Lemlist vs Apollo: 2025 Cold Outreach Tool Comparison

Choosing the wrong tool for your outreach efforts can have far-reaching effects that go beyond simply wasting money. Get the wrong tool for the job, and you’ll not only lose valuable prospects but also hurt your email deliverability and reputation with your potential target audience. Sales teams in 2025 have a wide array of tools to choose from, and Lemlist and Apollo are some of the top picks.

These sales tools seem similar on the surface, but they’re built for different use cases. Lemlist focuses on highly personalized outreach and deliverability tools, while Apollo is built around its large B2B database and advanced prospecting capabilities.

If you’re wondering which sales engagement platform to add to your tool stack, we’ll go through the features, pricing and reviews to help you choose the better option.

Or if you want to know the most important details now, here’s a comparison by category between Lemlist vs Apollo and Woodpecker as the alternative to both:

📊 Category: Lead database & prospecting

• Lemlist: 450M+ contacts, 63M+ companies, waterfall enrichment

• Apollo: 210M+ contacts, ~70M companies, advanced filters for precise targeting

• Woodpecker: Built-in lead credits tied to its large B2B database

🎯 Category: Personalization & outreach

• Lemlist: Custom images, video thumbnails, landing pages; email, LinkedIn, phone

• Apollo: Email, LinkedIn, phone with dynamic field personalization

• Woodpecker: Spintax, A/B tests, timezone sending, snippets, AI email writer, conditional sequences

📩 Category: Deliverability tools

• Lemlist: Built-in warm-up (Lemwarm), spam monitoring, domain health checks

• Apollo: Basic deliverability, no warm-up feature

• Woodpecker: Free warm-up, inbox rotation, deliverability monitor, verification tools

🔄 Category: Sequence automation

• Lemlist: Visual branching sequences, multichannel flows

• Apollo: Linear sequences with AI suggestions

• Woodpecker: Conditional sequences, A/B tests up to 5 variants, automated follow-ups

🔗 Category: Integrations & CRM support

• Lemlist: HubSpot, Salesforce, Pipedrive, Zapier, n8n, Aircall, Clay

• Apollo: HubSpot, Zoho, Dynamics, Dialpad, Marketo, Clearbit and more

• Woodpecker: API/webhooks, HubSpot, Pipedrive, Zapier, Calendly, and more

👥 Category: Agency & team management

• Lemlist: Separate workspaces for clients, permissions, and role assignments

• Apollo: Internal team management only

• Woodpecker: Optional agency panel (extra cost) with centralized billing and client access

💰 Category: Pricing

• Lemlist: Email Pro $55/month; Multichannel Expert $79; Enterprise (custom pricing)

• Apollo: Free; Basic $49; Professional $79; Organization $119 (minimum 3 users)

• Woodpecker: Plans starting at $20/month for 500 prospects per month; higher tiers available

🛠️ Category: Support & user experience

• Lemlist: Intuitive UI, praised support, some bug reports

• Apollo: Comprehensive features, mixed feedback on support

• Woodpecker: Clean interface, generally good support; learning curve noted by some users

👔 Category: Who it’s for

• Lemlist: Agencies, small/mid sales teams, recruiters needing personalization

• Apollo: Larger teams/enterprises focusing on scale, data, and integration

• Woodpecker: Freelancers, agencies, and growth teams needing excellent deliverability and smart sequencing

Lemlist vs Apollo: the basics

Lemlist is all about making your outreach feel personal, with features like custom images, videos, and even personalized landing pages baked right into your campaigns.

It also gives you strong email deliverability tools like Lemwarm, so you can actually land in inboxes instead of spam folders. For agencies or teams running multiple accounts, Lemlist makes it easy to manage separate workspaces and keep everything organized.

Apollo takes a different approach. Its massive B2B database is at the center of the tool, giving you access to hundreds of millions of contacts and powerful filters to find exactly the right prospects.

It combines email, phone, and LinkedIn outreach, allowing you to run multichannel campaigns directly from a single platform. If your team wants prospecting data and outreach tools all in one place, Apollo is a good choice.

Lead database and prospecting

Lemlist offers a B2B database with over 450 million contacts and 63 million companies. The most notable feature is waterfall enrichment, which pulls from multiple providers until it finds the most accurate contact details. This helps reduce bounces and keeps data fresh for outreach for sales and marketing teams.

You can search for prospects, enrich their profiles, and move them into email campaigns without switching tools.

Apollo has a large database of more than 210 million contacts that is updated on an ongoing basis. What sets it apart are the detailed filters that help sales teams target specific groups. You can filter prospects by:

• Role and seniority
• Industry and company size
• Tech stack and hiring signals

Once lists are built, Apollo connects them directly to email, phone, and LinkedIn outreach, so prospecting and engagement happen in the same place.

Winner: Apollo

Apollo takes the lead in lead database and prospecting because its data is continuously updated and paired with powerful filters that help sales teams build highly targeted lists. While Lemlist offers a larger claimed database, Apollo’s focus on precision makes it the stronger choice in this category.

Personalized messages and outreach channels

Lemlist puts a strong emphasis on personalization in outreach.

Beyond basic text variables, it lets you add things such as:

• custom images
• GIFs
• and even personalized video thumbnails to emails

There’s also the option to build unique landing pages for each prospect, which can help messages stand out in crowded inboxes. These personalization features are designed to make outreach feel less like a mass email and more like a one-to-one conversation.

In terms of channels, Lemlist supports email and integrates with tools for LinkedIn and phone outreach, so it covers the main prospecting methods most teams use. The user friendly interface makes it easy to manage multiple channels in one dashboard.

Apollo also supports multichannel outreach across email, phone, and LinkedIn, but the personalization options are more limited compared to Lemlist.

You can use dynamic fields for names, companies, and other details, but advanced visuals like custom images and videos aren’t built into the platform. While it’s not as powerful, as Lemlist, its outreach features are tightly connected to its extensive lead database, so you can launch campaigns to large, highly targeted lists without exporting contacts to another tool.

For teams that care more about reaching the right people at volume, Apollo’s personalization is usually “good enough,” even if it feels less creative.

Winner: Lemlist

Lemlist takes the edge in this category because its advanced personalization tools help campaigns feel more human and engaging. Apollo has wider outreach channels, but Lemlist’s ability to add images, videos, and landing pages makes it the stronger choice for teams focused on standing out in inboxes and getting more sales pipeline through the door.

Deliverability tools

Lemlist stands out for its focus on email deliverability. It includes Lemwarm, a built-in warm-up tool that gradually increases sending volume while building sender reputation.

The platform also monitors spam placement, domain health, and technical settings like SPF and DKIM. These checks reduce the risk of emails landing in spam folders and help keep campaigns consistent over time. You get detailed analytics found in other dedicated cold outreach software.

Another plus is how deliverability features are integrated directly into the outreach flow. You don’t need to plug in separate services or juggle extra accounts. Lemlist gives you clear visibility into inbox placement, so you can act quickly if something hurts your domain reputation.

Apollo does not offer a built-in warm-up system. Users rely on external tools or manual ramp up to establish sending reputation. The platform does handle basic deliverability settings and bounce tracking, but its controls are not as detailed as Lemlist. For teams sending at scale, this gap can lead to more messages flagged as spam.

Apollo’s focus is on targeting and volume rather than inbox placement. While you can still send effective campaigns, many users report needing outside help to protect deliverability and avoid wasted sends.

Perhaps more importantly, warmup is one of the key features for your sales process and you’ll likely have to purchase a third-party tool just for this service.

Winner: Lemlist

Lemlist clearly wins this category because its dedicated warm up and monitoring tools keep campaigns healthy. Apollo offers only the basics, leaving more work to the user if they want reliable inbox placement.

Sequence automation tools and workflows

Lemlist gives teams a lot of control over how campaigns play out. You can build visual sequences with branching logic, so the next step depends on whether a prospect opened, clicked, replied, or bounced.

This makes it possible to create paths that feel customized, rather than sending everyone down the same track. Campaigns can mix email, LinkedIn, and phone steps, giving sales teams a realistic multichannel flow.

The interface is easy to use and understand, with a drag-and-drop style that shows exactly what happens at each stage. This helps teams test variations and refine their outreach without heavy technical skills. For those who care about personalization and timing, Lemlist’s automation feels closer to how real conversations unfold and it’s on par with the more powerful marketing automation tools in the industry.

Apollo supports automated sequences across email, phone, and LinkedIn, but the design is more linear. Steps are added in order, and while you can set delays or stop rules, there is less flexibility compared to Lemlist’s branching approach. The system is still effective for scaling outreach, especially when tied to Apollo’s large database.

Apollo also offers AI assistance to suggest sequence structures or recommend next steps. This can speed up setup, though it tends to produce standardized flows rather than deeply customized ones. It’s best for teams that value speed and volume over complex logic.

In general, sales automation is not the reason why businesses choose Apollo, since its extensive database is usually the most persuasive factor. However, if you want to create personalized email campaigns that use true automation, Apollo will fall short.

Winner: Lemlist

Lemlist edges out Apollo here because its visual branching sequences allow for more adaptive and personalized outreach. Apollo is strong for straightforward, high-volume campaigns, but Lemlist provides greater flexibility for teams that want campaigns to react to prospect behavior.

Integrations and CRM support

Lemlist connects with the major CRMs and tools that sales teams rely on. You can sync contacts and campaigns with HubSpot, Salesforce, and Pipedrive. It also works with automation platforms like Zapier, Make, and n8n, giving you ways to pass data between systems without coding. For calling, Lemlist integrates with Aircall and other VoIP tools.

A few examples of useful connections include:

• CRM sync with HubSpot, Salesforce, and Pipedrive
• Automation links through Zapier, Make, and n8n
• Prospecting support with Clay and LinkedIn integrations
• VoIP calling with Aircall and similar tools

These integrations cover the basics for running personalized outreach without heavy setup. While the ecosystem isn’t the widest, it has what most sales teams need to stay connected. You’ll have te basics for automating cold email campaigns, finding qualified leads and measuring campaign performance.

Apollo offers a broader integration ecosystem. It connects with the same major CRMs but also extends to more calling, enrichment, and marketing tools. This makes it easier for larger teams to keep Apollo at the center of their tech stack. Its CRM syncs are designed to update records automatically, so contact data stays aligned between platforms.

Common Apollo integrations include:

• CRM sync with HubSpot, Salesforce, Zoho, and Microsoft Dynamics
• Calling tools like Dialpad, RingCentral, and Aircall
• Marketing platforms such as Marketo and Outreach
• Data enrichment with Clearbit and other providers

For teams with complex setups, Apollo’s range of integrations is a real advantage. It supports both simple sales teams and enterprises that want every tool connected.

Winner: Apollo

Apollo wins this round because its wider set of integrations and deeper CRM syncs make it more flexible to fit into different sales stacks. Lemlist covers the essentials, but Apollo offers more options for scaling and customizing connections.

Agency features and team management

Lemlist has clearly thought about agencies and teams that manage multiple clients. It offers separate workspaces, so each client or project can be kept isolated with its own campaigns, settings, and reporting.

This prevents data overlap and makes it easier to switch between accounts without confusion. For agencies that juggle several brands, this structure is a practical way to stay organized. Lead generation and outreach agencies frequently use Lemlist in their sales automation tool tech stack.

Team collaboration is also supported with role assignments and permissions. Managers can control who has access to certain accounts or campaigns, which helps maintain oversight. The only catch is cost, since every extra workspace adds to the overall bill. Still, for agencies that need this flexibility, the features are there.

Apollo is not designed with agencies in mind. There are no dedicated workspaces for client separation, and managing multiple accounts can quickly become messy. The platform is better suited for single sales teams operating under one brand, with comprehensive sales intelligence features.

It does include standard team management features like user permissions and activity tracking. For most companies that only need internal collaboration, this is more than enough. But agencies looking for structured client management are likely to go to Lemlist instead.

Winner: Lemlist

Lemlist wins here because its workspace model and client separation are built for agencies handling multiple accounts. Apollo covers team basics, but it doesn’t offer the flexibility that agency users need.

Apollo vs Lemlist: pricing comparison

💸 Plan: Lemlist – Email Pro

• Price: $69 per user/month (annual billing)

• Highlights: Core email outreach tools, warm-up feature, CRM integrations, lead credits

💸 Plan: Lemlist – Multichannel Expert

• Price: $99 per user/month (annual billing)

• Highlights: Adds LinkedIn, calling steps, landing pages, team tools, and more lead credits

💸 Plan: Lemlist – Outreach Scale

• Price: $159 per user/month (annual billing)

• Highlights: High-volume credits, full multichannel, premium support and onboarding

💸 Plan: Apollo – Free

• Price: $0 per user/month (annual billing)

• Highlights: Basic access with limited credits, sequences, and Chrome extension

💸 Plan: Apollo – Basic

• Price: $49 per user/month (annual billing)

• Highlights: Advanced filters, CRM connects, decent credit allowance

💸 Plan: Apollo – Professional

• Price: $79 per user/month (annual billing)

• Highlights: Unlimited sequences, A/B testing, dialer and automation features

💸 Plan: Apollo – Organization

• Price: $119 per user/month (annual billing, minimum 3 users)

• Highlights: SSO, custom reporting, enterprise scale security and support

Winner: Lemlist

Lemlist wins the pricing comparison. The annual plans are straightforward with clear feature tiers, including warm-up tools, lead credits, and multichannel access, all without surprise fees. Apollo’s structure may offer flexibility, but it relies on credits and tiers that can get complicated as usage grows. Lemlist offers more predictable value for most outreach teams.

Support and user experience

Users commonly celebrate Lemlist for being intuitive and user-friendly. Overall platform ratings reflect this sentiment: G2 scores are around 4.4 to 4.6 out of 5, Capterra is about 4.6 out of 5.

On the downside, reviewers note bugs and occasional CRM duplicate entries:

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Apollo generally gets high marks for its clean interface and powerful feature set.

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Still, not everything is rosy. Some users say the data isn’t very accurate and that getting started with the tool can be overwhelming:

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Last but not least, customer support can be great or poor and you won’t know what you’re going to get:

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Winner: Lemlist

Despite some bug concerns, Lemlist provides a smoother and more supportive user experience. The interface is intuitive, and support gets called “lightning fast” and genuinely helpful. Apollo has advantages in power and scale, but inconsistent support and occasional usability issues give Lemlist the upper hand if you want reliable, human-centered support and ease of use.

Who is Lemlist for?

Lemlist is built for sales teams, agencies, and growth-focused businesses that want to stand out in inboxes with highly personalized outreach. It works especially well for:

• Agencies managing multiple clients, since it offers separate workspaces for each account.
• Small to mid-sized sales teams that need deliverability support, like email warm-up, without paying for separate tools.
• Outbound marketers and SDRs who rely on personalization (custom images, videos, landing pages) to increase response rates.
• Recruiters who use cold email and LinkedIn to reach candidates in a personal way.

In short, it’s best for teams that care less about having the largest raw database and more about personalization, inbox placement, and managing multi-channel outreach campaigns.

Who is Apollo for?

Apollo is designed for sales teams, SDRs, and growth organizations that need a powerful database paired with outreach tools. It’s especially useful for:

• Outbound sales teams that rely on advanced filters to build very specific prospect lists.
• Companies with larger teams that need a central tool for prospecting, email, phone, and LinkedIn outreach.
• Enterprises that want API access, SSO, and detailed reporting to fit into a broader tech stack.
• Startups and scaleups that value the free tier or lower-cost Basic plan to get going quickly with prospecting data.

In short, Apollo is a sales enablement platform for teams that prioritize data coverage, precision targeting, and scale. It appeals less to those who want creative personalization and more to those who need a single tool to find and contact large volumes of the right people.

The better alternative to Lemlist and Apollo for your outreach efforts

Lemlist is known for its personalization features and Apollo leans heavily on its large database and filtering options. Out of the two, Lemlist is clearly the better sales engagement platform and cold outreach tool, but it too makes some compromises.

Why settle when there is a third, better option for your outreach efforts?

Woodpecker is the better alternative to Lemlist and Apollo, and here are some of the biggest reasons why:

• Stronger deliverability tools: Woodpecker includes free email warm-up, inbox rotation, and deliverability monitoring. Lemlist charges extra for warm-up, and Apollo doesn’t provide it at all.
• Smarter sequence automation: You can build conditional sequences and run up to five A/B test variants at once. This gives more control than Apollo’s linear sequences and often feels more flexible than Lemlist’s visual builder.
• Agency-friendly features: Woodpecker offers an optional agency panel where you can manage multiple clients with centralized billing and permissions. Lemlist’s multi-workspace option is pricier, and Apollo doesn’t support agency use cases.
• Transparent pricing: Plans start at $20 per month, making it more affordable than Lemlist or Apollo.
• Focus on outreach health: Deliverability monitoring and verification tools are built-in, so you don’t need to juggle extra services.

In short, if you want better deliverability, smarter automation, and a setup that works well for both teams and agencies, Woodpecker is the stronger alternative to Lemlist and Apollo.

Try Woodpecker for free today.