---
title: "Clay + Instantly Integration: Push Leads (2026)"
description: "Connect Clay to Instantly in 2026: the native Add Lead to Campaign action, v2 API key, dedupe flags, and the API route for AI first lines and custom variables."
---
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# Clay + Instantly Integration: Push Leads (2026)
GenFlows Team · Oct 13, 2026, 2:50:16 PM · 8 min read
TL;DR
- **Clay has a native Instantly integration with three actions:** Find Leads, Verify Email and Add Lead to Campaign.
- **Use an Instantly API v2 key.** Clay’s docs say v1 is being sunset.
- **The native Add Lead action is thin.** Clay’s University page lists three inputs: Campaign ID, email and a skip-if-in-workspace checkbox.
- **For AI first lines and custom variables, use Clay’s HTTP API column** against `POST /api/v2/leads`, which accepts `custom_variables` and a `personalization` string.
- **Clay cannot create the campaign.** Build and test it in Instantly first, then paste its campaign ID into Clay.
- **Verify and dedupe before the push,** not after. Bad rows in a live campaign cost you sender reputation.
Clay builds the list and the personalization. Instantly does the sending. Between them sits one small step that decides whether your campaign launches clean or burns a fresh domain: how rows get from a Clay table into an Instantly campaign.
We have already covered the [Clay to Smartlead handoff](https://www.genflows.com/blog/clay-smartlead-integration-push-leads-2026). This is the Instantly version, including the part most guides skip: the native action only passes the basics, so personalization needs a different route.
*Sourcing note: action names, inputs and auth come from Clay’s University docs and Instantly’s developer docs, read in October 2026. Clay’s action catalog page and its University page disagree on which fields the native action maps, so we treat extra field mapping as unconfirmed and mark it (directional).*
## The Short Answer
If you only need to drop verified emails into a running campaign, use the native Add Lead to Campaign action. If your campaign uses AI-written first lines or other per-lead variables, call Instantly’s API from Clay’s HTTP API column so those values travel with the lead. Either way, create the campaign in Instantly first.
## What the Native Integration Does
| Action | What it does | Inputs per Clay’s docs |
| --- | --- | --- |
| **Find Leads** | Searches Instantly’s lead database | Search filters |
| **Verify Email** | Verifies an email address | Email |
| **Add Lead to Campaign** | Adds a lead to an existing campaign | Campaign ID, email, optional “Skip if Lead is in Workspace” |
Clay’s catalog page for the action also lists name and company fields and reportedly gates it to the Launch plan and above, using your own Instantly account *(directional)*. Credit cost is not listed, so check [Clay’s current pricing](https://www.genflows.com/blog/clay-pricing-honest-review-plans-credits-costs-2026) before you scale.
## Setup, Step by Step
### 1. Build the campaign in Instantly first
The action needs an existing Campaign ID, and Clay offers no create-campaign action. Write the sequence, attach sending accounts, and leave it ready to receive leads. If you are still deciding on mailbox counts, see [how many domains and mailboxes cold email needs](https://www.genflows.com/blog/how-many-domains-mailboxes-cold-email-2026).
### 2. Connect with a v2 API key
In Clay, add the Instantly enrichment, choose + Add account and paste an Instantly **v2** API key. Per Clay’s docs, v1 is being sunset. If you already have older Find Leads or Add Lead columns, create a new column rather than duplicating the old one.
### 3. Verify before you push
Do not let unverified addresses reach a live campaign. Run your [waterfall enrichment](https://www.genflows.com/blog/clay-waterfall-enrichment-setup-step-by-step-2026), then a verification step (see [email verification tools compared](https://www.genflows.com/blog/best-email-verification-tools-2026)), and add a formula column that is true only when the email is verified and the row passed your ICP filter. Use it in the action’s “Only run if” setting.
### 4. Turn on the dedupe checkbox
Tick “Skip if Lead is in Workspace”. It skips leads already sitting in any campaign in your workspace, which protects you from emailing the same person from two campaigns.
### 5. Test on five rows
Auto-update runs on new rows. Build with it off, push five rows, check them in Instantly, then switch it on.
**Warning:** a campaign that is active while Clay pushes will start sending to the first rows immediately. Keep it paused until the test rows look right.
## Passing AI First Lines and Custom Variables
Instantly’s create-lead endpoint, `POST /api/v2/leads` with Bearer auth, accepts `email`, `first_name`, `last_name`, `company_name`, `website`, `job_title`, `phone`, a `campaign` UUID, a `personalization` string and a `custom_variables` object. Three details save debugging time:
- **The field is `campaign`, not `campaign_id`,** and when it is set, `email` is required.
- **Custom variable values must be string, number, boolean or null.** No nested objects or arrays, so flatten anything you build in Clay.
- **Unknown fields are rejected,** so a typo in a key fails the request rather than being ignored.
The API also has three skip flags, `skip_if_in_workspace`, `skip_if_in_campaign` and `skip_if_in_list`, and a `verify_leads_on_import` option. Instantly says the campaign is updated with the custom variables you send. Some third-party notes claim variables must already exist on the campaign, so test one row and confirm the variable renders in the email preview before you push a list *(directional)*. Check Instantly’s help center for the exact variable syntax in your sequence.
For how to generate the first line itself without it reading as obvious AI, see our [AI cold email personalization guide](https://www.genflows.com/blog/ai-cold-email-personalization-2026).
## Comparing the Four Routes
| Method | Personalization | Dedupe | Setup | Watch out for |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| **Native Clay action** | Email-focused; extra field mapping unconfirmed *(directional)* | One checkbox: skip if in workspace | Easiest | Needs an existing campaign; v2 API key; reportedly Launch+ plan |
| **Clay HTTP API column** | Full: `custom_variables` and `personalization` | Three skip flags (workspace, campaign, list) | Medium: you write the JSON | You own errors and retries; confirm Clay plan access |
| **CSV export / import** | Any column can become a variable | Instantly import options | Manual | Fine for a one-off, bad for ongoing flow |
| **Zapier / n8n / Make** | Depends on the tool | Depends on the tool | Medium: extra tool | Extra cost and latency *(directional)* |
## Limits, Cost and Plan Gating
- **Rate limits:** Instantly’s changelog reportedly raised API limits to about 100 requests per second and 6,000 per minute in March 2026 *(directional; seen as a snippet)*. Push in modest batches regardless.
- **Instantly plans:** the pricing page shows Growth, Hypergrowth and Light Speed with different uploaded-contact and monthly-email caps. The page lists an “API, webhooks, and integrations” row but its per-plan marks did not render for us, so confirm API access on your plan. Our [Instantly pricing breakdown](https://www.genflows.com/blog/instantly-pricing-2026) has the plan detail.
- **Contact caps matter:** pushing more leads than your plan’s uploaded-contact limit allows is a common surprise, so size the push to the plan.
## Closing the Loop With Your CRM
Instantly holds the reply, but your CRM should hold the pipeline. We did not verify Instantly’s webhook event names, so confirm them in Instantly’s docs before building a reply sync. For the CRM side, see [syncing cold email and LinkedIn data into HubSpot](https://www.genflows.com/blog/sync-cold-email-linkedin-data-hubspot-2026), and if you are still choosing a sender, read [Smartlead vs Instantly](https://www.genflows.com/blog/smartlead-vs-instantly-2026) or [Instantly vs lemlist](https://www.genflows.com/blog/instantly-vs-lemlist-cold-email-2026).
## Common Mistakes
- **Pushing before verifying.** Bounces on a new domain damage reputation fast; monitor with our [deliverability monitoring guide](https://www.genflows.com/blog/cold-email-deliverability-monitoring-2026).
- **Using a v1 key.** It is being sunset and will break the column.
- **Pasting the wrong ID.** Campaign ID is not the campaign name; copy it from Instantly.
- **Sending nested JSON in custom variables.** Flatten it first.
- **Letting auto-update run on a half-built table.**
## Frequently Asked Questions
### Does Clay have a native Instantly integration?
Yes. Clay offers three Instantly actions: Find Leads, Verify Email and Add Lead to Campaign.
### Which Instantly API key should I use with Clay?
Use a version 2 key. Clay’s docs say the v1 API is being sunset.
### Can Clay create an Instantly campaign?
No. The Add Lead to Campaign action needs an existing Campaign ID, and Clay’s docs list no create-campaign action. Build the campaign in Instantly first.
### How do I avoid duplicate leads between campaigns?
Tick “Skip if Lead is in Workspace” in the native action. Through the API you can instead use `skip_if_in_campaign`, `skip_if_in_list` or `skip_if_in_workspace`.
### How do I pass an AI-written first line from Clay to Instantly?
Use Clay’s HTTP API column to call `POST /api/v2/leads` and send the line as `personalization` or inside `custom_variables`, then reference it in your Instantly sequence. Test one row first to confirm it renders.
### Are there rate limits when pushing from Clay to Instantly?
Yes. Instantly’s changelog reportedly puts the limit near 6,000 requests per minute, but that came from a secondary snippet, so push in moderate batches and watch for errors.
---
**Want this built and tuned for you?** We run Clay-to-Instantly pipelines as part of our cold email and outbound work. Compare options in our [cold email software guide](https://www.genflows.com/blog/best-cold-email-software-smartlead-instantly-lemlist-apollo-2026), then [talk to our team](https://www.genflows.com/).
*By the GenFlows GTM engineering team. Vendor details were checked in October 2026 and change often; confirm on the vendor pages before building. Last updated October 2026.*
[#Cold Email](https://www.genflows.com/blog/tag/cold-email)
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GenFlows Team
The GenFlows team builds AI-powered cold outbound systems for B2B teams.
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## Keep reading
### [Outbound Systems Clay + Close CRM Integration: Push Leads (2026) Oct 13, 2026, 2:44:46 PM Read →](https://www.genflows.com/blog/clay-close-crm-integration-push-leads-2026)
### [Cold Email Smartlead vs lemlist (2026): Which Cold Email Tool? Oct 12, 2026, 3:21:11 PM Read →](https://www.genflows.com/blog/smartlead-vs-lemlist-cold-email-2026)
### [RevOps Close CRM vs Salesforce for Outbound Teams (2026) Oct 12, 2026, 3:06:58 PM Read →](https://www.genflows.com/blog/close-crm-vs-salesforce-outbound-sales-teams-2026)
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