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// apollo.io alternative

The Apollo.io Alternative That Charges Nothing for Empty Searches

Tomba.io ranked #1 of 9 in a public 5,000-lead benchmark, includes verification credits on every plan and does not charge for empty searches. See how it compares with Apollo.io.

Apollo.io was not in the 5,000-lead benchmark. Average score per category, out of 5, from each tool's public pages.
Data
Data: Tomba.io 4.9 out of 5, Apollo.io 3.4 out of 5.
Verify
Verify: Tomba.io 5.0 out of 5, Apollo.io 1.5 out of 5.
Developer
Developer: Tomba.io 5.0 out of 5, Apollo.io 2.3 out of 5.
Workflow
Workflow: Tomba.io 5.0 out of 5, Apollo.io 2.7 out of 5.
Price
Price: Tomba.io 5.0 out of 5, Apollo.io 1.3 out of 5.

// 01 · at a glance

Apollo.io and Tomba.io, category by category

Average score per category, out of 5, over the features each tool has data for. A feature without data is left out, never counted.

Data
Data: Tomba.io 4.9 out of 5, Apollo.io 3.4 out of 5.
Verify
Verify: Tomba.io 5.0 out of 5, Apollo.io 1.5 out of 5.
Developer
Developer: Tomba.io 5.0 out of 5, Apollo.io 2.3 out of 5.
Workflow
Workflow: Tomba.io 5.0 out of 5, Apollo.io 2.7 out of 5.
Price
Price: Tomba.io 5.0 out of 5, Apollo.io 1.3 out of 5.

// what you gain

  • Data4.9 vs 3.4 · ahead on email finder, domain search, phone finder, enrichment
  • Verify5.0 vs 1.5 · adds no charge for empty searches
  • Developer5.0 vs 2.3 · adds MCP server
  • Workflow5.0 vs 2.7 · adds Sales Navigator, author finder
  • Price5.0 vs 1.3 · ahead on price a month, credits, pricing model

// what you keep

Both list email finder, domain search, phone finder, enrichment, company search, similar companies, technologies, email verifier and 13 more.

// 02 · switch your code

Move from the Apollo.io API in one change

The same request against both APIs, from the migration guide on docs.tomba.io. Tomba.io needs two headers, X-Tomba-Key and X-Tomba-Secret.

# Apollo.io
curl -X POST "https://api.apollo.io/api/v1/people/match?first_name=Richard&last_name=Hendricks&domain=piedpiper.com" \
  -H "x-api-key: $APOLLO_API_KEY"

// 03 · side by side

Apollo.io vs Tomba.io

Plans, credits and features, with Apollo.io's figures from its public pages and Tomba.io's from its pricing page.

Apollo.io vs Tomba.io, feature by feature
FeatureTomba.ioApollo.io
Price a month $89/mo$149/user/mo
Credits 5,0006,000
5,000-lead benchmark #1 of 9 (4,015 valid)Not tested
No charge for empty searches ✓ Yes✗ No
Verification credits 5,0000
Email finder ✓✓
Email verifier ✓Limited
Domain search ✓✓
Phone finder ✓Very limited
Bulk processing ✓Limited
Official SDKs ✓Limited
MCP server ✓✗

Last reviewed April 14, 2026. Benchmark ranks come from our public 5,000-lead test; tools it did not include show "Not tested". All 36 features

// 05 · evidence

Is Tomba.io really the best Apollo.io alternative?

Every vendor claims to beat the others. So a Apollo.io alternative that only asserts it is more accurate gives you nothing to check.

So we published the test instead of describing it. The same 5,000-lead file went through 9 providers. Nobody cleaned the input first. Nobody retried a failed row. Then we exported the raw sheets.

Tomba.io returned 4,015 valid emails. Anymailfinder returned 3,875, and Findymail 3,757. The file was identical for each tool, so the gap reflects coverage rather than luck. Open the result sheet and check any row yourself.

Where we fall short

No tool finds every address. Ours found 4,015 of 5,000, so about 20% of the file stayed empty. Coverage also varies by region and company size. So test on your own market, with your real list.

Switching from Apollo.io

Export your contact list. Run it through the verifier to see what still delivers. Rebuild the gaps with Domain Search or Bulk Tasks, then point your integration at the API. The Free plan has 25 searches a month, so you can test the claim on your own data first.

// valid emails from 5,000 leads raw data
  1. #1Tomba.io4,015
  2. #2Anymailfinder3,875
  3. #3Findymail3,757
  4. #4GetProspect3,096
  5. #5Skrapp2,142
  6. #6Hunter1,882
  7. #7VoilaNorbert1,800
  8. #8Snov1,007
  9. #9Prospeo846

Tomba's own test, February 2026: 2,500 leads with a website and 2,500 with only a company name. Only addresses a tool labelled valid count.

// what customers say

  • Stellar product and amazing support. I have tested many tools and this one is far superior by far. I highly recommend it.
    Martin EbongueEntrepreneur, Genius Data Flow
  • Team accounts & API! This is a brilliant feature as I can integrate this into our in house sales software. It also has CRM integrations and bulk tasks, so it helps to streamline our work.
    Naz H.Marketing Consultantvia G2
  • If you are someone who requires quality leads & contact details on a regular basis, then you should definitely check out Tomba because it's not only the most affordable solution out there but also has a strong data power behind it.
    Nafiur R.Founder & Mentorvia G2

// faq

Apollo.io alternative: questions

Still have questions? Visit the help center

// quick start

Make your first call in a minute

Free account, real API key, the same endpoints Enterprise customers use.

  1. 1Create a free account25 searches a month. No card.
  2. 2Copy your key and secretFrom API keys in the dashboard.
  3. 3Call the APIPaste the request; the answer is JSON.
curl "https://api.tomba.io/v1/email-finder?domain=piedpiper.com&first_name=Richard&last_name=Hendricks" \
  -H "X-Tomba-Key: $TOMBA_API_KEY" \
  -H "X-Tomba-Secret: $TOMBA_SECRET_KEY"
Response
200 OK· 1 search credit
{
  "data": {
    "email": "richard@piedpiper.com",
    "first_name": "Richard",
    "last_name": "Hendricks",
    "full_name": "Richard Hendricks",
    "website_url": "piedpiper.com",
    "company": "Pied Piper",
    "pattern": "{first}",
    "department": "executive",
    "type": "personal",
    "position": "CEO",
    "country": "US",
    "gender": "male",
    "twitter": null,
    "linkedin": "https://www.linkedin.com/in/richard-hendricks",
    "score": 100,
    "accept_all": false,
    "phone_number": true,
    "verification": {
      "date": "2025-01-15T10:32:00+01:00",
      "status": "valid"
    },
    "sources": [
      {
        "uri": "https://piedpiper.com/blog/engineering",
        "website_url": "piedpiper.com",
        "extracted_on": "2024-06-01T09:14:07+01:00",
        "last_seen_on": "2025-01-10T17:02:44+01:00",
        "still_on_page": true
      }
    ],
    "phone_data": []
  }
}