Best CRM for Small Business (2025)

Best CRM for Small Business (2025)

Last updated: January 2025

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Quick Verdict: Top 3 CRMs for Small Business

Rank CRM Best For Price Our Take
#1 Pipedrive Visual deal management $14-29/user Best overall for SMBs
#2 Close Phone-heavy sales $49-99/user Best for cold calling
#3 HighLevel All-in-one needs $97-297/month Best for consolidation

Quick recommendation: Start with Pipedrive unless you make 50+ calls/day (then Close) or want to replace 5+ tools (then HighLevel).

Who This Guide Is For

  • Small business owners needing their first real CRM
  • Sales teams (2-20 people) upgrading from spreadsheets
  • Businesses evaluating CRM options without enterprise budgets
  • Anyone tired of losing deals due to poor follow-up

Who This Guide Is NOT For

  • Enterprise companies (you need Salesforce)
  • Solopreneurs with <20 contacts (spreadsheet works)
  • Marketing-first teams (look at ActiveCampaign instead)
  • Teams with no sales process to track

What Makes a Good Small Business CRM

We evaluated CRMs on criteria that matter for SMBs:

  1. Ease of use – Can your team learn it in a day?
  2. Affordability – Does pricing make sense under 20 users?
  3. Deal tracking – Can you see your pipeline clearly?
  4. Activity management – Does it prevent leads from going cold?
  5. Integrations – Does it connect to your existing tools?
  6. Mobile app – Can field sales actually use it?

We excluded enterprise CRMs (Salesforce, Dynamics) and marketing platforms that call themselves CRMs (HubSpot, ActiveCampaign).

#1: Pipedrive – Best Overall for Small Business

Best for: Visual deal management, email-focused sales, teams wanting simplicity

Why Pipedrive Wins

Pipedrive has the most intuitive interface of any CRM. The visual pipeline shows every deal as a card you drag between stages. Your whole team understands it instantly.

The activity-based approach prevents deals from going stale. Pipedrive constantly nudges you: “This deal has no scheduled activity” – so nothing falls through cracks.

Key Features

  • Visual pipeline – Drag-and-drop deal management
  • Activity tracking – Calls, emails, meetings, tasks
  • Email integration – Gmail/Outlook sync with tracking
  • Automation – Basic workflow triggers
  • Mobile app – Full CRM on phone
  • Reporting – Pipeline and activity dashboards

Pricing

Plan Price/User What You Get
Essential $14/month Pipeline, deals, calendar
Advanced $29/month Email sync, automation
Professional $49/month Advanced reporting

Our recommendation: Start with Advanced ($29/user) for email sync and automation.

Pros and Cons

Pros:

  • Most intuitive pipeline view available
  • Very affordable ($14-29/user)
  • Team learns it in hours, not days
  • Great mobile app

Cons:

  • No built-in calling (need add-on)
  • Basic email marketing
  • Simple automation only
  • Less customizable than enterprise CRMs

Real Cost for 5-Person Team

  • 5 users × $29/month = $145/month
  • Add calling integration (Aircall): +$150/month
  • Total: $145-295/month

Try Pipedrive Free for 14 Days | Full Review

#2: Close – Best for Cold Calling Teams

Best for: Inside sales, SDR teams, anyone making 50+ calls/day

Why Close Excels

Close has something no other SMB CRM offers: built-in power dialer. Click “Start Calling” and the system auto-dials through your list. No manual dialing, no switching between phone and CRM.

If your sales process is phone-heavy, Close eliminates the friction that kills productivity.

Key Features

  • Power dialer – Auto-dial through lead lists
  • Built-in calling – VOIP with call recording
  • Native SMS – Two-way texting
  • Email sequences – Automated multi-step outreach
  • Unified inbox – Calls, emails, SMS in one view
  • Activity tracking – Everything logged automatically

Pricing

Plan Price/User What You Get
Startup $49/month Basic CRM, calling
Professional $99/month Power dialer, sequences
Enterprise $139/month Custom objects, permissions

Our recommendation: Professional ($99/user) is required for power dialer.

Pros and Cons

Pros:

  • Built-in power dialer is game-changing
  • Native SMS without integrations
  • Unified view of all communication
  • Excellent API for custom builds

Cons:

  • Premium pricing ($99/user for key features)
  • Less visual than Pipedrive
  • Overkill if you don’t call much
  • Usage fees add up

Real Cost for 5-Person Team

  • 5 users × $99/month = $495/month
  • Usage fees (calls/SMS): +$100-200/month
  • Total: $595-695/month

Is it worth 4x Pipedrive? Yes, if your team makes 50+ calls/day. Power dialer saves 30-60 minutes per rep daily. At 5 reps, that’s 2.5-5 hours/day of productivity gained.

Try Close Free for 14 Days | Full Review

#3: HighLevel – Best All-in-One Solution

Best for: Businesses wanting CRM + email + SMS + phone + scheduling in one platform

Why Consider HighLevel

HighLevel isn’t just a CRM – it’s a complete business platform. If you’re currently paying for Pipedrive + Mailchimp + Calendly + Twilio separately, HighLevel replaces all of them.

The CRM itself isn’t as polished as Pipedrive, but the value is in consolidation.

Key Features

  • CRM with pipeline – Deal and contact management
  • Email marketing – Campaigns and automation
  • SMS marketing – Two-way texting (native)
  • Phone system – Call tracking, recording
  • Appointment scheduling – Calendar with reminders
  • Landing pages – Basic funnel builder
  • Workflow automation – Multi-channel sequences

Pricing

Plan Price What You Get
Starter $97/month Single business, core features
Unlimited $297/month Unlimited accounts, all features

Plus usage fees (~$30-100/month for calls/SMS).

Pros and Cons

Pros:

  • Genuine cost savings vs. separate tools
  • Native SMS is excellent
  • Powerful automation
  • One login for everything

Cons:

  • CRM isn’t as intuitive as Pipedrive
  • 10-20 hours to set up properly
  • Individual features aren’t best-in-class
  • Steeper learning curve

Real Cost

  • HighLevel Starter: $97/month
  • Usage fees: +$30-100/month
  • Total: $127-197/month (replaces $300+ in separate tools)

Try HighLevel Free for 14 Days | Full Review

Head-to-Head Comparison

Feature Pipedrive Close HighLevel
Price (per user) $14-29 $49-99 $97+ (unlimited)
Visual Pipeline Excellent Good Good
Built-in Calling No Yes Yes
Built-in SMS No Yes Yes
Email Marketing Basic Sequences Full
Automation Basic Good Advanced
Learning Curve Low Medium High
Best For Visual deals Cold calling All-in-one

Decision Framework

Choose Pipedrive If:

  • You sell primarily via email
  • You want the easiest CRM to learn
  • Budget is a primary concern
  • You have <20 sales reps
  • You want flexibility to add specialized tools

Choose Close If:

  • Your team makes 50+ calls/day
  • You want calling + SMS + email in one tool
  • Productivity gains justify premium pricing
  • You’re willing to learn more complex system
  • Phone is your primary sales channel

Choose HighLevel If:

  • You’re paying for 5+ separate tools
  • You want everything in one platform
  • You’re willing to invest 10-20 hours in setup
  • SMS and phone are important channels
  • You value consolidation over best-in-class

CRMs We Didn’t Recommend (And Why)

HubSpot CRM

The free CRM is genuinely free and works for basic contact management. But:

  • No automation on free tier
  • Marketing features are $800+/month
  • Gets expensive fast as you add features

Verdict: Good for bootstrapped startups. Outgrown quickly by serious sales teams.

Salesforce

The industry standard, but:

  • Enterprise complexity and pricing
  • Requires dedicated admin
  • Overkill for <50 users

Verdict: Only if you’re enterprise-bound or have specific integration requirements.

Zoho CRM

Feature-rich and affordable, but:

  • Clunky interface
  • Steeper learning curve than Pipedrive
  • Support quality varies

Verdict: Consider if you’re already in Zoho ecosystem.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I migrate from one CRM to another?

Yes. All three CRMs offer data export/import. Plan for 2-10 hours of migration work depending on complexity. The main effort is rebuilding automations.

Do I need a CRM if I have <50 contacts?

Probably not. A spreadsheet works fine until you have multiple deals in progress, team members who need visibility, or follow-up that’s falling through cracks.

What about CRM + email marketing?

Pipedrive and Close focus on sales. For email marketing, add ActiveCampaign ($29+/month). HighLevel includes email marketing but it’s not as powerful as dedicated tools.

Is Pipedrive really 4x cheaper than Close?

For email-focused teams, yes. But if you add calling to Pipedrive (Aircall: $30/user), the gap narrows. Close is only “expensive” if you don’t use the calling features.

Which CRM has the best mobile app?

Pipedrive. The mobile app is fully functional for deal management. Close’s mobile is good but power dialer is desktop-focused.

Our Recommendation

For most small businesses: Start with Pipedrive Advanced ($29/user). It’s affordable, intuitive, and does 80% of what you need. Add specialized tools (calling, email marketing) as you grow.

For calling-heavy teams: Close Professional ($99/user) pays for itself in productivity if your team makes 50+ calls/day.

For consolidation: HighLevel ($97/month) makes sense if you’re currently paying $300+/month for separate tools and want everything in one place.

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This guide is updated quarterly. Pricing and features verified January 2025.