Best Salesforce alternatives for 2024

When it comes to building and scaling your business, a quality customer relationship management (CRM) platform is a must-have tool. CRM software can help boost your sales productivity, measure the effectiveness of your marketing campaigns, and improve the customer experience. 

Salesforce CRM is an excellent platform, but its pricing and other factors may not be ideal for every small business. Luckily, there are plenty of quality alternatives to choose from.

Why you need a Salesforce alternative

A CRM is only helpful if it’s truly a good fit for your business. While there are many advantages to using Salesforce, there are also several downsides. 

Salesforce can be difficult to use. The platform is complex and learning it requires a significant time investment. As a result, Salesforce may not be a good fit for smaller business and smaller projects that don’t require complex CRM tools. 

It can also be difficult to adapt Salesforce to your industry and your specific business needs. For example, industries like investments, construction, and real estate have specific needs for their CRM solutions, and Salesforce doesn’t necessarily meet those needs. Trying to customize Salesforce can lead to longer loading times and difficult navigation. 

Perhaps most importantly, Salesforce is expensive. Other, more affordable CRM solutions are probably a more practical choice for smaller businesses, startups, and businesses that don’t necessarily need all of the functions Salesforce offers.

These CRM alternatives offer an array of management tools. Whether you’re looking for project management, sales automation, or pipeline management, these solutions can help.

1. Pipedrive

This web-based sales CRM boasts impressive ease of use. Because of its heavy focus on customer relationship management, it offers functionality to support marketing and sales. The user interface lets you see the entire sales process from start to finish. 

Custom chatbot and web forms help generate quality leads, while the CRM tracks emails, calls, and contact history for a seamless marketing and sales process. The Pipedrive mobile app is available for both iOS and Android, and it syncs with Microsoft Office, Gmail, Google Drive, and Jotform.

Features: Customizable pipeline, contract history, customizable online forms, activity reminders, segmented and sorted leads, revenue forecasting

Limitations: Pipedrive’s entry-level plans offer limited features. There are also limits on reports, custom fields, and automated workflows.

Best for: Agencies and marketing/sales teams that want to better track and manage the entire sales process

Customers say: “This is super helpful when looking for clients to follow up with in a single glance,” says one Capterra review. “I highly recommend the Pipedrive to anyone who wants to automate bureaucratic steps in the sales process and effectively improve results and relationships with their customers,” says another.

Pricing: Pipedrive plans are billed per user, per month. The Essential plan is $12.50, the Advanced plan is $24.90, the Professional plan is $49.90, the Power plan is $59.90, and the Enterprise plan is $74.90 when billed annually.

2. Zoho CRM

Zoho CRM encompasses lead management, sales automation, contact management, and more. It provides data-driven metrics and forecasts and is equipped with powerful email marketing tools.

Real-time tracking keeps your entire sales team on task. The system also enables you to award badges and trophies to teams that meet their sales goals and quotas, encouraging your sales reps.

Zoho CRM integrates with Jotform to simplify your lead collection process. The free version of Zoho CRM handles up to three users, and it’s a versatile solution for small and medium-sized businesses.

Features: Sales process automation, Canvas drag-and-drop editor, real-time reporting, lead and deal prediction, sales process builder

Limitations: No phone support available with the free version, no customization options with free version, limited scalability

Best for: Smaller businesses looking for a simple, easy-to-use CRM

Customers say: “I love Zoho – it’s a great little CRM that is perfect for our needs at the small firm that I work at. We typically use it for password management for our various clients and campaigns,” says one Capterra user.

Pricing: The Standard plan is $14, the Professional plan is $23, the Enterprise plan is $40, and the Ultimate plan is $52 — all per user, per month.

3. Insightly

Insightly is an all-in-one CRM solution that incorporates marketing, sales, projects, and more. This platform keeps all of your customer data in one centralized location for easy access without data fragmentation. Content design and testing tools facilitate powerful marketing, while advanced analytics help you track campaign performance in real time.

With the ability to link emails and customers to records in your database, you can track existing connections for better customer relationships and sales processes. Insightly also integrates with Jotform, so you can send lead information directly from your forms into your CRM, ensuring nothing gets overlooked.

Features: Real-time views of sales deals, customizable sales pipelines, automated processes, branded templates for customized quotes

Limitations: Limit of 10,000 daily mass emails, record and storage limits vary depending on plan, no Gantt charts or resource management tools 

Best for: Businesses looking to streamline and automate pipelines and help minimize human error

Customers say: An Insightly customer tells Capterra, “We can also easily integrate [Insightly] with other tools to improve the overall productivity. It’s super responsive when dealing with the customers.” 

Pricing: $29 per user, per month for the Plus plan, $49 for the Professional, and $99 for the Enterprise plan

4. HubSpot CRM

HubSpot CRM offers a completely free plan and is an ideal solution for small businesses and startups working on tight budgets. It delivers many of the same features that more expensive platforms offer, but it does it with a dashboard that’s easy to use.

HubSpot CRM offers integrations with platforms like Zapier, Salesforce, and Shopify. With HubSpot CRM’s Jotform integration, you can import all of the data that you get from your lead generation forms on your website. You can also link this CRM to your social media profiles, email provider, and more, so it easily keeps all of those essential details in one centralized location.

The free plan offers unparalleled value. You can store up to 1 million contacts, and you’ll get unlimited users and storage. You’ll also save money and time on training, since the platform is user-friendly and easy for staff to learn — which will get your business up and running faster.

Features: Live sales funnel view, automatically tracks customer interactions, lead data timeline

Limitations: Limited automation, many limitations for the free version, minimal customer support for the free plan

Best for: Small companies that need a very affordable CRM solution

Customers say: “I love how user-friendly HubSpot is. It has a ton of functionality and comes at a pretty good price for what you get,” one customer tells Capterra. “Functionality is awesome and the opportunities are seriously endless for what you can do,” says another. 

Pricing: For Customer Platform solutions, HubSpot offers a free plan, a Starter plan that starts at $15 per month for individuals and small businesses, a Professional plan starting at $1,062 per month, and an Enterprise plan starting at $3,910 per month. Pricing depends on the number of contacts you have. 

5. Freshsales CRM

Freshsales, by Freshworks, is one of the best CRMs for your small business needs. It’s easy to learn and set up, and it has plenty of customization options, which means you can make this software work for your business’s needs.

Features like workflow and marketing automation, AI sales intelligence, document storage, lead scoring, mobile access, and chat integration help keep your entire sales team on task and up to date.

Freshworks offers a 21-day free trial so you can determine if it’s right for you.

Features: Table and kanban views, activity timelines, high-quality phone calls, chat campaigns, automated workflows and sales sequences, multiple sales pipelines

Limitations: There are limits on file storage, sales sequences, emails, and personalized bulk emails.

Best for: Growing sales teams that want to automate and streamline sales processes

Customers say: “Overall, I think Freshsales has been an amazing addition to our company. We have easy access to customer accounts,” writes a customer on Capterra.

Pricing: Freshsales offers a free plan, a Growth plan at $9, a Pro plan at $39, and an Enterprise plan at $59 — all priced per user, per month.

6. SugarCRM

SugarCRM is a cloud-based platform that offers everything from sales and automation features to account management and customer relationship management. Features like the Campaign Wizard manage the entire marketing campaign process.

Editing contracts and documents within the CRM platform is easy, and integrations with Mailchimp, Zendesk, Zapier, and more help streamline workflows. Other perks include call center automation, unlimited online support, a detailed reporting dashboard, and more.

SugarCRM is highly customizable to meet your business needs.

Features: Intuitive customer experience tools, automated customer information updates and calendar syncing, real-time prompts and recommended CRM updates

Limitations: Limited reporting options 

Best for: Small and midsize businesses looking for an easy-to-use platform with plenty of automation tools

Customers say: “I love the simplicity of the system. It’s very easy to set up and start operating from day one,” a customer tells Capterra. “It’s a great and reliable CRM for startups and small businesses,” says another.

Pricing: The Essentials plan is $19 per user, per month, the Advanced plan is $85 per user, per month, and the Premier plan is $135 per month.

7. Microsoft Dynamics 365

Microsoft Dynamics 365 is a customer relationship management platform designed to support sales, marketing, and customer service operations. The CRM offers mobile support for phones and tablets, and is available in the cloud or as an on-premises installation.

This CRM can be customized with extensions

Features: Grid filters, document management, visualizations, custom activities, goal management, recurring appointments

Limitations: Data storage limits, no direct access to the database for customizations, complex licensing payment structure

Best for: Small and medium businesses that are already using Microsoft Office

Customers say: “I have tried other CRMs in my career, but none of them come close. The future of this product is incredibly bright and the cost to entry is so low that there is no reason not to give it a shot if you think it can help you. The Microsoft account management team will work with you to find the right fit for your needs and set you up for success,” one customer tells Capterra.

Pricing: Many pricing tiers are available. They start at $70 per user, per month.

8. Oracle Cloud CX

Oracle Cloud CX is a cloud-based CRM that offers a simple, user-friendly design that supports sales and marketing, customer service, and e-commerce operations. This CRM comes equipped with a full suite of tools to help your team ensure an optimal customer experience through every stage of the sales process.

This platform uses artificial intelligence in several ways. Transactions are reported in real-time, and self-service analytics can help your team to access and leverage data. Predictive analysis also provides important sales insights so teams can make well-informed decisions and prioritize the most valuable opportunities.

Features: Customer analytics, segmentation, behavioral intelligence, video and document management, real-time transaction reporting, predictive and what-if analysis, AI for sales and campaign management

Limitations: Slow program operation, interface has limited design elements and can be confusing

Best for: Medium and large B2B or B2C businesses that want to leverage the power of AI in their sales and marketing.

Customers say: “Oracle CX retail solutions has brought our company a much smarter, comprehensive, and cutting-edge look into our business. Easy to explain to team members, great for looking into inventory, and automatic promotions on transactions are just a few of the perks of Oracle,” writes one user for Capterra. 

Pricing: Oracle Cloud CX does not publish pricing information.

If you’d like to gain a deeper insight into the comparison of the two solutions, make sure to explore our article Oracle vs Salesforce.

9. Nimble CRM

Nimble CRM is designed for Office 365 and Google Workspace. This CRM helps your team to nurture relationships, and it unities your contacts in a central location. You can use your inbox, LinkedIn, and other online locations to create new or edit contact records in Nimble, saving time and keeping your contacts up-to-date.

Using extensions, Nimble CRM works not only in Outlook and Gmail, but across social media like Facebook and Twitter, too. It also comes with a full suite of tools, including customizable deals and reports, automation, sales forecasting, and email tracking.

Features: Social profile matching for customer data, email tracking, advanced search, group email marketing, segmentation and saved segments, activity reminders

Limitations: Limit of $25,000 contact records (extra records cost more), limit of up to 100 group messages per user, per day

Best for: Sales teams that are already using Google Workspace or Office 365.

Customers say: A Nimble CRM user tells Capterra, “Overall I have been happy with this product. It keeps evolving and keeps getting generally better. The customer service is over the top. Quick response, always there if we have a question. I like that!”

Pricing: $24.90 per user, per month

10. Zendesk Sell

Zendesk Sell is a sales CRM designed for B2B sales. It unifies prospecting, engagement, lead generation, and communication resources in a single platform. Zendesk Sell promises a lower total cost of ownership, including not only setup, but also ongoing maintenance costs. It’s also known for its intuitive interface and simple setup process.

Zendesk Sell offers the ability to track activities and lead generation, and you can also set up triggers and automate tasks to save time. It’s easy to view customer information, while full pipeline visibility allows you to monitor every part of the sales process.

Features: Email integration, smart lists and templates, power dialer, complete customer view, pipeline analysis, deal volume and revenue forecasting

Limitations: Few integrations, limited reporting functionality

Best for: Small businesses looking for an easy-to-implement and easy-to-learn sales CRM

Customers say: “[Zendesk Sell] is a great sales and client communication tool. The best feature is the mobile app for Android that integrates with your text messaging,” one customer tells Capterra.  Another customer writes, “Pricing for this product is very affordable for what it’s got to offer. Overall, this product is great and I do highly recommend it to others.”

Pricing: The Sell Team plan is $19, the Sell Growth plan is $55, and Sell Professional plan is $115, all per agent, per month.

11. Neon CRM

Neon CRM is a fundraising and donor database designed to support nonprofits. This cloud-based CRM supports nonprofits in nearly all of their fundraising needs, including peer-to-peer fundraising, event registration, and more. Its tools also support volunteer, grant, and member management, making it an all-in-one solution.

The CRM is equipped with fundraising tools like dashboard analytics and built-in reports. Its engagement tools include unlimited forms and emails, plus templates, for enhanced donor and volunteer communication. Automation tools like workflow automation and payment processing save staff time, and the CRM integrates with more than 50 tools, like Quickbooks and Zapier.

Features: Donor database, user-centric dashboard, reporting, radius search, engagement timeline, automated receipts, letter creation, peer-to-peer fundraising, surveys, grant tracking

Limitations: Limited customization and technical support

Best for: Small to midsize nonprofits looking for comprehensive fundraising and donor relationship support

Customers say: One user tells Capterra, “Neon has allowed us to streamline our systems from three different platforms into a single place to remove duplication of efforts. Neon CRM allows us to customize our client tracking and track the classes they have talent, as well as their donations. THeir email system provides an easy method to communicate with everyone without having to utilize a separate email marketing system, and the emails are easy to format and look nice.”

Pricing: The Essentials plan starts at $99 per month, the Impact plan starts at $199, and the Empower plan starts at $399.

12. Sage CRM

Designed for small and medium businesses, Sage CRM is a cloud-based solution to help businesses establish and manage customer relationships. Integrated modules are available specifically for sales and marketing, customer service, and help desks, allowing businesses to customize the CRM to their needs.

This CRM features a dashboard that makes it easy to review sales data and customer information. There are also several reporting options, including the ability to create visual reports and charts.

Features: Real-time data and analytics, configurable workflows, service, sales, and marketing capabilities, automation capabilities, standard and custom reports

Limitations: Limited dashboards, modules cost extra, limited customization options

Best for: Small and medium businesses looking for an industry-specific solution to support sales and marketing, customer service, or help desks.

Customers say: A Sage CRM customer tells Capterra, “We’re very happy with the service we get from Sage. It was easy to set up in the beginning, and has really boosted our sales processes since then. Thanks to it, workflows, automated sequences, invoices, and much more can all be managed without having to buy separate tools. We’ll definitely be moving forward with it.”

Pricing: Sage CRM does not publish pricing information.

13. SAP Sales Cloud

SAP Sales Cloud supports sales teams with the information they need, whether they’re selling digitally or are out in the field. This CRM delivers a highly detailed view of every customer and interaction, allowing your teams to focus on building relationships. AI-driven insights, recommendations, and analytics further support your sales teams, and this CRM is also optimized for mobile, ideal for when sales agents are away from their desks.

This CRM delivers real-time data, while intelligent forecasting helps your teams make well-informed decisions. The guided selling feature delivers step-by-step help to your teams through the entire sales process, while intelligent scoring helps your teams to focus on the most promising opportunities.

Features: Pipeline manager with AI analysis, intelligent prioritization, interactive analytics, performance-focused dashboards, engagement automation

Limitations: Limited integrations and customization options, limits on data imports and exports to 50,000 records per block

Best for: Complex sales processes

Customers say: “SAP’s Sales Cloud solution allows us to manage sales efficiently and provide scalable segmentation and targeting with minimal training. I am attracted to the idea of the tool and the ease with which most people can look at contract documents. The application is very easy to use and allows for further integration with other ERP systems” one user writes for Capterra.

Pricing: SAP Sales Cloud does not publish pricing information.

14. Pipeliner

Pipeliner is a CRM with a strong focus on automation. It supports lead, pipeline, and contract management, and also features a visual buying center. The account management capabilities include relationship maps, account matrices, white space, and org charts, giving sales teams multiple visual ways to monitor accounts and processes.

This CRM also features a project management tool that makes it a highly versatile choice. The project management tool gives teams the ability to create project plans, set tasks and adjectives, and manage documents. The Automatizer workflow tool is a coding-free point-and-click tool that allows you to build processes and automate repetitive tasks.

Features: Point-and-click automation process building, project management capabilities, personalized user interfaces, multiple views, visual buying center

Limitations: No built-in email marketing or video conferencing features

Best for: Medium and larger businesses looking for a robust, customizable CRM for sales and automation support

Customers say: “We were able to track all customer touch points (opportunities, samples, complaints, leads, etc.) with great ease,” a Pipeliner user tells Capterra. Another user writes, “Pipeliner CRM system is very visual and easy to navigate. The visual Pipeliner makes it easy to track and manage the different stages of your project pipelines. The Navigator feature gives an instant visual update on what indicators are lagging and progress vs sales targets.”

Pricing: Prices are per user, per month. The Starter plan is $65, the Business plan is $85, Enterprise plan is $115, and the Unlimited plan is $150.

15. Less Annoying CRM

Less Annoying CRM is an easy-to-use CRM designed specifically for small businesses. This CRM is self-funded, meaning you’ll enjoy the lowest possible price with no upcharges. The CRM’s features are designed for solo users, and it functions as a central space to store notes, files, tasks, events, pipeline details, and more. 

The platform features a calendar and tasks that are built directly into the CRM, so you don’t have to jump back and forth between programs. Multiple users can easily collaborate on sales processes and other projects, and this CRM offers plenty of customization options that you can access without IT expertise. If you do need help, the platform offers quality customer service without any chatbots.

Features: Built-in calendar and tasks, detailed lead report, daily agenda emails, phone support, web-based platform for easy access from any device

Limitations: No mobile app, limited integrations

Best for: Small businesses looking for a user-friendly solution that doesn’t require IT knowledge to implement or customize

Customers say: A customer tells Capterra that “What we loved most about LACRM is how easy it was to learn and how easy it is to use.”

Pricing: Less Annoying CRM offers one plan for $15 per user, per month.

What to consider when choosing the right CRM system

These CRM tools are excellent choices, and they each offer slightly different features and benefits.

It’s important to consider the following factors when choosing the CRM solution that’s right for your business:

• Budget: Most CRM pricing is based on the number of users you have, but some CRMs charge extra for certain numbers of stored contacts or even a high volume of mass emails. Consider how many user seats you’ll need and how you’ll use the platform when deciding if it falls into your budget.
• Pipeline management: Pipeline management tools can help you to ensure that your leads always receive appropriate follow-up. Look for features like automated action prompts, integrated phone calls or emails that are automatically logged, and AI technology that helps identify the best leads.
• Sales process automation: Automation features can help to save staff time and avoid human error. Valuable automation features might include automated text and email follow-ups, automated drip campaigns, and automated task assignments.
• Analytics features: Analytics features provide valuable information on your current and past sales performance, so you can continue to improve your sales and marketing efforts.
• Entire customer life cycle management: The ability to manage the entire customer life cycle can help you to not only ensure a quality experience for new customers, but can contribute to customer retention rates too.
• Integration options: Look for a CRM that integrates with your existing systems, like your bookkeeping, email, and task management platforms. A CRM that integrates with your existing tools can work with those systems, rather than becoming just another tool that you need to use.
• Workflow tools: CRMs that provide workflows, including the ability to create and assign tasks, can save time and help to ensure that your team is focused on the highest priorities.
• Marketing automation: Marketing automation features, like the ability to send leads messages through email, text, and social media platforms, can save your team time and help to nurture leads.

Challenges when changing a CRM platform

While a new CRM platform may be a better fit for your business, changing your CRM platform can come with some challenges. Data migration challenges and potential data loss are concerns, so it’s worth having a conversation with the technical support team at the new CRM platform to discuss how they will help facilitate a smooth transfer.

Even if you choose a new CRM that is user-friendly, be prepared for some downtime as your team learns the new CRM. Look into any educational and training resources the new CRM platform offers, and see if it provides personal, live video, or in-person training for your team.

Choosing a Salesforce alternative CRM

Your CRM is an essential tool that supports your marketing and sales teams, and it’s important to choose a CRM that fits your needs when it comes to budget, usability, features, and integrations. While Salesforce is a popular choice, one of these 15 Salesforce alternatives may be a better fit for you, especially if you’re looking for a more user-friendly, versatile platform.