Best CRM Software for Startups and SMBs

You’ve got contact management, deal tracking, email integration, task automation, and reporting dashboards.

Some even offer lead scoring and pipeline management.

CRMs are also the foundational platform for adding other software, like email marketing and VoIP calling, via integrations.

It’s all about making your sales process as smooth as butter.

In my opinion, the main benefits are improved efficiency and clarity.

You get a 360-degree view of your customers, which means no more “who said what to whom” confusion.

Plus, it automates repetitive tasks, freeing up your team to focus on what they do best—selling.

At Startups and SMBs, it’s usually founders, sales teams, customer service reps, and marketing folks, if there are any.

Basically, anyone who interacts with customers and prospects can benefit from a good CRM.

Implementing it is a bit like moving into a new house. There’s some initial setup and customization, but once you’re settled, it’s smooth sailing.

But as with a house, the catch is that many customizations could be made to make it better suited to your needs and preferences.

Ultimately, the amount of implementation work and customization will depend on how well the CRM is “out of the box” at meeting your needs.

Most of these tools offer great onboarding support and plenty of resources to get you up and running.

CRM is one of the most richly developed — and competitive —  software categories.

There are literally hundreds of CRMs. Each has its own flavor.

I’ve narrowed it down to several that I think are the best CRMs for startups and SMBs.

Pipedrive is super intuitive and visual. Keap is great for combining sales and marketing. Streak CRM integrates seamlessly with Gmail. Monday.com Sales CRM excels at integrating with project management software and processes. HubSpot CRM is a robust, all-in-one free platform that’s free to start. Close offers a ton of additional sales tech features in its CRM.

It’s kinda like choosing a vehicle—there are many options, so it depends on your needs and taste.

The cost of CRM varies a lot.

Typically, you pay for the functionality you need per user. So, in general, the more functionality you want and the more people you need to use the CRM, the more it will cost.

Monday.com Sales CRM starts at $10/user/month. Streak CRM has a free tier, but paid plans start at $15/user/month. Pipedrive starts around $15/user/month. HubSpot CRM has a free version, with paid plans starting at $45/month (which includes 2 users). Close starts at $29/user/month.  Keap is a bit pricier, starting at $79/month.

So, there’s something for every budget.

In my 10+ years of experience working in the tech industry, I’ve always found myself at companies using Salesforce.

Nowadays, there are a lot more CRM options, so startups and SMBs are particularly well-positioned to pick a different CRM because Salesforce is very expensive and young companies don’t need all its advanced functionality (that comes at a premium price) or the legacy of users knowing how to do things on Salesforce (and therefore becoming “stuck” on Salesforce).

If I were picking a CRM platform for an SMB or a startup, I’d pick one of the CRMs on this list.