Most customer relationship management (CRM) vendors price their software per user per month. However, that price often covers the sales tools only. In many cases, the customer service desk is a separate license or a separate product. As such, a team that handles both sales and customer service usually pays more than the listed price.
This is a side-by-side comparison of CRM pricing across 21 options and four cost bands. We will first understand how the options were compared. Then, discuss each band with indicative US list prices, as checked in October 2026. Our goal is to help you decide which cost band suits your team.
How We Compared CRM Pricing
Every option went through one test, which we call the band-fit test. It asks what one user pays per month when that user needs both the sales and the customer service tools. The answer, at the US list price on annual billing, places the option in one of four cost bands.
Each paid option then gets one of the following four verdicts:
- Yes: Sales and service together are priced inside the band.
- Conditional: The option fits the band only at a certain team size or in a certain region.
- No: The listed price covers sales only, or the paid tier sits above the band.
- Quote Required: The vendor publishes no price.
Many CRM price comparisons are published by a vendor that is also on the list. CRM-only consultancies like Vegacompass work across five CRM platforms and have no licenses to sell. The comparison below comes from the sheet our consultants use when a client has to pick a CRM.
Open-Source CRM Options
An open-source CRM is free to license, and you host it on your own server or cloud account. That gives you full control over the customer data. However, the hosting and the administration become your own cost.
Below are the five open-source CRM options, each published under the license shown:
| CRM | Indicative Price | Sales | Customer Service | License |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SuiteCRM | $0 license | Leads, opportunities, quotes | Cases and support workflows | AGPL-3.0 |
| EspoCRM | $0 license | Leads, opportunities, email | Cases and customer portal | AGPL-3.0 |
| Odoo Community | $0 license | CRM and Sales apps | Helpdesk is Enterprise only | LGPL-3.0 |
| Twenty | $0 license | Custom objects and pipelines | Build or integrate | Mostly AGPL-3.0 |
| Frappe CRM | $0 license | Leads and deals | Separate Frappe Helpdesk app | AGPL-3.0 |
Please note that only SuiteCRM and EspoCRM handle customer cases out of the box.1,2 The other three need a second app or a custom build before the service team can work in them.3,4,5,6,7
CRM Options at $1 to $10 per User
Many CRM plans advertise a price under $10 per user. However, only one of the five options below covers both sales and customer service at that price without a condition.
Below are the five options priced at $1 to $10 per user per month:
| CRM / Plan | Indicative Price | Sales | Customer Service | Band Fit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Zoho One Essentials | $9 per user | Bigin pipelines | Zoho Desk | Yes |
| Bitrix24 Standard | $99 per organization, up to 50 users | CRM, leads, deals | Contact center | Conditional |
| Odoo Standard | Priced by region | CRM, quotes, orders | Helpdesk included | Conditional |
| Freshsales Growth | $9 per user | Sales CRM and workflows | Freshdesk sold separately | No |
| EngageBay All-in-One | $0 Free, $13.79 Basic | CRM, contacts, sequences | Helpdesk and live chat | No |
Below is what decides each verdict:
- Zoho One Essentials: Bigin and Zoho Desk come in one license.8,9
- Bitrix24 Standard: It drops under $10 per user only from the tenth user.10
- Odoo Standard: The price changes by region, so it fits in some countries only.11
- Freshsales Growth: It covers sales only, and Freshdesk is a separate product.12
- EngageBay All-in-One: The free plan covers both, but it stops at 250 contacts.13
CRM Options at $11 to $50 per User
All five options in this band pass the band-fit test. However, each one has a detail to check before you budget.
Below are the five options priced at $11 to $50 per user per month:
| CRM / Plan | Indicative Price | Sales | Customer Service | Band Fit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vtiger One Growth | $12 per user | Leads, deals, pipeline | Help desk and customer portal | Yes |
| HubSpot Starter | $20 per seat | Sales Hub Starter | Service Hub Starter | Yes |
| Salesforce Starter Suite | $25 per user | Lead and opportunity management | Case management | Yes |
| Freshsales + Freshdesk | $28 per user | Freshsales Growth | Freshdesk Growth | Yes |
| Zoho One | $37 per employee | Zoho CRM | Zoho Desk | Yes |
Below are the details to check for each option:
- Vtiger One Growth: The plan stops at 15 users and 100,000 records.14
- HubSpot Starter: One HubSpot seat covers both Sales Hub and Service Hub.15
- Salesforce Starter Suite: Salesforce keeps the advanced features for its costlier editions.16
- Freshsales + Freshdesk: The price applies to a user who holds both licenses.12,17
- Zoho One: The price needs a license for every employee; the flexible plan costs $90 per user.8
CRM Options Above $50 per User
In this band, sales and customer service are usually two separate licenses, so the price for one user is the sum of both.
Below are the six options priced above $50 per user per month:
| CRM / Plan | Indicative Price | Sales | Customer Service | Band Fit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Salesforce Pro Suite | $100 per user | Sales automation and forecasting | Service tools in the suite | Yes |
| Microsoft Dynamics 365 | $115 per user ($65 + $50) | Dynamics 365 Sales | Dynamics 365 Customer Service | Yes |
| HubSpot Professional | $180 per user ($90 per Hub) | Sales Hub Professional | Service Hub Professional | Yes |
| Oracle | Quote only | Oracle Sales | Oracle Service | Quote Required |
| SAP | Quote only | SAP Sales Cloud | SAP Service Cloud | Quote Required |
| ServiceNow | Quote only | Sales CRM | Customer Service Management | Quote Required |
Below is what to check before you budget:
- Salesforce Pro Suite: Above the suite, Sales Cloud and Service Cloud are separate licenses.16,18,19
- Microsoft Dynamics 365: Dynamics 365 sells Sales and Customer Service separately; the price adds the two Professional plans.20,21
- HubSpot Professional: Each Hub needs its own seat and a one-time onboarding fee of $1,500.22, 23
- Quote-Only Vendors: Oracle, SAP, and ServiceNow publish no per-user price, so the cost comes from a quote.24,25,26,27
Get the Full CRM Comparison Master Sheet
The master sheet keeps all 21 options in one file, with three columns the tables above leave out:
- When to use each option
- The caveat to check before you budget
- The vendor's own source link
Share your name and work email, and we will email the sheet to you.
How to Choose a CRM by Cost Band
At Vegacompass, we say the right cost band is not the cheapest one; instead, it is the one that covers both your sales and your customer service process.
Below are the five factors that decide the band:
- Team Size: Count the users before you compare the prices. Bitrix24 Standard falls under $10 per user only from ten users, and Vtiger One Growth stops at 15.
- Seat Mix: Separate the users who need both the sales and the service tools from those who need one. Only the first group pays the combined price.
- Data Control: Choose open source when the customer data must stay on your own servers, and only if someone on the team can run the hosting.
- Existing Systems: Stay close to the stack you already run. For example, Dynamics 365 suits a Microsoft-centric company, and Odoo suits a team that wants the CRM tied to its inventory and accounts.
- Current CRM: Audit the CRM you already have before you pay for a new one. A CRM audit shows whether the trouble sits in the platform or in the way it was set up.
FAQs
Q. How much does a CRM cost per user per month?
It depends on the cost band. An open-source CRM has a $0 license, the entry plans start under $10 per user, and the enterprise suites cost $100 or more.
Q. Is an open-source CRM free?
Only the license is free. You still pay for the hosting, the upgrades, and the person who administers the system. As such, it suits a team that wants control over its data and can run the software itself.
Q. What is the cheapest CRM for sales and customer service?
Among the 21 options here, EngageBay's free plan covers both for up to 250 contacts.13 Beyond that, Zoho One Essentials has the lowest per-user price that covers both without a condition, at $9 per month on annual billing.8
Vegacompass: Platform-Neutral CRM Selection Consultants
Vegacompass has consulted on CRM, and nothing else, since 2015. The work so far covers 120+ CRM projects on five platforms. No platform in this comparison earns us a license margin.
Our senior consultants take a comparison like this one and test the shortlist against your own process.
We offer the following CRM consulting services:
- CRM Strategy (Marketing, Sales and Customer Service)
- Revenue Operations Consulting
- CRM Audit & Technical Debt
- CRM Implementation & Integration
- CRM Migration
- CRM Data Cleanup
- AI CRM Consulting
Get in touch
Please tell us which CRM options are on your list, whether this is a first CRM or a replacement, along with the team size. A senior consultant picks it up, and after a 30-minute call, you receive our view of the shortlist in writing.
Talk to a CRM selection consultant today to find out which cost band, and which CRM in it, fits your team.
References
- (2026). SuiteCRM (GitHub repository). SuiteCRM. https://github.com/SuiteCRM/SuiteCRM
- (2026). EspoCRM (GitHub repository). EspoCRM. https://github.com/espocrm/espocrm
- (2026). Odoo LICENSE, branch 20.0 (GitHub repository). Odoo. https://github.com/odoo/odoo/blob/20.0/LICENSE
- (2026). Odoo Enterprise vs Community | Odoo Editions Comparison. Odoo. https://www.odoo.com/page/editions
- (2026). Twenty LICENSE (GitHub repository). Twenty. https://github.com/twentyhq/twenty/blob/main/LICENSE
- (2026). Frappe CRM (GitHub repository). Frappe. https://github.com/frappe/crm
- (2026). Frappe Helpdesk (GitHub repository). Frappe. https://github.com/frappe/helpdesk
- (2026). Zoho One - Incredible Technology. Impossible Price. Zoho. https://www.zoho.com/one/pricing/
- (2026). Zoho One - Pricing FAQ. Zoho. https://www.zoho.com/one/pricing/faq.html
- (2026). Bitrix24 plans and pricing. Bitrix24. https://www.bitrix24.com/prices/
- (2026). Odoo Pricing | Discover Odoo Plans. Odoo. https://www.odoo.com/pricing
- (2026). Freshsales CRM Pricing Comparison | Freshsales. Freshworks. https://www.freshworks.com/crm/pricing-compare/
- (2026). CRM Pricing Plans: Free to $99/Month | EngageBay. EngageBay. https://www.engagebay.com/pricing/all-in-one
- (2026). Vtiger CRM Pricing - Try it for free! Vtiger. https://www.vtiger.com/pricing/
- (2026). Customer Platform Pricing | HubSpot. HubSpot. https://www.hubspot.com/pricing/suite
- (2026). Salesforce Small Business Pricing: All-in-One CRM Solutions | Salesforce. Salesforce. https://www.salesforce.com/small-business/pricing/
- (2026). Freshdesk Customer Support Software Pricing & Plans | Freshworks. Freshworks. https://www.freshworks.com/freshdesk/pricing/
- (2026). Salesforce Sales Pricing | Salesforce. Salesforce. https://www.salesforce.com/sales/pricing/
- (2026). Service Cloud Customer Service Software Pricing | Salesforce. Salesforce. https://www.salesforce.com/service/pricing/
- (2026). Sales Pricing | Microsoft Dynamics 365. Microsoft. https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/dynamics-365/products/sales/pricing
- (2026). Customer Service Pricing | Microsoft Dynamics 365. Microsoft. https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/dynamics-365/products/customer-service/pricing
- (2026). Sales Software Pricing | HubSpot. HubSpot. https://www.hubspot.com/pricing/sales
- (2026). Service Software Pricing | HubSpot. HubSpot. https://www.hubspot.com/pricing/service
- (2026). Customer Experience (CX) | Oracle. Oracle. https://www.oracle.com/cx/
- (2026). SAP Sales Cloud | Overview | SAP. SAP. https://www.sap.com/products/crm/sales-cloud.html
- (2026). SAP Service Cloud | Overview | SAP. SAP. https://www.sap.com/products/crm/service-cloud.html
- (2026). Customer Service Management Pricing - ServiceNow. ServiceNow. https://www.servicenow.com/lpgp/pricing-csm.html
Charu has worked in the CRM domain for the last 18 years in different capacities starting as developer to leading global teams. He has worked in CRM technology with global giants, developing products complementing CRM processes and published white papers on CRM operations/technology. With a deep understanding of the CRM arena, he holds an MBA from University of Mumbai. He loves reading books and talking about CRM technology in his free time.
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