Understanding what intent data is is now table stakes. Intent data has become a standard input for B2B sales and marketing teams, with the market expected to exceed $4 billion by 2027. But the category is fragmented across dozens of providers with very different methodologies, data sources, and accuracy levels. Choosing the wrong provider doesn't just waste budget. It produces false signals that send reps chasing accounts that aren't actually buying. This guide compares the leading intent data providers across accuracy, signal coverage, integration depth, and pricing.
TL;DR: Intent data providers fall into three categories: cooperative-based (Bombora, TrustRadius), platform-specific (G2, LinkedIn), and AI-aggregated (6sense, Demandbase). Cooperative data provides the broadest web coverage but with significant noise. Platform-specific data is more accurate but narrower. AI-aggregated platforms combine multiple sources with predictive models. The best results come from combining intent data with verified account signals (leadership changes, earnings priorities, hiring patterns) rather than relying on intent alone.
What Intent Data Actually Measures
Intent data tracks when companies research topics related to your solution at rates above their normal baseline. If Acme Corp typically reads 2 articles per month about "sales intelligence" and suddenly reads 15 articles in a week, intent data flags this "surge" as potential buying activity.
The two types:
First-party intent: Activity on your own properties — website visits, content downloads, demo page views, pricing page visits. This is the most reliable intent signal because the prospect is engaging with your brand directly.
Third-party intent: Activity across external websites, review platforms, and content networks. This is where dedicated intent data providers operate, tracking anonymous browsing behavior across thousands of websites.
See Salesmotion on a real account
Book a 15-minute demo and see how your team saves hours on account research.
Top Intent Data Providers Compared
Bombora
Data methodology: Cooperative network of 5,000+ B2B websites that share anonymous browsing data. The Company Surge metric identifies when accounts research specific topics at rates exceeding their historical baseline.
Signal types: Topic-level intent surges, industry research trends, competitive research patterns.
Strengths: Largest cooperative network providing the broadest web coverage. The Company Surge methodology has been validated across thousands of customers. Widely integrated into other platforms (Salesforce, 6sense, Demandbase, HubSpot).
Limitations: Data is anonymous (identifies the company, not the person). Topic taxonomy is broad (you might know they're researching "sales tools" but not which specific tool). False positive rate is meaningful — surges can be triggered by employees doing competitive research, writing content, or conducting general education rather than evaluating vendors.
Pricing: Typically $25,000-75,000+ annually based on data volume, topic coverage, and integration needs.
Best for: Enterprise teams needing broad intent signals to prioritize large account lists, especially when combined with other signal types.
Bombora uses its cooperative network of 5,000+ B2B websites to surface Company Surge intent signals.
6sense
Data methodology: AI platform that combines multiple intent data sources (including Bombora), website visitor identification, and predictive analytics to model buying stage and in-market probability.
Signal types: Predictive buying stage (awareness, consideration, decision, purchase), keyword-level research tracking, anonymous website visitor identification, competitive research detection.
Strengths: Goes beyond raw intent to predict buying stage, allowing teams to tailor engagement by where the account is in the evaluation. The Revenue AI engine improves accuracy by combining multiple data signals.
Limitations: Enterprise pricing limits accessibility. Predictive models can produce confident-sounding but incorrect buying stage assessments. Black box methodology makes it difficult to evaluate why a specific account is scored as "in decision stage." For a head-to-head comparison, see Salesmotion vs 6sense.
Pricing: Enterprise-level. Annual contracts typically $50,000-150,000+.
Best for: Enterprise ABM programs with dedicated marketing ops teams that can integrate intent into multi-channel orchestration.
6sense combines multiple intent sources with predictive analytics to model account buying stages.
G2
Data methodology: First-party platform data from G2's software review and comparison site. Tracks which companies visit your G2 profile, compare you against competitors, and read reviews.
Signal types: G2 profile visits, competitor comparison page views, review reads, category browsing, buyer intent (companies actively researching your category on G2).
Strengths: High accuracy because the data comes from an actual buying behavior (researching software on a review site). Identifies specific competitors being evaluated. More actionable than topic-level intent because the prospect is explicitly comparing solutions.
Limitations: Only captures activity on G2. Many enterprise buyers don't use G2 as their primary research platform. Coverage is strongest for software/SaaS categories and weaker for services or niche markets.
Pricing: Varies by plan tier. Intent data features typically start at mid-market pricing levels.
Best for: SaaS companies where G2 is a meaningful part of the buyer journey. Strongest for mid-market technology purchases.
G2 surfaces buyer intent from companies actively researching and comparing software on its review platform.
TrustRadius
Data methodology: First-party platform data from TrustRadius's B2B technology review platform. Similar to G2 but with a focus on in-depth reviews and buyer research.
Signal types: Product page views, competitor comparisons, review engagement, category research, direct comparison activity.
Strengths: Deeper, more detailed reviews attract serious evaluators (rather than casual browsers). Buyer intent signals tend to be higher quality because TrustRadius users are typically further in the evaluation process.
Limitations: Smaller audience than G2. Coverage limited to technology categories. Not a standalone intent solution — best combined with other sources.
Pricing: Custom. Generally more accessible than enterprise-only platforms.
Best for: B2B technology companies wanting high-quality, specific intent signals from verified evaluators.
TrustRadius captures intent from in-depth product reviews and buyer comparison research.
LinkedIn Sales Navigator
Data methodology: First-party professional activity data from LinkedIn's 900M+ member platform. LinkedIn Sales Navigator and LinkedIn Ads provide intent signals based on content engagement, ad interaction, and professional behavior.
Signal types: Company page visits, content engagement (likes, shares, comments on relevant topics), ad interaction, InMail engagement, job posting activity, employee growth trends.
Strengths: Data comes from the largest professional network. Professional context is rich (you know job titles, seniority, and company affiliation). Combining LinkedIn intent with Sales Navigator's relationship intelligence creates a powerful prospecting signal.
Limitations: Intent signals are limited to LinkedIn activity. Many enterprise buyers don't engage publicly on LinkedIn. Ad-based intent requires active LinkedIn ad campaigns, adding cost.
Pricing: Sales Navigator from ~$100/user/month. LinkedIn Ads intent available through Campaign Manager.
Best for: Teams already invested in LinkedIn for prospecting and social selling.
LinkedIn Sales Navigator surfaces professional network behavior as intent signals for sales prospecting.
Demandbase
Data methodology: AI-powered platform combining multiple intent data sources with website visitor identification, advertising signals, and CRM data to create a unified account score.
Signal types: Topic-level intent, keyword research, website visitor identification, advertising engagement, account-level engagement scoring, competitive research detection.
Strengths: Unified view combining intent with advertising, website, and CRM data. Strong ABM orchestration capabilities that action intent signals across channels automatically.
Limitations: Enterprise pricing. Requires dedicated ops resources to configure and maintain. The breadth of data sources can create information overload without proper filtering. For a head-to-head comparison, see Salesmotion vs Demandbase.
Pricing: Enterprise-level. Annual contracts typically $50,000+.
Best for: Enterprise ABM teams coordinating marketing and sales engagement across multiple channels and large account lists.
Demandbase unifies intent data with advertising, website, and CRM signals for enterprise ABM orchestration.
“The account and contact signals are key for reaching out at important times, and the value-add messaging it creates unique to every contact helps save time and efficiency.”
Daniel Pitman
Mid-Market Account Executive, Black Swan Data
Intent Data vs. Account Signals: Understanding the Difference
Intent data tells you that someone at a company is researching a topic. Account intelligence signals tell you that specific, verifiable events are happening at the company: a new CRO joined, the CEO mentioned "operational efficiency" on the earnings call, the company posted 20 new sales roles, or a competitor's contract is expiring.
| Dimension | Intent Data | Account Signals |
|---|---|---|
| Specificity | Topic-level ("sales intelligence") | Event-level ("New VP Sales hired Jan 15") |
| Verification | Anonymous, probabilistic | Named, verifiable |
| Actionability | "Someone at Acme researched sales tools" | "Acme's new VP Sales used your product at her last company" |
| Messaging impact | Generic ("I noticed you're evaluating sales tools") | Specific ("Congratulations on joining Acme. At your previous company, you...") |
The most effective approach combines both: use intent data to identify accounts showing general interest, then layer account research to understand why they're interested and what specific events are driving the evaluation. Teams using only intent data miss the context needed for personalized outreach. Teams using only account signals miss the breadth of intent coverage.
Key Takeaways
- Intent data providers vary significantly in methodology, accuracy, and coverage. Cooperative-based providers (Bombora) offer breadth. Platform-specific providers (G2, TrustRadius, LinkedIn) offer accuracy. AI-aggregated platforms (6sense, Demandbase) offer predictive capabilities.
- False positive rates are the hidden cost of intent data. A "surge" can be triggered by content creation, competitive research, or general education rather than active buying evaluation. Validate intent signals with additional data before committing rep effort.
- Combine intent data with verified account signals (buying signals like leadership changes, funding events, and earnings priorities) for the most accurate account prioritization.
- Platform-specific intent (G2, TrustRadius) is more accurate than topic-level intent because the prospect is engaging in explicit buying behavior on a vendor evaluation platform.
- Evaluate providers based on integration depth with your CRM and engagement stack. Intent data that doesn't flow into rep workflows gets ignored.
- Start with one provider and measure signal-to-meeting conversion before adding more sources. More intent data isn't better if the existing data isn't being acted on. For a deeper look at turning signals into pipeline, see our guide to signal-based selling.
“Automatic account profile detail I can use to manage my territory. Using Salesmotion AI to generate value statements per persona, account, etc. Using Salesmotion to give me a starting point based on new hires, or news alerts is critical.”
Adam Wainwright
Head of Revenue, Cacheflow
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the best intent data provider for B2B sales?
The best provider depends on your use case. Bombora provides the broadest cooperative-based coverage and is the standard for topic-level intent. G2 provides the most accurate product-specific intent for SaaS companies. 6sense provides the most sophisticated predictive modeling by combining multiple intent sources. For most mid-market teams, starting with G2 or Bombora provides actionable intent at a reasonable price point. Enterprise ABM teams benefit from 6sense or Demandbase's multi-source aggregation. For detailed reviews and pricing across 12 platforms, see our in-depth intent data provider reviews. For a structured evaluation framework, see our intent data buyer's checklist.
How accurate is intent data?
Accuracy varies significantly by provider and methodology. First-party platform data (G2, TrustRadius) tends to be most accurate because it tracks explicit buying behavior. Third-party cooperative data (Bombora) has higher false positive rates because surges can be triggered by non-buying activity. AI-aggregated platforms (6sense) improve accuracy through multi-source validation and predictive modeling. Expect 30-50% of topic-level intent signals to be actionable (the rest are noise), compared to 50-70% for platform-specific signals.
Do I need intent data if I have account intelligence?
Intent data and account intelligence are complementary, not substitutes. Intent data identifies general research interest at the account level. Account intelligence provides specific, verifiable events (leadership changes, earnings priorities, hiring patterns) that explain why the interest exists and how to act on it. Teams that use both see better results because intent identifies the accounts and signals provide the context for relevant engagement.
How much does intent data cost?
Pricing varies widely: Bombora typically costs $25,000-75,000/year. 6sense and Demandbase charge $50,000-150,000+ annually. G2 and TrustRadius offer intent data as part of their review platform subscriptions at lower price points. LinkedIn provides intent signals through Sales Navigator ($100/user/month) and Campaign Manager (ad budget-dependent). Most mid-market teams can access meaningful intent data for $20,000-50,000 per year. For a complete pricing breakdown by provider, see our intent data pricing comparison.
