Rémi KokabiOctober 12, 20267 min read
Moving from Apollo to lemlist: How the Migration Works in 2026
Why sales teams outgrow Apollo and start evaluating lemlist
Apollo combines data and engagement while lemlist specializes in personalized multichannel cold outreach. That split is where the friction starts. Teams running serious outbound often realize Apollo covers email and a basic dialer well, but leaves gaps in the channels buyers actually respond on.
lemlist runs email, LinkedIn, calls, WhatsApp, and SMS from one campaign, warms up every mailbox with lemwarm, and personalizes at the moment of intent. Apollo, on the other hand, has no native LinkedIn automation worth relying on, no SMS or WhatsApp steps, and no built-in warm-up tool. Apollo lacks built-in email warm-up capabilities and requires integration with external warm-up tools.
That gap creates tool sprawl. You end up paying for a LinkedIn automation tool on the side, bolting on a warm-up service, and stitching it together with yet another enrichment vendor. If your outbound motion has hit that point, the real question is whether switching platforms is worth the temporary disruption. The answer depends on how you handle the migration.
What you can (and can’t) export from Apollo before you cancel
Before touching anything in lemlist, audit what Apollo actually lets you take with you. What you can export from Apollo includes contact lists (CSV), company and account data (CSV), sequence copy (manual documentation), and email templates. What you can’t take: sequence logic, automation structure, or analytics in a portable format.
Apollo’s Basic plan restricts CSV exports to 25 contacts at a time, and bulk list building requires Professional or Organization plans. Check your plan tier’s export limits before starting. If you’re on a lower plan, you may want to do the migration during your last billing period so you have full access.
Data type | Exportable? | Notes |
|---|---|---|
Contacts and accounts | Yes (CSV) | Subject to plan-tier export limits |
Lists and tags | Yes (CSV) | Tags export as a column |
Sequence structure | No | Copy step text manually, rebuild logic |
Email templates | Partial | Body text only (copy/paste) |
Analytics and reports | No | Screenshot key metrics before canceling |
CRM activity logs | Retained in CRM | Already written to CRM fields |
If your Apollo account was synced to HubSpot or Salesforce, the activity logs that were already written to CRM records (emails sent, calls logged) stay in the CRM. Only the Apollo-side integration settings disappear.
How to migrate from Apollo to lemlist step by step
1. Audit active sequences and tag what to keep
Review every running sequence. Pause or finish sequences with leads mid-flow, and tag contacts by status (active, completed, replied, bounced) so you know how to treat each group in lemlist.
2. Export contacts and clean the data
Run the Apollo CSV export for each list or segment. Remove duplicates, strip catch-all or invalid emails, and standardize column names. Exporting all 50+ available data fields creates a noisy, unmanageable CSV. Stick to fewer than 15 data columns for a clean import.
3. Set up your lemlist workspace and connect your CRM
Create your lemlist account and connect sending mailboxes. Verify the CRM integration is enabled in lemlist Settings → Integrations → HubSpot (or Salesforce) (see troubleshooting lemlist–HubSpot sync issues). This way contact sync and activity logging work from day one.
4. Import contacts and map fields
Upload the cleaned CSV and map your CSV fields to the appropriate lemlist variables (see lemlist’s guide on how to import leads from a CSV file). lemlist auto-maps standard variable names like email, firstName, companyName, and linkedinUrl. Match these names exactly for automatic mapping. Columns that don’t match a default type become custom variables (user-defined fields that power personalization in campaigns).
Apollo field | lemlist variable | Notes |
|---|---|---|
First Name | firstName | Direct match |
Last Name | lastName | Direct match |
Required field | ||
Company Name | companyName | Used in personalization |
Title | jobTitle | Map to job title variable |
Phone | phone | For call and SMS steps |
LinkedIn URL | linkedinUrl | Required for LinkedIn steps |
Custom fields | Custom variables | Create matching variables before import |
Tip: If your CSV has multiple email or LinkedIn columns, make sure you assign the exact column you want lemlist to use as the default (see choosing the right CSV import type). Unmapped fields become invisible in campaigns.
5. Rebuild sequences in lemlist’s campaign builder
Recreate your top-performing Apollo sequences as lemlist campaigns. This is a good moment to add channels you didn’t have before (LinkedIn steps, call steps, SMS). Use the template text you copied from Apollo in step 1, and adapt it for multichannel flow.
6. Configure deliverability with lemwarm and DNS
Set up your sending domains, authenticate DNS records (SPF, DKIM, DMARC), and activate lemwarm on every connected mailbox. lemwarm is lemlist’s built-in warm-up tool that exchanges real emails with real inboxes to build sender reputation. Let it run for at least one to two weeks before adding outreach volume.
7. Run a test batch before going live
Send to a small segment first. Check inbox placement, variable rendering, CRM sync, and reply routing. Only scale volume once you’ve confirmed everything works.
Migration risks that stall your pipeline
Switching your outbound tool mid-motion carries real risks. Here are the ones that actually cause lost pipeline, and how to avoid each one.
Deliverability damage from sudden volume changes. Providers see a bundle: a new domain with weak authentication, a big volume ramp, low engagement, and a few complaints. That bundle looks like spam because it matches spammer behavior. Fix: ramp sending gradually over two weeks and run lemwarm during the overlap period.
Duplicate contacts across both platforms and your CRM. Exporting from Apollo and importing to lemlist without deduplicating against CRM records creates triple-touched contacts who receive conflicting outreach. Fix: deduplicate against CRM records before importing.
Broken personalization from unmapped variables. If Apollo used custom fields like
{{custom1}}and those aren’t mapped to lemlist variables, emails send with blank or literal placeholder text. Fix: map every variable and send a test email to yourself before launching any campaign.Losing historical engagement data. Apollo doesn’t export open, reply, or click history in a structured format. Fix: log key engagement scores or statuses to your CRM fields before you cancel Apollo. That data is your only record of past interactions.
How to protect deliverability when switching sending platforms
One in six outbound emails never reaches the inbox. When you add a platform migration on top of that baseline, the risk goes up.
Even if your domains were warm in Apollo, switching sending infrastructure resets how inbox providers perceive your mailboxes. The IP addresses and sending patterns change, which means trust resets too. For outbound teams, the practical takeaway is simple: segment by intent, verify before you send, and pace volume increases.
Start with low daily sends per mailbox and increase gradually. lemlist’s Deliverability Hub auto-caps volume and rotates across mailboxes to distribute risk (inbox rotation spreads send volume so no single mailbox gets flagged). Before you scale, use inbox placement testing to confirm emails land in primary, not promotions or spam, across Google and Microsoft.
The tool matters less than the plumbing behind it: your list quality, your inbox setup, and your domain hygiene. Get those three things right, and most platforms work fine. Get them wrong, and no platform will save you.
What lemlist gives you that Apollo doesn’t
This is where the move pays off. The point of migrating is to gain capabilities Apollo can’t match, not just to change logos on your dashboard.
Multichannel sequences. lemlist offers the best multichannel sequences (email + LinkedIn + calls in one workflow). You can add WhatsApp and SMS steps with conditional logic (if no email reply, trigger a LinkedIn message). Apollo supports email and a basic dialer but lacks native LinkedIn automation, SMS, and WhatsApp.
Built-in deliverability infrastructure. lemlist includes lemwarm, inbox rotation, DNS setup, sending caps, and inbox placement testing inside the platform. Apollo relaunched email warmup in 2025 (after discontinuing it in 2024) through third-party providers on select paid plans, so you’d still rely on external tools for full coverage.
AI-driven personalization. lemlist generates personalized icebreakers, custom landing pages, and even voice-cloned audio messages per lead. Apollo’s personalization is limited to text-based variables and AI-generated snippets.
Intent signals that trigger campaigns automatically. lemlist’s Intent Signals detect events like hiring changes, funding rounds, and website visits, then auto-enroll matching leads into campaigns with signal-based messaging. Apollo has filters, but no real-time intent-triggered automation that launches outreach on its own.
Running Apollo and lemlist in parallel during the transition
A hard cutover disrupts live pipeline. A better approach is to keep Apollo active for sequences with leads mid-flow while building and testing new campaigns in lemlist.
Segment by lead status. New leads enter lemlist. Leads mid-sequence stay in Apollo until their sequence completes.
Block overlapping sends. Exclude Apollo-active contacts from lemlist imports to prevent double outreach to the same person.
Set a cutoff date. Define a hard deadline (two to four weeks typically works) after which all outbound runs through lemlist only.
The risk of double-emailing the same contacts from both platforms is real and visible to recipients. Split by segment, not by channel.
Your first 30 days after switching from Apollo
Once migration is complete, here’s how the first month typically looks.
Week 1: Finish importing, confirm all field mappings, launch lemwarm on every mailbox, and send a first test batch to a small segment.
Week 2: Launch two to three rebuilt campaigns at low volume. Monitor inbox placement daily in Deliverability Hub. Fix any DNS or content issues that surface.
Week 3: Scale volume gradually. Add LinkedIn and call steps to your top campaigns. Start using AI personalization variables and test icebreaker quality.
Week 4: Review campaign performance against your Apollo benchmarks. Optimize subject lines, step timing, and channel mix based on actual reply data.
By week four, you’ll have a clear picture of whether lemlist is outperforming your Apollo baseline, and which sequences to double down on.
Start a 14-day free trial to begin setting up your workspace, or book a demo if you’d like a walkthrough of the migration with the team.
Convert strategy into pipeline
Launch your first outbound campaign with verified leads, AI sequences, and multichannel outreach from one platform.