Apollo.io alternatives: where to go, and how to leave without losing anything
Nine destinations in detail, one for each reason to leave, and a seven-step exit plan.
The short answer: Lusha if you need mobile numbers without paying 8 credits each, ZoomInfo if you sell into large US accounts and have the budget, FullEnrich if you hate losing unused credits, Clay if someone on your team can build a waterfall of data providers, UpLead or Hunter if you want a simpler, cheaper data tool, and lemlist if you mostly kept Apollo for its sequences. One thing to know before you choose: Apollo exports your contacts to CSV, but not your sequences. You rebuild those by hand. We compared the nine destinations in this guide and checked their pricing pages in 2026.
Our ranking is editorial: a sponsored spot is always labeled on its card, and no affiliate link ever changes a score.
Why teams leave Apollo, and why leaving takes a plan
Apollo is still a strong place to start: a contact database, email sequences and a free plan in one product. Our Apollo.io review scores it 4.3/5, with 4.5 for value for money. Teams rarely leave over one flaw. They leave over the same six frustrations that keep showing up in customer reviews and sales forums, and the cost side weighs most for US teams.
Credits that expire every cycle
Credits are pooled across the team and granted at the start of each billing cycle. Whatever you don't use is gone when the cycle ends. No rollover. An email costs at most 1 credit, but a phone number costs 8. Extra credits you buy are charged right away and renew every cycle until you remove them, which is how many teams get surprised on the invoice.
Bounce rates creeping up
Apollo itself calls a bounce rate under 2% acceptable and says to investigate if it stays above 5%. A five-person agency described going from roughly 8% to 13% bounces, then switching tools and landing back at 2 to 3%. Plenty of teams end up paying for a separate email verifier on top of Apollo.
Data that ages, and thins out outside the US
The database is deepest in the US. Users still flag contacts who changed jobs, outdated records and weak mobile numbers. In the summary of cons left by reviewers, "inaccurate data" and "outdated data" each show up several hundred times. Coverage gets thinner in some regions and niches, especially for mobiles.
An annual contract that's hard to unwind
Annual plans are paid upfront and lock you in for twelve months. They renew automatically under your order form. Moving from annual to monthly means waiting out the year. A downgrade applies immediately, with no refund for the time left. Billing disputes and refused early exits are a recurring theme in negative reviews.
Dependence on LinkedIn
In 2025, LinkedIn removed Apollo's company page without a public explanation, then restored it. The Chrome extension still works, but any extension that reads LinkedIn puts your own LinkedIn account at risk of restriction. If your prospecting runs through that extension, you carry that risk.
Sequences that stay email-first
Apollo's sequences are built around email. Teams that want to mix email with LinkedIn touches in the same flow find it limited, and often pay for a second tool to do it. If that's you, consolidating on a sequencing tool can cut a subscription.
You're leaving because… go to…
The right Apollo alternative depends on what's pushing you out. Usually one row fits. Each card links to the full profile below.
A phone number costs 5 credits instead of 8, and you get 40 free credits to compare.
You sell into large US accounts and need depthZoomInfoThe big US database, for teams with a real budget. Pricing on request.
Your unused credits keep expiringFullEnrichCredits roll over, and several providers are queried in a row.
You want to combine several data providersClayBuild your own waterfall, if someone on the team can set it up.
You only need emails, on a small budgetHunterEmails only, with a free plan of 50 credits to start.
You mostly kept Apollo for its sequenceslemlistSequences that mix email and LinkedIn, with a built-in database.
Apollo.io alternatives, tool by tool
For each tool: why move to it, who it's for, its main limit, how to migrate from Apollo, and what it costs. Scores come from our review pages, prices from each vendor's pricing page. The order follows the most common case among our US readers: a sales team watching its cost per contact and its bounce rate.
Lusha: cheaper mobile numbers for a solo rep
Mobile numbersWhy move to Lusha. At Apollo, one phone number costs 8 credits. At Lusha, a phone costs 5 credits and an email costs 1. If your reps live on the phone, that gap adds up fast. The browser extension is easy to pick up: our Lusha review gives it 4.5 for ease of use.
Who it's for. A rep or a small team that wants mobile numbers to call, without running sequences in the same tool.
Who it's not for. A team that wants data, sequences and dialing in one place: Lusha only replaces the data side of Apollo.
The catch. Price. Our review rates its value for money 2.6/5, and an agency that compared 500 contacts per tool found Lusha's coverage thinner than other databases. Premium climbs to $299.95 a month billed yearly.
How to migrate. Export your Apollo list, upload it to Lusha to fill in the records with no phone number, and compare how many mobiles each tool finds. Our Apollo vs Lusha page goes deeper.
- Labs score
- 3.7/5
- Free
- 40 credits
- Paid
- Starter $37.45/mo billed yearly ($49.90 monthly), Pro $52.45 ($69.90)
- Limit
- weak value for money
ZoomInfo: the deep database for selling into the US
Enterprise, USWhy move to ZoomInfo. If your issue with Apollo is depth on US accounts, ZoomInfo is what larger sales teams buy. Our ZoomInfo review rates its features 4.7, the highest score on this page for that criterion.
Who it's for. A structured sales team that sells mostly in the US and has a real budget for data.
Who it's not for. A founder or a two-person team: you'd pay for scale you won't use.
The catch. Pricing is on request only, and our review gives it 2.6 for value for money and 2.8 for support. Its overall score is 3.6/5.
How to migrate. Ask to see their data on your own list before you sign, and only connect ZoomInfo to your CRM after you've turned off Apollo's sync. Our Apollo vs ZoomInfo page breaks down the gap.
- Labs score
- 3.6/5
- Price
- on request
- Best for
- large teams, US accounts
- Limit
- value for money 2.6/5
FullEnrich: a provider waterfall, and credits that stick around
Credits roll overWhy move to FullEnrich. FullEnrich queries several data providers in a row: if the first one misses the mobile number, it tries the next. You stop depending on a single database. And its credits roll over (3 months on monthly plans, 12 on yearly), unlike Apollo's, which die at the end of each cycle.
Who it's for. Teams that already have their prospect lists and mostly need to fill in mobiles and emails.
Who it's not for. Teams that search for prospects with filters: FullEnrich enriches, it doesn't hand you the starting list.
The catch. No free plan, only a 50-credit trial, so you'll keep a search tool on the side. Our FullEnrich review scores it 3.9/5.
How to migrate. Keep searching in Apollo's free plan or on LinkedIn, export lists to CSV, then enrich them in FullEnrich. Our FullEnrich vs Apollo page shows where each one wins.
- Labs score
- 3.9/5
- Trial
- 50 credits, no free plan
- Paid
- credits roll over 3 months (monthly) or 12 months (yearly)
- Limit
- no prospect search
Clay: build your own data waterfall
For ops teamsWhy move to Clay. Clay isn't a database. It's a spreadsheet that calls dozens of data providers and tools one after another. You write your own recipe: find the email with one provider, verify it with another, add a buying signal. The five-person agency that compared tools on 500 contacts found Clay the most accurate.
Who it's for. Teams with someone comfortable building automations who want maximum accuracy on targeted lists.
Who it's not for. A rep who wants a "find the number" button: the same agency noted you almost need an engineer to get the most out of it.
The catch. Cost climbs fast: Launch is $167 a month billed yearly ($185 monthly), Growth $446 ($495). Our Clay review scores it 4.0/5, with 3.5 for ease of use.
How to migrate. Import a list exported from Apollo into a Clay table and plug in two or three sources. Keep your free Apollo plan meanwhile: it can even act as one of the sources in your waterfall.
- Labs score
- 4.0/5
- Free
- yes, Free plan
- Paid
- Launch $167/mo billed yearly ($185 monthly), Growth $446 ($495)
- Limit
- needs a technical owner
UpLead: verified US contacts at a clear monthly price
US data, simple pricingWhy move to UpLead. UpLead is a plain contact database built around verified data, with mobile numbers for US prospects. You get published prices and a monthly plan, a welcome change if Apollo's credit rules have become a puzzle.
Who it's for. Small US sales teams that want a list-building tool and nothing else.
Who it's not for. Teams that need sequences in the same tool, or that sell mostly in Europe.
The catch. Entry pricing is higher than Apollo's Basic seat: $99 a month, or $74 billed yearly, and the next tier is $199 ($149 yearly). You're paying for the data only.
How to migrate. Export your Apollo lists, pick 100 accounts you know well, and compare the share of valid emails and mobile numbers each tool returns before you commit.
- Paid
- $74/mo billed yearly ($99 monthly)
- Next tier
- $149/mo billed yearly ($199 monthly)
- Best for
- verified US mobiles
- Limit
- no sequences
Hunter: just emails, on a small budget
Emails onlyWhy move to Hunter. If you only used Apollo to find work emails, you're paying for features you don't touch. Hunter mostly does one job: find and verify emails from a domain or a person's name, with simple email campaigns on top. It has a free plan with 50 credits.
Who it's for. A freelancer or small team sending cold emails at low volume.
Who it's not for. Teams that call: Hunter doesn't give you mobile numbers.
The catch. Like Apollo, its credits don't roll over from one month to the next. The tiers then climb to $104 and $209 a month billed yearly. Our switch from Hunter guide lists the tools that go further.
How to migrate. Export your target accounts from Apollo, then run a domain search in Hunter on ten of them. Compare the number of emails found and their verification status before you subscribe.
- Free
- 50 credits
- Paid
- Starter $34/mo billed yearly ($49 monthly)
- Best for
- emails, low volume
- Limit
- no phones, no rollover
lemlist: replace Apollo's sequences with multichannel
SequencesWhy move to lemlist. Many teams keep Apollo for sequencing more than for data. lemlist does more there: one sequence can chain an email, a profile visit and a LinkedIn message. It also has a built-in contact database, paid in credits.
Who it's for. Teams and agencies whose outbound depends on well-built sequences, email-only or with LinkedIn.
Who it's not for. Teams that mostly need reliable phone numbers: lemlist's data side is a bonus, not the core.
The catch. The Email plan at $69 a month for the whole team ($55 billed yearly) includes neither LinkedIn nor credits. Multichannel is $109 per user per month ($87 yearly). Our lemlist review scores it 4.1/5 but 3.4 for value.
How to migrate. Copy each Apollo sequence step by step, with delays and templates, then import contacts by CSV. Relaunch one sequence on a small batch first and check reply rates before moving everything.
- Labs score
- 4.1/5
- Paid
- Email $55/mo billed yearly for the team ($69 monthly)
- Multichannel
- $87/user billed yearly ($109 monthly)
- Limit
- no LinkedIn on the Email plan
Cognism: the European database, for teams with budget
EMEA prospectsWhy move to Cognism. If part of your pipeline sits in Europe, the Middle East or Africa, Cognism covers the regions where Apollo's mobiles are weakest. The five-person agency that compared databases on 500 contacts found it the best of the lot. One credit reveals one contact, with no extra charge for a phone number.
Who it's for. A sales team that calls into EMEA a lot and can negotiate a contract with a sales rep.
Who it's not for. A solo founder or a small team: the same agency found it too expensive for them.
The catch. Pricing is on request, negotiated with a sales rep, and the Standard and Pro packages include 5 seats. You can't start small. Our switch from Cognism guide covers what to know before signing.
How to migrate. Ask to compare their data on a list from your own target market, starting with contacts Apollo couldn't find. Line up the Cognism start date with the end of your Apollo annual plan so you don't pay twice.
- Price
- on request, 5 seats included
- Credits
- 1 credit = 1 contact
- Best for
- teams calling into EMEA
- Limit
- no public price, 5 seats
Kaspr: LinkedIn prospecting with European data
LinkedIn, EuropeWhy move to Kaspr. Kaspr works from LinkedIn: open a profile and the extension shows the email and phone number. It's a Cognism subsidiary, with data tuned for Europe, and its paid plans roll unused credits over.
Who it's for. Reps who prospect European accounts one profile at a time and want a monthly price.
Who it's not for. US-focused teams building large lists from filters: that's not how Kaspr works.
The catch. Exports are capped each year, and the cap depends on the plan: check it on the pricing page before you pick Starter. In 2024, France's data protection authority fined Kaspr €240,000 over collecting data from LinkedIn. The Organization plan is annual, with 5 users minimum.
How to migrate. Connect Kaspr to your CRM, then use the free plan on twenty European profiles Apollo couldn't fill. The free tier gives 5 phone numbers, 5 direct emails and 15 work emails a month.
- Free
- 5 phones, 5 direct emails, 15 work emails/mo
- Paid
- Starter €45/mo billed yearly (€59 monthly), Business €79 (€99)
- Best for
- European prospects
- Limit
- yearly export caps
The 9 alternatives side by side
Our default pick: Lusha for a rep who calls, FullEnrich if expiring credits are what hurts, lemlist if you were really there for the sequences. Each row shows what you get and how you pay on the left, the entry price and the catch on the right. For Apollo's own plans in detail, see our Apollo.io pricing breakdown.
| What you get | Entry price and catch | |
|---|---|---|
| Apollo.ioWhere you start | Data, sequences and dialer; free plan | Basic $49/seat/mo billed yearly ($65 monthly); credits expire each cycle, a phone costs 8 credits |
| LushaMobiles | Emails and phones; 40 free credits | Starter $37.45/mo billed yearly; phone at 5 credits |
| ZoomInfoUS enterprise | Deep US database | On request; value for money 2.6/5 |
| FullEnrichWaterfall | Enrichment of your lists; credits roll over | Credits roll over; no free plan, 50 trial credits |
| ClayOps | Provider waterfall you build; free plan | Launch $167/mo billed yearly; needs a technical owner |
| UpLeadUS data | Verified contacts and US mobiles | $74/mo billed yearly ($99 monthly); data only |
| HunterEmails | Emails only; 50 free credits | Starter $34/mo billed yearly; no rollover |
| lemlistSequences | Email and LinkedIn sequences, built-in data | Email $55/mo billed yearly for the team; LinkedIn on multichannel only |
| CognismEMEA | European database, emails and phones | On request, 5 seats included; no self-serve checkout |
| KasprLinkedIn, Europe | Emails and phones from LinkedIn; limited free plan | Starter €45/mo billed yearly; yearly export caps |
Entry prices before tax, subject to change. Always compare on your own prospect list before you commit.
Leaving Apollo in seven steps
Order matters. Each step protects something: credits you already paid for, your contacts, your sequences, your CRM, your contract, and your prospects' opt-outs.
Spend your credits before the cycle ends, then export
Before the cycle endsYour credits disappear at the end of the billing cycle. Before you leave, use them to enrich the contacts that matter: active lists, target accounts, records with no email. Then export: in Search, People tab, pick your saved contacts, a saved search or a list, then Export. You choose the columns and track the file under Settings, Import & Exports.
Exporting contacts you've already saved costs no credits, but it doesn't enrich anything either. Hence the order: enrich first, export second. One export handles up to 10,000 rows in a click, so split larger lists.
- Cap
- 10,000 rows per export
- Cost
- 0 credits for saved contacts
Copy your sequences by hand
No exportWe found no official way to export an Apollo sequence. For each one, copy the steps, email templates, delays and conditions into a document. Write down the reply rate of every step too: that's your baseline for judging the new tool.
Use the moment to prune. A sequence that hasn't earned a reply in months isn't worth rebuilding.
- Official export
- none found
- Keep
- reply rate per step
Turn off the CRM sync before connecting the new tool
Avoid duplicatesWith HubSpot, Apollo's sync runs both ways by default: contacts, accounts, deals and activities. With Salesforce, you chose the objects and the direction. Plug in a new tool while Apollo is still writing to your CRM and you risk duplicates and overwritten fields.
Turn off Apollo's sync first, then connect the new tool, one-way at the start if you can. Your activity history stays in the CRM: that's your system of record, not the prospecting tool.
- Risk
- duplicates, overwritten fields
- Suggested setting
- one-way at first
Cancel the renewal on time
Notice periodOn a monthly plan, you cancel whenever you want and it takes effect at the end of the period. On an annual plan, you're committed for twelve months and the subscription renews on its own. Check your order form: the notice period is in there, often 30 days. Send your request in writing and keep proof.
Don't downgrade mid-year hoping for a refund: a downgrade applies immediately, with no refund for the time left.
- Notice
- per your order form, often 30 days
- Downgrade
- immediate, not refunded
Compare two or three tools on your own list
100 to 500 contactsPull 100 to 500 contacts from your real target market, ideally records Apollo struggled with. Run them through two or three tools on their free trials: Lusha, Hunter, FullEnrich or Kaspr. Track two numbers: the share of valid emails and the share of mobiles found.
Verify the emails before the first send. Teams that do this keep bounces under 3%, and Apollo itself says anything above 5% needs investigating.
- Sample
- 100 to 500 contacts
- Bounce target
- under 2 to 3%
Carry your opt-outs over to the new tool
ConsentExport the list of people who unsubscribed and load it into the new tool as a block list before your first send. Apollo reminds customers that every email sent to Europe must carry an unsubscribe link: that duty follows you to any tool.
Emailing someone who opted out at Apollo means spam complaints and a hit to your sender reputation.
- When
- before the first send
- Risk if skipped
- complaints and spam reports
Ramp up in batches
In batchesStart with a batch of 200 to 500 contacts, watch bounces and replies, then move to 500 to 1,000. Only switch every sequence over once the numbers hold steady.
During the switch, you can keep Apollo's free plan for prospect search. It costs nothing, and it buys you time to confirm the new tool delivers on your market.
- First batch
- 200 to 500 contacts
- Safety net
- Apollo free plan
Is your tool missing from this page? Email us: hello@hackceleration.com
What makes an Apollo exit go wrong
The same mistakes come up from one team to the next. None of them is technical: they're timing and sequencing slips, and each one costs more than the time it would have taken to avoid it.
Letting paid credits die
Cancelling without spending the cycle's credits is money thrown away. Schedule a final enrichment push in the last weeks, and remove extra credit packs that renew on their own.
Assuming sequences will follow
There's no official export. Teams that notice after the account closes rebuild their sequences from memory, without templates or delays.
Running two CRM syncs at once
Apollo writes to HubSpot both ways by default. Stack a second tool on top and you'll spend days merging duplicates and chasing overwritten fields.
Missing the notice date
An annual plan you didn't cancel runs for another twelve months. Write down the end date and your order form's notice period today, and send the request in writing.
Losing the opt-out list
The worst one: it has you emailing people who asked you to stop. Import it before any send, not after the first complaint.
Choosing on a demo instead of your list
Every database shines on the vendor's example. Only a sample of your own market tells you whether the emails and mobiles are there for you.
- Cycle credits spent on the contacts that matter
- Contacts exported to CSV, in batches of 10,000 rows max
- Sequences copied with templates, delays and reply rates
- Apollo sync turned off in the CRM before the new tool
- Order form notice noted and cancellation sent in writing
- Extra credit packs removed so they don't renew
- Opt-out list imported as a block list
- Two or three tools compared on 100 to 500 of your contacts
- Emails verified before the first send
Apollo.io alternatives: frequently asked questions
What is the best Apollo.io alternative?
There isn't one for everyone. For a rep who calls, Lusha, because phones cost 5 credits instead of 8. For a large team selling into US enterprise accounts, ZoomInfo. For accuracy on targeted lists, Clay, if you have someone to build it. Our ranking of B2B prospecting tools covers the wider field.
Do Apollo credits roll over?
No. Credits reset at the start of each billing cycle and unused ones are lost, including at renewal. Extra credits you bought renew every cycle until you remove them. If rollover matters to you, FullEnrich carries credits over, and so do Kaspr's paid plans.
Is there a cheaper alternative to Apollo?
For emails only, Hunter starts at $34 a month billed yearly, with a free plan. For phone-heavy work, Lusha is cheaper per number. For a full suite of data plus sequences, Apollo's Basic seat at $49 a month billed yearly is hard to beat, which is why many teams keep its free plan alongside a new tool.
Lusha vs Apollo: which has better phone numbers?
Lusha costs less per phone in credits, 5 versus 8. An agency that compared tools on 500 contacts still found Lusha's coverage thinner overall. Run both on 100 of your own contacts before choosing. Our Apollo vs Lusha comparison has the plan details.
How do I cancel an annual Apollo plan?
In writing, before the notice deadline set in your order form, often 30 days before renewal. Keep proof of the request. Cancellation takes effect at the end of the paid year, and a downgrade during the year isn't refunded.
Can I export my Apollo sequences?
We found no official way to do it. Only contacts export to CSV. Copy each sequence into a document (steps, templates, delays) before your subscription ends, along with the reply rate of each step.
Which Apollo alternative is best for European contacts?
Cognism for a team with an annual budget, Kaspr for a rep who prospects from LinkedIn and wants a monthly plan. Kaspr is a Cognism subsidiary, so both lean on European data.
Do I still need an email verifier after switching?
Usually yes, at least for the first batches. Verify your first list before sending to stay under 2 to 3% bounces. Our switch from ZeroBounce guide covers the verifiers on the market.
Where can I see a longer list of Apollo competitors?
Our Apollo.io alternatives list ranks more tools, without the exit plan. This page is for leaving cleanly; that one is for scanning the market.
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