Apollo.io vs Surfe (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. Surfe 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
Surfe
Sales prospecting extension and enrichment for your CRM
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 Surfe if
- Fits if your contacts live in a CRM and you prospect on LinkedIn
- Works for a seller who wants to start on the free credits
Look elsewhere if
- Tight if you're staying free: 20 email and 5 mobile credits a month
- Skip it if you need the API, which is listed on Enterprise only
- Pricey if you buy for a team: $39 a user adds up, and credits are per user each month
- Watch out: search results cap at 1,000 a week on Free and Essential
How we grade them
| 2.4GPAApollo.ioFair | 2.4GPASurfeFair | |
|---|---|---|
| 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$39 a user a month billed annually, $49 monthly. That's under the $49 middle, and per user. |
| 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 20 email and 5 mobile credits a month. |
| 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. | CChrome extension, email and mobile finder, CRM sync, lists and lookalikes, API and MCP. Search is capped at 1,000 a week on Free and Essential, and the API is Enterprise only. |
| 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 Chrome 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 Chrome extension, with six integrations. |
| Best for | contact data and outreach in one account | pushing LinkedIn contacts into your CRM |
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 Surfe. 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. Surfe starts at $39 a month for each person and scores 2.7.
They score the same, and Surfe starts $10 a month lower. Of the other lead and email finders on the chart, 1 scores higher than Apollo.io for less, and none scores higher than Surfe 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.
- Surfe also covers email verification.
At a glance
| Apollo.io | Surfe | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | $49 per seat / month, billed annually | $39 per user / month, billed annually ($49 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. | 20 email and 5 mobile credits a month. |
| Free trial | 14-day trial of Basic or Professional with 75 credits | None listed |
| Web | ||
| Browser extension | ||
| Made by | ZenLeads Inc. (Apollo.io) | Surfe |
| Price read from | apollo.io | surfe.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.
Surfe
- Credits are per user each month; the free plan has 5 mobile credits.
- Search results are capped at 1,000 a week on Free and Essential.
- The API is listed on Enterprise only.
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.
Surfe
- Chrome extension
- Prospect from LinkedIn and other sites, then add contacts to a CRM in one click.
- Email and mobile finder
- Credits find emails and mobile numbers; email validation is on every plan.
- CRM sync
- A bidirectional sync and CRM connector keep contact data current; the free plan adds one contact a day.
- Prospect lists and lookalikes
- Pro adds account lookalikes and a prospect list builder.
- API and MCP server
- Enterprise lists the API; a native MCP server plugs into Claude, ChatGPT or other agents.
- Sales tool integrations
- Pro adds Salesloft, Outreach and Lemlist integrations.
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.
Surfe
Free$0
per user / month
20 email and 5 mobile find credits a month; one CRM add a day.
Essential$39
per user / month, billed annually ($49 billed monthly)
150 email and 50 mobile credits a month; Google Sheets and CRM connector.
Pro$79
per user / month, billed annually ($89 billed monthly)
1,000 email and 100 mobile credits a month (annual: 12,000 and 1,200 a year); lookalikes and list builder.
EnterpriseCustom
Custom credits, unlimited search results, SSO, SCIM, access logs and API.
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.
Surfe
- Annual discount
Annual billing saves up to 20%
The pricing tab shows Essential at $39 and Pro at $79 per user a month on yearly billing, against $49 and $89 monthly.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Apollo.io or Surfe?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Surfe is cheaper to start with: $39 a month for each person, against $49 a month for each person for Apollo.io. Apollo.io starts at $49 per seat / month, billed annually, and Surfe starts at $39 per user / month, billed annually ($49 billed monthly).
Which has a free plan, Apollo.io or Surfe?
As of Nov 12, 2026, both Apollo.io and Surfe 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.