Apollo.io vs SignalHire (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, we pick Apollo.io: it is third in our ranking of lead and email finders, and they share a 2.4 GPA.
Checked Oct 17, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 · graded Oct 17, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 by ToolGPA
Apollo.io grades higher on features. SignalHire grades higher on ease of use. They get the same grade on value for money, the free plan and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Apollo.io
B2B contact database with built-in email sequences and a dialer
SignalHire
Contact lookup for recruiters and sales, with unlimited seats
Which one is for you
Pick Apollo.io if
- Fits if you want to find people and email them from the same account
- Works for founders trying outbound on a free plan with 2 sequences and 250 emails a day
Look elsewhere if
- Pricey if you call a lot, since each phone number eats 8 credits
- Tight if your usage is lumpy, as unused credits expire at the end of each cycle
- Not for you if you want some reps on cheaper seats, since every seat must be on the same plan and Organization needs 3
- Watch out: downgrades take effect at once with no refund, and annual plans can't move to monthly mid-term
- Pricey if you want inbound visitor identification, at $119 to $639 a team a month on top of a plan, billed yearly
Pick SignalHire if
- Fits if you recruit and want unlimited seats
- Works for sales or hiring teams sharing one credit pool
Look elsewhere if
- Tight if you're staying free: 5 credits, or 10 with the extension
- Skip it if you want unlimited to mean unlimited, as fair use caps it at 2,000 credits a month
- Pricey if you pay monthly, at $69 against $57 yearly
- Watch out: the credit counts differ between the monthly and annual views
How we grade them
| 2.4GPAApollo.ioFair | 2.4GPASignalHireFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | C$245 a month for five on Basic, billed yearly: $49 a seat, right at this category's dearer quarter ($49). That buys 30,000 credits a seat a year, about 2,500 a month each, pooled, at 1 credit an email and 8 a phone number. | C$57 a month billed annually, $69 monthly. That's in the dearer half of lead-finding tools, below the $74 dearer quarter. |
| Free plan and trial | CA free plan for good with 900 credits a seat a year, 2 sequences and 250 emails a day, plus a 14-day trial of the paid plans. But 900 a year is 75 a month, a cap you'll hit if you prospect every day. | CA free plan of 5 credits, or 10 a month with the extension. It's a taste, not a plan to live on. |
| Features | BAbout 240 million contacts with emails and phone numbers, waterfall enrichment, unlimited sequences, a dialer, call recording and a Chrome extension. It covers the whole job, and the outreach after it. | CBrowser extension, a profile database, unlimited users, ATS and CRM export and an API. Unlimited packages are held to a fair-use 2,000 credits a month. |
| Ease of use | CNo App Store rating on record. It's a big web app with a database, sequences, mailboxes and a dialer, so expect a learning curve before it pays off. | BA browser extension you install and use. No store rating on record. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb and a Chrome extension that works on LinkedIn, Gmail and CRMs, with Salesforce, HubSpot, Pipedrive, Outreach, Salesloft and Slack. No desktop or phone apps on record. | BWeb and a browser extension, with five integrations, an API and MCP. |
| Best for | contact data and outreach in one account | contact lookups for recruiters and sales |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Apollo.io and SignalHire. How we grade
Price against what you get
Apollo.io starts at $49 a month for each person and scores 2.7 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. SignalHire starts at $57 a month and scores 2.7.
They score the same, and Apollo.io starts $8 a month lower. Of the other lead and email finders on the chart, 1 scores higher than Apollo.io for less, and 1 scores higher than SignalHire for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- Apollo.io also covers web clipper, sales pipeline and email campaigns.
- SignalHire also covers email verification.
At a glance
| Apollo.io | SignalHire | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | $49 per seat / month, billed annually | $57 per month for the Emails plan, billed annually ($69 billed monthly) |
| Free plan | 900 credits per seat a year, granted monthly, 2 sequences, basic filters, 250 emails a day from 1 mailbox, and the Chrome extension. | 5 credits, or 10 a month with the extension installed. |
| Free trial | 14-day trial of Basic or Professional with 75 credits | None listed |
| Web | ||
| Browser extension | ||
| Made by | ZenLeads Inc. (Apollo.io) | SignalHire Sp. z o. o. |
| Price read from | apollo.io | signalhire.com |
| Checked | Oct 17, 2026 | Nov 12, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Apollo.io
- Phone numbers cost 8 credits each against 1 for an email, and unused credits expire at the end of each billing cycle.
- All seats on an account must be on the same plan, and Organization requires at least 3 seats.
- Downgrades take effect at once with no refund, and annual plans cannot move to monthly mid-term.
- Inbound visitor identification costs $119 to $639 per team a month on top of a plan, billed annually.
SignalHire
- The pricing page lays out two packages per plan; the credit counts differ between monthly and annual views.
- Unlimited packages are limited by a fair-use policy of 2,000 credits a month.
- A credit is used only when a contact detail is returned, per the FAQ.
Key features
Apollo.io
- Contact and company database
- Search about 240 million contacts and 30 million companies by title, company, intent topics and other filters. Paid plans unlock advanced filters.
- Credits for emails and phones
- Revealing a verified email costs 1 credit and a phone number 8. Credits are pooled across the team, reset each billing cycle and do not roll over.
- Email sequences
- Multi-step outreach from connected mailboxes. The free plan allows 2 sequences and 250 emails a day; paid plans add unlimited sequences and any email provider.
- Chrome extension
- Shows emails and numbers for people on LinkedIn, company websites, Gmail and CRMs, and adds them to lists or sequences. Works on every plan.
- Enrichment and waterfall
- Fill in missing fields for CSV files, CRM records and API calls. From Basic, waterfall enrichment checks partner sources when Apollo has no match.
- Dialer and call recording
- A US dialer billed in credits, call recording with AI insights, and an Advanced Dialer add-on with parallel and international calling.
SignalHire
- Browser extension
- Reveals contacts on social sites and most web pages; the vendor names Chrome and Firefox.
- Profile database
- Searches a database of 900M+ profiles by name, title, company and location.
- Unlimited users
- The vendor says it does not charge per seat, and contacts are shared across the team.
- ATS and CRM export
- Sends contacts to Salesforce, Zoho Recruit, Pipedrive, Recruitee and ActiveCampaign, among others.
- Unlimited packages
- Each plan has an Unlimited package option, with a fair-use cap of 2,000 credits a month.
- API and MCP server
- API access is listed on paid plans, with an MCP server in the navigation.
Plans
Apollo.io
Free$0
900 credits per seat a year, granted monthly. 2 sequences, basic filters, 25-record selection limit and 250 emails a day.
Basic$49
per seat / month, billed annually, 30,000 credits a seat a year
Unlimited sequences, advanced filters, CRM integrations, waterfall enrichment, email warmup and the US dialer (credits apply).
Professional$79
per seat / month, billed annually, 48,000 credits a seat a year
Adds A/Z testing, AI lead scoring, 4,000 minutes of call recording with AI insights and more automated workflows.
Organization$119
per seat / month, billed annually, 72,000 credits a seat a year
Minimum 3 seats. Adds 12 intent topics, 8,000 recording minutes, unlimited inbound routers, SSO and advanced security.
SignalHire
Free$0
5 credits, no card needed; 10 credits every month with the browser extension.
Emails$57
per month, billed annually ($69 billed monthly)
1,000 credits a month on monthly billing; annual shows 12,000 credits.
Phones$57
per month, billed annually ($69 billed monthly)
435 credits on monthly billing; annual shows 5,400 credits.
Emails & Phones$57
per month, billed annually ($69 billed monthly)
Same credit amounts as Phones: 435 monthly, 5,400 on annual.
ScaleCustom
Bulk license and custom contact details; sold through sales.
Ways to pay less
Apollo.io
- Annual discount
Save 24% with annual billing
Apollo's pricing page shows a 24% saving on paid plans when billed annually instead of monthly.
- Startups
50% off for a year for early-stage startups
Startups with fewer than 20 employees, no Apollo subscription and a link to a partner program get 50% off Basic or Professional for a year, up to 5 seats.
SignalHire
- Annual discount
Yearly billing saves up to 74%
The pricing page tags yearly billing with savings of up to 74% against the crossed-out list prices.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Apollo.io or SignalHire?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Apollo.io starts at $49 per seat / month, billed annually, and SignalHire starts at $57 per month for the Emails plan, billed annually ($69 billed monthly). One is priced for each person and the other is not, so which costs less depends on how many of you use it.
Which has a free plan, Apollo.io or SignalHire?
As of Nov 12, 2026, both Apollo.io and SignalHire have a free plan.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.