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Apollo vs ZoomInfo (2026): which B2B database is worth paying for?

Apollo vs ZoomInfo is a choice between a self-serve contact database with sequencing built in and an enterprise data platform sold by quote. Apollo has a free plan and published seat prices, and reps can find a contact and email them in the same tab. ZoomInfo adds intent data, website visitor identification, and an AI assistant, and you only learn the price from a sales rep.

Neither is in OneGTM's own stack. We pull contact data through APIs instead, and we cover that setup at the end. We have worked with clients on both, and below is what each costs as published, how they compare, and who should pick which.

By Garrett Wolfe, founder of OneGTM (Clay Artisan Solutions Partner) and former GTM engineer at Unify. Updated .

Key takeaways

  • Apollo is free to start, with paid seats from $49 per user per month billed annually. ZoomInfo is custom pricing on an annual contract.
  • Apollo bundles data with sequences and a dialer. ZoomInfo sells data, intent, and visitor tracking in packages, with engagement tools alongside.
  • ZoomInfo's intent and website visitor data are its real advantage. Apollo has no equal to them.
  • For small teams, Apollo almost always wins on cost. For large sales orgs that want one managed source, ZoomInfo is the safer buy.
  • OneGTM uses neither. We use Deepline and LeadMagic to pull data per lookup, paying only for what we find.

Apollo

Apollo

Contact and company database (it claims 240M contacts and 30M companies) with email sequences, a dialer, call recording, AI features, and CRM sync in one seat.

Best for: Small teams that want data and sending in one tool

Pricing: Free plan; Basic $49 and Professional $79 per seat per month billed annually, more on monthly billing; Custom plan through sales.

ZoomInfo

ZoomInfo

Enterprise B2B data platform with contact and company data, buyer intent signals, website visitor identification (WebSights), Copilot AI account summaries, and separate Chorus conversation intelligence.

Best for: Large sales and marketing teams that want one managed source

Pricing: Custom pricing, set by features, number of licenses, and credit usage. Streaming Intent is priced by keywords and accounts tracked.

Also consider: what OneGTM uses instead

We stopped buying seat-based databases for client builds. Claude Code calls these through their APIs, tries several providers per contact, and writes results to the CRM. You pay per result instead of per seat. See data enrichment tools for the wider field.

Deepline

OneGTM uses this

One API, plus Claude Code skills, that routes enrichment across many data providers with waterfall fallbacks and scheduled jobs. Bring your own provider keys or use managed ones.

Best for: Replacing a database seat with per-lookup enrichment in code

Pricing: Pay as you go at $0.10 per credit with no platform fee.

LeadMagic

OneGTM uses this

Email finder, email validation, mobile finder, and company data through an API, MCP server, and web app. Failed lookups do not use credits.

Best for: High-volume email and mobile lookups

Pricing: Essential $99/month for 5,000 credits; Growth $249/month for 20,000; Professional $499/month for 50,000; Ultimate $849/month for 100,000. About 16% less billed annually. No free plan.

Prices are from each vendor's site as of October 2026 and change often, so check before you buy. This is an opinionated list, not a paid ranking. Some links are referral links that may earn us a credit; that never changes what you pay or who makes the list.

Apollo vs ZoomInfo at a glance

ToolBest forStarting price
ApolloSmall teams that want data and sending in one toolFree; $49/seat/month billed annually
ZoomInfoLarge sales and marketing teams that want one managed sourceCustom pricing
Deepline (OneGTM uses)Replacing a database seat with per-lookup enrichment in code$0.10/credit, no platform fee
LeadMagic (OneGTM uses)High-volume email and mobile lookupsEssential $99/month

Starting prices as published by each vendor in October 2026.

Apollo vs ZoomInfo pricing compared

Apollo publishes its prices and you can start on a credit card. ZoomInfo publishes none, and every package goes through a sales call and an annual contract. ZoomInfo's pricing FAQ says the price depends on features, number of licenses, and credit usage, and that each contact or company export uses a credit.

  • Free tier: Apollo has a free plan with limited credits. ZoomInfo has a free trial and no free plan.
  • Entry paid: Apollo Basic $49 per seat per month billed annually. ZoomInfo Professional is custom pricing.
  • Mid tier: Apollo Professional $79 per seat per month billed annually. ZoomInfo Copilot Advanced, which adds intent and website visitors, is custom pricing.
  • Top: Apollo Custom and ZoomInfo Copilot Enterprise are both through sales.
  • Add-ons: ZoomInfo prices Streaming Intent by keyword volume and account universe, and integrations may carry a base cost with a minimum credit purchase. Apollo credits are pooled across the team and reset each billing cycle.
  • Contract: Apollo offers monthly billing at a higher rate. ZoomInfo is annual. Plan your renewal date before you sign.

Features compared

  • Data coverage: Apollo claims 240M contacts and 30M companies. ZoomInfo does not publish a record count on its pricing page and is generally stronger on North American enterprise accounts. Test both with a sample of your own ICP before trusting either claim.
  • Phone numbers: both sell direct dials and mobiles. ZoomInfo is usually the stronger of the two for US enterprise phone data, and a waterfall across several providers beats either alone.
  • Intent and signals: ZoomInfo sells buyer intent topics and real-time intent on Copilot and marketing packages. Apollo has no comparable intent product in its plan details.
  • Website visitors: ZoomInfo identifies companies on your site through WebSights. Apollo has no equivalent in its plan descriptions.
  • Sequencing and dialer: Apollo has email sequences, a parallel dialer, and call recording in the same seat. ZoomInfo lists AI email generation and AI dialing, with engagement handled through apps and integrations.
  • AI: ZoomInfo Copilot writes account summaries, talking points, and buying groups. Apollo's AI features sit on Professional.
  • API: Apollo lists API access on its Custom plan. ZoomInfo integrations can carry a base cost and a minimum credit purchase.
  • Setup: Apollo is self-serve and reps can use it on day one. ZoomInfo comes with sales-led onboarding.

Who should pick Apollo

  • Small teams and founders who want one tool for finding contacts and emailing them.
  • Teams whose ICP Apollo covers well, which you can check with a free sample list.
  • Anyone who will not sign an annual data contract.
  • Teams on a budget where $49 to $79 a seat covers the need.

Who should pick ZoomInfo

  • Sales orgs with dozens of reps who need one data source everyone uses.
  • Teams that prioritize accounts by intent signals and website visits.
  • Companies selling into North American enterprise accounts where phone data matters.
  • Buyers who want vendor-managed data quality and enterprise support, and have the annual budget for it.

Migrating from ZoomInfo to Apollo (or back)

Most moves go from ZoomInfo to Apollo or to an API-based setup at renewal time. Data you exported and synced to your CRM usually stays, but check your contract for terms on using ZoomInfo data after it ends.

  • Note your ZoomInfo renewal date and notice period months ahead. Missing it can lock you in for another year.
  • Pull a sample of 200 target contacts and run them through Apollo and any API providers you are considering. Compare match and bounce rates.
  • Read the contract terms on retaining exported data, and tag ZoomInfo-sourced records in the CRM.
  • Rebuild any intent or visitor workflows with a replacement before the contract ends, since Apollo will not cover them.
  • Move sequences and CRM enrichment last, once the new data source is proven.

The verdict

For most teams under about 20 reps, Apollo is the better buy. It costs a fraction of a ZoomInfo contract, reps can use it the day you sign up, and the data is good enough for a large share of B2B markets. ZoomInfo earns its price at enterprise scale, when intent and website visitor data actually change which accounts reps work and someone manages that every week.

Our own answer is neither. OneGTM pulls contact data through APIs instead of seats: Deepline routes each lookup across several providers, LeadMagic finds and verifies emails and mobiles, and Claude Code runs the whole thing and writes results to the CRM. Coverage is usually higher than one database alone, and you pay only for records you find. It does need someone technical to own it.

If you are leaving one of them, see Apollo alternatives and ZoomInfo alternatives.

When to get help with your data stack

A database is only worth what reaches the CRM and gets worked. OneGTM builds the enrichment, scoring, and outbound around whatever data you choose, in your own accounts. For Coastal Recruiting, accepted candidate intros went from 72 to 340 a month, a 4.7x increase.

  • Your ZoomInfo renewal is coming and you are not sure it is worth it.
  • Apollo coverage or bounce rates are poor for your market.
  • You want per-lookup data through APIs instead of paying for seats.

Book a call

Apollo vs ZoomInfo FAQ

Is Apollo better than ZoomInfo?
For small and mid-size teams, usually yes, because it is far cheaper, self-serve, and includes sequencing and a dialer. ZoomInfo is better for large sales orgs that rely on intent data, website visitor identification, and enterprise phone data. OneGTM uses neither and pulls data through APIs with Deepline and LeadMagic.
Is Apollo cheaper than ZoomInfo?
Yes, in almost every case. Apollo has a free plan and paid seats from $49 per user per month billed annually. ZoomInfo publishes no prices and sells annual contracts priced by features, licenses, and credits.
Apollo vs ZoomInfo: which has better data?
It depends on your market. ZoomInfo is generally stronger for North American enterprise accounts and phone numbers. Apollo covers a broad share of B2B contacts at much lower cost. Test both with 200 of your own target contacts and compare match and bounce rates.
Does Apollo have intent data like ZoomInfo?
Not to the same degree. ZoomInfo sells buyer intent topics, real-time intent, and website visitor identification. Apollo's plan details do not list a comparable intent product.
Can I cancel ZoomInfo and switch to Apollo?
Yes, at renewal. Check your notice period well ahead, because ZoomInfo contracts are annual. Read the terms on keeping exported data, and replace any intent or visitor workflows before the contract ends.
What does OneGTM use instead of Apollo or ZoomInfo?
Deepline, which routes each lookup across several data providers, and LeadMagic for email and mobile finding and verification, both run from Claude Code. You pay per lookup instead of per seat.

Paying for Apollo or ZoomInfo seats and not sure the data is worth it?

Related

  • Apollo alternatives: What to use instead of Apollo for data, signals, and sending, by job.
  • ZoomInfo alternatives: What to use instead of ZoomInfo, with the waterfall OneGTM runs and current pricing.
  • Best data enrichment tools: The enrichment stack OneGTM runs, plus the main alternatives and what each costs.
  • Clay vs Apollo: What each tool does, pricing, and when to use one, the other, or both.
  • Clay vs ZoomInfo: A flexible enrichment workflow compared with an enterprise database.
  • Clay vs Deepline: Visual tables vs enrichment in code: pricing, features, and why OneGTM moved new builds to Deepline and Claude Code.

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