InboxPolicy vs Clearout

By Aria Pramesi, founder of InboxPolicy · Updated July 9, 2026

Clearout is a dashboard-first suite: email verifier, finder, and prospecting tools, with an AI Verdict score, a bounce-rate guarantee on opt-in lists, and pay-as-you-go credits from $5.00/1k. InboxPolicy is narrower and API-first: one call returns a send/hold/avoid decision with SMTP evidence, priced at $0.01/call via x402 or $3.16-$5.00/1k prepaid, with an MCP server for agents. Neither tool claims to solve catch-all with certainty — both flag it and hand you a caution, not a guarantee.

What does each tool return: an AI Verdict or a send decision?

Clearout runs 20+ checks per address (syntax, MX, SMTP, disposable/role/free detection, spam-trap signals) and returns a status plus an AI Verdict: a machine-learning classification of accept, reject, or review, alongside a safe-to-send flag. It's a scored verdict layered on top of the raw status fields.

InboxPolicy checks syntax, MX, and live SMTP against its own verification engine, then a deliverability policy turns that evidence into one of five actions: send, send_with_caution, review, retry_later, or avoid, along with a confidence score and the SMTP evidence behind the call. Both tools try to save you from writing your own decision logic; Clearout does it with a verdict score, InboxPolicy with an explicit action field.

When does Clearout win?

Clearout is a broader, more mature suite than a single verification endpoint. Specific fits:

• You want email verification bundled with an email finder, LinkedIn prospecting extension, and real-time form-validation widget (Form Guard) in one account.
• You're cleaning large opt-in lists and want Clearout's bounce-rate guarantee: addresses it classifies "Guaranteed Deliverable" are covered by a claim that bounce rate stays under 3%, provided you send within 24 hours of verification and the list was acquired via opt-in, not purchased or rented.
• You want 100 free credits with no card to test the tool before paying.
• You're verifying millions of addresses a month: Clearout's largest subscription tier (roughly $5,500/mo for 5,000,000 credits, about $1.10/1k) undercuts InboxPolicy's prepaid packs at extreme volume.

When does InboxPolicy win?

InboxPolicy is built for agents and applications deciding whether to send a specific email right now, not for dashboard-driven list cleanup. It ships an MCP server exposing decide_send, verify_email, batch, and usage tools.

The REST API supports idempotency keys, per-item batch results, async batches up to 50,000 emails (5,000 via keyless x402), and signed completion webhooks. Agents can pay per call with no account or API key: a keyless request returns HTTP 402 with machine-readable payment requirements, the agent pays $0.01 USDC on Base via a PAYMENT-SIGNATURE header, and gets back a decision plus an on-chain settlement receipt. Clearout has no keyless or agent-native payment path — every call requires an account and an API key.

How do InboxPolicy and Clearout prices compare?

As of July 2026, Clearout's pay-as-you-go credits run $7.00/1k at 3,000 credits ($21), $5.80/1k at 10,000 ($58), and $5.00/1k at 30,000 ($150). Subscriptions start at $23/mo for 3,000 credits ($7.67/1k) and $58/mo for 10,000 ($5.80/1k), scaling down to roughly $1.10/1k at Clearout's largest published tier (~$5,500/mo for 5,000,000 credits). New accounts get 100 free credits, no card required. One quirk: Clearout doesn't charge a credit for an unknown/not-found result, only for verified valid, invalid, or catch-all outcomes.

InboxPolicy charges $0.01 per fresh verification pay-per-call via x402 (equivalent to $10/1k, more than any Clearout tier), or through prepaid credit packs: Starter $5 for 1,000 credits ($5.00/1k), Builder $19 for 5,000 ($3.80/1k), Growth $79 for 25,000 ($3.16/1k). At low and mid volume, InboxPolicy's prepaid packs undercut Clearout's equivalent tiers; at very high bulk volume, Clearout's largest subscription tier is cheaper. There is no free tier, deliberately: free tiers attract list-cleaning abuse. Cache re-verification within 72 hours (from_cache), malformed-email rejection before SMTP, and idempotent retries on the same key are always free.

How does each tool handle catch-all and risky addresses?

Background: our catch-all email verifier guide covers why these addresses cannot be confirmed by SMTP alone.

Roughly 30-40% of B2B addresses sit on catch-all domains, where a mail server accepts any address without confirming a real mailbox exists. Clearout advertises 99.73% accuracy across its 20+ checks, but its own documentation is honest that catch-all addresses get marked "risky" under the AI Verdict rather than confirmed safe, and it recommends sending to them gradually and with caution rather than guaranteeing deliverability.

InboxPolicy takes the same structural position by policy: unknown or catch-all results map to the action review (or send_with_caution under an aggressive policy setting), never guessed safe. Neither tool can resolve a catch-all mailbox's existence through SMTP alone; the difference is mostly in how each surfaces that uncertainty, a verdict flag versus an explicit action.

Related comparisons and resources

See the full comparison hub for every InboxPolicy matchup, including InboxPolicy vs ZeroBounce and InboxPolicy vs MillionVerifier. Full credit-pack breakdowns live on the pricing page, and the complete REST/MCP reference is in the API docs.

Frequently asked questions