What does ZeroBounce do?
- Returns one of seven statuses per address: valid, invalid, catch-all, unknown, spamtrap, abuse or do_not_mail, with sub-statuses such as role_based_catch_all and mx_forward under do_not_mail.
- Marks catch-all domains it has vetted as accept_all and returns them as valid, because its long-term sending data shows a bounce rate under 2% for that list.
- Scores addresses with AI Scoring for 1 extra credit each, which helps rank catch-all and unknown rows rather than discarding them.
- Charges 1 credit per validation in bulk or via the real-time API, nothing for unknown results or duplicates, and 20 credits per successful Email Finder query.
- Cleans 100,000 addresses in about 45 minutes (vendor figure) and deletes uploaded data after 30 days.
- Bundles warm-up, inbox placement tests, blacklist and DMARC monitoring into its ZeroBounce ONE subscription.
Where does ZeroBounce fit in a GTM engineering stack?
ZeroBounce is the verification gate in a GTM engineering stack: it checks every email the Clay waterfall found before the contact reaches the sequencer, and separates catch-alls for different handling.
- 1Clay's email waterfall (for example Prospeo, then Findymail, then LeadMagic) returns one work email per contact
- 2Validate Email with ZeroBounce returns a status; invalid, spamtrap and abuse rows are dropped
- 3Valid and accept_all rows go to the main Smartlead or Instantly campaign
- 4Catch-all and unknown rows are AI-scored and only high scores go to a smaller, separate campaign
See how every layer connects in Clay integrations: how the GTM engineering stack fits together.
How do you use ZeroBounce?
ZeroBounce's official walkthrough, from the ZeroBounce YouTube channel.
How much does ZeroBounce cost?
Prices as shown on ZeroBounce's pricing page on 17 October 2026 (USD). Free plan: Freemium at $0 a month: 100 validation credits that refill monthly (business or premium email domain required), 10 Email Finder credits, 1 inbox test, 1 email server test and 1 blacklist monitor.
Pay as you go: 2,000 credits
$39 ($0.0195 per credit)
One-time purchase
Minimum purchase. 5,000 credits cost $69 ($0.0138); 10,000 cost $129 ($0.0129).
Pay as you go: 25,000 to 50,000 credits
$274 for 25,000 ($0.01096); $499 for 50,000 ($0.00998)
One-time purchase
Pay as you go: 100,000 to 500,000 credits
$649 for 100,000 ($0.00649); $1,299 for 250,000 ($0.005196); $2,199 for 500,000 ($0.004398)
One-time purchase
Pay as you go: 1,000,000+ credits
$3,199 for 1,000,000 ($0.003199); $5,999 for 2,000,000; $13,499 for 5,000,000; $26,998 for 10,000,000
One-time purchase
ZeroBounce ONE subscribers get 15% off pay-as-you-go credits.
ZeroBounce ONE
$99/month, or $948/year billed annually
Monthly or annual (save 20%)
From 10,000 validation or scoring credits a month (enter your volume; over 1 million is contact sales), plus warm-up seeds, inbox placement tests, blacklist and DMARC monitors. Credits never expire while subscribed.
Tier prices are from the pricing page's pay-as-you-go table on 17 October 2026. The page conflicts on expiry: the Freemium and "included with all accounts" sections say credits never expire, while the FAQ says expiry rules may apply without an active ZeroBounce ONE subscription.
Who is ZeroBounce best for?
A good fit if you
- Clay users who want verification without another contract, since Clay's ZeroBounce action runs on Clay credits or your own account on every Clay plan.
- Teams that keep catch-all contacts and need to rank them, using AI Scoring and the accept_all status rather than a single risky bucket.
- EU-focused teams: ZeroBounce says data is transmitted, stored and processed only on EU servers, and EU users get a DPA at sign-up.
Look elsewhere if you
- Very high-volume list cleaning on a tight budget: 1,000,000 pay-as-you-go credits cost $3,199, against $449 at MillionVerifier.
- Buyers who need SOC 2 or ISO 27001 named on the vendor's GDPR page; it cites a DPO and monthly third-party security audits instead.
- Teams that want certainty on credit expiry without a subscription: the pricing FAQ says expiry rules may apply to non-subscribers, while other sections say credits never expire.
Does ZeroBounce integrate with Clay and your CRM?
- Clay
- Native Clay integration. Clay lists ZeroBounce as a Clay-built integration included on all plans, with one action, Validate Email with ZeroBounce, returning Email Validity Status and SMTP server data. It runs on Clay credits or your own ZeroBounce account. (source)
- Integrations
- Zapier (2,000+ apps), a REST API with SDK wrappers and multiple API keys per account, and an MCP server; Clay has a Clay-built ZeroBounce action. (source)
- GDPR
- ZeroBounce says it is fully compliant with GDPR's requirements for a data processor, hosts its servers in the EU and transmits, stores and processes data only on EU servers. EU users receive a Data Processing Agreement at sign-up, it is registered with the EU-US Data Privacy Framework, and it cites a Data Protection Officer and monthly third-party security audits. Uploaded data is erased after 30 days. (source)
What are the best ZeroBounce alternatives?
Other deliverability tools that do the same job in a GTM engineering stack, with their own trade-offs.
ZoomInfo-owned email verification with five result codes, bulk and real-time checks, and Sync for automatic CRM list cleaning.
- Pricing
- $8 per 1,000 credits (one-time)
- Free trial
- Free test credits and a free list analysis; the pricing page does not state the number of credits.
Low-cost bulk and API email verification from Hungary, with catch-all checks included and credits that never expire.
- Pricing
- $39 for 10,000 credits (one-time)
- Free trial
- None listed
Which GTM stacks use ZeroBounce?
- Clay-centred enrichment stackRole: Validates every found email inside Clay before export (the ZeroBounce action is on all Clay plans) and returns validity status.
- Enterprise outbound stackRole: Validates emails inside Clay (all plans) before they reach a rep's sequence, protecting the reps' own mailboxes.
ZeroBounce FAQs
Does ZeroBounce charge for catch-all results?
ZeroBounce charges 1 credit for a catch-all result like any other definitive status. It does not charge for unknown results or for duplicates removed from your list. Scoring a catch-all with AI Scoring costs 1 more credit.
What is the difference between accept_all and catch-all in ZeroBounce?
Both come from servers that accept any recipient. accept_all is a sub-status of valid, used for domains on ZeroBounce's vetted list whose long-term bounce rate is under 2%. catch-all means the domain is not on that list, so deliverability cannot be confirmed without sending.
Can I use ZeroBounce inside Clay without my own account?
Yes. Clay's ZeroBounce integration runs on Clay credits or on your own connected ZeroBounce account, and it is included on all Clay plans. Bringing your own account means verifications draw on your ZeroBounce credits instead.
Should I verify emails if my email finder already verifies them?
Many finders verify at lookup time, but a separate check just before sending catches addresses that went stale between enrichment and send, and gives one consistent status across providers in a waterfall. ZeroBounce's real-time API costs 1 credit per address.
How long does ZeroBounce keep uploaded lists?
ZeroBounce says it erases uploaded data 30 days after upload, or sooner if you delete it. It processes and stores data on servers located in the EU.
Compare and learn
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Sources
Checked on 17 October 2026.
Pricing, integrations and data policies are checked against ZeroBounce's own pages. How we research tools.