Personal CRM Alternatives
Looking for an alternative to Dex, Clay (now Mesh), or another personal CRM? Here's a fair rundown of the main options and who each one actually fits.
Alternatives to Dex
Dex is built primarily around deal flow and warm introductions for investors and founders, with browser-based contact capture and a monthly subscription (roughly $12-34/mo). If you're not specifically managing investor relationships or deal flow, its pipeline-adjacent features can be more structure than you need.
The Vault is built for keeping the people already in your life close - friends, family, and colleagues, not just new professional connections - with real Apple support Dex doesn't prioritise, and a one-time pricing option instead of a required monthly seat.
Alternatives to Clay (now Mesh)
Clay rebranded to Mesh, and remains focused on automatically enriching contacts with public details like job changes, with a free tier then $10-20/mo. It's genuinely good at filling in the blanks on a contact without manual entry, but enrichment isn't the same as reminding you to actually reach out.
The Vault adds relationship health tracking on top - not just knowing what changed about someone, but knowing when you've gone quiet on them - plus a weekly digest that turns information into an actual nudge to act.
Other alternatives worth knowing about
Atrium takes an AI-agent-led approach, able to act on your contacts with less confirmation in the loop before a change is saved. Monica is free, open-source, and self-hostable, built around journaling and full data control if you're willing to run your own server. See our full guide to the best personal CRM tools for a complete breakdown of each.
How The Vault fits
Built for who's already in your life
Friends, family, and colleagues - not just deal flow or new professional connections.
Real Apple support
Two-way Apple Calendar sync and iPhone Contacts import, where most alternatives are Google-first.
Enrichment plus a reason to act
Relationship health and a weekly digest turn information into an actual nudge to reach out.
Frequently asked
What's the best alternative to Dex?
It depends on what you're optimising for. If you want something built for keeping up with the people already in your life rather than deal flow specifically, with real Apple support and a one-time pricing option, The Vault is built for that - see the full comparison.
Is Clay still around, or did it change names?
Clay rebranded to Mesh. It's the same underlying product, still focused on automatic contact enrichment - see the full comparison of The Vault vs Mesh.
See how The Vault compares for yourself
Free during early access, invite-only. Request an invite and try it against whatever you're using now.