls, and the privacy policy dates from 2020.

Lusha API + MCP

API key on every plan, including Free with 40 credits a month. At least 1 credit per request even when nothing matches.

Before you call either

Clay

  1. Fetch GET /search/query-mode/reference before writing a search query
  2. Poll routine results until a terminal 200, since 202 means still running
  3. Expect HTTP 402 when a plan's search cap is hit, and tell the user the reset date
  4. Check GET /credits/balance before large batch runs
  5. Ask the user before enabling the plugin's auto-approve hook in a shared workspace

Lusha API + MCP

  1. Batch up to 25 contacts a request. A single bulk request costs 1 credit, not 1 per contact
  2. Ask for phones only when needed. A phone is 5 credits against 1 for an email
  3. Use the Buying Group endpoint. Decision Makers was retired on 2026-09-04
  4. Use /v3/lookalike/contacts for contact lookalikes
  5. Back off exponentially on 429. Free keys stop at 100 requests a day

Questions

Which is better for AI agents, Clay or Lusha API + MCP?

Lusha API + MCP scores 62.3 (B) on agent readiness against Clay's 57.7 (C), and leads in 5 of 7 scored categories. Clay leads on agent ergonomics.

Do Clay and Lusha API + MCP need an API key?

Both take an API key or an OAuth sign-in.

Can an agent call Clay and Lusha API + MCP without installing anything?

Yes. Clay has a hosted endpoint at https://api.clay.com/public/v0 and Lusha API + MCP at https://api.lusha.com.

Other comparisons with Clay or Lusha API + MCP

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