Comparison
Siela AI vs Apollo: a contact database, or an agent that finds the right people?
Apollo is a sales platform built on a database of 240 million contacts and 30 million companies, with email sequences, a dialer, deliverability tools and AI agents. Siela AI's AI SDR finds people with a fresh buying signal and reaches them on LinkedIn, X and email from your own accounts, with LinkedIn and X posting, a CRM and booking pages built in.
The short answer
Choose Apollo if you want a large B2B contact database, email sequences and a dialer at a low price per seat, starting free. Choose Siela AI if your buyers are on LinkedIn and X as well as email, and you'd rather have an agent pick and contact the right people than search a database yourself. Other Apollo alternatives worth a look are Clay, Gojiberry AI, lemlist and Waalaxy.
The best Apollo.io alternatives in 2026
Most people looking for an Apollo alternative want either better timing than a static database gives, or channels beyond email. These come up most often, with prices from each vendor's own pricing page.
| Tool | What it is | Listed pricing | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Siela AI | AI SDR on LinkedIn, X and email, plus social, a call agent, blog drafts and competitor briefings | Monthly plans; AI usage billed as credits | Small B2B teams that want outreach and social in one place |
| 2. Clay | A platform for building and enriching lead lists from 150+ data sources | Free plan; Launch $185 a month, or $167 a month billed annually | Ops-minded teams that build their own lead lists |
| 3. Gojiberry AI | Signal-based prospecting on LinkedIn and email, with website-visitor identification | Pro $99 a month per user; free trial | Lean B2B teams prospecting on LinkedIn |
| 4. lemlist | A cold email platform with LinkedIn steps and calls on its Multichannel plan, and an intent-signal add-on | Email plan from $69 a month, or $55 billed yearly; 14-day trial | Email-led outbound teams |
| 5. Waalaxy | Simple, low-cost LinkedIn prospecting, with email on higher plans | Pro €39 a user a month, or €19 billed yearly; 14-day free trial | Solo founders and freelancers on a budget |
Prices as listed on each vendor's pricing page on 29 October 2026. Many vendors show yearly prices first; check before you buy.
Siela AI vs Apollo.io at a glance
| Siela AI | Apollo.io | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | Five AI agents for small teams: leads and outreach, calls, social, blog and competitor tracking | Sales intelligence platform: contact data, sequences and AI agents |
| Outreach channels | LinkedIn, X and email, from your own accounts | Email sequences and a US dialer; we didn't find automated LinkedIn or X messaging |
| Social posting | LinkedIn and X: posts, comments, replies and DMs | No |
| X (Twitter) | Posting, replies and outreach | No |
| CRM | Built in; or connect HubSpot or Salesforce | Lead and deal management built in; CRM integrations from Basic |
| Booking calls | Built-in booking pages; the AI SDR shares your link when someone is ready | Meeting events: 1 on Free, 3 on Basic, 6 on Professional |
| Approval before sending | Outreach sends on its own within daily limits you set; social posts can wait for your approval | You set what each sequence sends |
| Listed pricing | Monthly plans; AI usage billed as credits; $5 of free credit to start; current prices in the app | Free plan; Basic $49 and Professional $79 per seat a month billed annually; 14-day trial |
| Best for | Small B2B teams and founders who want outreach, social and content in one place | Sales teams that prospect mainly by email and phone |
Checked on 29 October 2026 from each vendor's public website. Products and prices change; check the vendor's site before you decide.
Where Apollo.io is strong
- A very large database. Apollo says it has 240M+ contacts and 30M+ companies, so you can build a list of almost any market in minutes.
- Low cost per seat. A free plan with no time limit, and Basic at $49 per seat a month billed annually with 30,000 credits per seat a year.
- Email deliverability. Domain warming, inbox rotation and reputation monitoring, plus domain and mailbox purchasing from Basic.
- Intent and website visitors. Intent topics and filters, and identification of companies visiting your website.
- Widely used. Apollo says more than 600,000 companies use it, and it shows a 4.7 out of 5 rating from 9,690 reviews.
Where Siela AI is different
- LinkedIn and X sending. Siela sends connection requests, DMs and emails from your own accounts. Apollo's sequences run on email and phone; we didn't find automated LinkedIn or X messaging.
- Signals instead of filters. In Apollo you search and filter. Siela's AI SDR works out which buying signals matter for what you sell, finds people showing them, and scores each one with a reason.
- Social posting. Siela also runs your LinkedIn and X posting, so the people you contact see you active. Apollo doesn't post.
- An agent for the call. When someone is ready, Siela shares your booking link and its Call Agent can join the call to qualify them.
- Far less data. Siela finds and researches people who fit, but it doesn't give you a 240-million-contact database to search. If raw volume is the point, Apollo is ahead.
Which one to choose
Choose Apollo.io if
- You prospect mainly by email and phone
- You want a big contact database to search and export
- You need a dialer and call recording for your reps
- Price per seat is the deciding factor
Choose Siela AI if
- Your buyers are on LinkedIn and X as well as email
- You'd rather not search and filter a database yourself
- You want social posting in the same place as outreach
- You want an agent to run first calls for you
Switching from Apollo.io
Export your contacts
Export your contacts and the sequences that got replies from Apollo.
Connect your accounts
Connect your email and calendars, and sign in to LinkedIn in the Siela desktop app.
Describe your ICP
Paste your website and adjust the roles, industries, sizes and locations it suggests.
Start with one segment
Run one segment for two weeks on Hot leads, on LinkedIn and email.
More comparisons
Questions
What are the best Apollo.io alternatives?
For small B2B teams that sell on LinkedIn and X, Siela AI finds people with a buying signal and contacts them for you. Clay suits teams that build their own lead lists, Gojiberry AI runs signal-based LinkedIn outreach, lemlist is strong for email-led sequences, and Waalaxy is the low-cost LinkedIn option.
Is Siela AI an alternative to Apollo?
Yes, if you want an agent to find and contact people rather than a database to search. Apollo has far more data and a dialer; Siela adds LinkedIn and X outreach, social posting, a Call Agent, a CRM and booking pages.
How much does Apollo cost?
As of October 2026, Apollo lists a free plan, Basic at $49 and Professional at $79 per seat a month billed annually, and a custom plan. Credits are pooled across the team and don't roll over.
Does Apollo do LinkedIn outreach?
Apollo has a Chrome extension for prospecting. We didn't find automated LinkedIn or X messaging on its site; its sequences run on email and phone.
Is there a free Apollo alternative?
Clay has a free plan for building lead lists, and Gojiberry, lemlist and Waalaxy offer free trials. Apollo's own free plan is also a good place to start.
Sources, checked 29 October 2026: Apollo pricing, Apollo homepage, Clay pricing, Gojiberry homepage and pricing, lemlist pricing, Waalaxy pricing. Spotted something out of date? Tell us and we'll correct it.
The right people, not the most people.
Siela finds people with a fresh buying signal, writes on LinkedIn, X and email from your own accounts, and keeps your social going.