The Best CRM Software for Sales Teams

We’ve researched, ranked, and rated the six best sales CRM systems for US businesses. Find yours today, and compare tailored quotes from suppliers

Pricing from (per user, per month)	$25	$50	$19	$65	$25	$12
Past sales	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔
Sales forecasting	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔
Quote proposal management	✔	✔	$	✔	$	✔
Lead scoring	✔	X	✔	✔	✔	✔
Payment management	$	$	$	✔	$	$

Sales automation. Though it is powered by artificial intelligence, there’s nothing new-fangled or futuristic about it. It’s something your business can start taking advantage of right now – and it’ll boost not only your productivity, but your profits, too.

And don’t worry – sales automation isn’t about replacing your human reps with robots. Rather, it’s about lightening your sales team’s admin load, while taking care of some of the more manual processes – freeing up your sales hotshots to do what they do best (which, hopefully, is sell!).

So how do you introduce sales automation to your business?

With a CRM system, that’s how. You might already know about CRM for its contact and data storage benefits. But it’s so much more than a database – in the right hands, it’s a platform that’ll help you analyze past sales performance, provide accurate forecasts for the future, and empower your reps to engage the right leads at the right time.

Ready to find out which CRM system is right for your sales team? We’re way away ahead of you.

Over 40 hours – and with the aid of three independent researchers, no less – we ranked and rated some of the world’s top CRM systems. 

Want to know what we found?

The Best Sales CRM Systems in 2021

According to our research, the best CRM for sales reps and teams is Salesforce Sales Cloud. HubSpot Sales Hub is a close second, while Zendesk Sell, Dynamics 365 for Sales, Freshworks CRM, and Zoho complete our top six.

How did we decide? Jump to our methodology to find out. You can also find out more about the sales automation metrics we used to rate the best CRM software for sales teams below.

1. Salesforce Sales Cloud

Salesforce is our top CRM pick for sales teams. In our rankings, it gets top marks for features, while its help and support is also superb. If our ratings expose any of this sales CRM’s weaknesses, it’s the price – because, though Salesforce starts cheap, adding the functionality your sales team needs can quickly become an expensive endeavor.

Salesforce Sales Cloud: The Basics

Salesforce Sales Cloud for Sales Teams: Feature Analysis

Past sales? Yes. Salesforce’s historical trend reporting is a niche feature – and is a little complex to set up – but it’s there.

Sales forecasting? Yes, but only on Salesforce’s ‘Professional’ plan and above.

Quote proposal management? Yes, but only on Salesforce’s ‘Professional’ plan and above.

Lead scoring? Yes, but only on the ‘Professional’ plan and above.

Payment management? Yes, but you’ll need to pay extra for Salesforce’s CPQ (configure, price, quote) tool, and acquire ‘Salesforce Billing’ for full payment functionality. Rates for this aren’t advertised… but it looks expensive!

2. HubSpot Sales Hub

With full marks for customer approval and excellent help and support, HubSpot comes in at a close second. Though it’s somewhat let down by its price point (and, to an extent, its features), HubSpot’s Sales Hub remains a superlative pick for sales teams.

HubSpot Sales Hub: The Basics

HubSpot Sales Hub for Sales Teams: Feature Analysis

Past sales? Yes.

Sales forecasting? Also yes – HubSpot’s simple reporting tool provides forecasts based on the number of deals in the pipeline, and your sales reps' assumed probability of closing them.

Quote proposal management? Yes, but only on HubSpot’s ‘Professional’ plan and above.

Lead scoring? Only HubSpot’s Marketing Hub allows this – it’s not included as part of the Sales Hub.

Payment management? Not included as standard. However, payment management can be achieved through integrating HubSpot Sales Hub with third-party invoicing and accounting software, such as QuickBooks.

Up next: The Best CRM Systems for Small Businesses in 2021

3. Zendesk Sell

Zendesk Sell excels in two key areas: customer support and price point. Its customer scores are also the third highest of all the CRM software we looked at, though its comparatively fewer features for sales teams stop it from launching a serious challenge to Salesforce and HubSpot for the top spots.

Zendesk Sell: The Basics

Zendesk Sell for Sales Teams: Feature Analysis

Past sales? Yes, and upgrading to Zendesk Sell’s ‘Enterprise’ or ‘Elite’ plan also nets you the ability to export historical data.

Sales forecasting? Yes, though on the ‘Professional’, ‘Enterprise’, and ‘Elite’ plans only.

Quote proposal management? No, though integration with a third-party app such as Quote Roller should fix this.

Lead scoring? Yes, but on the ‘Enterprise’ and ‘Elite’ plans only.

Payment management? Not included, though you can integrate Zendesk Sell with an app such as ChargeDesk for free.

Heads up – you’re halfway through our list of the top 6 CRMs for sales automation. Time to start comparing quotes?

Simply hit one of the buttons below to start our quick questionnaire. It takes just 30 seconds to do, and by telling us more about your business’ specific sales and marketing automation CRM requirements, we can help ensure that you receive the best, most personalized rates on sales CRM software.

4. Microsoft Dynamics 365 Sales

Dynamics 365 scores highly for features, and its help and support is among the finest out there. Paradoxically, though, its customer approval ratings are at the lower end of the scale – perhaps because of Dynamics 365’s eye-wateringly expensive prices.

Dynamics 365: The Basics

Dynamics 365 Sales for Sales Teams: Feature Analysis

Past sales? Yes.

Sales forecasting? Yes, with Dynamics 365’s ‘Enterprise’ plan and above.

Quote proposal management? Yes.

Lead scoring? Yes.

Payment management? Yes, across all plans.

5. Freshworks CRM Sales Cloud

Rounding out the top five is Freshworks CRM (formerly Freshsales). Though its scores for features and customer approval are at the lower end of the spectrum, it ties with Zoho as a top value pick. Add in impressive help and support rankings, and Freshworks CRM is a safe selection for sales teams.

Freshworks CRM: The Basics

Freshworks CRM for Sales Teams: Feature Analysis

Past sales? Yes.

Sales forecasting? Yes, with the ‘Enterprise’ plan and above.

Quote proposal management? No – you’ll require a third-party integration to make this happen.

Lead scoring? Yes – and it’s actually one of Freshworks CRM’s best features! Powered by ‘Freddy’, Freshworks CRM’s in-built, AI-powered assistant, a ‘Predictive Contact Scoring’ tool scores each of your contacts based on their behavior and demographic information.

Payment management? No, although Freshworks CRM does boast native integration with QuickBooks.

Want to try before you buy? Take advantage of Freshworks CRM’s free 21-day trial today.

6. Zoho

Zoho is one of the cheapest CRM systems we researched. Though it ranks well for value, it’s let down by the lowest customer approval score, underwhelming customer support, and a lack of serious analytics functionality.

Zoho: The Basics

Zoho for Sales Teams: Feature Analysis

Past sales? Yes.

Sales forecasting? Yes, across all paid plans.

Quote proposal management? Available on Zoho’s ‘Professional’, ‘Enterprise’, and ‘Ultimate’ plans.

Lead scoring? Yes, across all paid plans.

Payment management? Yes, though you’ll need an additional product integration known as ‘Zoho Subscriptions’. This helps you bill customers on a one-time or recurring basis, although it comes at an extra cost of up to $199, depending on the size of your business.

Zoho is free to try for 15 days.

How We Rated the Best CRM for Sales Teams

To rate each CRM supplier on their effectiveness for sales teams specifically, we narrowed our focus down to five key automation features that a good sales CRM system has got to do well.

Each of the sales CRM systems above is ranked per its ability to perform each of the following crucial sales automation functions for reps:

Past Sales

In order to prepare for the future – and plan your sales strategy accordingly – you have to learn from the past. That means being able to view historical sales data (and segment it by region, rep, and client), and then export it into reports for clearer viewing and comparison.

Sales forecasting

Just as you need to know what the weather forecast is in order to organize a successful trip to the beach, so will you require an accurate estimate of your future sales to run your business effectively.

Sales forecasting does just this, providing insight into how you should manage your resources, cash flow, workforce, and growth. Taking into account a combination of your business’s historical data, wider economic trends, and your competitors’ situations, effective forecasting is vital to sales success.

Quote Proposal Management

Sales isn’t all high-flying deals and Wolf of Wall Street-esque banter. A lot of it is admin – preparing quotes, formatting documents, and ensuring sales orders are correct and in pristine condition.

Quote proposal management is a feature offered by many sales CRM systems as standard, though sometimes it will require an additional fee or integration. With it, you can propose and send quotes to clients using existing info within the CRM software’s database – thus freeing up your sales team to focus on what matters.

Lead Scoring

CRM software sporting this feature allows you to prioritize incoming leads based on how much they’re worth to your business. Lead scoring helps you understand which leads are sales-ready, and which require further nurturing – ensuring that you move on the right opportunities, at just the right time.

Payment Management

Like quote proposals, payment management is an inevitable part of the job – but it’s also a productivity black hole, swallowing up your sales reps’ time with invoices and transaction details.

The best sales automation tools offer payment management tools either as standard, or as a third-party integration – and it’s a game changer for sales teams.

Next Steps

So, how do you choose the right CRM supplier for your sales team? There are several important factors to think about.

Firstly, the extent of the CRM’s sales automation features. Does the software offer lead scoring and sales forecasting? How about the tools required to send quotes and coordinate payments?

Secondly, the price point. If you’d prefer to stick to the cheaper plans, that’s fine – just make sure they still offer the deal and lead management features you’ll need.

Thirdly, the customer angle. Is the support up to scratch? Will you benefit from round-the-clock assistance, or is that only for the big spenders? What do your prospective CRM system provider’s existing customers have to say about it?

You’ll also need to know what services a CRM offers beyond sales. Here, we’ve just discussed CRM for sales teams, but – if you’re making decisions for other areas of your business, too – you’ll also want to check out our separate guides: CRM for customer service automation, and CRM for marketing automation.

Those are a lot of variables, and they don’t make choosing the right CRM any easier. So let us help.

Just take 30 seconds, and via this quote-finding form, enter some details about your business. You’ll then be contacted with quotes from leading sales CRM providers, who’ll be more than happy to discuss your CRM requirements in greater detail. Oh, and it’s free for US-based businesses.