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Endearist vs Dex
A fair, specific comparison — written so you'd be comfortable if a Dex engineer read it.
Fairness pledge
Dex is the strongest professional-networking CRM in the personal space — its LinkedIn integration, browser extension, and team features genuinely set it apart for people whose relationship work is also their job. If you're a recruiter, BD lead, or VC partner, Dex is a strong choice and we say so. Endearist is being built for people who want a similar contact memory without having to pay a SaaS subscription or trust a US server with sensitive notes — it is not released yet.
Where does my data live with Dex versus Endearist?
Dex: hosted on US servers (AWS). Endearist: not publicly available yet. The primary copy is intended to stay on your device. End-to-end encrypted sync over storage you run yourself — a local or shared folder, or a WebDAV server — is planned for v1. Google Drive as a destination is not decided yet. Managed sync on Endearist Cloud is planned for after v1, as part of the Pro Cloud subscription only.
How does each tool access AI?
Dex has AI-powered relationship insights and meeting summaries, processed on Dex's servers using OpenAI's API. Endearist's AI is planned as strictly opt-in: with your own key, only what you choose to send goes to the provider you picked; managed AI would come only in a proposed Pro Cloud subscription. AI with your own key: not publicly available yet. Status: planned for v1. Proposed plan, not purchasable yet: managed AI (planned for after v1, as part of the Pro Cloud subscription only) and Endearist Cloud (planned for after v1, as part of the Pro Cloud subscription only). Specific budgets, routing and prices require approval. Family sharing: not decided yet; no included family seat is promised.
What do Dex and Endearist cost over three years?
Dex Premium: $12/month billed annually ($144/year), about €123/year or €370 over 3 years. Professional: $20/month billed annually ($240/year), about €206/year. These rates already include the annual discount; applying a further 40% reduction would understate the cost. Endearist Pro Lifetime (€69 once) and Pro Cloud Light (€4.99/month) are proposed pre-launch prices. Dex rates checked 27 September 2026 on its pricing page and annual totals in Dex's own Dex vs Affinity article. Converted at the ECB reference rate of 2026-08-25 (1 USD = €0.857); the euro amount moves with the rate.
What doesn't Endearist do?
We don't have Dex's LinkedIn auto-sync, team workspaces, or pipeline/deal tracking. Dex is built for the professional networker for whom the contact list IS the work product. Endearist doesn't try to replace a sales CRM — it is being built as a quiet personal journal for relationships you care about outside of work, or alongside work.
Feature matrix
Side-by-side.
| Feature | Endearist | Dex |
|---|---|---|
| Local-first data storage | Designed so the primary copy lives on your device, not on a server. Local-first vault, fully offline: not publicly available yet. Status: planned for v1. | No — AWS US-hosted. |
| End-to-end encrypted sync | End-to-end encrypted sync over storage you run yourself — a local or shared folder, or a WebDAV server — is planned for v1. Google Drive as a destination is not decided yet. Managed sync on Endearist Cloud is planned for after v1, as part of the Pro Cloud subscription only. | Server-side encryption; Dex holds the keys. |
| Mobile native apps (iOS / Android) | Flutter apps in development; nothing to install yet. Native Android app: planned for v1. The first release is intended for Android and Windows. Native Windows app: planned for v1. The first release is intended for Android and Windows. Native iPhone and iPad app: planned for later. The first release is intended for Android and Windows only. Native macOS app: planned for later. The first release is intended for Android and Windows only. Native Linux app: planned for later. The first release is intended for Android and Windows only. | Source check for Dex (2026-10-08): Listed platforms: iOS, Android, macOS, Windows, Web. Native availability for Linux is unverified. Desktop clients are listed for Mac and Windows; Linux availability is unverified. Check current availability and account/region limits with the vendor. We have not tested the apps ourselves. |
| Desktop native apps | Native desktop apps in development; nothing to install yet. Native Android app: planned for v1. The first release is intended for Android and Windows. Native Windows app: planned for v1. The first release is intended for Android and Windows. Native iPhone and iPad app: planned for later. The first release is intended for Android and Windows only. Native macOS app: planned for later. The first release is intended for Android and Windows only. Native Linux app: planned for later. The first release is intended for Android and Windows only. | Source check for Dex (2026-10-08): Listed platforms: iOS, Android, macOS, Windows, Web. Native availability for Linux is unverified. Desktop clients are listed for Mac and Windows; Linux availability is unverified. Check current availability and account/region limits with the vendor. We have not tested the apps ourselves. |
| AI features | Planned as strictly opt-in — your own key, or managed AI in a proposed Pro Cloud subscription. AI with your own key: not publicly available yet. Status: planned for v1. Proposed plan, not purchasable yet: managed AI (planned for after v1, as part of the Pro Cloud subscription only) and Endearist Cloud (planned for after v1, as part of the Pro Cloud subscription only). Specific budgets, routing and prices require approval. Family sharing: not decided yet; no included family seat is promised. | OpenAI-based, processed on Dex's servers; meeting summaries + Pro relationship insights. |
| Self-host option | No — there is no server component to host; the local store is meant to be the app itself. Local-first vault, fully offline: not publicly available yet. Status: planned for v1. | No. |
| Pricing | Proposed, not purchasable yet: free up to 25 contacts; Pro Lifetime €69 once, Pro Cloud Light €4.99/mo, or Pro Cloud €9.99/mo. Proposed plan, not purchasable yet: local core and data export. The proposed 25-contact limit is not a confirmed entitlement. Proposed plan, not purchasable yet: local app and AI with your own key (planned for v1). Sync over your own storage is planned for v1. Managed cloud services are not a lifetime feature. Proposed plan, not purchasable yet: managed AI (planned for after v1, as part of the Pro Cloud subscription only) and Endearist Cloud (planned for after v1, as part of the Pro Cloud subscription only). Specific budgets, routing and prices require approval. Family sharing: not decided yet; no included family seat is promised. | No free tier on the current pricing page: Premium $12/mo and Professional $20/mo when billed annually; Enterprise on request. The displayed rates already include the annual discount. |
| Open source code | Pledge in place: the source gets released if we shut down or are acquired. | No. |
| Plain-Markdown export | Planned — plain Markdown you can read without any app. Markdown, CSV and vCard export: not publicly available yet. Status: planned for v1. The documented implementation has a separate readable ZIP export with media and a report of omissions; legacy exports remain partial. This is not device or release acceptance. | CSV export, no Markdown. |
| Voice-note transcription | Planned — on-device, or with your own key. On-device transcription: not publicly available yet. Status: planned for v1. | Yes on Professional tier. |
| Family / multi-vault share | Family sharing: not decided yet. Multiple vaults: not decided yet. | No — Teams plan is org-only. |
| Journal / reflection | Journal, weekly ritual, and appreciation prompts are meant to be built in, not built by you. Local-first vault, fully offline: not publicly available yet. Status: planned for v1. | Notes per contact; no journal surface. |
| Relationship depth (how-we-met, pets) | Designed with ready-made fields: how-we-met, pets, custom pronouns, life events, debts, attachments. Local-first vault, fully offline: not publicly available yet. Status: planned for v1. | LinkedIn-rich (job changes, role updates). No pets / how-we-met / debts. |
| Calendar / messenger integrations | Deliberately lighter, and not decided yet: a read-only calendar overlay and manual share-sheet capture for messenger context are ideas, not commitments. Read-only calendar overlay: scope and availability are not confirmed. Status: not decided yet. Share-sheet capture: scope and availability are not confirmed. Status: not decided yet. | Strong — Google Calendar 2-way, Chrome extension for LinkedIn capture. |
When to pick Dex
When is Dex the better choice?
If your relationship work is also your job — recruiting, BD, VC, sales-adjacent — Dex is the strongest networking CRM in the personal space. The LinkedIn integration is best-in-class, the Chrome extension captures contacts in one click, and the Teams plan lets a small group share a contact network. Pick Dex if you need LinkedIn auto-sync, you want a tool that's openly built for professional networkers, and you can absorb a SaaS subscription as a work expense. We're building for the relationships outside (or alongside) work — quieter, with no LinkedIn dependency by design — and that's a different lane.
Switching
How do I switch from Dex to Endearist?
Export a copy of your Dex contacts before changing tools. Endearist is not publicly available yet, so its Dex import mapping and cross-device sync cannot be tested today. Keep Dex until a released Endearist build lets you try a small import and verify contacts, notes and reminders before cancelling.
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Prices verified 2026-09-27; positioning last reviewed 2026-08-26.
Platform information updated 2026-10-08; source-check dates are shown in the table.
Sources for the platform review
Endearist is in development.
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