# Via vs. Clay

## Comparison

Clay tells you about them. Via tells you who can get you in.

Clay is a data enrichment and workflow tool that makes your outbound smarter. Via is a [relationship intelligence](/content/resources/answers/what-is-relationship-intelligence/index.html) tool that makes your outbound warm. Different problems — and they work well together.

## What each tool does.

A direct comparison of capabilities. These tools solve different problems — the overlap is small and the combination is powerful. Enrichment gets you better data. But B2B buyers are 5x more likely to engage when someone else introduces them, per [LinkedIn research via OpenView Partners](https://labs.openviewpartners.com/b2b-sales-stats) — and that's what Via surfaces.

| Capability | Via | Clay |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Data & enrichment |||
| Contact & company firmographic data | ✓Included with contacts | ✓Core strength, 75+ sources |
| On-demand data enrichment workflows | —Not the core use case | ✓Core strength |
| Intent & technographic signals | —Not a focus | ✓Yes, via enrichment |
| Build prospect lists from criteria | ✓Through the lens of pathfinding | ✓Core strength |
| Warm access & pathfinding |||
| Find who in your network knows a target buyer | ✓Core feature | —Not available |
| Surface second-degree [warm paths](/content/resources/answers/what-is-a-warm-path/index.html) | ✓Across full team network | —Not available |
| Map your full orbit: advisors, investors, customers | ✓Full orbit mapped | —Enriches contacts you provide |
| Rank intro paths by [relationship strength](/content/resources/answers/how-via-knows-who-knows-whom/index.html) | ✓Ranked with context | —Not available |
| Distinguish real relationships from surface connections | ✓Grounded in work history | —Not a focus |
| Outbound execution |||
| Proactive alerts when new warm paths appear | ✓Job changes, new connections, engagement | —Not available |
| Multi-step workflow automation | —Not the core use case | ✓Core strength |
| Integrate into outreach sequences | ✓Via MCP + existing tools | ✓Native integrations |
| CRM integration | ✓Via MCP | ✓Yes |

## Better together

### Why teams add Via to their Clay stack.

Clay makes your outbound smarter. Via makes it warm. Here's what changes when you have both.

01

Clay tells you about them. Via tells you who can get you in.

Clay enriches every detail about a prospect — title, company, tech stack, funding. Via answers a different question: who in your orbit has a real relationship with this person? One makes your message better. The other gets you in the room.

02

Enriched data without access is still cold outreach.

You can have perfect firmographic data, spot-on timing signals, and a beautifully personalized message. If the buyer doesn't know you, it's still a stranger in their inbox. Via finds the [warm intro](/content/resources/answers/what-is-a-warm-intro/index.html) that bypasses the filter entirely.

03

Via finds paths Clay can't see.

Second-degree relationships, advisor networks, investor connections, [job-change warm entries](/content/resources/blog/4-types-of-warm-intros/index.html) — these paths exist in your team's real relationships, not in a data enrichment layer. Clay can't surface what it doesn't have access to. Via maps the relationships that no database contains.

04

Together = the gold standard.

Clay gives you the data to prioritize the right accounts at the right time. Via gives you the path in. That's the [gold standard of warm outbound](/content/resources/blog/warm-outbound-spectrum/index.html): right person, right timing, right path in — with a trusted introduction.

## Common questions

### What teams ask when comparing the two.

#### Objection

"We already use Clay for outbound."

#### Response

Clay is great for building enriched prospect lists and automating research workflows. Via adds the layer Clay can't provide: who in your team's orbit has a real relationship with those prospects. Clay tells you about them. Via tells you who can get you in front of them.

#### Objection

"Clay has 75+ data sources — isn't that enough?"

#### Response

Clay enriches who someone is — title, company, tech stack, funding, intent signals. Via shows who can get you in front of them — real relationships grounded in shared work history and trust. Different data, different purpose. One makes your outreach smarter. The other makes it warm.

#### Objection

"Our Clay workflows already personalize outreach."

#### Response

Personalized cold outreach is still cold. No matter how well you research someone, you're still a stranger in their inbox. Via finds the path where someone the buyer trusts puts you in front of them. That's a [different level on the spectrum](/content/resources/blog/warm-outbound-spectrum/index.html) entirely.

#### Objection

"We don't need another tool in our stack."

#### Response

Via isn't replacing Clay — it's adding warm access on top of your existing data. Via integrates with your CRM and outreach tools, including Clay. The warm paths show up where you're already working.

## Get started

### See who can get you in.

You already have the data. Via shows you the warm paths to any target buyer.