Dex and Clay, now called Mesh, are both personal CRMs in the cloud. Both sign you up, keep your network in a database of their own and charge a monthly fee for the full version. Here is how they compare, and what the alternative to the cloud looks like.
Updated October 2026
We make Starrise Contacts, so we are not neutral. Facts about Dex and Mesh come from their makers’ websites and App Store listings, checked on 11 October 2026 (US prices).
Dex is a cloud-based personal CRM for people who network a lot. You need a Dex account, and your data is stored on Dex’s servers. Premium starts at $12 per month billed yearly ($20 month to month); there is no free plan, but a 7-day trial.
Clay was acquired by Automattic, the company behind WordPress.com, in 2025 and renamed itself Mesh in March 2026; it is the same app. Mesh is a cloud service with an account. Its website lists a free plan for up to 1,000 contacts and Pro at $10 per month.
| Starrise Contacts | Dex | Mesh (formerly Clay) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Account | None needed | Required | Required |
| Where your data lives | Your device and your own iCloud | Dex’s cloud | Mesh’s cloud |
| Works on your iPhone address book | Yes, directly | Own database; two-way sync via CardDAV (beta) | Own database; imports your address book |
| Reminders to reconnect | Yes (Pro) | Yes | Yes |
| Free plan | Yes, core features | No; 7-day trial | Up to 1,000 contacts |
| Paid plan (website) | $0.99/month or $5.99/year | From $12/month billed yearly | Pro $10/month |
| Paid plan (App Store) | $0.99/month or $5.99/year | $19.99/month or $143.99/year | $19.99/month or $119.99/year |
Whichever of the two you pick, you create an account, your network lives in a vendor’s cloud next to your address book, and the full version costs $10 or more per month on the website.
Starrise Contacts reminds you to reconnect too, but it works directly on the contacts on your iPhone, iPad and Mac, needs no account, and your contacts are never sent to us. Notes, birthday reminders, gift ideas and the map are free; Pro costs $0.99 per month or $5.99 per year. More on the private personal CRM.
Facts about other apps were checked on 11 October 2026 on the pages below.
Yes. Clay was acquired by Automattic in 2025 and renamed Mesh in March 2026. The app continues under the name Mesh.
Yes. Both are cloud services that require an account and keep your network in their own database.
Yes. Starrise Contacts works on the contacts on your device and needs no account. With Pro, iCloud Sync runs through your own private iCloud account, which we can’t access.
Starrise Contacts works on the contacts already on your iPhone, iPad and Mac. No account, nothing to import. Free to download, with an optional Pro subscription.
Free on iPhone, iPad and Mac. Pro costs $0.99 per month or $5.99 per year in the US.
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