Best AI tools for writing press releases in 2026: five picks, from drafting to distribution
Five AI tools that help a small team write a press release a journalist will read past the first line.
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TL;DR
- The best AI press release writing tools in 2026 are Contengi for on-brand releases written from your own knowledge base, Semrush AI PR Toolkit for drafting and pitching in one place, PressPilot for pay-per-journalist outreach, EIN Presswire for free drafts and cheap wire distribution, and Claude for flexible drafting.
- Contengi has a PR writer that drafts releases in wire format for from $50 a month plus your own Anthropic key, but it does not distribute releases or hold a journalist database.
- Semrush AI PR Toolkit, which used to be Prowly, starts at $149 a month billed annually and pairs AI press release writing with a media database and pitching tool.
- EIN Presswire gives you up to 25 free AI press release drafts a day, and its distribution starts at $149 for a single release.
- Whatever writes the draft, a person checks every name, number, and quote before it goes to a journalist.
A press release is a CV for a piece of news. The journalist reading it has a pile of others on the desk, and they decide in the headline and the first paragraph whether yours gets an interview. AI writes a tidy CV in seconds, which is exactly why so many of them read the same.
This list covers five AI tools for writing press releases in 2026, chosen for founders and small teams who announce a few times a year. We built Contengi, so it goes first, and each of the others is a strong pick for something we don't do. The rest are in no specific order.
AI press release tools at a glance
| Tool | Best for | Starting price |
|---|---|---|
| Contengi | On-brand releases from your own notes and calls | From $50 a month, plus your Anthropic usage |
| Semrush AI PR Toolkit | Drafting, finding journalists, and pitching in one tool | $149 a month, billed annually |
| PressPilot | Paying only for the journalists you reach | 29 EUR a month excl. VAT, or one-off packs from 60 EUR |
| EIN Presswire | Free AI drafts and low-cost wire distribution | Generator free; distribution from $149 per release |
| Claude | A flexible drafting partner you steer yourself | Free plan; Pro at $17 a month billed annually, or $20 monthly |
1. Contengi: best for when you want the release to sound like your brand
Contengi, the agentic content platform we built, includes a PR writer that drafts press releases in proper wire format, alongside agents for blogs, social, and newsletters. It reads your brand knowledge base first, so the boilerplate, product names, and tone match everything else you publish.
Record a call where you explain the launch and the agents pull the quotes and angles from the transcript, so the founder quote sounds like the founder. Pricing is from $50 a month with no seats, plus your own Anthropic key, and setup with a strategist is included during the beta.
What it doesn't do: Contengi doesn't distribute releases, hold a journalist database, or track opens. You take the finished release to a wire or an outreach tool from this list.
Choose it if: you announce a few times a year and want the release, the blog, and the social posts to say the same thing in the same voice.
2. Semrush AI PR Toolkit: best for when you want drafting and pitching in one place
Prowly is now the Semrush AI PR Toolkit, and it covers the whole PR job, from finding journalists to pitching them. The Base plan costs $149 a month billed annually and includes AI for email and press release writing, a global media database with AI search, AI-driven journalist recommendations, a media pitching tool, and email analytics.
Pro is $279 a month and Business $499 a month, both billed annually, and there is a seven-day free trial. For a team that sends releases often and wants journalist lists, pitches, and results in one place, it means less tabs open.
Choose it if: PR is a regular channel for you and you want writing, targeting, and pitching under one login.
3. PressPilot: best for when you want to pay per journalist reached
PressPilot runs on credits, where one credit reaches one journalist. Every plan includes AI writing, a branded newsroom, and real-time tracking of opens, clicks, and replies. The Startup plan is 29 EUR a month excluding VAT for 100 credits, and one-off packs start at 60 EUR for 100 credits with your first AI-written release free.
Credits never expire, there is no annual contract, and every new account starts with five free credits. That model suits a startup that announces twice a year.
Choose it if: you announce occasionally and want AI drafting plus targeted outreach without a subscription you forget to cancel.
4. EIN Presswire: best for when you want a free draft and cheap distribution
EIN Presswire is a distribution service with a free writing tool alongside. Its AI Press Release Generator gives you up to 25 drafts a day for free, with no credit card, and you can send the final draft through its network if you like it.
Distribution costs $149 for a single release, $499 for five on the Pro+ package, and $999 for 15 on Corporate. Every package includes AP News, Nexstar Media Group, and the USA TODAY Network, plus Google News, Bloomberg Terminals, and AI and LLM platforms. If you want your launch picked up in AI answers, check your own newsroom page with the AI bot view too, because a release only helps if crawlers can read the page it links to.
Choose it if: you need a wire-style release out this week on a small budget.
5. Claude: best for when you want a flexible drafting partner
Claude, Anthropic's AI model, writes a clean release from a good brief. Give it the facts, the quote, your boilerplate, and one release you liked, and it drafts the whole thing in seconds. It is the model Contengi runs on.
Claude Pro costs $17 a month billed annually, or $20 billed monthly, and there is a free plan. The trade-off with any general model is that you supply every fact and check every name, because it will happily fill gaps with plausible fiction if you let it.
Choose it if: you write one or two releases a year and are happy to brief and edit carefully.
How to write a press release with AI this week
- Collect the facts before you open a tool. Who, what, when, where, the numbers, and the quote, written down by a person who knows them.
- Write the headline yourself. Let the AI draft the body, but the headline is the bit a journalist reads, so own it.
- Ask for one real quote. Record yourself answering why this launch exists and use the best line. Skip any quote the model invented.
- Strip the AI tells. Run the draft through the AI slop cleaner and cut every "thrilled to announce" before a journalist sees it.
- Check every name, number, and date. One wrong figure in a release follows you around for years.
- Pick distribution last. Decide between a wire, targeted outreach, or a direct pitch once the release is good, because none of them fixes a weak one.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best AI tool for writing press releases?
For a small team that wants the release on-brand, Contengi is our pick because it writes from your knowledge base and your own quotes. If you want drafting and pitching in one place, Semrush AI PR Toolkit is the strongest suite, and EIN Presswire is the cheapest way to get a free draft and wire distribution.
Is there a free AI press release generator?
Yes. EIN Presswire offers a free AI Press Release Generator with up to 25 drafts a day, and PressPilot gives you your first AI-written release free with a one-off pack. Claude also has a free plan that can draft a release from your notes.
Can AI write a press release that journalists will read?
It can write the structure well, but the news, the facts, and the quote have to come from you. Give the tool real details, write the headline yourself, and remove stock phrases before you send it.
How much does it cost to distribute a press release?
EIN Presswire starts at $149 for one release, PressPilot charges per journalist from 29 EUR a month excluding VAT, and Semrush AI PR Toolkit starts at $149 a month billed annually. Contengi and Claude write releases but do not distribute them.
How does Contengi compare with Semrush AI PR Toolkit?
Semrush AI PR Toolkit covers the PR workflow, from AI writing to a media database and pitching. Contengi writes the release from your brand knowledge base and turns the same news into blogs and social posts, then you distribute it with the tool you prefer.