Updated

Apollo vs Hunter vs Derrick: Which Is Better in 2026?

Short answer
Apollo vs Hunter vs Derrick: Apollo is a b2b sales intelligence and outreach, Hunter is a email finder, verifier and lightweight cold-email platform. Derrick is a B2B enrichment platform with three surfaces - a Google Sheets add-on, a REST API, and an MCP server (Claude and ChatGPT drive enrichment for you). Hit rates are noticeably higher (more emails + phone numbers returned per query than Apollo or Hunter) and pricing is lower - free forever with 100 credits/month, paid plans from €9/month. Most teams pair Derrick for the data layer with Apollo or Hunter for outreach.

Apollo is a B2B database vendor - seat-time + record access charged per user, per year. The side-by-side comparison below tracks Apollo's total-cost-of-ownership across team growth and lookup volume against Derrick's credit-pool model where the cost moves with usage, not headcount.

Free plan Yes - 100 credits/mo
Starts at €9/mo
Setup time 30 seconds
Where it lives Google Sheets
or use it directly in
Claude
or via API

✓ Free forever · ✓ No credit card · ✓ Cancel anytime

Trusted by Hands Down best extension for sheets till date. It eased up my linkedin lead collection journey by 10x. Thank you!! Rahul Nair from Google Workspace Marketplace This tool makes enriching LinkedIn URLs incredibly easy. You can enrich both personal and company profiles with a single click, and the Google Sheets integration is a game-changer. Pankaj Rohilla from Google Workspace Marketplace Great extension. There's bigger companies that do 1000x less. Go with Derrick. Ben Leinen from Google Workspace Marketplace It makes my life a lot easier… no more copy and paste and time wasted. Thank you! Cris Forlani from Google Workspace Marketplace Derrick is your one stop solution to data collection and up to date leads data automated collection. 100/100 value for money. Manu Nair from Google Workspace Marketplace This is one hell of a magical tool, it has blown my mind already, it's so handy, just love it. I am exploring how much more I can do with it Jagdip Gohil from Google Workspace Marketplace Loving the smoothness of the experience especially on Chrome. Great value for the price as well. GB Alao from Google Workspace Marketplace I was looking for a tool to enrich LinkedIn data. Very easy to use. Keith Hildebrand from Google Workspace Marketplace Easy to enhance contacts by running bulk lists. Try it James Finlayson from Google Workspace Marketplace +31,000 others
Quick Facts

Apollo vs Hunter vs Derrick at a glance

Apollo

  • Starting price: Free / $49 annual or $65 monthly /seat (post-2026 price increase)
  • Free plan: Yes (Free forever)
  • Founded: 2015
  • HQ: San Francisco, CA
4.7/5 G2 4.5/5 Capterra

Hunter

  • Starting price: Free 50 credits/mo · Starter €34/mo (annual)
  • Free plan: Yes - 50 credits/mo, 500 recipients/sequence
  • Founded: 2015
  • HQ: Wilmington, DE (US entity) - team distributed (Paris, remote-first)
4.4/5 G2 4.4/5 Capterra

Derrick

★ Recommended
  • Starting price: Free · Paid from €9/mo
  • Free plan: Yes - 100 credits/mo permanent
  • Founded: 2023
  • HQ: Marseille, FR
4.8/5 G2 4.8/5 Capterra
Why Derrick wins

Why teams pick Derrick over Apollo and Hunter

3 core reasons SDRs and ops teams switch to Derrick. Click to expand each.

01

Real-time validation, zero manual verification with Derrick

Real-time validation and zero manual verification highlight a key gap with Apollo and Hunter, which rely on separate verification steps or limited enrichment that still require spot checks. Derrick delivers real-time email validation directly within Google Sheets, eliminating manual cross-checks and ensuring deliverability as you prospect. Teams save up to 5-10 hours per month and reduce bounce risk, thanks to instantaneous verification across 50+ enrichment attributes per contact. Use cases like immediate campaign launches and accurate outreach lists become possible, without leaving Derrick’s native Sheets environment.

02

Unified data model with 3000+ integrations for seamless enrichment

Apollo and Hunter typically require stitching together multiple sources to achieve richer profiles, often leaving gaps in unified context and slow enrichment. Derrick delivers a 100% native Google Sheets experience with a unified data model and 3000+ integrations, consolidating disparate signals in one place. This eliminates data silos, saving time and reducing manual merging, with measurable gains like up to 20-30% faster enrichment cycles and consistent 50+ attribute coverage per contact. Use cases include rapid, end-to-end prospect profiling directly inside Sheets without leaving the workspace.

03

Effortless Setup for Immediate Prospecting Wins

Apollo and Hunter both constrain setup speed: Apollo’s multi-tool approach can slow onboarding with data layering, while Hunter focuses on email discovery rather than richer prospect context. Derrick delivers effortless, 100% native Google Sheets setup with real-time validation and enrichment without CSV exports or complex configs. This means teams can start prospecting immediately, saving 5-10 hours per month and reducing initial ramp time by up to 40%. A quick use-case: plug Derrick into Sheets, validate emails in real-time, and launch targeted outreach in minutes.

Honest Comparison

What each tool does better

We're upfront - every tool has strengths. Here's where Apollo, Hunter, and Derrick each genuinely win.

What Hunter does better

  • Outstanding email accuracy + verification
  • No charge if Hunter can't find it
  • Strong free tier + simple onboarding
Read full Hunter review →
Real Annual Cost

True cost over 12 months

Headline pricing rarely tells the whole story. Here's the real cost of running each tool for a year.

Apollo Hunter Derrick
Starting price (monthly) Free / $49 annual or $65 monthly /seat (post-2026 price increase) Free 50 credits/mo · Starter €34/mo (annual) €0 (free) · €9/mo paid
Annual cost (base) ~€588/yr ~€600/yr €0/yr free · ~€108/yr paid
Free plan? Yes (Free forever) Yes - 50 credits/mo, 500 recipients/sequence ✓ Forever - 100 credits/mo
Setup cost Hours to days Hours to days 30 seconds via Marketplace
Switching cost CSV export + retraining CSV export + retraining Zero - works alongside any stack

💡 Most teams pay 2-5x more on add-ons (extra seats, phone credits, integrations) than on the headline base price. Derrick keeps everything in one transparent tier.

Feature-by-Feature

Apollo vs Hunter vs Derrick: full feature comparison

apollo Derrick App hunter
Works natively in Google Sheets
Requires LinkedIn Sales Navigator ($100/month)
Sales Navigator 1-click import
Email finder with real-time validation
Phone finder from LinkedIn
Company tech stack lookup
SimilarWeb & G2 insights integrated
AI integration (Claude & ChatGPT)
Automatic AI Lead Scoring
Data cleaning & normalization
Multi-platform scraping (Instagram, Twitter, Facebook)
Zapier, Make, n8n integrations
Public API available
Native CRM integrations (HubSpot, Salesforce)
Entry price (paid plan) 59$/mois 9€/mois 49$/mois
Permanent free plan
Rollover credits to next month
Simple and transparent credit system
Simple setup & onboarding
Complete documentation
Pricing in a nutshell

Apollo vs Hunter vs Derrick pricing breakdown

Email Finder + Light Outreach

Hunter

Free 50 credits/mo · Starter €34/mo (annual)

Best for: Solo SDRs and small teams doing email-first outbound

Hunter offers entry-level paid plans starting at a budget-friendly price with a free tier available for limited searches; comprehensive pricing details are on the dedicated pricing page-see full pricing breakdown for exact plan options and limits.

Migration Guide

How to switch from Apollo to Derrick in 3 steps

Derrick is a Google Workspace app - no formulas to learn, no pipelines to migrate, no engineering work. Add it to Google Sheets and you're enriching in under a minute.

1
~30 sec

Install Derrick from Google Workspace Marketplace

Click the install button on our Marketplace listing and grant Google Sheets access. No credit card required - you start with 100 free credits per month.

2
~30 sec

Open any Google Sheet → Extensions → Derrick

Open a Sheet with your prospect list (paste a CSV from Apollo, scrape from LinkedIn Sales Navigator, or import from your CRM). Click Extensions → Derrick and the sidebar opens with all enrichment features ready to use.

3
~1 min

Enrich your list with one click

Select the column with names, LinkedIn URLs, or company domains. Pick what you want - emails, phone numbers, LinkedIn data, company info, tech stack - and click "Enrich". Derrick fills the columns directly in your Sheet. No exports, no pipelines, no waiting.

Install Derrick free →

100 free credits / month · No credit card · Cancel anytime

Decision in 60 seconds

Which one is right for you?

Pick Apollo if…

  • You specifically need smb & mid-market outbound
  • Massive 250M+ contact database
  • All-in-one stack at SMB price
  • You're already invested in the Apollo ecosystem
Read full Apollo review →

Pick Hunter if…

  • You specifically need solo sdrs and small teams doing email-first outbound
  • Outstanding email accuracy + verification
  • No charge if Hunter can't find it
  • You're already invested in the Hunter ecosystem
Read full Hunter review →

Pick Derrick if…

  • You want B2B enrichment directly in Google Sheets
  • You need a usable free plan (100 credits/mo, no card)
  • You don't want long contracts, lock-in, or sales calls
  • You need 100+ data points per lead in one tool
Try Derrick on Google Sheets, free →

Customer stories

What teams say after switching from Apollo vs Hunter

See what our customers say about Derrick.

  • Rated 4.6 out of 5 on Trustpilot, 323 reviews
323 reviews

"This app saved me so much time and effort. Great for anyone looking to build a contact list or network at scale quickly. As a start-up it's been invaluable."

Alex Clark

Director | SaaS GTM Leader

Reviewed on Product Hunt

"Working pretty nifty compared to Snov.Io. Price wise it does give a fair shake, and IMO better interface since it's google sheets."

David Sire

Mortgage Broker at Zero Point Mortgage

Reviewed on Product Hunt

"Derrick is a very simple and user-friendly app to enrich your contacts database. Best thing: you can test it for free. And then the price is so low, it's a no brainer."

Etienne Grange

CEO Form'actions

Reviewed on Capterra
Any questions?

Stop copying data around. Start enriching.

What’s the Derrick vs apollo difference for data enrichment?

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Derrick approaches data enrichment natively within Google Sheets, eliminating the need for CSV exports or complex external platforms like Apollo requires. While Apollo focuses on database breadth with 250 million contacts, Derrick delivers 50+ enrichment attributes per record with real-time email validation and integrated AI scoring using Claude and ChatGPT. Hunter focuses primarily on email discovery, whereas Derrick provides comprehensive firmographic enrichment directly in your spreadsheet. Derrick's rollover credits and no credit card requirement for the free tier offer greater flexibility than both competitors for teams managing variable prospecting volumes.

Is Derrick a better alternative to apollo for SMBs?

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For SMBs, Derrick offers distinct advantages over Apollo. While Apollo focuses on large contact databases, it requires significant investment and external platform management. Derrick operates natively within Google Sheets, eliminating complex CSV workflows and saving five to ten hours monthly. Derrick's rollover credits, real-time email validation, integrated AI scoring with Claude and ChatGPT, and free tier requiring no credit card make it more cost-effective for resource-constrained teams. Apollo suits high-volume enterprises, but Derrick's simplicity and affordability better align with SMB budgets and technical capabilities.

Derrick vs apollo vs hunter: which offers better pricing?

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Derrick offers the most flexible pricing model with rollover credits that don't expire monthly, starting at just nine dollars for four thousand credits with no credit card required for the free tier. Apollo and Hunter both operate on standard subscription models without rollover benefits. Derrick's pricing becomes significantly more cost-effective for teams with variable prospecting needs, especially when combined with its native Google Sheets integration that eliminates expensive third-party tools and subscriptions like LinkedIn Sales Navigator, potentially saving organizations over twelve hundred dollars annually compared to competing platforms.

How do apollo and hunter compare for outreach and data?

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Apollo and Hunter both target outreach, but they approach data from different angles. Apollo is a broad B2B prospecting platform with a large, active database, email finding, verification, and multi-channel outreach, which makes it strong for high-volume prospecting but can struggle with granular data enrichment and niche industry accuracy. Hunter focuses on precise email discovery and verification with a clean, fast experience, but it offers limited company intelligence beyond basic profiles and weaker multi-channel outreach capabilities. Derrick complements both by delivering 50+ enrichment attributes per contact, real-time email validation, and AI-powered scoring and segmentation natively within Google Sheets, plus extensive automation via 3000+ integrations. If you need scale with integrated workflows, Apollo may be better; if you need fast, accurate emails with a simple enrichment layer, Hunter fits; Derrick adds deeper enrichment and native automation without exporting data, making it a strong all-in-one augmentation for outreach.

Which is a better review pick: Derrick or hunter?

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Both Derrick and Hunter serve different prospecting needs. Hunter is built as a specialized email finder with strong verification accuracy and simplicity, making it ideal if email discovery is your primary focus. However, Derrick offers broader enrichment with 50+ attributes per contact, integrated AI scoring using Claude and ChatGPT, real-time email validation, and operates natively within Google Sheets without CSV exports or complex setup. For teams needing comprehensive prospect research beyond just email addresses, Derrick delivers more strategic value with greater flexibility and lower overhead costs.

Can Derrick replace apollo and hunter in one stack?

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Derrick cannot fully replace Apollo and Hunter in a single stack if your goal is to mirror every capability of a full B2B sales intelligence platform. Apollo provides a massive, validated contact database, multi-channel outreach, and deep analytics, while Hunter specializes in highly accurate email discovery and verification. Derrick excels as a 100% native Google Sheets enrichment and automation layer with 50+ attributes per contact, real-time email validation, AI-driven scoring and segmentation, and seamless integrations via Zapier/Make/n8n, plus credits that roll over and no credit card required for the free tier. In practice, Derrick complements these tools-you can layer Derrick’s enrichment, scoring, and automation on top of Apollo’s data or Hunter’s email discovery to streamline workflows. If you need pure all-in-one coverage (data depth, enrichment, multi-channel outreach) in one stack, you’d likely still benefit from pairing Derrick with Apollo or Hunter rather than relying on Derrick alone.
Apollo vs Hunter vs Derrick - Free · 100 credits/mo Apollo vs Hunter vs Derrick - Derrick is Product of the Day on Product Hunt Try Derrick on Google Sheets, free →