Cognism and Lusha both sell verified B2B contact data, but they target different buying processes: Cognism is a quote-only enterprise platform built around…
Best for Cognism: Teams of 5+ salespeople doing regulated, compliance-heavy cold-calling (DNC/TPS screening, ISO 27001/27701, SOC 2 Type II) who need multilingual coverage (English, German, French) and are prepared to go through a sales quote rather than self-serve signup.
Best for Lusha: Individuals or small teams who want to start immediately on a free 40-credit plan, use a Chrome extension for in-browser prospecting, and plug contact data directly into AI assistants (Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity) or automation tools like Clay, Make, n8n, and Zapier via MCP.
At a Glance
Cognism
Lusha
Primary category
Sales
Sales
Rating
Not documented
Not documented
Pricing model
Subscription
Freemium (credit-based subscription)
Starting price
Not documented
Free (Starter plan from about $37.45/month billed annually)
Free plan
Not documented
Yes
Free trial
Not documented
Not documented
Platforms
Web
Web
Team collaboration
Not documented
Not documented
AI features
Yes
Not documented
Public API
Yes
Yes
Key Differences
Pricing transparency
Cognism: Cognism's Standard and Pro plans both require contacting sales for a custom quote; no self-serve pricing is published.
Lusha: Lusha publishes self-serve tiers: Free ($0), Starter ($49.90/month), Professional ($69.90/month), and Premium ($399.90/month), only its top Scale tier is custom.
Buyers who want to compare cost before a sales call can do so with Lusha but not Cognism.
Data verification approach
Cognism: Cognism relies on phone-verified data plus an AI-driven 'data fusion engine' that stitches together data points before running them through verification layers.
Lusha: Lusha cites 98% email accuracy drawn from 1.2B+ data points refreshed daily, with phone reveals costing 10 credits versus 1 for an email.
Teams relying heavily on cold-calling may weight phone-data verification differently than teams focused mainly on email outreach.
AI-assistant integration
Cognism: Cognism's facts do not mention AI-assistant integrations.
Lusha: Lusha explicitly connects via MCP to Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini, and Perplexity, plus automation tools like Clay, Make, n8n, and Zapier.
Teams building AI-agent-driven prospecting workflows have documented support only with Lusha.
Compliance and language coverage
Cognism: Cognism is ISO 27001 and 27701 certified, SOC 2 Type II audited, with built-in DNC/TPS compliance screening, and supports English, German, and French.
Lusha: Lusha is SOC 2 Type II and ISO 31700 certified; its facts do not mention DNC/TPS screening or specific language support.
Regulated outbound calling programs need documented DNC/TPS screening, which only Cognism confirms.
Feature-by-Feature
Core Data & Prospecting
Feature
Cognism
Lusha
Verified phone/email contact data
Available
Available
Buying/intent signals
Available
Available
Browser extension for prospecting
Not documented
Available
AI assistant integration (MCP)
Not documented
Available
Pricing & Access
Feature
Cognism
Lusha
Free plan
Unavailable
Available
Published self-serve pricing
Unavailable
Available
API / data export access
Available
Available
Self-serve trial
Unavailable
Not documented
Compliance & Enterprise
Feature
Cognism
Lusha
Security/data certifications
Available
Available
DNC/TPS compliance screening
Available
Not documented
Native CRM integrations
Available
Available
Multi-language support
Available
Not documented
Pricing Compared
Starting price reflects the lowest paid tier, not the full cost for every team size or usage level.
Cognism
Standard — Custom (contact sales)
Pro — Custom (contact sales)
Lusha
Free — $0 monthly
Starter — About $37.45/month per user billed annually (about $49.90 billed monthly) monthly or annual
Pro — About $52.45/month per user billed annually (about $69.90 billed monthly) monthly or annual
Premium — About $299.95/month per user billed annually (about $399.90 billed monthly) monthly or annual
Scale — Custom annual
Pros & Cons
Cognism
Pros
Strong reputation for data accuracy in European and EMEA markets specifically
Human-verified mobile numbers rather than purely predictive/algorithmic data
Heavy emphasis on GDPR/CCPA compliance and Do Not Call list scrubbing, reducing legal risk for outbound teams
Broad CRM and sales engagement integrations
Cons
No public pricing; requires a sales conversation and negotiation to get a quote
Reported contract costs can be significant, with platform fees alone often in the $15,000-$25,000/year range
US data coverage is generally considered less comprehensive than EMEA coverage
Primarily designed for outbound sales teams rather than broader marketing or research use cases
Lusha
Pros
Lower entry price than large incumbents like ZoomInfo, with a usable free tier.
Browser extension makes prospecting fast without leaving LinkedIn or a company website.
Includes outreach (Engage) and call intelligence (Conversations) beyond pure contact lookup.
Well-funded, established company with strong CRM integrations.
Credit system lets teams control spend by only paying for reveals they actually use.
Cons
Credit-based pricing can get expensive quickly for teams doing high-volume phone-number lookups.
Data coverage and accuracy can vary by region compared to email accuracy.
Enterprise-scale pricing on the Scale plan is not published and requires a custom quote.
Some users report the free plan's 40 monthly credits are consumed very quickly.
Use Cases
Choose Cognism: Teams of 5+ salespeople doing regulated, compliance-heavy cold-calling (DNC/TPS screening, ISO 27001/27701, SOC 2 Type II) who need multilingual coverage (English, German, French) and are prepared to go through a sales quote rather than self-serve signup.
Choose Lusha: Individuals or small teams who want to start immediately on a free 40-credit plan, use a Chrome extension for in-browser prospecting, and plug contact data directly into AI assistants (Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity) or automation tools like Clay, Make, n8n, and Zapier via MCP.
Need both: Organizations running both high-touch enterprise outbound, where Cognism's phone-verified data and compliance screening reduce cold-calling risk, and lighter-weight, credit-based prospecting for reps who need fast self-serve access, may end up licensing both rather than standardizing on one.
Cognism
Outbound SDR prospecting — Sales development reps use Cognism to build verified contact lists for cold calling and cold email campaigns, especially into European accounts.
European GTM expansion — A US-based company expanding into EMEA uses Cognism for compliant, region-specific contact data that meets GDPR requirements.
Lusha
Outbound sales prospecting — SDRs and account executives use Lusha's browser extension to find verified emails and phone numbers for cold outreach.
Recruiting and candidate sourcing — Recruiters use Lusha to find direct contact details for passive candidates found on LinkedIn.
Account-based marketing — Marketing teams use Lusha's company and intent data to prioritize target accounts and build enriched contact lists.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Cognism offer a free plan like Lusha?
No. Cognism's Standard and Pro plans both require contacting sales for a custom quote, with no free plan or self-serve trial mentioned. Lusha offers a Free plan with 40 credits per month.
How do the two platforms verify contact data?
Cognism relies on phone-verified data combined with an AI-driven 'data fusion engine' that stitches together data points before verification layers. Lusha cites 98% email accuracy drawn from 1.2B+ data points refreshed daily.
Which CRMs does each tool integrate with?
Cognism connects to Salesforce, HubSpot, and Pipedrive. Lusha has native integrations with Salesforce, HubSpot, Zoho, and Monday.
Can either tool be used with AI assistants like ChatGPT or Claude?
Lusha explicitly supports this via MCP with Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini, and Perplexity, plus automation tools like Clay, Make, n8n, and Zapier. Cognism's facts do not mention AI-assistant integrations.
Does Lusha charge more to reveal phone numbers than emails?
Yes, a phone number reveal costs 10 credits versus 1 credit for an email. Cognism does not publish a comparable credit-based pricing structure since it is quote-only.
What compliance certifications does each hold?
Cognism holds ISO 27001 and 27701 certification and is SOC 2 Type II audited. Lusha is SOC 2 Type II and ISO 31700 certified.