Best Sales Intelligence Tools: What Actually Works

Sales intelligence tools promise to give you better leads, accurate contact data, and insights that help you close deals faster. But here's the thing: most of them are overpriced, the data accuracy varies wildly, and the "unlimited" plans usually aren't.

I've dug through pricing pages, user reviews, and actual feature lists to help you figure out which tool is worth your money. Whether you're a solo SDR or building out a sales team, here's what you need to know.

Quick Summary: Best Sales Intelligence Tools

• Best Overall Value: Apollo.io – Solid data, built-in outreach, starts at $49/user/month
• Best for Enterprise: ZoomInfo – Most comprehensive, but $15,000+/year minimum
• Best Budget Option: Lusha – Free tier available, paid plans from $22.45/user/month
• Best for European Data: Cognism – GDPR compliant, strong EMEA coverage
• Best for Website Visitors: Dealfront – Identifies companies visiting your site

What Makes a Good Sales Intelligence Tool?

Before we get into specific tools, here's what actually matters:

Data Accuracy: The best database in the world is useless if half the emails bounce. Look for platforms that verify data and offer some kind of accuracy guarantee.

Credit Systems: Almost every tool uses credits. Some charge per email reveal, others per phone number (usually 5-10x more expensive). Know your usage patterns before committing.

Intent Data: The ability to see which companies are actively researching solutions like yours can be a game-changer—but it's usually a premium add-on.

CRM Integration: If it doesn't sync with your CRM, you'll waste hours on manual data entry. Most tools integrate with Salesforce, HubSpot, and the major platforms.

Apollo.io – Best Overall Value

Apollo has become the go-to choice for startups and SMBs that need sales intelligence without enterprise pricing. It combines a massive contact database with built-in email sequencing and a dialer.

Apollo Pricing

• Free: 50 credits/month, basic database access, 2 sequences
• Basic: $49/user/month (annual) – 3,000 credits/year, advanced filters
• Professional: $79/user/month (annual) – 4,000 credits/month, dialer, A/B testing
• Organization: $119/user/month (annual) – 6,000 credits/month, international dialer, advanced security

What's Good

Apollo gives you a lot for the price. You get the database, email sequencing, call recording, and CRM sync all in one platform. The free tier is actually usable for testing, unlike most competitors.

What Sucks

The credit system can get confusing. Each action consumes different amounts—mobile numbers cost 8 credits each, exports use credits, and the limits vary by plan. Teams doing heavy prospecting often blow through credits faster than expected and end up paying for add-ons.

Data freshness can also be hit or miss in niche industries. The database is massive (270+ million contacts), but verification happens at scale, not on-demand.

ZoomInfo – The Enterprise Standard

ZoomInfo is what most people think of when they hear "sales intelligence." It's the most comprehensive platform with the largest B2B database, intent data, and AI features. It's also the most expensive.

ZoomInfo Pricing

ZoomInfo doesn't publish pricing because they customize quotes. Here's what you'll actually pay:

• Professional: ~$14,995/year for 5,000 credits, 3 users
• Advanced: ~$24,995/year for 10,000 credits, more features
• Elite: ~$39,995/year for premium features and AI tools

Additional users cost $1,500-$2,500 each depending on tier. The median customer pays around $30,000/year.

What's Good

ZoomInfo's data is genuinely excellent, especially for US companies. The platform includes conversation intelligence, automated workflows, and their AI Copilot actually provides useful recommendations. Intent data helps you prioritize accounts showing buying signals.

What Sucks

The pricing opacity is frustrating. You can't even get a ballpark without talking to sales. Contracts are annual with strict renewal terms—users report 10-20% price increases at renewal and aggressive auto-renewal policies with 60-day cancellation windows.

The credit system also punishes exploration. Every search, export, and data enrichment costs credits. Teams often find themselves rationing credits toward the end of their contract period.

For smaller companies, ZoomInfo is overkill. You're paying for enterprise features and data volume you won't use.

Lusha – Best Budget Option

Lusha is the accessible entry point to sales intelligence. It started as a Chrome extension for pulling contact info from LinkedIn and has grown into a full platform.

Lusha Pricing

• Free: 70 credits/month, basic Chrome extension
• Pro: $22.45/user/month (annual) – 480 credits/year, list management
• Premium: $52.45/user/month (annual) – 960 credits/year, bulk search
• Scale: Custom pricing for enterprise

What's Good

The free tier actually gives you enough credits to test properly. The Chrome extension works smoothly with LinkedIn. Pricing is transparent and affordable for small teams.

What Sucks

Phone numbers cost 10x more credits than emails, which burns through allowances fast if you're doing cold calling. Data accuracy outside of major markets can be inconsistent. The platform lacks built-in outreach tools—you'll need separate software for email sequences.

CRM integrations and API access are locked behind the Scale plan, which defeats the purpose of the budget-friendly positioning for growing teams.

Cognism – Best for European Data

Cognism focuses on GDPR-compliant data with strong coverage in EMEA, UK, and DACH regions. If you're selling into Europe, this is worth considering.

Cognism Pricing

Like ZoomInfo, Cognism uses custom pricing. Expect:

• Platinum (Grow): $1,500-$10,000/year depending on team size
• Diamond (Elevate): $2,550-$25,000/year with intent data and verified mobiles

Mid-sized teams typically pay $15,000-$25,000 annually. There's a platform fee plus per-user licensing.

What's Good

Cognism's phone-verified mobile numbers (their "Diamond Data") connect significantly more often than competitors. Unlike most tools, they don't use restrictive credit systems for viewing data—you get unrestricted access within fair use limits.

What Sucks

US data coverage isn't as strong as ZoomInfo or Apollo. The pricing is opaque and positioned for mid-market and enterprise buyers. Solo users and startups are priced out entirely.

Dealfront (formerly Leadfeeder) – Best for Website Visitors

Dealfront takes a different approach: it identifies companies visiting your website and enriches them with contact data. It's less about cold prospecting and more about capturing warm intent.

Dealfront Pricing

Dealfront offers custom quotes. Free demos are available to test the platform.

What's Good

Knowing which companies are actively researching your solution is incredibly valuable for account-based selling. The platform identifies anonymous website visitors and ties them to company data, so your sales team can follow up while interest is hot.

What Sucks

It's a specialized tool, not a complete sales intelligence solution. You'll likely need to pair it with another database for contact information. The value depends heavily on your website traffic—low-traffic sites won't get much data.

Other Tools Worth Mentioning

LinkedIn Sales Navigator

Starts at $79.99/user/month. Great for relationship-based selling and advanced LinkedIn search, but doesn't include contact data. You'll need a separate tool to get emails and phone numbers.

Bombora

Pure intent data provider that analyzes digital signals across 5,000+ B2B websites. Helps you see which companies are researching topics related to your solution. Usually purchased as an add-on to other platforms rather than standalone.

6sense

Enterprise ABM platform that combines intent data, predictive analytics, and advertising. Custom pricing for enterprise. Overkill for most SMBs but powerful for sophisticated account-based strategies.

How to Choose the Right Tool

If you're a solo SDR or small startup: Start with Apollo's free tier or Lusha's free plan. You'll get enough credits to validate the data quality before committing.

If you're a growing sales team (5-20 reps): Apollo Professional or Lusha Premium gives you the best balance of features and cost. Consider Cognism if you're selling heavily into Europe.

If you're enterprise (20+ reps with budget): ZoomInfo is the industry standard for a reason. The data is comprehensive, the integrations are deep, and the AI features are genuinely useful. Just negotiate hard on pricing.

If you want intent signals: Dealfront for website visitor identification, or add Bombora intent data to your existing stack.

Red Flags to Watch For

• Credit systems that charge per search: You'll burn through credits just browsing. Look for tools that only charge on export or reveal.
• No free trial or demo data: If they won't let you test the data quality before buying, that's concerning.
• Aggressive auto-renewal: Read the contract carefully. Some tools require 60-90 days notice to cancel and automatically renew with price increases.
• Unlimited claims: Nothing is truly unlimited. Check the fair usage policy for hidden caps.

Related Tools for Your Sales Stack

Once you have your intelligence tool sorted, you'll need software to actually reach prospects. Check out our guides on:

• Best CRM Software – Where you'll store all this contact data
• CRM for Small Business – Budget-friendly options
• Best Email Marketing Software – For nurturing leads at scale

Bottom Line

There's no perfect sales intelligence tool. Apollo offers the best value for most teams. ZoomInfo has the best data but at premium prices. Lusha is the accessible starting point. Cognism wins for European focus.

Start with a free trial, test the data against your actual ICP, and calculate your real credit usage before committing to an annual contract. The best tool is the one that gives you accurate data for the prospects you actually care about—not the one with the biggest database.