When I was scaling my company's own outbound, we ran into the same problems most agencies tell us about today: unpredictable per‑seat costs, fragile deliverability, and a tool stack that ballooned with every new client. That experience is why we built Instantly the way we did: unlimited accounts, big deliverability network (4.2M accounts), and flat pricing so you can ramp without guessing what your software bill or inbox placement will look like next month

Why data‑first agencies are moving off Apollo in 2025

1) Per‑seat pricing kills margins at scale: Apollo’s paid tiers run roughly $49 to $119 per user per month. An agency that needs 30 sending seats for client work pays 30 × $49 × 12 = ~$17.5K/year at the low end before any add‑ons. On higher tiers, it’s $28K+ to $42K+ per year. That’s spend you can’t deploy to data, copy, or domains.

2) Deliverability got stricter: Since Feb 2024, Gmail and Yahoo require SPF/DKIM/DMARC and expect complaint rates below 0.3%. Hitting volume from a small pool of inboxes is a shortcut to spam. The safer pattern is more domains + more inboxes, each doing modest daily sends, warmed continuously.

3) Tool sprawl drags productivity and budget: Sales teams juggle double‑digit tools - research shows ~29% of SaaS spend is under‑utilized or wasted, and large orgs leave ~$18M in unused licenses on the table each year. Consolidating into a platform that covers lead data + sending + deliverability + reply handling cuts wasted time and cost.

How I evaluate Apollo alternatives (ex-agency owner checklist)

• Pricing model/TCO: Prefer flat‑fee over per‑seat so you can add inboxes without adding users. (Run the math for your average clients and sends per month.)
• Deliverability guardrails: Look for big warm‑up networks, slow ramping, inbox placement insights, and bounce protection.
• Lead data depth: Integrated B2B database with verification reduces vendor count.
• Scale + personalization: AI workflows for first lines and replies, plus A/B testing and sequencing.
• Inbox operations: A unified inbox, with AI prioritization/filtering tools so your team can manage replies across clients without logging into 20 mailboxes or sacrificing speed-to-lead (critical!)
• Integrations & DFY: Solid CRM integrations and optional done‑for‑you (DFY) setup if you want experts to configure domains/inboxes.

The best Apollo alternatives for agencies in 2025

Instantly: scale and deliverability without seat tax

Why agencies pick it: Unlimited email accounts on every plan, a very large 4.2M+ account deliverability network, Unibox to centralize replies, and an integrated 450M+ contact database. Pricing is flat per workspace, not per seat.

Highlights

• Unlimited accounts + flat‑fee pricing (Growth from $37/mo, Hypergrowth from $97/mo).
• Deliverability network with automated warm‑up and slow ramps.
• SuperSearch: 450M+ contacts with waterfall enrichment and AI lookalikes.
• Advanced AI personalization: generate entire sequences with Instantly's Copilot.
• Unibox: reply from one consolidated inbox, with AI suggestions.
• Optional DFY setup is automated, done-for-you for your domain + inbox provisioning at scale.

Watch‑outs for agencies

• Multi-channel not natively supported: if you require multi-channel outreach you'll need to use another tool in conjunction with Instantly.

Apollo: rich data and multichannel, but watch total cost

Why agencies pick it: A large B2B database with verified contacts, multichannel sequences, and native dialer. Strong filters, intent, and enrichment help teams target precisely.

Highlights

• B2B data depth: Over 210M verified contacts and 35M companies with enrichment.
• Multichannel sequences: Emails, calls, and LinkedIn tasks in one workspace.
• Built‑in dialer: Click‑to‑call, recordings, and analytics to manage call outcomes.
• Deliverability guidance: Knowledge base with setup and repair playbooks.

Watch‑outs for agencies

• Per‑seat pricing compounds as you scale: Public comparisons place paid tiers roughly $49 to $149 per user per month depending on billing. As client inbox counts rise, TCO climbs quickly.
• Daily send pacing remains conservative: Apollo recommends keeping 50 emails per day per mailbox to protect reputation, which means high volumes still require many inboxes.
• Credit economics matter: Higher data usage can require add‑on credits that raise costs.

Smartlead: high‑volume sending with deliverability emphasis

Highlights

• Unlimited accounts and warmup: across plans for scale without seat tax.
• IP rotation and mailbox rotation: to spread risk across inboxes.
• Throughput controls: Clear plan caps such as 6,000 emails per month on Basic and 150,000 emails per month on Pro, plus 2,000 vs 30,000 active lead limits.
• Centralized operations: Master inbox, webhooks, and API for syncing with CRMs and ops tools.

Watch‑outs for agencies

• No native B2B database: You need to source prospects elsewhere or integrate a data provider. Multiple comparisons note the absence of a built‑in database.
• Plan ceilings still apply: At meaningful volumes you move off Basic quickly due to active lead and monthly send caps. Budget for Pro or higher.
• Integrations can require plumbing: Reddit threads and docs show teams using API and webhooks to keep CRM lists in sync, which adds setup work.

Lemlist: creative personalization and multichannel

Why agencies pick it: Stand‑out personalization with dynamic images and videos, multichannel sequences that include LinkedIn steps and calls, and a built‑in 450M+ lead database with enrichment credits.

Highlights

• Personalization at scale: Image and video personalization to make messages feel custom.
• Multichannel automation: Run email, LinkedIn, and phone steps from one place.
• Lead data built in: 450M+ contacts and 1,500 free enrichment credits per month on some tiers. Lemlist states 5 credits = 1 email and 20 credits = 1 phone number.
• Inbox rotation and in‑app domain purchase to help spread sends and set up sending domains.

Watch‑outs for agencies

• Per‑seat pricing plus sending‑email add‑ons: Extra sending identities cost 9€ per month per email, and plan tiers limit how many sending emails you get by default. This increases TCO for large teams.
• LinkedIn actions rely on the Chrome extension: LinkedIn steps and data capture run through Lemlist’s extension, which adds a browser dependency to your workflow.
• Credit model for data: Heavy enrichment can burn credits quickly, so track usage if you source lists inside Lemlist.

Also worth a look

• Skylead: Multichannel outreach with unlimited email accounts for a single flat monthly price. Helpful if LinkedIn is core to your playbook.
• Reply.io: Email‑centric plans with unlimited mailboxes, plus a sizable B2B contact pool. Good all‑around multichannel option.

What users say

“I’ve been using Instantly for all my cold email campaigns… sent 2,500 emails and landed 4 [deals/meetings]… it’s been great so far.” - User on Reddit Reddit r/coldemail

“Using Instantly for more than a year now. I’ve 6 inboxes sending 30 emails/day per inbox. Doing the job perfectly.” - User on Reddit Reddit r/Emailmarketing

“apollo.io sucks ... they say you can schedule up to 10000 emails to be sent out per month, but when you actually schedule emails to be sent out it doesn't work or it works so badly that it is useless.” - User on Reddit
- Reddit r/LeadGeneration

Migration playbook: moving from Apollo to Instantly in 2 weeks

1. Export + clean
   Export Apollo lists and suppression files. Clean and verify before import.
2. Connect domains + inboxes
   Add more domains than you think you need. Set SPF/DKIM/DMARC on each.
3. Warm everything
   Enable warm‑up for all new inboxes. Allow at least 2–4 weeks for new domains.
4. Run a pilot
   Pick one client, one ICP. Benchmark open, reply, and positive‑reply rates.
5. Roll out
   Clone the winning playbook to the rest of your clients’ domains and inbox pools.

Final take

If you manage outbound across multiple clients, you need more inboxes, not more seats. Choose a platform that lets you scale without multiplying licenses, protects deliverability under today’s rules, and simplifies reply handling. That’s why agencies switch to Instantly.

You can try Instantly free and run a 14‑day pilot with one client to validate inbox placement and ROI.

FAQs

How many inboxes should an agency use per client?
Work backward from volume. If you plan 5,000 emails/month, spread that across 7–10 inboxes at 30–50 sends/day to protect reputation. Then add more inboxes as you scale positive results.

How long should warm‑up take?
Plan 2–4 weeks for new domains/inboxes before full sends, then keep warm‑up running in the background.

Do I still need SPF/DKIM/DMARC if warm‑up is on?
Yes. Warm‑up helps reputation, but authentication is required for bulk senders and strongly recommended for all senders. Here's a guide to do it in < 5 mins.

Can Instantly replace my data provider?
Often, yes. SuperSearch includes 450M+ contacts with enrichment. Many agencies still layer in niche sources for specific verticals, but starting lists can come straight from Instantly.

What about multichannel?
If LinkedIn calling tasks and phone dials are mission‑critical, pair Instantly with a focused companion. For email‑first growth, Instantly covers the full workflow from data - sending - replies.