Thunderdome B2B SaaS AI Perception Index

← Sales Engagement & Outbound ranking

Head-to-head · September 2026 snapshot

Apollo.io vs Outreach

Apollo.io leads broadly; Outreach still owns the enterprise question. Apollo.io pulls ahead on coverage and first-pick rate, showing up in 92% of answers versus 72% for Outreach, and winning five of eight question themes including the startup, budget, and feature-led queries where buyers are actively comparing options. The model split tells the real story: Claude and Gemini both favor Apollo.io by a wide margin, and since those two models drive most of the score gap, Outreach's advantage on ChatGPT alone cannot close it. Outreach holds its ground exactly where its reputation is oldest, the enterprise pick theme, which keeps it relevant to buyers shopping at the top end of the market.

Apollo.io Outreach
Visibility Score 79 64
Rank in category #1 #3
Mention rate 92% 72%
#1 pick rate 38% 28%
Avg. position when named 2.3 2.2

Who each model prefers

ChatGPT
Apollo.io
76
Outreach
80
Claude
Apollo.io
80
Outreach
62
Gemini
Apollo.io
82
Outreach
50

The models split: ChatGPT prefers Outreach, Claude prefers Apollo.io, Gemini prefers Apollo.io.

The shape of the fight

Each axis is one of the 8 measured buyer questions; the further out, the more of that question's answers name the brand. Hover an axis for the raw counts. Single-axis gaps ride on 9 answers each, so read the overall shape, not one spike.

Apollo.ioOutreach
Best overallUse caseTop toolsStartupEnterpriseFeature-ledSingle pickBudget

The fight, question by question

Mentions out of 9 answers per question. Click any question for the full transcripts.

Question Apollo.io Outreach Edge
Best overallWhat's the best sales engagement platform for outbound? 9 9 even
Use-case fitOur SDR team needs email sequences, dialer, and task management. What should we use? 9 7 Apollo.io
Top tools in 2026What are the top sales engagement and outbound tools in 2026? 9 6 Apollo.io
Startup & small teamWhich outbound prospecting platform is best for a small sales team? 9 6 Apollo.io
Enterprise pickWhich sales engagement platform should a large enterprise standardize on, considering security, compliance, and scale? 3 8 Outreach
Feature-led askI need contact data plus email sequencing in one tool. What do you recommend? 9 5 Apollo.io
If you could pick oneIf you could only pick one sales engagement platform, which one and why? 9 9 even
Budget & alternativesWhat are the best tools for cold email outreach at scale? 9 2 Apollo.io

Open this matchup in the compare tool →  ·  Apollo.io brand report  ·  Outreach brand report

Measured from 72 fresh answers collected from the models' production APIs in September 2026; rankings change monthly. Neither brand can pay to appear here or to move the numbers. Full recipe on the methodology page.