Provider costs
Per-lookup pricing vs credit limits
Deepline shows per-lookup costs upfront. Surfe bundles a fixed number of credits per plan tier, with no rollover between months.
| Provider | Operation | Deepline | Surfe | BYOK option |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hunter | Email Finder | $0.024(0.3 cr) | credit-gated* | BYOK free |
| Dropleads | Email Finder | $0.024(0.3 cr) | credit-gated* | BYOK free |
| Icypeas | Email Search | $0.016(0.2 cr) | credit-gated* | BYOK free |
| Prospeo | Email Finder | $0.048(0.6 cr) | credit-gated* | BYOK free |
| Crustdata | Person Enrich | $0.096(1.2 cr) | not available | BYOK free |
*Surfe gates enrichment behind per-plan credit limits (e.g. 1,000 email credits/yr on Pro). Credits do not roll over. Company enrichment, firmographics, and technographics are not available through Surfe. BYOK mode: $0, you pay providers directly at their rates. Managed credits: Starter $0.10/cr, Growth $0.09/cr, Scale $0.08/cr.
Bring your own API keys
Surfe offers partial BYOK for 12 providers, but you still pay per-seat fees on top ($29-79/user/mo). With Deepline, connect your own Hunter, Apollo, or Crustdata keys and pay providers directly at their rates. No markup, no per-seat fee, no credit limits.
- ✓Use Claude Code, Cursor, or Codex for GTM automation
- ✓Need AI agents to run enrichment autonomously
- ✓Want company data, firmographics, and technographics (not just email/phone)
- ✓Already have your own API keys for enrichment providers
- ✓Want to avoid per-seat fees that scale with team size
- ✓Want data in your own PostgreSQL database
- ✓Spend most of your day browsing LinkedIn profiles
- ✓Need one-click CRM sync from LinkedIn to Salesforce or HubSpot
- ✓Want LinkedIn message logging to your CRM automatically
- ✓Are a non-technical SDR who prefers a browser-based workflow
- ✓Need unlimited email validation on every plan
Side-by-side
Feature comparison
| Feature | Deepline | Surfe |
|---|---|---|
| Interface | CLI + API (agent-native) | Chrome extension (LinkedIn overlay) |
| LinkedIn CRM sync | No native LinkedIn integration | One-click sync to Salesforce, HubSpot, Pipedrive |
| AI agent automation | Full, agents run deepline enrich directly | None. Browser extension only. |
| Enrichment providers | 30+ providers with waterfall logic | 15+ providers in waterfall |
| Enrichment scope | Email, phone, company, firmographics, technographics | Email and phone only |
| Bring your own API keys | Yes, full BYOK with $0 platform fee | Partial (12 providers), still pay per-seat fees |
| Pricing model | BYOK free, or managed credits from $0.08/cr | $29-79/user/mo + credit limits (as of March 2026) |
| Per-seat fees | None | $29-79/user/mo depending on plan |
| Non-technical users | CLI required today | Yes, polished browser UX for sales reps |
| CRM integrations | Via API/webhooks | Native: Salesforce, HubSpot, Pipedrive, Copper |
| LinkedIn dependency | None | 100%, requires active LinkedIn session |
| Claude Code integration | Native skill with slash commands | No CLI or agent integration |
| Data ownership | PostgreSQL DB included, your data, your schema | Data syncs to your CRM |
| Email validation | Via provider lookups | Unlimited on all plans |
Key difference
The agent gap
Surfe is a Chrome extension. It requires a human sitting in front of LinkedIn in a browser. There is no CLI, no MCP server, and the API is gated with undisclosed pricing. AI coding agents cannot interact with Surfe at all.
Deepline is a CLI. An agent calls deepline enrich the same way it calls git or curl. Structured inputs, structured outputs, no browser required.
# An agent can do this in Claude Code: deepline enrich leads.csv --waterfall --providers hunter,prospeo,icypeas deepline enrich company.csv --providers crustdata,pdl --fields firmographics # Surfe has no CLI, no MCP server, no agent interface
Pricing
Per-seat fees add up fast
Surfe charges per user, per month. A 5-person team on Pro pays $295/mo (annual) or $395/mo (monthly), and each user gets only 1,000 email credits per year. Credits that go unused in a month do not roll over. As of March 2026, verify pricing on surfe.com.
Deepline has no per-seat fees. BYOK mode is free. Managed credits run $0.08–$0.10 per credit. No platform fee, no minimum spend, no annual contract. A 5-person team pays exactly the same as a 50-person team: nothing for the platform, and only for the lookups they actually run.
Plans
What you actually pay
Surfe charges per seat with credit caps. Deepline has no platform fee and no credit limits.
Results
Common questions
FAQ
Is Deepline really free?
With BYOK (Bring Your Own Key), Deepline is free. You pay providers directly. Or buy Deepline credits (from $0.08/cr at Scale) and we handle billing. No platform fee, no per-seat charge, no minimum spend.
How much does Surfe cost?
As of March 2026, Surfe charges $29-79/user/month (annual billing). The Essential plan ($29/user/mo) includes 150 email credits per year and 50 phone credits per year. The Pro plan ($59/user/mo) includes 1,000 email and 100 phone credits per year. Monthly billing is higher ($39 and $79 respectively). Credits refresh monthly with no rollover. Verify current pricing on their site.
Can AI agents use Surfe?
No. Surfe is a Chrome extension that requires an active LinkedIn browser session. There is no public CLI, and their API is gated with undisclosed pricing. AI coding agents like Claude Code, Codex, or Cursor cannot drive Surfe programmatically. Deepline is CLI-native, so agents call it the same way they call git or curl.
Does Surfe support bring-your-own API keys?
Partially. Surfe lets you connect keys for 12 providers (including Dropcontact, Hunter, Apollo, and ZoomInfo), but you still pay Surfe's per-seat fees on top. With Deepline, BYOK is the default with zero platform markup. You connect your own keys and pay providers directly.
What does Surfe do better than Deepline?
Surfe genuinely excels at LinkedIn-to-CRM workflows. The Chrome extension overlays directly on LinkedIn profiles, letting sales reps sync contacts to Salesforce, HubSpot, or Pipedrive with one click. It also logs LinkedIn messages to your CRM automatically. For individual SDRs who live in LinkedIn and want turnkey CRM sync without touching a terminal, Surfe is a strong choice. It has a 4.6/5 rating on G2 with 433+ reviews (source: g2.com/products/surfe/reviews), and email validation is unlimited on all plans.
How do credit limits compare?
Surfe's Pro plan includes 1,000 email credits and 100 phone credits per year per user, with monthly refresh and no rollover. A 5-person team on Pro gets 5,000 email lookups per year total. Deepline has no credit limits. With BYOK, you pay providers per lookup with no cap. With managed credits, you buy what you need.
Can I use Deepline if I'm not technical?
Deepline requires a terminal today. If your team browses LinkedIn and needs one-click CRM sync without any CLI interaction, Surfe is likely a better fit. If you have a GTM engineer or use AI coding agents like Claude Code, Deepline integrates naturally into developer workflows with far more enrichment depth.
Try Deepline in 30 seconds
Install the CLI and enrich your first contact. Free with your own API keys.
curl -s "https://code.deepline.com//api/v2/cli/install" | bash