SDR tools are multiplying fast, but most of them just add more clutter.
This list skips the bloated platforms and highlights the tools that actually help SDR teams. Whether you're a solo rep or managing a full outbound motion, these are the ones worth your time.
SDR tools are pieces of tech that help automate repetitive tasks on a sales development representative’s to-do list — things like finding leads, sending cold emails, logging activity, and booking meetings.
They’re primarily used by SDRs and BDRs (who often juggle both inbound and outbound responsibilities), but they’re also a go-to for small teams that don’t have a dedicated sales development function. In those cases, the tools themselves often step in to cover much of the SDR role.
The goal is to make the top-of-funnel work — everything leading up to the point where a lead is qualified and handed off to an Account Executive (AE) to close deals — more efficient. Depending on the tool, this might mean handling a specific part of the process (like sales prospecting) or supporting the entire SDR workflow through automation and engagement features.
Types of SDR tools:
If one of these sounds like a fit, we’ve handpicked the tools that do it best.
SDR automation tools are popping up like mushrooms, but these are the ones with a proven track record:
Artisan offers a fully autonomous AI agent named Ava that handles the full outbound process.
Ava fits seamlessly into the SDR workflow by taking over the time-consuming, top-of-funnel tasks that typically fall on a sales development rep. She identifies high-potential leads, enriches their profiles with relevant data, and crafts personalized outreach using insights pulled from Artisan’s 300M+ contact database.
Her workflow mirrors the typical SDR motion: prospecting, qualifying, engaging, and passing along ready-to-convert leads — only it’s faster, always-on, and constantly optimizing.
Apollo.io is a solid all-in-one platform for SDR teams that want prospecting, enrichment, and outreach in one place. You get access to a 210M+ contact database, email sequencing, a dialer, LinkedIn workflows, and basic intent data — enough to cover most outbound motions.
While it’s not fully autonomous, it’s efficient for sales reps who want visibility and control over each step.
LinkedIn Sales Navigator is a classic choice for reps who prefer to handpick leads and guide them into the sales pipeline with a more manual, relationship-driven approach.
It’s not a full SDR platform like Artisan or Apollo, but it’s one of the best tools for targeted prospecting. With powerful search filters, alerts, and InMail access, reps can find and engage decision-makers directly on the platform where they’re already active.
Sales Navigator works best when paired with outreach tools or CRMs, since it doesn’t handle sequencing or lead management on its own.
Outreach is a serious sales engagement platform built for high-volume outbound. It handles email sequencing, task management, and pipeline tracking in one place, with automation to keep reps moving fast.
It’s not lightweight — setup takes time and works best for teams with a defined process. But once it’s running, all the effort pays off.
Note that while Outreach does support LinkedIn tasks, it’s not full automation in the sense that some standalone LinkedIn tools offer. Actual automation (like scraping, auto-connecting, or replying) isn't built-in — reps still handle the task execution themselves.
Outreach splits its features across several products: Engage, Call, Meet, Deal, Forecast, and Amplify. Each is priced separately, and you’ll need to contact their sales team for a custom quote based on your team size and use case.
Mailshake is a simple yet solid sales engagement platform. It focuses primarily on cold email and phone outreach, with built-in tools for personalization, deliverability, and engagement tracking.
Unlike heavier platforms like Outreach, Mailshake is easier to set up and navigate — great for lean teams or solo SDRs who want to get up and running fast.
It doesn’t try to be everything. There’s no contact database built in, so it works best when paired with prospecting tools.
Salesforce is a popular CRM option for teams that need deep customization, robust reporting, and complex sales workflows. It’s not built specifically for SDRs, but it can support the full pre-sales process with the right setup.
It’s overkill for scrappy teams, but for larger orgs with multi-step sales processes, it’s often the backbone.
HubSpot is a sales intelligence platform for teams that don’t need the flexibility of Salesforce but still want depth of functionality.
It blends CRM, outreach, and reporting tools into a single platform that’s easy to set up and scale as your team grows. It’s a great all-in-one option for businesses of all sizes looking to keep things simple.
HubSpot follows a tiered pricing model across different “hubs” (Sales, Marketing, Service, etc.). For Sales Hub, the pricing structure looks like this:
ZoomInfo is a powerful B2B contact database with tools layered on top to help with lead generation, outreach efforts, and sales workflows.
Despite its rather sophisticated toolkit, most teams use ZoomInfo mainly for its database to fuel prospecting, rather than relying heavily on its engagement tools. That’s understandable, since ZoomInfo offers the largest high-quality database in North America. While they’re working to expand internationally, global data isn’t quite there yet.
ZoomInfo runs on a credit system — every time you reveal or export contact info, it costs credits. Plans are split by use case (Sales, Marketing, Talent), and pricing isn’t public.
Seamless.ai is a go-to option for small teams that want access to a big contact database without the hefty price tag. It’s budget-friendly, and you still get a decent volume of leads to work with.
Just mind that while emails are usually accurate, phone numbers can be hit or miss. If calling is a big part of your outreach, you might need to supplement with a cleaner data source.
Paid plans are custom-priced based on your company size and usage needs.
Features like buyer intent signals, AI assistant, list-building automation, and advanced data enrichment are not included in core plans. You’ll need to buy them as add-ons.
Clay is a flexible lead enrichment and workflow tool designed for teams that want total control over how they build and qualify lists. Instead of a fixed database, Clay pulls contact information from hundreds of sources and lets you shape it however you need.
It’s not a plug-and-play tool like ZoomInfo or Seamless. Clay works best for teams that are technical enough (or have RevOps support) to set up enrichment flows and automations. But once it’s set up, it’s incredibly powerful.
Saleshandy is a cold email platform built for high-volume outreach. It’s especially popular among freelancers, early-stage founders, and small sales teams looking to run campaigns without paying enterprise prices.
It focuses heavily on email deliverability and sequencing, with just enough automation and analytics to keep campaigns running smoothly. It does offer lead sourcing (either limited in the core plan or as a separate add-on), but users mainly choose it for high-volume email sending.
There are too many seemingly suitable options. Use this quick checklist to pick the one that really fits your workflows:
Most tools say they integrate with popular CRMs, but some only sync one way or leave out key data points. Always double-check what’s included and how the sync actually works.
The sync between your SDR tool and CRM should happen automatically. Otherwise, reps get stuck with manual updates, and data gets messy fast.
Look for smart features like auto follow-ups, AI-assisted outreach, and intent signals. These help you reach the right people without turning your outreach into spam.
Some tools charge per user, others by usage (credits, emails, exports). Which approach makes more sense to you (and your budget)?
Think in advance about how costs may scale as your team or campaign volume grows.
The best tool is one your team actually uses. It should be simple for reps to pick up and manage.
Also, don’t overlook the value of solid onboarding. When a tool offers proper setup support, it can make a big difference in system adoption and potential results.
As you’re choosing the right tool, remember: a good tool speeds up research and outreach, but it can’t replace thoughtful messaging or human judgment.
Start with 1–2 tools on a free trial, get a feel for what fits your workflow, and only then commit.
And if you’re tired of juggling a scattered tech stack, go for an all-in-one platform like Artisan. It cuts out tool bloat and helps teams grow faster with less admin overhead.
Curious to see Ava in action? Book a free demo with Artisan and explore how an AI sales teammate can fit into your workflow.
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Irina is a Founder at ONSAAS, Growth Lead at Aura, and a SaaS marketing consultant. She helps companies to grow their revenue with SEO and inbound marketing. In her spare time, Irina entertains her cat Persie and collects airline miles.
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