Apollo.io or ZoomInfo: which should you choose?
Apollo.io vs ZoomInfo compares two B2B data platforms. Apollo.io has a free plan and per-user plans, with Basic at $49 per user per month billed annually. ZoomInfo's pricing page shows no prices, only custom packages. Vendr's medians are $19,000 and $33,500 a year.
Choose Apollo.io if…
- You want to start without a sales call: Apollo.io lists a Free plan, and its September 2026 plan guide puts Basic at $49 per user per month billed annually and Professional at $79 per user per month.
- You want data and outreach in one tool: Apollo.io says Basic includes email sequencing, and its plan guide says Professional adds workflow automation, AI research and a dialer.
- You want an AI assistant included for now: Apollo.io's AI Assistant, launched on 4 March 2026, is "currently free as an introductory offer on Basic, Pro, and Org plans".
- Your budget is smaller: Vendr's median Apollo.io contract is $19,000 a year (101 purchases, February 2026), against $33,500 for ZoomInfo.
Choose ZoomInfo if…
- You want the larger stated database: ZoomInfo says it has "verified data on 500M+ contacts and 100M+ companies", against the 240M+ contacts and 30M+ accounts Apollo.io states.
- You want a package scoped to a use case: ZoomInfo sells custom packages for eight jobs, from Prospecting & pipeline to Revenue intelligence and Talent acquisition.
- You want an AI agent wired into your existing stack: ZoomInfo says Copilot connects to Salesforce, HubSpot, Outreach, Salesloft and Gong.
- Your security review asks for privacy certifications: ZoomInfo's homepage lists ISO 27001, ISO 27701, SOC 2 Type II, TRUSTe GDPR and TRUSTe CCPA.
Apollo.io vs ZoomInfo at a glance
| Apollo.io | ZoomInfo | |
|---|---|---|
| Positioning | Calls itself "the AI sales platform rebuilt as one connected AI GTM system", with data, intelligence and execution layers, under the headline "Grow revenue with one connected GTM system" (Apollo.io). | Calls itself "an all-in-one AI GTM Platform" for B2B sales, marketing, RevOps and customer success teams, under the headline "The AI platform for go-to-market teams" (ZoomInfo). |
| Core modules | Apollo Data Access, Workspace, Apollo Anywhere and Builder Studio, with waterfall enrichment, deliverability, a Chrome extension, Parallel Dialer, AI Assistant, Apollo MCP and integrations; email sequencing listed on Basic. | Sales (contact and company database), Marketing (ABM), Talent, Operations, Data as a Service, Copilot, GTM Workspace, GTM Studio, ZoomInfo MCP, Chorus conversation intelligence and GTM.ai headless API, CLI and MCP access. |
| AI and agents | AI Assistant, launched 4 March 2026, runs natural-language, full-funnel workflows with a human in the loop; free as an introductory offer on Basic, Pro and Org plans; free plans get up to 5 chats. | Copilot, which it calls an AI sales agent, re-prioritises accounts as signals arrive and drafts outreach; plus GTM Workspace, signal-triggered GTM Studio workflows, ZoomInfo MCP and ZoomInfo in ChatGPT. |
| Pricing model | Free, Basic, Professional and Custom plans with team-pooled credits; Apollo's 17 September 2026 plan guide lists Basic at $49/user/month billed annually and Professional at $79/user/month (pricing). | Not published. Custom packages by use case, priced on licences, credits and features; one credit per exported profile; API, MCP and CLI priced on usage (pricing). |
| Third-party price data | Vendr median $19,000 a year; range $4,284 to $45,000; 101 purchases; last updated February 2026 (the page header shows 87 deals handled). | Vendr median $33,500 a year; range $7,240 to $156,042; 1,577 purchases; last updated February 2026 (the page header shows 1012 deals handled). |
| Analyst recognition | No analyst evaluation found on the Apollo.io pages opened. | No analyst evaluation found on the ZoomInfo pages opened. |
| Company status | Venture-backed: announced a $100M Series D led by Bain Capital Ventures at a $1.6B valuation on 29 August 2023, bringing total funding to about $250M (release). | Public company, Nasdaq: GTM (investor site); ticker changed from ZI on 13 May 2025, still trading as ZoomInfo; announced the Workbounce acquisition on 14 October 2026. |
| Best for | Sales teams, from founders to full-time reps, that want contact data, enrichment, sequencing, a dialer and an AI assistant in one self-serve platform, starting free. | Sales, marketing and RevOps teams that want contact and company data, intent signals and AI prospecting from one platform, bought as a custom package. |
What is the difference between Apollo.io and ZoomInfo?
Both sell B2B contact and company data with tools to act on it, but they are bought differently. Apollo.io calls itself "the AI sales platform rebuilt as one connected AI GTM system" (Apollo.io), and its homepage names Apollo Data Access, Workspace, Apollo Anywhere and Builder Studio, plus waterfall enrichment, deliverability tools, a Chrome extension, a Parallel Dialer, AI Assistant and Apollo MCP. ZoomInfo calls itself "an all-in-one AI GTM Platform" (ZoomInfo) and names Sales, Marketing, Talent, Operations, Data as a Service, Copilot, GTM Workspace, GTM Studio, ZoomInfo MCP and Chorus conversation intelligence.
Each states its own data coverage. Apollo.io says it has "240M+ contacts and 30M+ accounts with trusted B2B data" and that over 600,000 companies use it (Apollo.io); its August 2023 funding release cited over 270 million contacts. ZoomInfo says it has "verified data on 500M+ contacts and 100M+ companies", that "300+ human researchers verify records" and that it "processes 1.5B+ data points daily" (ZoomInfo), while the FAQ on its Copilot page cites "300M+ contacts". These are the vendors' own figures, measured in different ways. Test both against a sample of your own target accounts before you decide.
Neither names sales content management or digital sales rooms among the products on its homepage. Both are where pipeline starts: finding the buying group and reaching it.
How do Apollo.io and ZoomInfo compare on prospecting workflow and AI?
Apollo.io builds outreach into its plans. Its pricing page describes Basic as for "Individual sellers doing regular outbound" and says it "Includes email sequencing and core integrations"; Professional is for "Full-time reps needing higher credit limits, AI features, call recording, and advanced CRM integrations"; and Custom is for "Teams needing custom volumes, SSO, advanced security, and dedicated support", with API access on Custom plans. Its plan guide says Professional "adds workflow automation, AI research, and a dialer". Apollo.io's AI Assistant, launched on 4 March 2026, runs natural-language workflows across the funnel with a human-in-the-loop approach; free plans get up to 5 chats.
ZoomInfo sorts its offer by use case. Its pricing page lists eight packages, including Prospecting & pipeline ("Find buyers, run sequences, build pipeline."), Deal execution, Data enrichment and Revenue intelligence ("Understand why deals are won and lost, and coach reps from their own calls."). Copilot, which ZoomInfo calls "an AI sales agent", re-prioritises accounts "in real time as new signals come in", keeps email drafting, research and sequencing "in the same workspace", flags prospects who have re-engaged or gone quiet, writes deal briefs and updates the CRM. ZoomInfo says Copilot connects to Salesforce, HubSpot, Outreach, Salesloft and Gong.
Both offer MCP access for outside AI tools: Apollo MCP on Apollo.io's homepage, and ZoomInfo MCP plus usage-priced API, MCP and CLI access through GTM.ai on ZoomInfo's pricing page.
How does Apollo.io pricing compare to ZoomInfo pricing?
Apollo.io prices per user per month. Its pricing page names Free, Basic, Professional and Custom, and its plan guide, dated 17 September 2026, says "Free costs $0, Basic runs $49/user/month billed annually, Professional is $79/user/month" and lists an Organization plan at $119 per user per month "with a 3-user minimum". The current pricing page shows Custom, with no price, in place of Organization. Monthly billing is "month-to-month, cancel anytime" at a "Higher effective per-month cost". See the Apollo.io pricing guide for more.
ZoomInfo shows no prices. Its pricing page says "ZoomInfo offers custom packages based on your B2B data use cases and needs", and its pricing FAQ says pricing is based on features, the number of licenses and credit usage, and that its sales team "will work with you on payment frequency and options". See the ZoomInfo pricing guide for more.
Credits work differently. Apollo.io's credits are "pooled across your entire team and granted upfront at the start of each billing cycle", "reset at the start of each new billing cycle and do not roll over if unused", and pay for actions such as revealing emails and phone numbers, enrichment and AI research; email and mobile use separate balances (Apollo.io help centre). ZoomInfo's credits "represent the consumption (export) of a professional or company profile"; "Each export costs one credit", and viewing a profile uses none. Its pricing page also carries the line "PAY ONCE. RE-PULL IT FREE FOR A YEAR." without showing the terms. Neither vendor's pages give the number of credits in a plan or the price of a credit, so neither publishes a cost per contact.
The only dated contract data with sample sizes we found is Vendr's. It reports a median Apollo.io contract of $19,000 a year, ranging from $4,284 to $45,000 (101 purchases, February 2026) (Vendr), and a median ZoomInfo contract of $33,500 a year, ranging from $7,240 to $156,042 (1,577 purchases, February 2026) (Vendr). These are Vendr estimates from purchase data, not vendor prices. Vendr also reports that ZoomInfo contracts typically run one to three years with auto-renewal clauses that often include 5–10% annual price escalation, and that Apollo.io contracts often include annual price increases of typically 5–10%.
What do Apollo.io and ZoomInfo say about compliance and ownership?
On security, Apollo.io's homepage cites "Enterprise-grade security and certifications, including SOC 2 Type II and ISO 27001" and says its agents are "designed to help keep your prospecting compliant, with built-in support for consent and opt-out rules". ZoomInfo's homepage says it "holds ISO 27001, ISO 27701, SOC 2 Type II, TRUSTe GDPR, and TRUSTe CCPA certifications", "processes professional contact data under GDPR's legitimate-interest basis" and "covers professionals in their business capacity, not consumers". These are the vendors' statements; whether your own use of the data is lawful is a question for your privacy counsel.
ZoomInfo is a public company. It changed its Nasdaq ticker from ZI to GTM, trading under the new symbol from 13 May 2025 (Business Wire), and its investor site listed the acquisition of Workbounce on 14 October 2026. Apollo.io is venture-backed: on 29 August 2023 it announced a $100 million Series D led by Bain Capital Ventures at a $1.6 billion valuation, bringing total funding to about $250 million (release).
Frequently asked questions
Which is better, Apollo.io or ZoomInfo?
Neither is better in general. Apollo.io suits teams that want to start free or self-serve, with sequencing, a dialer and an AI assistant in per-user plans. ZoomInfo suits teams that want the larger database it states, use-case packages and Copilot connected to their CRM and engagement tools. Test both against your own target accounts before you decide.
How much do Apollo.io and ZoomInfo cost?
Apollo.io's September 2026 plan guide lists Free at $0, Basic at $49 per user per month billed annually and Professional at $79 per user per month. ZoomInfo shows no prices and sells custom packages. Vendr reports median contracts of $19,000 a year for Apollo.io (101 purchases) and $33,500 for ZoomInfo (1,577 purchases), both February 2026.
Does Apollo.io or ZoomInfo have a free plan?
Apollo.io lists a Free plan, described as for "Exploring Apollo or very light usage". ZoomInfo's pricing page lists no free plan, but six of its eight use-case packages show a "Free trial" button; it does not state the trial's length or limits.
How do Apollo.io credits compare to ZoomInfo credits?
Apollo.io pools credits across the team, grants them at the start of each billing cycle and does not roll unused credits over; emails, phone numbers, enrichment and AI research use them. ZoomInfo charges one credit per exported profile and none for viewing. Neither publishes credits per plan or a price per credit.
Is ZoomInfo still called ZoomInfo?
Yes. ZoomInfo changed its Nasdaq ticker from ZI to GTM, trading under it from 13 May 2025, and uses GTM in product names such as GTM Workspace and GTM Studio, but its investor site presents the company as "ZoomInfo (NASDAQ:GTM)".
Sources
All 15 sources were opened and checked by 2026-10-21. Vendor statements are paraphrased; figures belong to the source that published them.
- Apollo.io. Apollo.io homepage (Grow revenue with one connected GTM system). Checked 2026-10-21.
- Apollo.io. Apollo.io pricing. Checked 2026-10-21.
- Apollo.io. Apollo plan details: what you're really paying for. 2026-09-17; checked 2026-10-21.
- Apollo.io Knowledge Base. Review credit usage in Apollo. Updated 2026-10-15; checked 2026-10-21.
- Apollo.io. Apollo launches AI Assistant, powering end-to-end agentic workflows in the first AI-native all-in-one GTM platform. 2026-03-04.
- Apollo.io via PR Newswire (CMSWire). Apollo.io secures $100 million Series D at $1.6B valuation to make world-class go-to-market accessible to all. 2023-08-29.
- Vendr. Apollo.io software pricing. Last updated February 2026; checked 2026-10-21.
- ZoomInfo. ZoomInfo homepage (The AI platform for go-to-market teams). Checked 2026-10-21.
- ZoomInfo. ZoomInfo pricing and plans. Checked 2026-10-21.
- ZoomInfo. ZoomInfo pricing FAQs. Undated; checked 2026-10-21.
- ZoomInfo. ZoomInfo Copilot: your AI sales agent. Checked 2026-10-21.
- ZoomInfo. ZoomInfo investor relations. Checked 2026-10-21.
- ZoomInfo via Business Wire. ZoomInfo cements go-to-market leadership with new Nasdaq trading symbol 'GTM' and launch of GTM Studio. 2025-05-12 (Business Wire release ID).
- Vendr. ZoomInfo software pricing and plans 2026. Last updated February 2026; checked 2026-10-21.
- Revspire. Revspire pricing (per module, unlimited user licenses). Checked 2026-10-15.
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