How to Switch from Apollo to BILT AI
Updated June 17, 2026
To switch from Apollo to BILT AI: export your contacts, lists, and sequence content to CSV; map Apollo's sequences and fields to BILT campaigns and its pipeline; reconnect your sending identities in BILT (SPF/DKIM/DMARC); import a test batch first; rebuild your sequences and add AI reply-handling and SMS so replies become booked meetings; and run both in parallel for about a week before cutting over. Bring the data Apollo's database gave you — BILT runs the multichannel engine.
Apollo is two things bundled: a large B2B contact database and a sequencing tool to email it. The database is the real draw — that's where a lot of teams get their data — and the sequencing is competent but basic, with reply-handling that still leans on a person working the inbox. BILT AI isn't a data provider; it's the engine. So the honest framing is a split: you may keep sourcing data from Apollo (or wherever) and bring it into BILT, which runs the multichannel outreach, AI follow-up, and SMS that turn that data into meetings.
That means the migration is mostly about your sequences and outreach motion, not abandoning your data source. Here's how to bring your contacts over and stand up the engine that works them harder than Apollo's sequences do.
The migration, step by step
- Export contacts and sequences to CSVExport your saved contacts, lists, and sequence content from Apollo to CSV, and keep an untouched backup copy. Note that Apollo's exported contact data is yours to use; the live database access is a separate subscription decision.
- Decide what to do with the databaseChoose whether to keep Apollo purely as a data source feeding BILT, or replace it entirely. Either way, BILT is the engine — this step is just deciding where your contacts come from going forward.
- Inventory your sequencesList every active Apollo sequence, step, and field you rely on so you know exactly what to rebuild in BILT before you turn anything off.
- Map sequences and fields to BILTMap your Apollo sequences and contact fields onto BILT campaigns and its pipeline. Decide the mapping on paper before importing so step logic and contact data land correctly.
- Reconnect sending identitiesSet up your sending domains and inboxes in BILT with proper email authentication (SPF/DKIM/DMARC), and re-warm any new inboxes before volume sending. Send yourself a test to confirm deliverability.
- Import a test batchImport 25–50 contacts into BILT first and verify fields, list assignment, and campaign mapping all landed correctly before the full load.
- Import the full dataset and add channelsImport your complete contact data, rebuild your sequences, then turn on the multichannel layer Apollo's sequencing lacks — AI reply-handling that works replies in minutes and SMS as a second channel.
- Run both in parallelKeep Apollo's sequences live for about a week alongside BILT so in-flight conversations have a safety net during the transition.
- Cut over and archiveOnce BILT is running the engine cleanly and AI follow-up is working replies, cut over your outreach fully. Keep or cancel Apollo based on whether you still want it as a data source.
Consolidation math
Apollo bundles a contact database with basic sequencing. The engine that turns that data into meetings — multichannel outreach, AI reply-handling, SMS — is where it's thin, so teams bolt on senders, an SMS tool, and a person triaging replies. BILT is that engine in one system. The cleanest setup is often a split: source data from Apollo if its database earns its keep, and run the actual outreach and follow-up in BILT instead of stitching tools around Apollo's sequences.
Frequently asked
Can I keep Apollo's database and still use BILT?
Yes, and that's a common setup. Apollo's strength is its contact database; BILT's strength is the engine that works the data. Many teams keep Apollo as a data source, export contacts, and run all the outreach, AI follow-up, and SMS in BILT. You're not forced to abandon the database to gain the engine.
Is BILT AI a data provider like Apollo?
No — and that's the honest distinction. BILT doesn't sell a contact database; it's the multichannel outreach and AI follow-up engine. You bring your data, from Apollo or anywhere, and BILT runs the sequences, reply-handling, and SMS that turn it into meetings. If you need data sourcing, that's a separate tool from this.
What does BILT add over Apollo's sequences?
Apollo sequences send email and track replies; BILT works them. AI follow-up reads a response and answers in minutes, and SMS adds a channel Apollo's sequencing doesn't run — so outreach gets pursued automatically instead of waiting on inbox triage. The engine, not the data, is what you're switching for.
Will I lose my contact data moving from Apollo?
Not the contacts you've exported — export your saved lists to CSV and import a test batch before the full load. Just know that your live Apollo database access is a separate subscription; exporting your contacts doesn't carry the ongoing database, only the records you pull. Decide whether to keep Apollo for that data feed.
The takeaway
Switching from Apollo to BILT AI is a split decision: Apollo's draw is its database, BILT's is the engine. Bring your data — from Apollo or anywhere — export your contacts and sequences, reconnect your sending identities, test-import, then turn on the multichannel outreach, AI follow-up, and SMS Apollo's sequencing doesn't run. Parallel-run for a week. Keep Apollo as a data source if it earns it, and let BILT do the part that turns contacts into meetings.