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 Crystal and Expandi 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

Crystal

  • Platform: Personality insights across email, calls, meetings, LinkedIn
  • Best For: Personalized B2B communication and hiring
  • Strength: DISC profiles for millions of professionals
  • Users: Not specified

Starting at $49/month

Expandi

  • Platform: LinkedIn and email multichannel
  • Best For: Automated outbound prospecting
  • Strength: Smart sequences with behavior-based conditions
  • Users: Not specified

Starting at $79/month

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

At a Glance

Personality & Insights

Feature Crystal Expandi
DISC personality predictions Predicts DISC profiles for millions of professionals No personality insights
Self-assessments (Enneagram, strengths) In-depth self-assessments for teams Not supported
Communication tips (emails, calls, meetings) Personalized tips based on personality No personalized communication guidance
Behavioral intelligence reports Executive, account, and stakeholder intelligence Not supported

Outreach & Automation

Feature Crystal Expandi
LinkedIn connection requests No automation; focuses on insights Up to 300+ weekly requests with smart limits
Smart sequences with conditions No sequences Up to 10 actions and 10 behavior-based conditions
Multichannel campaigns (LinkedIn + email) Insights for multichannel but no automation Mixes messages, InMails, events, and emails
Video/GIF personalization Not supported Via paid add-ons like Sendspark
Account safety features Not applicable Dedicated IPs, warm-up, smart limits

Sales & Prospecting

Feature Crystal Expandi
Sales playbooks and tips Stage-specific tips based on personality No playbooks; focuses on execution
Pre-meeting playbooks Quick tips and group playbooks Not supported
Campaign metrics and A/B testing No campaign tracking Detailed stats, SSI tracking, unlimited campaigns
Unlimited campaigns Playbook builder but limited scale With prioritization and A/B testing

Hiring & Team Tools

Feature Crystal Expandi
Job fit scoring and benchmarking Personality-based hiring assessments Recruiting via outreach but no assessments
Candidate libraries and comparisons Comparative analysis and surveys Not supported
Team assessments and one-on-ones Insights for team dynamics No team insight tools
Role and permission management Group admin in Business plan For teams and agencies

Integrations & Extensions

Feature Crystal Expandi
Chrome Extension Embedded in LinkedIn, Gmail, HubSpot, Salesforce Cloud-based, no extension
CRM integrations (Salesforce, HubSpot) Deep integration for personality data Email providers only
API and CSV enrichment For large-scale data use No API mentioned
Multiple account management Not supported From single dashboard
White-label capabilities Not supported For agencies

Analytics & Reporting

Feature Crystal Expandi
Personality intelligence reports Bespoke behavioral reports No personality analytics
Campaign performance metrics Limited to playbook usage Open/reply rates, SSI tracking
Dedicated success manager Not mentioned For Agency plan
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Pricing Comparison

Crystal starts at $49/month for premium personality insights, with custom tiers for teams and data enrichment. Expandi starts at $79/month (annual) for LinkedIn automation, scaling to custom agency plans. Crystal offers better value for insight-driven personalization, while Expandi justifies higher costs with automation scale and safety.

Crystal

Free Trial

$0/month

Testing basic features

  • 5 free profile credits
  • Basic personality assessments
  • Shareable downloads

Premium (annual)

$49/month

Individual users needing core insights

  • Everything in Free Trial
  • 240 profile lookups per year
  • Chrome Extension for LinkedIn and Gmail
  • Pre-meeting playbooks
  • Calendar integration

Premium (monthly)

$59/month

Flexible individual access

  • Everything in Free Trial
  • 20 profiles per month
  • Chrome Extension for LinkedIn and Gmail
  • Pre-meeting playbooks
  • Calendar integration

Business

Custom

Teams with hiring and sales needs

  • Everything in Premium
  • Unlimited profiles
  • Team assessments
  • Hiring candidate assessments
  • Hiring candidate job profiles
  • Group admin tools
  • Chrome Extension for HubSpot, Salesforce, and Outreach
  • Dedicated success manager

Data

Custom

High-volume data enrichment

  • High-volume profile credits
  • Access to Crystal API
  • CRM integration with Salesforce and HubSpot
  • Direct CSV enrichment

Intelligence

Starting at $999/month

Enterprise-level behavioral analysis

  • Executive Intelligence reports
  • Account Intelligence
  • Competitive Intelligence
  • Personality Intelligence
  • Stakeholder Intelligence
  • Behavioral Intelligence
  • Additional bespoke research

Expandi

Business (Monthly)

$99/month

Solo users or small teams starting automation

  • Cloud-based software with dedicated country-based IP address
  • Profile auto warm-up with configurable limits and growth rate
  • Smart algorithms for daily outreach limit ranges across actions
  • Campaign types that help bypass LinkedIn outreach limits (e.g., Mobile Connector)
  • Unlimited number of campaigns with campaign prioritization
  • Multichannel outreach combining connection requests, messages, and email follow-ups
  • Convenient sequence builder with if/action logic
  • Image and GIF personalization available as a paid add-on
  • Video personalization via Sendspark integration (paid add-on)
  • Detailed step-by-step campaign statistics and centralized dashboard

Business (Annual)

$79/month

Committed users seeking discounts

  • All features from Business (Monthly) at a discounted annual rate
  • Two months free compared to paying monthly
  • Full access to account safety, multichannel outreach, and smart sequences
  • Unlimited campaigns and campaign prioritization
  • Detailed analytics and centralized reporting dashboard

Agency (10+ Seats, White Label)

Custom

Agencies managing multiple accounts

  • Everything included in the Business plan for all seats
  • Flexible roles and permission management for teams and clients
  • Centralized campaign management across multiple accounts
  • Transparent reports for clients with easy sharing
  • Easy template sharing across workspaces and accounts
  • Dedicated Customer Success Manager for onboarding and strategy
  • Specialized customer support tailored to agencies and larger teams
  • Option to use Expandi under your own brand (white labeling)
Want simpler pricing? PostFlow offers straightforward plans focused on fast post creation. Try out now

Feature Deep Dive

Personality Insights and Personalization

Crystal

Strengths
  • DISC-based predictions for millions of professionals
  • Self-assessments covering DISC, Enneagram, strengths, values
  • In-depth insights on strengths, blind spots, energizers
  • Personalized tips for emails, calls, meetings
  • Playbook builder for sales, teams, hiring
Workflow

Search profile → View DISC insights → Get communication tips → Apply in playbook

Expandi

Strengths
  • No native personality insights
  • Behavior-based conditions in sequences (e.g., reply triggers)
  • Personalization via video/GIF add-ons
Workflow

Not applicable

Crystal dominates in personality-driven personalization, offering DISC insights that humanize interactions. Expandi lacks this depth, focusing instead on behavioral triggers in automation. Choose Crystal for insight-led communication; Expandi for action-based outreach.

Crystal DISC personality insights

Outreach and Automation Capabilities

Crystal

Strengths
  • Sales tips integrated into workflows
  • Chrome extension for real-time insights in LinkedIn/Gmail
  • Pre-meeting preparation with playbooks
Limitations
  • No automated sending or sequences
  • Manual application of insights

Expandi

Strengths
  • Smart sequences with 10+ actions/conditions
  • Multichannel (LinkedIn + email) automation
  • Account warm-up and safety limits
  • Unlimited campaigns with A/B testing
  • Video/GIF personalization add-ons
Limitations
  • Relies on user-crafted messages
  • Add-ons increase costs

Expandi is superior for automating outreach at scale with smart, safe sequences. Crystal provides insights to inform manual outreach but doesn't automate. For efficiency in prospecting, Expandi wins; for quality personalization, Crystal.

Hiring and Recruiting Tools

Crystal

Strengths
  • Job profiles, fit scoring, benchmarking
  • Candidate assessments and comparisons
  • Expectation surveys and libraries
  • Personality-informed hiring decisions
Workflow

Create job profile → Assess candidates → Score fit → Compare and hire

Expandi

Strengths
  • LinkedIn sourcing via outreach sequences
  • Recruiter-focused campaigns
  • Multiple account management for talent pipelines
Limitations
  • No assessment or fit scoring
  • Outreach-only, no deep evaluation

Crystal is the clear choice for personality-based hiring with robust assessment tools. Expandi supports recruiting through automation but lacks evaluation depth. Ideal for HR teams: Crystal; for sourcers: Expandi.

Crystal hiring tools

Integrations, Analytics, and Reporting

Crystal

Strengths
  • Chrome extension in LinkedIn, Gmail, HubSpot, Salesforce
  • API/CSV for data enrichment
  • Intelligence reports for accounts/stakeholders
  • CRM integration for personality data
Limitations
  • Analytics focused on insights, not campaign performance
  • Custom tiers for advanced reporting

Expandi

Strengths
  • Email provider integrations
  • Centralized dashboard for metrics
  • Campaign stats: opens, replies, SSI
  • White-label reports for agencies
  • Role-based access
Limitations
  • No CRM or API depth
  • Limited to outreach analytics

Crystal offers deeper CRM and data integrations for insights, while Expandi provides strong outreach-specific analytics and team reporting. For sales/hiring ecosystems, Crystal; for campaign tracking, Expandi.

Crystal integrations
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Use Case Comparison

B2B Sales Prospecting

Crystal

Excellent

DISC insights and sales playbooks personalize outreach, improving response rates in complex deals.

Best Plan: Premium ($49/month) or Business (Custom)

Score: 9/10

Expandi 🏆

Excellent

Automates high-volume LinkedIn outreach with smart sequences for scalable prospecting.

Best Plan: Business ($79/month annual)

Score: 10/10

Personalized Communication in Sales

Crystal 🏆

Excellent

Tailored tips based on personality data for emails, calls, and meetings.

Best Plan: Premium ($49/month)

Score: 10/10

Expandi

Good

Behavior-based personalization in sequences, but no deep insights.

Best Plan: Business ($79/month)

Score: 7/10

Talent Acquisition and Hiring

Crystal 🏆

Excellent

Job fit scoring, candidate assessments, and personality benchmarking streamline hiring.

Best Plan: Business (Custom)

Score: 10/10

Expandi

Fair

Useful for sourcing candidates via LinkedIn, but no assessment tools.

Best Plan: Business ($79/month)

Score: 6/10

Lead Generation Agency

Crystal

Good

Insights for client personalization, but no automation scale.

Best Plan: Business (Custom)

Score: 7/10

Expandi 🏆

Excellent

White-label, multi-account management, and unlimited campaigns for agencies.

Best Plan: Agency (Custom)

Score: 10/10

Team Dynamics and Management

Crystal 🏆

Excellent

Team assessments and one-on-one insights improve collaboration.

Best Plan: Business (Custom)

Score: 9/10

Expandi

Fair

Role management for teams, but no dynamics insights.

Best Plan: Agency (Custom)

Score: 5/10

Recruiter Outbound Sourcing

Crystal

Good

Personality data aids in candidate outreach, but manual.

Best Plan: Premium ($49/month)

Score: 7/10

Expandi 🏆

Excellent

Automated LinkedIn sequences for sourcing at scale.

Best Plan: Business ($79/month)

Score: 9/10

Enterprise Sales Teams

Crystal 🏆

Excellent

Intelligence reports and API for large-scale personalization.

Best Plan: Intelligence ($999+/month)

Score: 9/10

Expandi

Good

Scalable automation, but less insight depth for complex deals.

Best Plan: Agency (Custom)

Score: 8/10

Solo Sales Professional

Crystal 🏆

Excellent

Affordable insights via Chrome extension for daily use.

Best Plan: Premium ($49/month)

Score: 9/10

Expandi

Good

Automation helps scale, but higher cost and complexity.

Best Plan: Business ($79/month)

Score: 7/10

HR and Talent Acquisition Teams

Crystal 🏆

Excellent

Comprehensive hiring tools with personality focus.

Best Plan: Business (Custom)

Score: 10/10

Expandi

Fair

Sourcing automation, but no hiring evaluation.

Best Plan: Business ($79/month)

Score: 5/10

Startup Founder Outreach

Crystal

Good

Insights for personalized pitches, easy for solos.

Best Plan: Premium ($49/month)

Score: 8/10

Expandi 🏆

Excellent

Automates growth without team, with safety features.

Best Plan: Business ($79/month)

Score: 9/10

Agency Client Management

Crystal

Fair

Group tools in Business, but no white-label.

Best Plan: Business (Custom)

Score: 6/10

Expandi 🏆

Excellent

White-label, permissions, multi-account for clients.

Best Plan: Agency (Custom)

Score: 10/10

Sales in Complex Deals

Crystal 🏆

Excellent

Stakeholder intelligence and playbooks for multi-person deals.

Best Plan: Intelligence ($999+/month)

Score: 10/10

Expandi

Good

Multichannel for initial outreach, but less for ongoing.

Best Plan: Business ($79/month)

Score: 7/10

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

Pros and Cons

Crystal

Pros

  • Deep DISC-based insights for personalized communication
  • Strong Chrome extension and CRM integrations
  • Comprehensive playbooks for sales, teams, hiring
  • Robust hiring features like job fit scoring
  • API and CSV for large-scale use
  • Affordable starting price with free trial
  • Focus on behavioral science for real scenarios

Cons

  • Complex for small teams or simple needs
  • Custom pricing lacks transparency
  • Learning curve for playbooks and workflows
  • Value requires consistent usage and buy-in
  • DISC focus may not suit other frameworks
  • No automation for outreach execution

Expandi

Pros

  • Account safety with dedicated IPs and warm-up
  • Powerful smart sequences for behavior-based outreach
  • Multichannel campaigns combining LinkedIn and email
  • Unlimited campaigns with detailed analytics
  • Team features including white-labeling
  • Scalable for agencies and multiple accounts
  • High compliance with LinkedIn limits

Cons

  • Complex interface for beginners
  • Per-seat pricing for heavy use
  • Requires strong messaging strategy
  • Paid add-ons for advanced personalization
  • No content creation or personality insights
  • Higher starting cost than Crystal
Want the best of both worlds? Try PostFlow for fast content creation without the complexity. Try out now

Final Verdict

Crystal and Expandi target B2B workflows differently: Crystal uses personality data to enhance communication quality in sales and hiring, while Expandi automates LinkedIn outreach for quantity and efficiency. They complement each other in full-funnel strategies but serve distinct needs.

Choose Crystal for insight-driven personalization in sales and hiring. Opt for Expandi if automation and scale in LinkedIn outreach are priorities. For optimal results, integrate both: use Crystal's insights to inform Expandi's sequences.

Overall Scores

Crystal

4.4 / 5.0

Value: 8/10

Expandi

4.4 / 5.0

Value: 7/10

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