As a reviewer focused on social media management tools, I look for platforms that balance powerful features with ease of use. Having reviewed the public presentations of Captain Data and Lately.ai extensively, I can help you understand which tool fits your specific workflow—and where a more streamlined alternative like PostFlow might be a better fit for creators who prioritize fast content creation.

Emilia Morosini, Chief Content Strategist at PostFlow

Captain Data

  • Platform: B2B data APIs
  • Best For: Sales intelligence and prospecting
  • Strength: Real-time intent signals
  • Users: 500 users

Starting at €99.98/month

Lately.ai

  • Platform: Social media (multi-channel)
  • Best For: Content repurposing and management
  • Strength: Neuroscience-driven personalization
  • Users: 1 user

Starting at $14/month

Looking for a simpler alternative? Try PostFlow for fast LinkedIn post generation. Try out now

At a Glance

Core Functionality

Feature Captain Data Lately.ai
B2B Data Enrichment Buyers Profile, People Profile, Company Profile APIs for enriching people and companies Not applicable; focuses on content
Intent and Signals Data Signals API for career, social, and review signals; real-time intent monitoring Predictive modeling for content performance, but not B2B intent
AI Content Repurposing Not supported; data-focused Repurposes longform text, audio, video into social posts using neuroscience AI
Social Media Scheduling Engagement API for messaging workflows, but no full scheduling AI-powered scheduling and full social calendar management
Multi-Source Data Extraction Unified outputs from multiple sources; high concurrency up to 40 requests/second Integrates with analytics sources for Voice Models

Platform Support & Integrations

Feature Captain Data Lately.ai
API Access Unified APIs for people, companies, signals; scalable for AI products API not emphasized; focuses on UI for content
Social Channel Support Not applicable Channel-specific formatting for major networks; up to unlimited in Enterprise
Third-Party Integrations Designed for integration into SaaS/AI; compliance with SOC 2 and GDPR Hootsuite, HubSpot, Sprinklr, Salesforce, Grammarly
Employee Advocacy Not supported Tools for controlled, compliant employee sharing
Multi-Language Support Not specified Support for multiple languages and regional dialects

Automation & Scalability

Feature Captain Data Lately.ai
Real-Time Processing Real-time APIs with high concurrency; smart limits for compliance Predictive modeling, but not real-time data extraction
Workflow Automation Automation for prospecting, enrichment, and engagement workflows 100% automation of social workflows in Enterprise; AI scheduling
Scalable Exports Exports for millions of records Analytics exports, but not data-scale
Governance & Compliance SOC 2 Type II, GDPR compliant Multi-account governance for agencies and enterprises
Performance Analytics Not emphasized; data-focused Performance analytics with predictive modeling

User Experience & Support

Feature Captain Data Lately.ai
Technical Integration Requires engineering for API setup UI-driven for non-technical users
Brand Voice Customization Not applicable Voice Models trained on brand analytics
Support Levels Bronze to Titanium with custom SLAs White Glove VIP in Enterprise
Learning Curve High for non-technical users Complex interface for simple needs
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Pricing Comparison

Captain Data starts at €99.98/month with credit-based pricing for data operations, ideal for technical teams, while Lately.ai starts at $14/month (annual) for content repurposing, offering better affordability for marketing users. Captain Data's model suits scalable API usage, but can be unpredictable; Lately.ai provides clear tiers with annual discounts.

Captain Data

Bronze Enrichment Example

€99.98/month

Small teams starting with enrichment

  • Approximately 2,500 credits per month for enrichment and collection
  • Most operations at 1 credit per record
  • Real-time API automations
  • Access to all data types
  • Annual billing discount applied in example estimate

Titanium Intent Monitoring Example

Custom (example €1.49 per 1,000 credits)

Large-scale intent tracking

  • Intent monitoring for entities such as companies and people
  • Average of 5 credits per entity per month for comprehensive monitoring
  • Discounted rate of €1.49 per 1,000 credits in example scenario
  • Designed for large-scale tracking of buying signals
  • Higher-tier support with custom SLAs and dedicated resources

Support Levels (Bronze to Titanium)

Custom

Varying support needs

  • Bronze: basic email support
  • Silver: priority email and chat support
  • Gold: 24/7 support across channels
  • Platinum: 24/7 priority Slack support with dedicated account manager
  • Diamond and Titanium: white-glove service and custom SLAs

Lately.ai

Starter (Annual)

$14/month

Solo creators starting out

  • Repurpose longform text, audio, and video into engaging social posts
  • Basic scheduling and analytics functionality
  • 1 Voice Model
  • 5 social channels
  • 1 user seat
  • Free trial available

Starter (Monthly)

$19/month

Solo creators preferring monthly billing

  • Repurpose longform text, audio, and video into engaging social posts
  • Basic scheduling and analytics functionality
  • 1 Voice Model
  • 5 social channels
  • 1 user seat
  • Free trial available

Growth (Annual)

$199/month

Small teams needing advanced scheduling

  • Everything in Starter
  • Full calendar plus AI scheduling
  • Performance analytics
  • Voice Model editing
  • RSS feed integration
  • 1 Voice Model
  • 5 social channels
  • 3 user seats

Growth (Monthly)

$239/month

Small teams on monthly billing

  • Everything in Starter
  • Full calendar plus AI scheduling
  • Performance analytics
  • Voice Model editing
  • RSS feed integration
  • 1 Voice Model
  • 25 social channels
  • 5 user seats

Enterprise (Annual)

Custom

Large organizations and agencies

  • Everything in Growth
  • 100% automation of social workflows
  • Multiple client account governance and key messaging controls
  • Regional dialect and foreign language adaptation
  • Employee advocacy functionality
  • Unlimited Voice Models
  • Unlimited social channels
  • Unlimited user seats
  • "White Glove" VIP customer service

Enterprise (Monthly)

Custom

Large organizations preferring monthly

  • Everything in Growth
  • 100% automation of social workflows
  • Multiple client account governance and key messaging controls
  • Regional dialect and foreign language adaptation
  • Employee advocacy functionality
  • Unlimited Voice Models
  • Unlimited social channels
  • Unlimited user seats
  • "White Glove" VIP customer service
Want simpler pricing? PostFlow offers straightforward plans focused on fast post creation. Try out now

Feature Deep Dive

Data Enrichment & Intent Signals

Captain Data

Strengths
  • Unified APIs for Buyers Profile, People Profile, Company Profile with firmographics, skills, funding
  • Buyer’s Ecosystem API maps connections and related entities
  • Signals API captures real-time career, social, review signals across web sources
  • Multi-source extraction with structured outputs; high concurrency for scale
  • Smart limits ensure compliance and safety in automation
Workflow

Query API for targets → Enrich with real-time data → Monitor signals → Export or integrate into sales tools

Lately.ai

Strengths
  • No direct data enrichment; focuses on content analytics integration
Limitations
  • Lacks B2B intent or profile data; not designed for sales intelligence

Captain Data dominates in B2B data enrichment and real-time signals, ideal for sales prospecting. Lately.ai does not compete here, as it prioritizes content over data. Choose Captain Data for data-driven workflows; Lately.ai for content augmentation.

Captain Data API enrichment features

Content Creation & Repurposing

Captain Data

Strengths
  • Engagement API supports messaging and content workflows, but not creation
Limitations
  • No AI content generation; focused on data, not creative tools
  • Not suitable for social post creation

Lately.ai

Strengths
  • Neuroscience-driven AI repurposes longform into dozens of optimized social posts
  • Brand-specific Voice Models learn tone from analytics; supports text, audio, video
  • Channel-specific formatting; multilingual adaptation
  • Predictive modeling for high-performing content
Workflow

Upload longform content → Train Voice Model → Generate posts → Edit and schedule via AI calendar

Lately.ai excels at AI-driven content repurposing for social media, turning blogs/podcasts into posts. Captain Data offers no content creation, focusing on data for engagement. Lately.ai wins for marketing content needs; integrate with Captain Data for data-enriched posts.

Lately.ai content repurposing dashboard
Lately.ai Voice Model training

Automation & Scheduling

Captain Data

Strengths
  • Automation for prospecting, enrichment, and engagement workflows via APIs
  • High scalability with concurrency; smart limits for safe large-scale ops
  • Engagement API for messaging and connection automation
Limitations
  • No social scheduling; API-driven, requires custom integration
  • Best for backend automation, not front-end calendars

Lately.ai

Strengths
  • AI-powered scheduling with full calendar management
  • 100% workflow automation in Enterprise; RSS integration
  • Employee advocacy for automated sharing
  • Predictive scheduling based on performance data
Limitations
  • UI-focused; less flexible for custom API automations

Captain Data provides robust API automation for data tasks, scalable for enterprises. Lately.ai offers user-friendly social scheduling and content automation. Captain Data for technical sales automation; Lately.ai for marketing scheduling.

Analytics & Reporting

Captain Data

Strengths
  • Real-time signals and ecosystem mapping for sales insights
  • Scalable dataset exports for custom reporting
Limitations
  • No built-in social analytics; relies on integrated tools
  • Data-focused, not performance predictive

Lately.ai

Strengths
  • Performance analytics with predictive modeling for content
  • Voice Model insights based on social engagement data
  • Multi-account governance reporting for enterprises
Limitations
  • Social-specific; no B2B sales metrics

Lately.ai provides strong social content analytics with predictions. Captain Data offers data signals for sales reporting. Use Lately.ai for content ROI; Captain Data for prospecting insights.

Captain Data signals API dashboard
Prefer a streamlined tool? PostFlow focuses purely on creating great LinkedIn content quickly. Try out now

Use Case Comparison

B2B Sales Prospecting

Captain Data 🏆

Excellent

Real-time intent data, enrichment APIs, and signals enable targeted prospecting and automation.

Best Plan: Bronze Enrichment (€99.98/month)

Score: 10/10

Lately.ai

Poor

No data enrichment; content-focused only.

Best Plan: Not suitable

Score: 1/10

Marketing Team Repurposing Content

Captain Data

Poor

Lacks content tools; data not directly applicable.

Best Plan: Not suitable

Score: 2/10

Lately.ai 🏆

Excellent

AI repurposes longform into social posts with Voice Models.

Best Plan: Growth ($199/month annual)

Score: 10/10

Building AI Products with B2B Data

Captain Data 🏆

Excellent

Unified real-time APIs plug into AI agents for sales intelligence.

Best Plan: Titanium Intent Monitoring (Custom)

Score: 10/10

Lately.ai

Fair

AI for content, but not B2B data integration.

Best Plan: Enterprise (Custom)

Score: 4/10

Social Media Agency Managing Clients

Captain Data

Poor

No agency governance or social tools.

Best Plan: Not suitable

Score: 2/10

Lately.ai 🏆

Excellent

Multi-account governance, unlimited channels/users in Enterprise.

Best Plan: Enterprise (Custom)

Score: 9/10

Revenue Ops Automating Prospecting

Captain Data 🏆

Excellent

Scalable workflows for enrichment and signals replace static DBs.

Best Plan: Bronze to Titanium

Score: 9/10

Lately.ai

Fair

Automation for social, integrable via HubSpot/Salesforce.

Best Plan: Growth ($199/month)

Score: 5/10

Running Employee Advocacy

Captain Data

Poor

No advocacy features.

Best Plan: Not suitable

Score: 1/10

Lately.ai 🏆

Excellent

Compliant tools for employee sharing in Enterprise.

Best Plan: Enterprise (Custom)

Score: 10/10

Growth Team Running Outbound

Captain Data 🏆

Excellent

Large-scale enrichment and engagement automation.

Best Plan: Titanium (Custom)

Score: 9/10

Lately.ai

Good

Content for outbound social, but no data.

Best Plan: Growth ($199/month)

Score: 6/10

B2B Content Marketing at Scale

Captain Data

Fair

Data for personalized content, but no creation.

Best Plan: Bronze (€99.98/month)

Score: 5/10

Lately.ai 🏆

Excellent

Repurposes blogs/webinars into multilingual social content.

Best Plan: Growth ($199/month annual)

Score: 10/10

Enterprise Multilingual Social Content

Captain Data

Poor

No social or language features.

Best Plan: Not suitable

Score: 2/10

Lately.ai 🏆

Excellent

Regional dialects and unlimited scaling.

Best Plan: Enterprise (Custom)

Score: 10/10

Integrating Data into Sales AI Agents

Captain Data 🏆

Excellent

Real-time APIs designed for AI products.

Best Plan: Custom Titanium

Score: 10/10

Lately.ai

Poor

AI for content only.

Best Plan: Not suitable

Score: 1/10

Small Team Social Management

Captain Data

Poor

Too technical and data-focused.

Best Plan: Not suitable

Score: 3/10

Lately.ai 🏆

Excellent

Affordable Starter for basic repurposing and scheduling.

Best Plan: Starter ($14/month annual)

Score: 9/10

Franchises Running Employee Programs

Captain Data

Fair

Data for targeting, but no programs.

Best Plan: Bronze (€99.98/month)

Score: 4/10

Lately.ai 🏆

Excellent

Advocacy tools for distributed orgs.

Best Plan: Enterprise (Custom)

Score: 9/10

Still deciding? PostFlow offers a simple, focused approach to LinkedIn content creation. Try out now

Pros and Cons

Captain Data

Pros

  • Unified API for people, company, and intent data reduces integration complexity
  • Strong focus on real-time signals over static databases for dynamic insights
  • Rich enrichment and collection from multiple sources with structured outputs
  • High scalability with concurrency (40 req/sec) and smart limits for safe automation
  • Compliance with SOC 2 Type II and GDPR for enterprise trust
  • Flexible credit-based pricing for variable workloads
  • Supports AI agents and SaaS products with live data

Cons

  • Credit-based pricing unpredictable for new users without experience
  • Requires engineering resources for technical integration
  • Not ideal for non-technical marketers needing simple lead lists
  • Pricing tiers not fully public; custom for advanced needs
  • Focused on data infrastructure, lacks content or branding tools
  • Limited direct social media management features

Lately.ai

Pros

  • Highly personalized AI trained on your social analytics for brand-specific content
  • Excellent repurposing of longform into high-performing posts across channels
  • Strong Voice Model for tone, style, and performance patterns
  • Built-in AI scheduling and calendar for efficient planning
  • Robust enterprise features: governance, advocacy, unlimited scaling
  • Multilingual support and integrations with major marketing tools
  • Free trial and affordable Starter for small teams
  • Predictive analytics to optimize future content

Cons

  • Higher pricing for Growth/Enterprise may deter solo or small users
  • Complex features overwhelm if only simple post generation needed
  • Best results require substantial content and analytics input
  • Learning curve in interface for non-technical marketers
  • Some site resources lead to 404 errors, hindering info access
  • No B2B data or sales intelligence capabilities
Want the best of both worlds? Try PostFlow for fast content creation without the complexity. Try out now

Final Verdict

Captain Data and Lately.ai target different aspects of B2B operations: Captain Data as a data API powerhouse for sales and AI, versus Lately.ai as an AI content engine for social media. They complement rather than compete, with Captain Data fueling data-driven decisions and Lately.ai amplifying content reach.

Select Captain Data for sales intelligence and data automation needs. Opt for Lately.ai if social content creation and management are core. For integrated B2B strategies, use both: Captain Data for lead data, Lately.ai for engaging content.

Overall Scores

Captain Data

4.4 / 5.0

Content Creation: 2/10

Value: 7/10

Lately.ai

4.4 / 5.0

Content Creation: 10/10

Value: 9/10

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