Are you about to drop money (or time) on Builtwith for your B2B sales or marketing? Maybe your boss heard it’s magic for finding leads, or you want to get super-targeted with your outreach. Before you jump in, let’s get clear about what Builtwith is, what it does decently, and—maybe more importantly—what it can’t do for you.
This is for B2B folks in sales, marketing, or growth who want to actually use data, not just collect another shiny tool. If you’re tired of hype and want to cut through the noise, you’re in the right place.
What Is Builtwith, Really?
First up, if you’re not already familiar: Builtwith is a tool that scans websites and tells you what technologies they run on. Think analytics platforms, ecommerce providers, hosting, chat widgets, and so on. Lots of people use it for lead generation—find all the companies using Shopify, for example, or spot who’s still stuck on a legacy platform.
But let’s be honest: Builtwith’s data is only as useful as your ability to act on it. And it’s not perfect. So let’s talk about what you should actually check before making it part of your go-to-market toolkit.
1. Know Why You Want It (And If It’ll Actually Help)
Before anything else, ask yourself: what problem are you actually trying to solve? Some common use cases:
- Finding companies that use a specific tech (e.g., HubSpot, Magento, Salesforce).
- Sizing up a market—how many companies use X?
- Triggering sales outreach (“Hey, I saw you just installed Drift on your site…”).
- Competitive intel—who’s using your rival’s software?
That’s great, but Builtwith won’t: - Tell you if a company is ready to buy. - Give you direct contact info for decision-makers (that’s not its game). - Magically improve your reply rates.
If you just want a big list of prospects, pause. Buying a list rarely leads to good conversions. If you have a very clear ICP (ideal customer profile) that’s defined by tech stacks, Builtwith can help you filter. If your ICP isn’t about tech choices, you might not get much value.
Pro tip: The best use is combining Builtwith with other data sources—not relying on it alone.
2. Dig Into Data Accuracy (Don’t Take It on Faith)
Builtwith is pretty good, but it’s not omniscient. Its data comes from crawling the public web and looking for snippets of code, tags, or clues in the source. Here’s what that means:
- False positives: Sometimes it’ll say a site uses a tool they ditched a year ago (the code snippet’s still lurking somewhere).
- False negatives: If a tool is server-side only or really well-hidden, Builtwith might miss it.
- Lag: There’s often a delay between when a company changes tech and when Builtwith updates.
How to check: - Take a handful of your actual target companies. Run them through Builtwith and cross-check with what you know or what LinkedIn says. - Don’t just trust the “recently added” info—sometimes it’s weeks out of date.
If you need precision (say, you’re selling to banks or regulated industries), expect to do some manual checking or enrich the data elsewhere.
3. Evaluate the Filters and Export Options
Builtwith’s real value is in its filters and exports. But not all filters are created equal.
- Tech stack filters: You can filter by tech, category, spend, traffic, geography, and more. But some filters are pretty broad (e.g., “marketing automation” could catch a dozen tools).
- Historical data: Want to see who just switched from Marketo to HubSpot? Builtwith claims to track changes over time, but it’s not always as real-time as you might hope.
- Export formats: You get CSVs with company domains, sometimes with other basic info. Don’t expect rich company profiles or direct emails.
If your workflow needs to push leads straight into your CRM, check what integrations are available—or be ready for some manual wrangling.
4. Understand Pricing and Limits
Builtwith isn’t cheap, especially if you need bulk data. Plans vary based on:
- Number of records per month
- Historical lookback
- API access
Be honest about your needs. If you just want to check a few hundred domains, the free version might be enough. If you want a firehose, you’ll pay for it.
Watch out for: - Annual contracts—hard to back out if you realize it’s not a fit. - Data caps—overages can add up fast. - “Add-ons” for things like bulk exports or deeper company info.
If you’re on a tight budget, compare with alternatives like Datanyze, Clearbit, or even manual scraping (which, yes, is a hassle, but sometimes works for small lists).
5. Look at Integrations and Workflow Fit
Builtwith is a standalone tool. It doesn’t “plug and play” with everything. Before you start, ask:
- Does it connect to your CRM or enrichment tools? (Usually not directly—expect to use Zapier, APIs, or manual upload.)
- Can you automate your workflow? If you need to update tech stack info weekly, can you script it?
- Will your team actually use it? Fancy data is useless if your sales reps ignore it.
If your current stack is all about automation, expect to do some setup. Builtwith isn’t built to be the center of your world—it’s more of a data snack than a full meal.
6. Check for GDPR and Compliance Issues
This isn’t legal advice—but if you’re working with European data, or privacy is a concern, know that Builtwith scrapes public info. Still, using this data for unsolicited outreach can be a gray area (especially in Europe).
- Don’t assume every exported lead is fair game for cold emailing.
- Make sure you’re compliant with your own company’s policies and local laws.
7. Don’t Ignore the Alternatives
Builtwith is popular, but it’s not the only option. You’ve got:
- SimilarWeb: Better for traffic and broader web analytics, but weaker on tech stack details.
- Datanyze: Also tracks tech adoption, but with different coverage and pricing.
- Clearbit: Has company data enrichment, sometimes includes tech stack.
- Wappalyzer: Chrome extension, free for small checks.
Sometimes a mix of these tools is cheaper and more useful than just one “big” tool.
What to Ignore (Or At Least Be Skeptical Of)
- Huge lists of irrelevant companies: More isn’t better. You want qualified leads, not just a CSV with 10,000 random domains.
- Promises of “real-time” data: There’s always a lag. Treat “just installed” and “recently switched” with a grain of salt.
- Fancy dashboards: They look good in the demo, but the real value is in the data you export and use elsewhere.
Pro Tips for Getting Actual Value
- Start small: Test with a handful of accounts before you import massive lists.
- Combine data: Layer Builtwith info with LinkedIn, company size, and industry for better targeting.
- Train your team: Make sure everyone knows what the data means (and what it doesn’t).
- Review regularly: Tech stacks change—don’t base your pipeline on old info.
Keep It Simple and Iterate
Builtwith can be a solid tool for B2B teams that need tech stack intel. But it’s not a silver bullet. Get clear on your use case, double-check the data, and don’t get seduced by the promise of endless leads. Start simple, see what works, and tweak as you go. You’re better off with a shortlist of high-intent prospects than a bloated CSV that never gets used.