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FirstSalesvsSmartlead

Smartlead and FirstSales both send cold email at scale. See what else comes in the plan.

Smartlead is cold email outreach software with unlimited mailboxes, automated warm-up, mailbox rotation and a unified inbox. FirstSales finds the people, checks every address, warms up every mailbox, writes each email or sends yours, and keeps every reply next to your deals. One plan, from $29/mo, with unlimited mailboxes and teammates.

Start your $1 trial See pricing

$1 for 3 days · Cancel anytime · No contract

  • 01

    Unlimited mailboxes, members and workspaces

  • 02

    21-day warm-up and hourly monitoring

  • 03

    AI writing or your own templates

  • 04

    From $29/mo, $1 for 3 days

At a glance

What each tool says it is for, and the features it lists. Prices change, so check each pricing page before you decide.

FirstSales

Cold email, lead search, AI writing and a CRM in one app

Best for: Teams that want the whole cold email job in one plan

  • Unlimited mailboxes
  • 21-day warm-up
  • Email verification on import
  • AI SDR lead search
  • AI writer
  • Built-in CRM
See FirstSales pricing

Smartlead

Smartlead is cold email outreach software with unlimited mailboxes, automated warm-up, mailbox rotation and a unified inbox.

Best for: Lead generation agencies, marketing agencies, sales leaders and recruiters

  • Unlimited warm-ups with AI conversations
  • Automatic mailbox rotation
  • Sub-sequences based on what each lead does
  • SmartDelivery inbox placement and spam tests
  • SmartSenders: buy domains and set up mailboxes
  • SmartServers: dedicated sending servers
  • Unibox and a mobile app
  • Full white-label for agencies
From Smartlead's home page, checked 12 Oct 2026

When Smartlead is the better pick

  • You run an agency and need the tool white-labelled for your clients.
  • You want dedicated sending servers, or to buy domains and mailboxes inside the tool.

Click around the real app. No signup.

This is FirstSales itself with sample data. Open campaigns, read drafts, check a mailbox's health grade. Nothing you do is saved.

Try the FirstSales app with sample data

demo.firstsales.io · sample data
Why people look around

Smartlead may do its part well. The trouble is everything around it.

Most teams that compare Smartlead with FirstSales are not unhappy with one feature. They are tired of the stack: one tool to find people, one to warm up, one to send, one to write, one to track replies.

A bill for every job

Lead data, warm-up, sending, writing help and a CRM often come from different vendors. Each one is cheap on its own. Together they add up, and the total grows with every mailbox and teammate.

Gaps between the tools

When the list lives in one app and the sending in another, bad addresses slip through, a mailbox stops warming up, or a reply sits unread in the fifth inbox. Nobody notices until replies drop.

You still do the writing

Sending is the easy part. Writing a good first email to each person, following up and stopping when they answer is the real work. A tool that only sends leaves that work with you.

What changes

From Smartlead plus a stack to one place for the whole job.

You do not have to switch everything on day one. This is the path most teams take.

  1. 01

    Connect your mailboxes

    Add Google, Microsoft or SMTP/IMAP mailboxes. SPF, DKIM and DMARC are checked on connect and warm-up starts right away.

  2. 02

    Bring or find your people

    Import a CSV from your current tool or find leads with AI search and Google Maps. Every address is checked before anything sends.

  3. 03

    Send, then read replies in one list

    Send your own template or AI drafts you approve. Replies stop the sequence for that person and land in Unibox, next to the built-in CRM.

Why teams pick FirstSales over Smartlead

One tool for outreach, with the growth costs taken out.

What you get when sending, leads, writing and replies live in one place, on one flat plan.

  • Unlimited mailboxes

    Connect as many Google, Microsoft or SMTP/IMAP mailboxes as you need. Sends rotate across them.

  • Warm-up on every mailbox

    Each mailbox warms up over 21 days in three phases, with hourly monitoring and a health grade.

  • Leads included

    Find people with AI search and Google Maps, or import your own list. Every contact is checked before each send.

  • Writing your way

    Send your own template, have AI draft for your approval, or let AI Autopilot write and send.

  • Replies and CRM together

    Unibox brings every reply from every mailbox into one list, next to a built-in CRM.

  • Unlimited team members

    Add teammates and workspaces for clients or brands, with billing kept to one organization.

Side by side

Smartlead vs FirstSales

The Smartlead column repeats only what Smartlead's own home page said on 12 Oct 2026. Anything else, check on their site: plans change often.

Cold email jobs in Smartlead and in FirstSales
What you getSmartleadFirstSales
MailboxesSays unlimited mailboxes, with rotationUnlimited on every plan
Warm-upUnlimited warm-ups21 days in 3 phases, included
DeliverabilitySmartDelivery placement and spam testsHourly checks and a health grade
Lead searchCheck Smartlead's siteAI SDR, AI search, Google Maps
Address checksLists built-in email verificationEvery contact, before each send
WritingPersonalization fields and spintaxTemplate, Needs approval or AI Autopilot
Follow-upsSub-sequences based on lead intentStop on reply, A/B tests
Replies and dealsUnified master inbox (Unibox)Unibox, built-in CRM, Copilot
TeamCheck Smartlead's siteUnlimited members and workspaces
Developer accessLists a cold emailing APICLI, API (OpenAPI 3.1), MCP
PriceSee Smartlead's pricing pageFrom $29/mo, $1 for 3 days
Start your $1 trial
What one plan includes

Everything below is in the $29/mo plan. Nothing here is an add-on.

When you compare cold email software, the first price is rarely the last one. Extra mailboxes, warm-up, seats and lead data often cost more. In FirstSales they are part of the plan, so the price you see is the price you pay as you grow.

Sending

  • Unlimited mailboxes
  • Sends rotated across mailboxes
  • 21-day warm-up on every mailbox
  • Hourly monitoring and a health grade
  • SPF, DKIM and DMARC checks

Leads and writing

  • Leads from AI search and Google Maps
  • Contact checks before every send
  • Emails written from company and role
  • Your own templates, with no AI
  • A/B tests

Replies and team

  • Unibox for every reply
  • Built-in CRM
  • Unlimited team members
  • Unlimited workspaces
  • Analytics per campaign

For developers

  • CLI
  • API with an OpenAPI 3.1 spec
  • MCP server
  • Copilot, which asks before it acts
  • Real support, most questions answered the same day

From $29/mo. Try it for $1 for 3 days. No contract, cancel from the dashboard.

Five questions to askSmartlead and FirstSales

Ask Smartlead each one on their site or in a demo. Here is how FirstSales answers.

  1. Check 1 · Pricing

    Does the price change when you add mailboxes?

    Outreach works best spread over several mailboxes, so the number grows quickly. In FirstSales, mailboxes, warm-up, team members and workspaces are unlimited on every plan. Adding the tenth mailbox costs the same as adding the first: nothing.

    • Unlimited mailboxes. Google, Microsoft or SMTP/IMAP.
    • Unlimited members. No per-seat price.
    • From $29/mo. No contract, cancel from the dashboard.
  2. Check 2 · Deliverability

    Is deliverability built in and on by default?

    Look for warm-up, domain record checks, contact checks and monitoring in the same tool. FirstSales checks SPF, DKIM and DMARC when you connect, warms up each mailbox for 21 days, checks every contact before each send, and watches every mailbox every hour with a health grade.

    • 21-day warm-up. Three phases, on every mailbox.
    • Hourly monitoring. With a health grade per mailbox.
    • Dirty contacts skipped. Bad addresses never get sent.
  3. Check 3 · Leads

    Can it find the people, or only email them?

    Buying a lead list separately adds cost and a step. FirstSales finds leads with AI search and Google Maps, so a local business list or a list of people in a role is a search away. You can still import your own.

    • AI search. Describe who you want to reach.
    • Google Maps. Local businesses by place and type.
    • Import your own. Checked like every other contact.
  4. Check 4 · Writing

    Can you send your own words and use AI too?

    Some campaigns need your exact copy. Others go faster with AI. FirstSales does both: Email Template mode sends your words with no AI writing, and the AI modes write each email from the contact's company and role.

    • Email Template. Your words, with no AI writing.
    • Needs approval. AI drafts wait for your yes.
    • A/B tests. See which version gets more replies.
  5. Check 5 · Access

    Can your team and your tools work with it?

    Outreach rarely lives in one app. FirstSales has a CLI, an API with an OpenAPI 3.1 spec and an MCP server, so scripts and AI tools can run campaigns too. Copilot, the in-app assistant, asks before it acts.

    • CLI. Run campaigns from a terminal.
    • API and OpenAPI 3.1. Build on the same API the app uses.
    • MCP. Connect AI tools to your workspace.
Three ways to write

Pick how much the AI does, campaign by campaign.

Good cold email software should fit how you work today and how you want to work later. FirstSales has three modes. You choose one for each campaign, and you can change your mind.

  1. Email Template

    Your words, sent well.

    You do
    Write the email and follow-ups yourself.
    FirstSales does
    Warm-up, contact checks, rotation and follow-ups that stop on a reply. No AI writing.
    Good for
    Teams with copy that already works.

  2. Needs approval

    AI drafts, you decide.

    You do
    Read each draft, then approve, edit or reject it.
    FirstSales does
    Writes every email from the contact's company and role, using your knowledge base.
    Good for
    Starting out, or any campaign you want to watch closely.

  3. AI Autopilot

    Writes, sends and answers.

    You do
    Set the goal and the people. Check in when you like.
    FirstSales does
    Writes and sends each email, follows up, and answers interested replies with your booking times.
    Good for
    Campaigns you trust, at the volume you want.
Before and after

A stack of tools vs one plan

Whatever you send with today, this is what a stack of separate tools usually looks like next to one plan.

Several tools

A login and a bill for each job.

  • Sender priced per mailboxThe bill grows with every mailbox.
  • Warm-up in another toolAnother login to check.
  • Lead data bought separatelyThen cleaned by hand.
  • Replies in many inboxesEasy to miss one.
FirstSales

One plan, every part included.

  • Unlimited mailboxesOn every plan.
  • 21-day warm-up includedWith hourly monitoring.
  • AI search and Google MapsEvery contact checked first.
  • Unibox and CRMEvery reply in one list.
“One of the biggest pains in cold email is making sure that you have your DNS setup correctly. Firstsales has created a system to make sure you have done this correctly.”
Mike OTrustpilot review · Trustpilot
See it in the app

A day in FirstSales, in one feed.

This is what a working day looks like in a sample workspace. Warm-up runs, contacts get checked, drafts wait for approval, replies stop sequences and meetings land on the calendar. Most of it happens without you.

  • Warm-up. Runs on every mailbox.
  • Contact checks. Before every send.
  • Needs approval. Drafts wait for you.
  • Replies. Stop the sequence for that person.
What people say

From people who use it

Real words from real users. No paid reviews.

“I've been using FirstSales.io for several months now, and I can confidently say it has revolutionized how I approach lead generation and customer acquisition.”

Paweł Stelmach

Small business owner

Trustpilot

“User Interface, Ease of Use, Able to hit the inbox in the first attempt.”

Sadashiv B.

Founder, small business

G2

“I have always struggled in cold outreach. However, Firstsales has provided an excellent tool for cold outreach.”

Kaushal S.

Founder, small business

G2
Read all reviews
Switching guide

How to move from Smartlead without losing a reply

A calm switch takes a few weeks of overlap, not a weekend of panic. These steps keep running campaigns safe.

  1. 01

    Let running sequences finish

    Leave live campaigns in Smartlead until they end. Start new ones in FirstSales once your mailboxes have warmed up.

  2. 02

    Start warm-up on day one

    Connect your mailboxes first. Warm-up runs for 21 days in three phases, and the health grade shows when a mailbox is ready.

  3. 03

    Export your contacts as a CSV

    Import the file into FirstSales. Every address is checked on the way in, so you see which are safe, risky or bad before anything sends.

  4. 04

    Rebuild your best sequence first

    Paste your best email into Email Template mode to keep your exact words. Try AI drafts on a second campaign and compare.

  5. 05

    Use Needs approval while you learn

    AI drafts wait for your yes. Approve, edit or reject each one until you trust them, then move a campaign to AI Autopilot if you want.

  6. 06

    Move replies and deals into one place

    Replies from every mailbox land in Unibox. Interested people go into the built-in CRM, and Copilot answers questions about them.

  7. 07

    Price the setup you will run in six months

    Count the mailboxes, teammates and tools you will need, then check Smartlead's pricing page for that setup. FirstSales stays at your plan price.

  8. 08

    Cancel only when you are sure

    Keep both until your new campaigns get replies. FirstSales has no contract, so you can leave from the dashboard too.

Cold email software

buyer's checklist

Copy this list into your notes and tick it off for each tool you try.

  • Price stays the same as you add mailboxes
  • No per-seat price for teammates
  • Warm-up included, with a clear schedule
  • SPF, DKIM and DMARC checked for you
  • Every contact checked before each send
  • Frequent monitoring with an easy health signal
  • Lead search built in
  • Your own templates and AI writing
  • A review step before AI emails send
  • One inbox for every reply
  • API or CLI access for your own tools
  • Monthly plan with no contract

Other comparisons

Questions,answered plainly.

Can’t find yours? Write to us.

01Is FirstSales a good Smartlead alternative?

It depends on what you use Smartlead for. If Smartlead already does everything you need, keep it. If you pay for Smartlead plus other tools for leads, warm-up, writing or replies, FirstSales puts those jobs in one plan with unlimited mailboxes and teammates.

02How does FirstSales pricing compare with Smartlead?

FirstSales starts at $29/mo for Starter with 4,000 credits a month. Growth is $79/mo, Pro $149/mo and Business $499/mo, and every plan has the whole product. Smartlead prices change, so check their pricing page for the setup you plan to run.

03Can I move my contacts from Smartlead?

Yes. Export your contacts as a CSV and import them into FirstSales. Every address is checked on the way in, so you see which are safe, risky or bad before anything sends.

04Do I need to stop my Smartlead campaigns to switch?

No. Let running sequences finish while your new mailboxes warm up in FirstSales. Start new sequences in FirstSales once warm-up has done its job.

05Do I have to use AI to write emails?

No. Email Template mode sends your own words with no AI writing. With AI, Needs approval lets you approve, edit or reject each draft before it sends.

06Can I try FirstSales before I switch?

Yes. Try the whole product for $1 for 3 days, with your own domain, mailboxes and list. No feature is held back for a higher plan.

07Is this comparison fair?

We make FirstSales, so read it as our side. The Smartlead column only repeats what Smartlead says on its own site (checked 12 Oct 2026), and we send you to their site for the rest. If something about Smartlead is wrong here, write to firstsales@support.communicate.so and we will fix it.

Outreach that keeps going after you log off.Leads, emails, follow-ups and replies, handled.

Connect unlimited mailboxes and let AI agents find leads, write each email and follow up. Or send your own templates in manual mode. From $29/mo.

Start your $1 trial See pricing

$1 for 3 days · Cancel anytime · No contract

Install with AI

Your coding agent sets up the FirstSales CLI and skills for you.

Prompt for Claude Code

I'm setting up FirstSales (https://firstsales.io), an AI outbound sales platform: campaigns, contacts, a reply inbox, deliverability and lead signals. Help me get my workspace sending real, good emails end to end, from Claude Code.

Read these first so you know how FirstSales works:
- Developer docs and API: https://developer.firstsales.io
- CLI: https://www.npmjs.com/package/@firstsales.io/cli
- Skills for coding agents: https://github.com/firstsalesio/firstsales-skills (read README.md and GUIDE.md)

Setup
1. Install the CLI: npm install -g @firstsales.io/cli
2. Install the FirstSales skills:
   claude plugin marketplace add firstsalesio/firstsales-skills
   claude plugin install firstsales@firstsales
3. Ask me if I already have a FirstSales account. If not, send me to https://app.firstsales.io to sign up.
4. Ask me to create an API key under Settings → API → API Keys, with only the scopes we need.
   Never ask me to paste the key into this chat. Tell me to run this in my own terminal, so the key stays hidden:
   read -rs FS_KEY && firstsales auth login --api-key "$FS_KEY"; unset FS_KEY
5. Run `firstsales whoami` and tell me which workspace and organisation we are connected to.

Then ask me about my business: what I sell, who I sell to (roles, company size, countries), my best customers, and what I use today for outbound (tools, lists, mailboxes). Walk me through:
1. Teaching FirstSales my business: website, offer, proof points and case studies in the knowledge base, so the AI writes like someone who knows the product.
2. Connecting my sending mailboxes and checking my sending domain: SPF, DKIM, DMARC and warm-up. If anything is unhealthy, tell me the exact DNS record to add.
3. Bringing in contacts: import my CSV or CRM export into a clean list, remove duplicates and bad emails, and block domains I must never email (customers, competitors, my own).
4. Building my first campaign: the right list, senders, steps and timing. Write the sequence with me, show me the drafts, and do not launch until I say yes.
5. Setting up Signals if it fits: find people engaging with LinkedIn posts about topics my buyers care about, and turn them into leads.
6. Inviting my team and giving each person the right access.

Once campaigns run, show me how to work the reply inbox from here: which replies need an answer, draft responses in my voice, and move good conversations into deals. If I use Cal.com, connect it so follow-ups can offer my booking link (not the first email).

Throughout, as you learn about my business, proactively suggest and help create:
- Reply templates for the questions and objections my prospects are likely to raise, based on my product, site and codebase if you can see them.
- Campaign ideas and segments worth testing, with the reason for each.

Safety rules:
- Show every change as a dry run (--dry-run) first and wait for my yes. Never send emails, launch campaigns or delete anything without my yes.
- Tell me before anything that spends credits, and how many.

Be opinionated. If the docs give a sensible default, just use it. Don't make me choose between five options.
Developer docs ↗npm: @firstsales.io/cli ↗GitHub: firstsales-skills ↗