Here’s the short version: choose PhantomBuster for LinkedIn-first prospecting workflows and Lobstr.io for broad web data extraction. Below, we compare setup, workflows, integrations, and pricing to help you decide which platform fits your sales stack.
Today, more than 42% of sales and marketing leaders struggle with incomplete or outdated lead data, directly impacting pipeline quality and conversion rates. Accurate lead data means more qualified outreach and higher reply rates.
Yet with a crowded market of tools promising clean datasets and enrichment, choosing the right fit is harder than ever. Among the contenders, PhantomBuster and Lobstr.io stand out as trusted platforms for automating data sourcing and lead management. In this guide, we’ll break down their automation depth, CRM integrations, and workflow fit to help you decide which one belongs in your sales stack.
PhantomBuster vs. Lobstr.io quick overview
| Category | PhantomBuster | Lobstr.io |
|---|---|---|
| Primary use case | Sales prospecting automation platform with a LinkedIn-first focus. Built for outbound teams that need safe, repeatable LinkedIn campaigns. | Web data extraction platform offering no-code automation for data collection across websites, marketplaces, and directories. Focuses more on data gathering than sales outreach. |
| Target audience | SDRs, BDRs, and sales teams who rely on LinkedIn for lead generation, enrichment, and outreach campaigns. | Businesses, analysts, and marketing teams requiring web data extraction for research and data collection. |
| Ease of use | Chrome extension lets non-technical reps launch core automations quickly; advanced multi-step workflows require a short ramp-up. | No-code drag-and-drop builder lowers barriers for non-technical users, but building and scaling more complex extraction workflows can still be challenging. |
| Key features | LinkedIn profile and Sales Navigator data extraction, automated connection requests with AI-personalized messages, social media lead enrichment workflows, CRM integration, AI-powered lead qualification | Library of ready-made extractors (they call them “scrapers”) for common sites, scheduled automations, bulk data extraction, export to Google Sheets, credit-based scaling |
| Pricing model | Shared workspace pricing ($56–$352/month, as of October 9, 2025) with all features included and a 14-day free trial. | Credit-based system (starting at $10/month, as of October 9, 2025) with free plan. Cost scales with volume, making it less predictable for heavy extraction needs. |
| G2 rating | 4.4/5 (104 reviews, accessed October 9, 2025) | 4.5/5 (4 reviews, accessed October 9, 2025) |
| Capterra rating | 4.5/5 (63 reviews, accessed October 9, 2025) | 5/5 (21 reviews, accessed October 9, 2025) |
What is PhantomBuster?
PhantomBuster is an end-to-end sales prospecting automation platform for building social workflows across lead generation, data extraction, qualification, and personalized outreach. The platform excels at LinkedIn automation while providing tools for managing workflows across multiple social networks and business platforms.
Core features and capabilities
PhantomBuster connects three key stages of prospecting: finding leads, enriching data, and engaging with personalized outreach.
Find: Build accurate lead lists from LinkedIn and beyond
Extract lead lists directly from Sales Navigator, LinkedIn posts, events, and company pages to ensure outbound teams always have fresh, accurate prospects. Automate profile visits and connection requests with built-in safety controls. Set daily action limits and personalize messages to avoid unsolicited mass outreach.
Go beyond LinkedIn by pulling contacts and company details from Google Maps, X (Twitter), Instagram, and online directories. High-volume data handling tasks can be automated to turn raw profiles into enriched, CRM-ready datasets for immediate outreach.
Enrich: Qualify contacts with AI-powered data enrichment
Chain together data extraction, enrichment, and outreach steps in custom workflows. Use batch processing and scheduling to keep pipelines full without manual intervention.
Engage: Send safe, personalized LinkedIn sequences
Push extracted data directly into CRMs like HubSpot or Salesforce, or export to Google Sheets and CSV for flexible use. Native connectors for HubSpot and Salesforce, plus hundreds more via Zapier and API, make it possible to align PhantomBuster with a wide range of sales and marketing stacks.
Beyond sales teams, even solo business owners are applying these capabilities. One Reddit user explained how PhantomBuster’s data extraction and Zapier integration allowed them to scale outreach campaigns without technical complexity.
Safety and compliance features
PhantomBuster ensures responsible automation through safety and compliance measures:
- Human-like automation patterns: Smart scheduling, action limits, and behavior settings mimic natural user activity. These controls minimize the risk of LinkedIn or social platform restrictions while still enabling scale.
- Data privacy by design: PhantomBuster is built to extract publicly available information you can access, with controls that help you align with GDPR and platform guidelines. See our Privacy Policy and Terms for details on data handling and retention.
- Data integrity checks: Automated cleaning, deduplication, and validation steps help maintain the accuracy and reliability of datasets, reducing compliance risks from outdated or duplicate records.
Who PhantomBuster is best for
PhantomBuster is best suited for frontline BDRs and SDRs who need a steady flow of LinkedIn prospects, as well as small business owners and agency founders who want to build targeted lead lists without heavy technical setups.
Pricing summary
PhantomBuster offers a 14-day free trial, and unlike many competitors, its features are not artificially gated by plan. Pricing simply scales by execution hours and slots:
| Plan | Pricing | Execution Time | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starter | $56/month | 20 h/month, five automation slots included | Solo reps or small teams who need to test LinkedIn data extraction in a controlled way. |
| Pro | $128/month | 80 h/month, 15 automation slots included | Growing sales teams managing mid-size databases and pulling thousands of leads monthly that require consistent enrichment and deduplication. |
| Team | $352/month | 300 h/month, 50 automation slots included | Designed for handling tens of thousands of records monthly, chaining data extraction with enrichment and CRM integrations. |
What is Lobstr.io?
Lobstr.io is a specialized web data extraction platform designed for businesses requiring data collection capabilities without technical expertise. It provides ready-made extractors (they call them “scrapers”) for 30+ sources, allowing users to extract data, schedule automations, and export results into formats like Google Sheets or CSV with minimal setup.
Core features and capabilities
Lobstr.io offers ready-made extractors and automation to collect data at scale:
- Pre-built templates for diverse sources: Comes with 30+ ready-to-use extractors spanning social media, e-commerce sites, job boards, and business directories. The drag-and-drop style setup means non-technical users can capture structured datasets without writing a single line of code.
- Flexible scheduling and bulk extraction: Supports daily, weekly, and custom schedules for automated runs. Multi-threading capabilities allow concurrent data extraction from multiple sources simultaneously. Automation scenarios handle data collection requirements without manual intervention.
- Data pipelines and export options: Collected data can be routed directly to Google Sheets, CSV, or external databases. Real-time delivery keeps datasets fresh, while API access lets teams connect Lobstr.io with internal dashboards or analytics workflows.
- Broad platform coverage: Goes beyond LinkedIn and social networks to cover Google Maps, review sites, e-commerce product listings, and more. Specialized extractors for different data types including business listings, social media profiles, and product information. Data filtering and processing capabilities ensure relevant and accurate data collection.
- Team collaboration at scale: Role-based controls and project sharing features let multiple team members run extractors, track progress, and reuse workflows. This makes it suitable for research teams or agencies managing multiple client datasets simultaneously.
Advanced automation and scalability
Lobstr.io supports scheduled, concurrent runs and can push data to Sheets, CSV, or an API for analysis:
- High-volume data processing: High-volume runs with concurrency controls for faster exports.
- Custom automation development: Professional services and custom automation development for specialized data collection requirements.
- Enterprise features: User management, data retention policies, and compliance features for enterprise customers.
- Technical support: Dedicated customer support team provides assistance with automation scenarios and technical optimization.
Who Lobstr.io is best for
Lobstr.io is best for research and analytics teams that need recurring, multi-site data collection (e.g., e-commerce, reviews, directories) without outreach workflows. It’s ideal for businesses that prioritize breadth of data sources over LinkedIn-specific prospecting automation.
Pricing summary
Lobstr.io offers a free trial which comes with 100 credits. Exports are unlimited from Starter onwards, and credits define how many results can be processed monthly:
| Plan | Pricing | Credits / Month | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starter | $10/month | 10,000 credits | Freelancers or small teams needing lightweight extraction workflows (e.g., business directories, small social data pulls) with unlimited result exports. |
| Basic | $25/month | 30,000 credits | Growing businesses running recurring extractions across multiple platforms (e.g., e-commerce listings, local business data, social profiles). |
| Growth | $50/month | 70,000 credits | Teams handling higher-volume extraction tasks, automating multi-site data collection, and pushing structured outputs directly into Sheets or CRMs. |
Feature-by-feature analysis of PhantomBuster vs. Lobstr.io
These platforms serve different aspects of automation and data collection. PhantomBuster specializes in social media prospecting automation with workflow management, while Lobstr.io focuses on web data extraction with ready-made tools and no-code accessibility.
Web data extraction capabilities and platform coverage
The ability to extract data from various sources determines the scope of data collection operations.
PhantomBuster: PhantomBuster excels for LinkedIn-centric workflows (events, company followers, post engagers) and outputs outreach-ready data with built-in deduplication and enrichment. Its data comes out already structured for outreach. It’s not designed to extract data from arbitrary web pages at scale.
Lobstr.io: Lobstr is built for breadth. The ready-made extractors (30+) are a time-saver when you want to capture product listings from Shopify stores, review sites, or pull structured company info across multiple directories. The flip side is that the data often needs more cleaning, as fields can be inconsistent across exports.
Winner: Lobstr.io for broad site coverage. PhantomBuster produces cleaner, outreach-ready LinkedIn datasets with less post-processing.
Automation workflows and process management
Automation capabilities determine how effectively platforms can handle data processing and workflow automation.
PhantomBuster: Build sequences that find leads, enrich data, and send personalized LinkedIn messages automatically. You can set it to extract profiles, enrich them, and auto-trigger personalized LinkedIn messages in one flow. Built-in safety mechanisms and account protection features ensure sustainable automation practices. Teams can see exactly how many profiles were extracted, enriched, and messaged in one campaign run.
Lobstr.io: It is more of a data pipeline builder. The scheduling, multi-threading, and concurrency are great if your task is “extract 10,000 product listings every night and dump them into a sheet.” But that’s where it stops. You still need to stitch together other tools (Zapier, CRMs, sequencing tools) to actually act on the data.
Winner: PhantomBuster for sales workflows. It connects finding leads, enriching data, and sending safe, personalized LinkedIn sequences in one pipeline.
Data export and integration options
Integration capabilities determine how effectively platforms connect with existing business systems and data management workflows.
PhantomBuster: PhantomBuster syncs directly to HubSpot and Salesforce, pushes lists to Google Sheets, and exposes an API for custom handoffs (e.g., webhooks to your data warehouse). Export data to CSV files and direct database connections for flexible data management.
Lobstr.io: Data export options including Google Sheets, CSV files, and external databases with automated formatting. API access enables integration with business systems and workflow automation platforms. Focus on data delivery rather than business system integration and process automation.
Winner: PhantomBuster. Integration capabilities and API access provide superior flexibility for connecting with diverse business systems and workflows.
User experience and accessibility for different skill levels
User experience determines adoption rates and effectiveness for teams with varying technical expertise levels.
PhantomBuster: User-friendly interface with Chrome extension for easy access to automation features. Learning curve for advanced workflows but intuitive setup for basic tasks. Documentation and help guides are excellent, and there’s a lot of community knowledge (Reddit, YouTube tutorials) that makes it easier to ramp up.
Lobstr.io: No-code platform designed specifically for users without technical expertise with point-and-click simplicity. Ready-made automation tools enable immediate data collection without setup or configuration requirements. But the simplicity comes at a cost: there’s little room for nuanced control. If you want to customize flows or add enrichment steps, Lobstr feels limiting, and you end up pushing data into external tools anyway.
Winner: PhantomBuster for non-technical SDRs running LinkedIn outreach. For general site extraction by non-technical users, Lobstr is also straightforward.
Pricing and value
Budget predictability matters for growing teams.
PhantomBuster: Capacity-based pricing with a 14-day full-feature trial; costs scale with execution hours and slots, not features, which keeps budgeting straightforward for teams ramping usage.
Lobstr.io: Low entry pricing via credits (free up to 100 credits; paid plans from $10/month as of October 9, 2025), great for light extractions. But once data volumes climb, credit burn can spike and you’re managing quotas more actively.
Winner: PhantomBuster. Lobstr.io is inexpensive to test research extractions, but PhantomBuster’s pricing is more predictable for ongoing LinkedIn-led prospecting and outreach at team scale.
Pros and cons of PhantomBuster vs. Lobstr.io
PhantomBuster
PhantomBuster connects LinkedIn prospecting, enrichment, and outreach in one place, and syncs to HubSpot and Salesforce.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Automation workflows across multiple social media platforms | Limited web data extraction beyond social media and business networks |
| Integration capabilities with CRM systems and business tools | Learning curve for complex automation workflows and advanced features |
| Chrome extension provides easy access to automation tools and data extraction | Monthly execution time limits based on pricing plans |
| Built-in safety mechanisms protect accounts from platform restrictions | Focus on social media rather than website data extraction |
| Shared workspace pricing scales efficiently with team growth | Requires setup and configuration for optimal automation performance |
| 14-day free trial available to test automation capabilities |
Lobstr.io
Lobstr.io provides specialized web data extraction with no-code accessibility and ready-made automation tools for efficient data collection.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| No-code platform accessible to users without technical expertise | Limited automation workflows beyond data extraction and export |
| Ready-made extractors for 30+ platforms enable immediate data collection | Credit-based pricing can become expensive for high-volume operations |
| Web data extraction capabilities across diverse website types | Focus on data collection rather than business automation |
| Scheduled automation and multi-threading for efficient data processing | Limited integration capabilities compared to automation platforms |
| Export data to Google Sheets and multiple formats with automated processing | Simple workflow automation may not meet complex business requirements |
| Free plan available for testing web data extraction capabilities |
Use case scenarios for PhantomBuster vs. Lobstr.io
Scenario 1: LinkedIn prospecting and social media automation
The challenge: Automate LinkedIn outreach campaigns for 500+ prospects monthly while extracting data from multiple social media platforms for lead generation.
PhantomBuster approach: Use specialized LinkedIn automation workflows to extract data from LinkedIn and Sales Navigator, automate connection requests with personalized messages, and create follow-up sequences. Use daily limits and customize messages by segment to avoid unsolicited outreach. Build workflows that combine LinkedIn automation with data extraction from other social media platforms for complete prospect research.
The lift comes from multi-step, scheduled follow-ups that still read as human. It also lets you add context from Instagram or X (Twitter), so by outreach time, your team has complete, sales-ready profiles.
Lobstr.io approach: Extract basic data from LinkedIn and other social media platforms using ready-made extractors, but rely on manual processes for outreach automation and relationship building. Focus on data collection rather than social media automation workflows.
Winner: PhantomBuster. Specialized social media automation capabilities and workflow management provide superior functionality for LinkedIn prospecting and multi-platform automation. Lobstr.io is reliable for raw data pulls, but for sales teams who live in LinkedIn, PhantomBuster turns that data into real conversations.
Scenario 2: Large-scale web data extraction for market research
The challenge: Extract data from 20+ websites and platforms for competitive analysis and market research requiring fresh data and automated processing.
PhantomBuster approach: Extract data from social media platforms and business directories with automation workflows. It handles social-first datasets very well, including extracting LinkedIn company followers, event attendees, or post engagers. For market research limited to social signals or business directories, it works smoothly. But for non-social datasets (e.g., product specs across multiple retail sites), PhantomBuster wasn’t the right fit. It doesn’t offer the breadth of extractors to cover that landscape.
Lobstr.io approach: Use web data extraction capabilities with ready-made extractors for 30+ platforms including e-commerce sites, business directories, and professional networks. Automated scheduling ensures systematic data collection with fresh data delivery and processing. The tradeoff, though, is that the exports often need additional cleaning before they’re usable in analysis.
Winner: Lobstr.io. Web data extraction capabilities and ready-made automation tools provide superior functionality for large-scale data collection across diverse platforms.
Scenario 3: E-commerce data collection and competitive analysis
The challenge: Monitor competitor pricing, product information, and customer reviews across multiple e-commerce platforms with automated data collection and analysis.
PhantomBuster approach: Limited e-commerce extraction capabilities with focus on social media and business platforms rather than product and pricing data collection from e-commerce websites.
Lobstr.io approach: Specialized e-commerce extractors collect product information, pricing data, and customer reviews from multiple platforms. Automated data processing and export to Google Sheets enable immediate analysis and competitive intelligence gathering.
Winner: Lobstr.io. For retail and e-commerce intelligence, Lobstr is far ahead. The ready-made extractors plus automated scheduling make it effective for tracking fast-changing data like prices or reviews. PhantomBuster isn’t designed for deep e-commerce product and pricing collection.
Expert opinions and user reviews on PhantomBuster vs. Lobstr.io
PhantomBuster user feedback
One verified user in Venture Capital & Private Equity on G2 reports saving hours weekly on LinkedIn tasks: “Every week, a set of phantoms runs automatically, and all I need to do is quickly scan through the results.”
Rick H., Director of Sales on Capterra, shares: “I haven’t found a single data extraction tool that does all things on all platforms so you may need several different tools to do the research you need. But, what Phantombusters does, it does well. Building your own is more time consuming but you know who is ending up on your list.”
Lobstr.io user feedback
“I am able to extract simple information from the most visited sites without typing a word of code. This is great for a basic and speedy data gathering for personal use and for one time basis data requirements. Lobstr is not very effective for highly complex websites or for when there is a need to fine-tune data gathering. I find it difficult to change what pre-built scrapers do to be more flexible to allow me to target the particular elements that I require.” Isabel W., Technical Support Agent, Consumer Electronics on G2
“Lobstr is an absolute game-changer. The ease of use, speed, and precision with which it pulls tweets is simply outstanding. The platform saves me hours every week and helps me focus on what really matters, analyzing content instead of collecting it. The interface is clean, responsive, and feels built by people who really understand users’ needs. I especially love the advanced filtering options and real-time responsiveness.” Idan, CEO in Israel, on Capterra
Sentiment summary: Most reviews we referenced highlight ease of use for LinkedIn workflows; Lobstr reviews emphasize speed on multi-site data extraction.
Final verdict on PhantomBuster vs. Lobstr.io
Both platforms serve different aspects of automation and data collection. PhantomBuster is built as a LinkedIn-centric automation engine that converts social data into structured outreach campaigns, while Lobstr.io is a broad web data extraction platform designed for collecting data at scale across e-commerce sites, directories, and marketplaces.
Choose PhantomBuster if you:
- Live on LinkedIn and need a purpose-built automation tool for prospecting and outreach
- Want fast setup via a Chrome extension and simple workflows that scale as your team grows
- Need built-in safety controls like human-like scheduling, daily action limits, and smart sequencing
- Care about affordable pricing that works for solo operators, startups, and mid-sized sales teams
Choose Lobstr.io if you:
- Run market research or competitive analysis projects across 30+ platforms
- Need ready-made extractors for e-commerce sites, review platforms, and directories
- Prefer a no-code, point-and-click interface that’s easy for non-technical users
- Run scheduled, high-volume extractions with concurrency
- Operate research teams that need multi-site web data extraction
Sales teams chasing immediate ROI from LinkedIn and social prospecting will find PhantomBuster the more practical, cost-effective, and scalable choice. Lobstr.io shines for research-driven teams that need breadth of coverage across websites, but when the goal is turning extracted data into pipeline-ready conversations, PhantomBuster delivers the stronger outcome.
Try PhantomBuster’s LinkedIn prospecting automation free for 14 days and build your first outreach-ready list today.
Frequently asked questions about PhantomBuster vs. Lobstr.io
Which platform provides better web data extraction capabilities across different website types?
Lobstr.io offers superior web data extraction capabilities with ready-made extractors for 30+ platforms including e-commerce sites, business directories, and social media networks. PhantomBuster focuses primarily on social media platforms and professional networks rather than website data extraction across diverse data sources.
Can I automate social media workflows and outreach campaigns with these platforms?
PhantomBuster provides social media automation including LinkedIn outreach, connection requests, and multi-platform workflows. Lobstr.io focuses on data extraction from social media platforms but lacks automation capabilities for outreach and relationship building workflows.
Which tool offers better accessibility for users without technical expertise?
For social prospecting and LinkedIn outreach, PhantomBuster is easier for SDRs. For broad site data collection, Lobstr.io‘s templates are simpler. Both platforms offer user-friendly interfaces, but PhantomBuster requires more configuration for optimal automation performance.
How do the pricing models compare for teams with varying data collection needs?
PhantomBuster uses shared workspace pricing with predictable monthly costs that scale efficiently with team growth. Lobstr.io uses credit-based pricing that varies by data collection volume and complexity, providing cost efficiency for specialized extraction needs but potentially higher costs for large-scale operations.
Which platform provides better integration capabilities with existing business systems?
PhantomBuster offers more integration capabilities with native CRM connections, API access, and workflow automation that connects with diverse business systems. Lobstr.io provides data export options and basic integrations focused on data delivery rather than business process automation.
Do these platforms comply with data privacy regulations and website terms of service?
Both platforms are designed for extracting publicly available data. Your compliance depends on how you use them. Review each platform’s policies and the terms of the sites you target. PhantomBuster includes built-in safety mechanisms for social media automation, while Lobstr.io provides compliance features for web data extraction operations.
