Apollo.io pricing, plan by plan, and what recruiters pay for
Apollo.io pricing runs from a Free plan to Basic at US$49, Professional at US$79 and Organization at US$119 per seat per month, billed annually. Monthly billing is US$65 for Basic and US$99 for Professional. Organization is annual only, with 3 seats minimum. Every plan runs on credits that reset each cycle.
Apollo.io pricing by plan
Prices per seat in US dollars, from Apollo's own pricing page. Apollo's billing toggle advertises up to 24% off for paying annually.
| What you get | Free | Basic | Professional | Organization |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Annual billing, per seat | US$0 | US$49 a month | US$79 a month | US$119 a month |
| Monthly billing, per seat | US$0 | US$65 a month | US$99 a month | Annual only, shown as US$149 |
| Credits on annual billing | 900 a year, granted monthly | 30,000 a year, upfront | 48,000 a year, upfront | 72,000 a year, upfront |
| Credits on monthly billing | 75 a month | 2,500 a month | 4,000 a month | 6,000 a month |
| Email sequences | 2 | Unlimited | Unlimited, with A/Z testing | Unlimited, with A/Z testing |
| Call recording | 150 minutes | 150 minutes | 4,000 minutes with AI insights | 8,000 minutes with AI insights |
| Seats and start | Sign up free | 14 day trial or buy | 14 day trial or buy | 3 seats minimum, buy or talk to sales |
From apollo.io/pricing. Apollo says prices exclude applicable taxes, and every seat on an account must be on the same plan.
One rule that sets the bill
Apollo does not let you mix plans. All seats on an account sit on the same plan, so one heavy user on Professional moves everyone to Professional. Apollo's advice is to pick the plan your highest-need user requires.
What an Apollo credit is, and what it buys
Apollo credit The unit Apollo charges for actions such as revealing emails and phone numbers, email warmup, domains and mailboxes, AI research and dialing. Credits are pooled across the team and granted at the start of each billing cycle.
Apollo's API pricing documentation charges 1 credit for an email and 8 more when a mobile number comes back. Unused credits expire at the end of each cycle and do not roll over, add-on credits included.
How Apollo billing works, from trial to cancellation
These rules come from the FAQ on Apollo's pricing page. Steps 4 and 5 are where teams overspend without noticing.
- Start a 14 day trial or the Free plan Basic and Professional offer a 14 day trial with credits and most features. When it ends, you upgrade or move to the free plan, which has no time limit.
- Choose monthly or annual Monthly can be cancelled anytime at a higher per-month cost. Annual is paid upfront for 12 months. You can switch from monthly to annual at any point, with what you paid prorated.
- Connect your mailbox The Free plan connects Gmail accounts only. Paid plans connect Microsoft Office or any other email provider.
- Add credits when you run out Add-on credits are charged immediately and renew automatically every billing cycle until you drag the slider back to zero. Set a reminder before each renewal to check whether the add-on is still needed.
- Downgrade or cancel Downgrades take effect at once with no refund for unused time. Cancellations take effect at the end of the plan term, and an annual plan cannot move to monthly mid-cycle.
What drives your Apollo.io cost
The list price is per seat. These are the lines that move the real bill, each named on Apollo's pricing page or in its plan cards.
- Number of seats, since every seat is billed at the plan rate
- The plan your most demanding user needs, since plans cannot be mixed
- Monthly or annual billing
- Mobile number reveals, which cost far more credits than emails
- Recurring add-on credits that renew until removed
- US dialer minutes, which are paid in credits
- Domains and mailboxes bought through Apollo, which also use credits
- Organization's 3 seat minimum on annual billing
What a recruiter actually pays for in Apollo
Apollo is a sales platform, and its plan cards are written for sellers: website visitor identification, intent topics, lead scoring, deal management and a dialer. Apollo also publishes guides on candidate sourcing, and its database includes personal emails, which matter when you contact people about a job rather than a product.
For a recruiter, the useful core is search filters, contact reveals and email sequences. Basic already carries unlimited sequences and advanced filters. Professional adds AI lead scoring, more call recording and A/Z testing, which are sales tools first. Most solo recruiters on Apollo will find Basic covers the parts they use.
What Apollo does not do is judge a person against a job. Its filters match titles, companies and locations, and it is up to the recruiter to read each profile and decide who fits the role.
Which Apollo plan fits which recruiter
A reading of Apollo's own plan cards against common recruiting setups. It is a starting point, not Apollo's recommendation.
| Recruiter setup | Plan to start on | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Testing whether Apollo's data covers your niche | Free | 75 credits a month and 2 sequences are enough to sample coverage |
| Solo recruiter, steady email outreach | Basic | Unlimited sequences and advanced filters, at the lowest paid rate |
| Agency desk that also sells to clients | Professional | More credits per seat, lead scoring and call recording for business development |
| Team of 3 or more needing SSO and security | Organization or a Custom plan | 3 seat minimum on annual billing; Custom plans go through sales |
Credit needs vary most with phone reveals, so estimate those first.
How to spend less on Apollo
Do
- Sample your niche on the Free plan before paying for seats
- Pay annually once usage is steady, for the lower per-seat rate
- Set per-user credit caps so one user cannot drain the shared pool
- Reveal emails first and phone numbers only for shortlisted people
Do not
- Leaving add-on credits on the slider after a busy month
- Expecting unused credits to carry over, since they expire every cycle
- Committing to annual before you know your seat count
- Upgrading the whole account for one user's needs without checking the total
Where The Cognitive fits for recruiters
A match card that explains why each person fits the brief, against the recruiter's must-haves.
The Cognitive is AI sourcing built for recruiters rather than sellers. You describe the hire in plain English, it searches ~900M profiles of public professional data, and each match says why the person fits the role.
What The Cognitive costs next to Apollo
The Cognitive publishes its prices too. The Starter plan is $99 a month for 1,200 credits. Each person shown costs 1 credit, a personal email costs 4 credits to reveal and a phone number 12, with phones from the Growth plan. Yearly billing is 10 times the monthly price.
Outreach is email from the recruiter's own mailbox on every plan and on the free trial, which runs 7 days with 50 sourcing credits and 2 AI interviews, no card needed. Its gap next to Apollo: The Cognitive has no dialer and no sales tools, because it is built for hiring.
Contact details revealed one person at a time
A shortlist where contact details stay hidden until the recruiter reveals them.
Contact details are looked up only when you reveal them, so credits go on the people you have already decided to contact. A personal email costs 4 credits and a phone number 12.
Work out your yearly Apollo cost
Our method, not Apollo's. Each input is a number on Apollo's pricing page or from your own outreach plan.
1. Seats = everyone who needs a login. 2. Plan rate = the per-seat price for the plan your most demanding user needs, on annual or monthly billing. 3. Seat cost = 1 x 2 x 12 months. 4. Credits needed = (emails you will reveal x credits per email) + (phones you will reveal x credits per phone) + dialer, mailbox and domain credits. 5. Credits included = the plan's credits per seat x seats. 6. Add-on cost = what Apollo charges in your account for the gap between 4 and 5, every cycle. 7. Yearly cost = 3 + 6. 8. Cost per contacted candidate = 7 / candidates you plan to email this year. Run line 8 for each tool you shortlist, using the same candidate count.
Related reading
Best contact finder tools for recruiters · ZoomInfo pricing · ZoomInfo alternatives for recruiters · LinkedIn Sales Navigator pricing · AI sourcing tool
Frequently asked questions
How much does Apollo.io cost?
Apollo.io has a Free plan, then Basic at US$49, Professional at US$79 and Organization at US$119 per seat per month on annual billing. On monthly billing, Basic is US$65 and Professional US$99 per seat. Organization is annual only and needs at least 3 seats. Prices exclude taxes, and extra credits cost more.
Is Apollo.io free?
Yes, there is a Free plan with no time limit. It gives 75 credits per seat a month, or 900 a year, 2 email sequences, basic filters and 150 minutes of call recording. Free accounts can connect Gmail only; paid plans connect Microsoft Office and other providers.
How long is the Apollo free trial?
14 days. Basic and Professional both show a Start 14 day trial button. Apollo says the trial includes credits and most features of the plan you choose, with some trial limits. When it ends, you upgrade to a paid plan or move to the free plan.
How do Apollo credits work?
Apollo credits pay for actions such as email and phone reveals, email warmup, mailboxes and dialing. They are pooled across the team, granted at the start of each billing cycle and expire at its end without rolling over. Apollo's API documentation charges 1 credit for an email and 8 more for a mobile number.
Can a team mix Apollo plans across seats?
No. All seats on an Apollo account are on the same plan. If one person needs Professional, every seat is billed at Professional. Apollo suggests choosing the plan your highest-need users require, or talking to sales about a Custom plan for larger teams with varied needs.
Is Apollo good for recruiters?
It can work for contact finding and email outreach, and Apollo publishes guides on candidate sourcing. Its plans are built for sales teams, though, so much of each plan is sales tooling. Apollo matches on filters and does not judge a person against a job, so the recruiter does the screening.
How does The Cognitive's pricing compare with Apollo's?
The Cognitive's Starter plan is $99 a month for 1,200 credits, and yearly billing is 10 times the monthly price. Each person shown costs 1 credit, a personal email 4 and a phone number 12, with phones from Growth. Email outreach from your own mailbox is on every plan, and the 7 day trial needs no card.
Explore: Best contact finder tools for recruiters · ZoomInfo pricing · ZoomInfo alternatives for recruiters · LinkedIn Sales Navigator pricing · AI sourcing tool · The Cognitive pricing