Compare/Head to head

Collective vs Nova Recruiter

Same facts, side by side: starting price, free tier, MCP, API and what each one is actually built for.

Starting price

Collective

€95/seat/mo Free tier

Paris based AI sourcing agent, called Sherlock, that turns a job description, a rough brief or one ideal candidate into a ranked shortlist from 800M+ profiles across 30+ public sources, then contacts the shortlist by email, chat or WhatsApp from one inbox. There is a free plan; paid seats start at €95/seat/mo billed yearly (€119 monthly), with ATS search, API and MCP access on the custom Pro plan.

Where Collective fits

  • Recruitment agencies and IT services firms hiring in France and wider Europe
  • Recruiters who want to search from a brief or an ideal profile instead of Boolean strings
  • Teams that reach candidates on WhatsApp as well as email
  • Agencies that want their old ATS records searchable and refreshed

Nova Recruiter

€49/mo Free tier

AI sourcing and outreach across 800M+ profiles, with MCP on paid plans. Free plan available; Starter is €49/mo. Prices are published in euros.

Where Nova Recruiter fits

  • Solo headhunters starting on the €49 Starter
  • Small agency desks of up to 3 on Growth
  • Recruiters who want to source from Claude via MCP
  • Teams that pay per contacted candidate, not per seat

At a glance

DetailCollectiveNova Recruiter
Starting price€95/seat/mo€49/mo
Free tier✓Yes✓Yes
MCP server✓Yes✓Yes
Public API✓Yes–No
Listed underSourcing, Email finders, Outreach, AI sourcingATS, Outreach, CRM, AI sourcing, Sourcing

Where they pull apart

Collective

Stands out: Lookalike search: give Sherlock one great hire and it finds people like them, running 10+ parallel searches and analysing up to 2,000 profiles per run. One tool covers search, an AI job board that posts to 25+ boards and scores applicants, and bulk outreach to 100 candidates at once.

Watch out: It is a French product: euro only pricing, a French first website, and a customer list that is mostly French firms, so US coverage depth is unproven. ATS integration, searching your own ATS and LinkedIn network, and API and MCP access are Pro add ons with no published price, and there are no outside reviews yet.

Not the right fit for

  • US teams that need USD billing and proven US data depth
  • Buyers who want ATS integration or API access at a published price

Nova Recruiter

Stands out: MCP is on Starter, so you can run searches and outreach from Claude or ChatGPT without a Growth bill.

Watch out: Prices are in euros, with VAT extra. One credit is one candidate contacted or exported, and Free is 2 searches a month.

Not the right fit for

  • Buyers who need a USD price
  • In-house TA teams that will not manage credits

Pros and cons

Collective

  • Search from a brief, a job description or one ideal candidate
  • Sourcing, AI job board and multichannel outreach in one tool
  • Free plan, and paid seats can be billed monthly or yearly
  • Euro only pricing and a France focused customer base
  • ATS integration, API and MCP access only on the unpriced Pro plan
  • No outside reviews yet

Nova Recruiter

  • Free plan at €0/month
  • Starter €49/mo includes MCP
  • Credits follow contacted candidates, not seats
  • Prices in euros, VAT extra
  • Free is 2 searches and 10 credits
  • Starter is limited to one user

What each one costs

Collective

€95/seat/mo

Free gives limited AI searches and one basic job post. Basic is €95/seat/mo billed yearly or €119 monthly, with 30 Sherlock searches, 50 MegaSearch searches, 200 email and phone reveals and 200 profile exports. Start is €135/seat/mo yearly or €169 monthly and adds team collaboration, 100 Sherlock searches, unlimited MegaSearch, 500 reveals, WhatsApp bulk messaging and lookalike search. Pro is quoted and adds ATS integration, AI search in your ATS and LinkedIn network, unlimited usage, and API and MCP access. No USD price is published. Confirm current terms on the vendor site.

Checked 15 Oct 2026

Nova Recruiter

€49/mo

Free is €0 with 2 searches and 10 credits a month. Starter is €49/mo and Growth €199/mo, billed monthly by card with VAT extra; extra credits cost €1 on Starter and €0.50 on Growth. Agency licences and Enterprise plans are quoted on annual contracts. Confirm current terms on the vendor site.

Checked 19 Sep 2026

Common questions

Can you try Collective or Nova Recruiter for free?
Collective and Nova Recruiter carry a free tier on our listing.
Does Collective or Nova Recruiter have an MCP server?
Collective and Nova Recruiter ship a first party MCP server, so an AI assistant can work the product directly.

Not the pair you wanted?

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Editorial listings, never paid rankings. Prices checked 15 Oct 2026. Confirm current terms on the vendor site. Spot an error?