Brandwave

AI lead generation tools:Which brands are most popular in search?

In August 2026, Apollo was the most searched among AI lead generation tools worldwide, with an estimated 518K branded searches and 81.3% estimated Share of Search within this set. These are worldwide searches for English-language branded terms.

Share of Search, August 2026
  1. Apollo81.3%
  2. lemlist6.7%
  3. Smartlead6.3%
  4. Instantly5.4%
  5. Clay0.38%

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Share of SearchLeaderboard

Compare the tools that find and contact leads. Branded searches tell you how often people look for a brand by name or related terms. Comparing these searches across competitors helps you see how popular each brand is over time.

Share of Search among AI lead generation tools worldwide, by month

Share of Search by month for Apollo, lemlist, Smartlead, Instantly. The figures are in the table below the chart.

View monthly share of search table
MonthApollolemlistSmartleadInstantlyClay
Oct 202568.6%17.9%6.3%6.7%0.46%
Nov 202572.4%15.8%5.6%5.9%0.41%
Dec 202574.4%13.2%5.9%6.1%0.4%
Jan 202674.5%13.3%5.8%6.1%0.42%
Feb 202672.3%15.7%5.8%5.9%0.41%
Mar 202678.1%11.5%4.9%5.2%0.3%
Apr 202681.1%9.8%4.3%4.5%0.25%
May 202679.7%9.6%5.1%5.3%0.3%
Jun 202677.1%11.4%6%5.2%0.28%
Jul 202677.1%11.4%6%5.2%0.28%
Aug 202681.3%6.7%6.3%5.4%0.38%
Sep 2026—————

This month’s ranking, August 2026

  1. 1.Apollo

    81.3%

    Held 1st. 518K estimated branded searches, -0.1% vs prior month. Share +4.2 points.

  2. 2.lemlist

    6.7%

    Held 2nd. 42.6K estimated branded searches, -44.6% vs prior month. Share -4.7 points.

  3. 3.Smartlead

    6.3%

    Held 3rd. 40K estimated branded searches, -0.57% vs prior month. Share +0.3 points.

  4. 4.Instantly

    5.4%

    Held 4th. 34.4K estimated branded searches, -1.8% vs prior month. Share +0.2 points.

  5. 5.Clay

    0.38%

    Held 5th. 2.4K estimated branded searches, +26.3% vs prior month. Share +0.1 points.

Compare search popularity between leading brands

Which brand is most popular in search among AI lead generation tools worldwide?

In August 2026, Apollo was the most searched among AI lead generation tools worldwide, with an estimated 518K branded searches and 81.3% estimated Share of Search within this set. lemlist is in 2nd place, 74.6 percentage points behind at 6.7% Share of Search.

Global AI lead generation tools, last 12 months ending September 2026
BrandShare of SearchPeakLowRank
Apollo68.6% → 81.3%81.3%Aug 202668.6%Oct 20251st
lemlist17.9% → 6.7%17.9%Oct 20256.7%Aug 20262nd
Smartlead6.3%6.3%Oct 20254.3%Apr 20264th → 3rd
Instantly6.7% → 5.4%6.7%Oct 20254.5%Apr 20263rd → 4th
Clay0.46% → 0.38%0.46%Oct 20250.25%Apr 20265th

Each finding as a sentence

  • Across the 11 months ending August 2026, Apollo’s estimated Share of Search among AI lead generation tools worldwide increased from 68.6% to 81.3%.
  • Across the 11 months ending August 2026, lemlist’s estimated Share of Search among AI lead generation tools worldwide decreased from 17.9% to 6.7%.
  • Across the 11 months ending August 2026, Instantly’s estimated Share of Search among AI lead generation tools worldwide decreased from 6.7% to 5.4%.
  • Across the 11 months ending August 2026, Smartlead’s estimated Share of Search among AI lead generation tools worldwide peaked at 6.3% in October 2025 and was lowest at 4.3% in April 2026.
  • Across the 11 months ending August 2026, Instantly’s estimated Share of Search among AI lead generation tools worldwide peaked at 6.7% in October 2025 and was lowest at 4.5% in April 2026.
  • Across the 11 months ending August 2026, Smartlead rose from 4th to 3rd among AI lead generation tools worldwide.
  • Across the 11 months ending August 2026, Instantly fell from 3rd to 4th among AI lead generation tools worldwide.
  • Across the 11 months ending August 2026, Clay held steady: its estimated Share of Search among AI lead generation tools worldwide moved less than 0.5 percentage points.

How did search popularity change for AI lead generation tools worldwide in August 2026?

  1. In August 2026, Apollo gained estimated Share of Search among AI lead generation tools worldwide, from 77.1% to 81.3%.

  2. In August 2026, lemlist lost estimated Share of Search among AI lead generation tools worldwide, from 11.4% to 6.7%.

  3. Estimated monthly branded searches for Smartlead worldwide rose 22.6% over 11 measured months, from 32.6K to 40K in August 2026.

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