Written by Rob Binns Updated on 4 April 2022 On this page Best for unbeatable value for money: Zoho Best for sales: Copper Best for detailed lead management: Pipedrive Best for small businesses: Freshsales Best for medium-large businesses: Salesforce Our Methodology FAQs Expand While every CRM platform on this list is affordable and will do its job well, some shout outs are owed to both Zoho, which has the best value for money by far, and Freshsales, which has the best offering for small businesses.CRM stands for Customer Relationship Management, and CRM tools help you do just that; protect and develop the relationships you build with each of your clients. While all businesses can benefit from CRM, it’s the smaller, newer businesses who stand to benefit the most.If you'd rather get it straight from the horse's mouth, it's worth trying our free, zero-commitment quote comparison tool. By entering some information about your company, you'll be given quotes from various CRM providers, helping you decide which is the best option for you. About pricing Some providers offer separate pricing for both US and Canadian clients, while others apply their US pricing across both territories. For simplicity's sake, we'll only use US pricing on this page. Just be conscious that the price may change slightly based on conversion rates when it's time to buy. Swipe right to see more 0 out of 0 backward forward Freshsales CRM Zoho CRM Pipedrive Salesforce monday.com 4.7 4.7 4.6 3.8 4.2 Best for Small businesses Best for Value for money Best for Detailed lead management Best for Medium to large businesses Best for Managing big projects Price Range $15 – $69 per user per month Price Range $14 – $52 per user per month Price Range $14.90 – $99 per user per month Price Range $25 – $300 per user per month Price Range Free Plan Free Plan Free Plan Free Plan Free Plan Try Freshsales Try Zoho Try Pipedrive Try Salesforce Try monday.com 1. Zoho CRMBest for unbeatable value for money Zoho CRM 4.7 Pricing Free – $52 per user per month Quick overview Zoho is one of the most affordable CRM softwares on the market, but it more than holds its own against more expensive packages. Sure, the interface isn’t as jazzy, but it gets the job done. If email is your main use for CRM, Zoho will really come into its own. Free for up to three users, with paid plans starting at $14/user/month (billed monthly). Read more + Read less - Strengths Free for up to three users Easy to use and to set up Great email marketing tools, plus web forms for collecting lead info Weaknesses Mobile app has quite limited functionality Reduced customer support Pricing See more See less TiersPrice Free Free Standard $14 per user per month Professional $23 per user per month Enterprise $40 per user per month Ultimate $52 per user per month Gallery See more See less Click to expand 2. CopperBest for sales Copper Pricing $25 – $119 per user per month Quick overview Copper is another slightly under-the-radar, but well-regarded CRM system. Copper users love the sleek interface, and generally seem to find it easy to use. The downside is that it only integrates with Google programs, including Gmail. It’s also quite sales-focused, so might not be the right choice for businesses looking for more marketing capabilities. Plans start at $25/user/month. Read more + Read less - Strengths Good scope for customization Great features for sales-focused use Free trial available Weaknesses Only works with Google programs, including Gmail Pricing See more See less Copper CRM pricing Basic $25 per user per month Professional $59 per user per month Business $119 per user per month Gallery See more See less Click to expand 3. PipedriveBest for detailed lead management Pipedrive Pricing $14.90 – $99 per user per month Try Pipedrive Quick overview Pipedrive is the perfect affordable CRM solution for businesses with several stages in their sales funnel. It’s the perfect way to guide each consumer from prospect to regular customer, especially for high-value products. Easily integrate with third party applications to maximize efficiency. Plans start at $14.90/user/month. Read more + Read less - Strengths Advanced app versions for on the move management Efficient customer service and helpful guidance Comprehensive lead management – clearly see where each contact is in the sales funnel User-friendly interface Free trial available Weaknesses Not as much scope for customization as other platforms, so might not be suitable for more niche industries The features might be overkill for very small businesses Pricing See more See less Pipedrive CRM pricing Essential $14.90 per user per month Advanced $24.90 per user per month Professional $49.90 per user per month Enterprise $99 per user per month Gallery See more See less Click to expand 4. FreshsalesBest for small businesses Freshsales 4.5 Pricing Free – $69 per user per month Try Freshsales Quick overview If you’re a small business looking for a good, affordable CRM system without all the bells and whistles, Freshsales will be right up your street. Get up and running in next to no time with an easy, useful dashboard, packed full of features you’ll actually use. Freshsales is popular across the board, but it’s the small businesses that sing its praises the loudest. Paid plans start at $15/user/month. Read more + Read less - Strengths Great for automating tasks such as logging phone calls A simple software that’s easy to pick up, and won’t require much training Free trial available Weaknesses Offers fewer third party integrations than competitors such as Zoho and Salesforce Pricing See more See less TiersPrice Free Free Growth $15 per user per month Pro $39 per user per month Enterprise $69 per user per month Gallery See more See less Click to expand 5. SalesforceBest for medium-large businesses Salesforce 3.8 Pricing $25 – $300 per user per month Try Salesforce Quick overview There’s a reason why, when googling CRM systems, you’ll find plenty of articles with titles such as ‘7 Best Alternatives to Salesforce’; it’s really set the bar high when it comes to CRM systems, and seems to have a plan to suit everyone. But when it comes to affordability and value for money, how does it stack up? Plans start at $25/user/month. Read more + Read less - Strengths Good range of features that make it well-suited to medium-large businesses Huge number of integrations available, including a number of Salesforce’s own. This makes it a really robust tool for marketing as well as sales Free trial available Weaknesses One of the pricier systems around Not the easiest to get to grips with quickly Very small businesses should opt for a cheaper, easier product Pricing See more See less TiersPrice Essentials $25 per user per month Professional $75 per user per month Enterprise $150 per user per month Unlimited $300 per user per month Gallery See more See less Click to expand How Did We Find the Best CRM Software?Our team of independent researchers looked at a selection of the best and most popular CRM software. After finding all the information we need, the researchers then compare each software against its competitors, allowing us to find the cream of the crop. The criteria we look at include:Price: Simple enough – the platform with the lowest price tag scores the bestCustomization: What does the platform allow you to toy with in order to make it suit your business?Features: Again, fairly easy to assess. Whichever platforms offer the best variety of features are given a better placement than those that have a more skint collection of tools.Team Infrastructure: How does the platform allow you to manage large sales teams?Customer Support: Again, easy enough – look at the options available and see what each platform offers its customers when it comes to their support resourcesScalability: How much does each software allow your business to grow over time?After factoring in all this information, alongside the scores they received, we were able to calculate a final overall score for each CRM platform. Frequently asked questions Which is the easiest CRM system to use? All of the CRM systems featured on this list should be fairly easy to get to grips with, but Zoho and Freshsales stand out as being particularly user-friendly. What’s a cloud-based CRM system? With a cloud-based CRM system, your customer data is stored in ‘the cloud’. This means you can access it from anywhere, so long as you have internet, rather than having to have the software downloaded onto that particular device. How much does a CRM system cost? While it’s possible to find free CRM systems, paid plans will cost anywhere between $16 and $400 per user per month. How much you should be spending depends on the size of your business, and the functionality that you need. Pop your details into this short form to receive your custom quotes. Written by: Rob Binns Senior Writer Rob writes mainly about the payments industry, but also brings to the table industry-specific knowledge of CRM software, business loans, fulfilment, and invoice finance. When not exasperating his editor with bad puns, he can be found relaxing in a sunny (socially-distanced) corner, with a beer and a battered copy of Dostoevsky.