The Best CRM Software for Businesses in 2023

Salesforce is perhaps one of the most well-known CRM software names on this list. They’ve been around for 22 years and were the first CRM to offer cloud-based 24/7 access to information and lists. 

They’re the go-to CRM for mainly small businesses that anticipate growth and want software that will continue to grow with them, instead of switching to a different CRM throughout the years. Very small teams and even solo business owners can benefit from Salesforce. 

The intuitive interface makes it easy to use for everyone, even if users aren’t apt with using certain technologies. Account and lead management tools track deals from lead to completion and built-in email with Gmail and Outlook is ideal for most businesses. Customizable reports and dashboards will all report in real-time, allowing you to see where the numbers are by the minute. 

Case management routing is also included, that allows users to escalate or move issues between departments, allowing for easy resolution of problems and can get it in front of whoever needs to handle it. 

In June of 2021, Salesforce released an AI research agent that can help identify and build new business relationships and connections. It takes from your behaviours and interests to automatically find relevant interests that can help further along your contacts and business. 

For businesses and teams that need a remote-work friendly app that’s still packed with features and allows you to see stats in real-time while out in the field or while travelling, Zoho has you covered. 

Their mobile app allows you to access and edit CRM data offline, taking away any stress of being dependent on using data or strictly wi-fi access – which is especially helpful when you’re away from office or elsewhere. 

Collaborating with team members is easy using feeds that support mentions and comments ensuring that you’re never out of touch with your team. Integration with your phones contacts while the global search tool helps you find any information quickly. Log calls, customer visits, and other activities right in the app itself as well. 

All plans are budget friendly, but jam packed with features that are essential to any smaller business that’s looking to grow and if you’re not currently remote but want to start to venture into that avenue, you can do so without any additional CRM costs that some other software may include in. The free plan however is limited – so you can use it to test how Zoho works for you, but do keep in mind that a lot of the best features are barred off behind the pay wall.

This means Zoho is budget friendly but it can get as costly as other CRM software depending on how complex your setup needs to be. 

Creatio (previously bpm’online) is a process-driven CRM that works great for medium to very large businesses / corporations. It primarily handles all aspects of managing relationships with customers as well as convert leads into closed deals. 

They do offer a free trial for those wanting to try it first and see if all of the features and layout mesh with how teams would like to run their CRM software. Scalable features are also available for large enterprises, the design being based on the BPM platform that allows you to automate customer support processes. 

The mobile version is easy to use and is integrated across the board between the tablet, smartphone, and web versions. It’s also available to be integrated with MS Word, Google Calendar, Outlook, or .Net managed web services. Using the open configuration makes it great to integrate smoothly. 

Clio is the most well known and highest rated legal case management CRM software, and for good reason. With the ability to keep all of your bills, calendars, cases, contacts, and more all organized into one convenient space. 

Unlimited document storage means that users won’t have to pay a higher amount for extra document storage like you might need to in other programs, and the ability to review and access your case files from anywhere – it’s a must have for being on the go and keeping your files neat and tidy. 

It’s a critic program to have if you’re working from home remotely, or even if you have a team and they need to access files as well while remotely or from a different location. Clio Suite has two components, the Clio Manage that is the cloud-based software and the Clio Grow that easily streamlines processes, organizes, and allows you to grow and keep your contacts and clients happy and accounted for. 

Nimble is a functional and extremely easy to use CRM that focuses on and helps with growth and integration for a better user experience. The Chrome plugin for Nimble can be somewhat clunky according to some reviews, but overall, it is an intuitive CRM software that is incredibly cheap to get started with. 

It integrates with scheduling such as calendars and inboxes and delivers a streamlined experience. Combining social media data, classic contact managements, sales intelligence, marketing automation and classic CRM features it’s a powerhouse that’s worth looking at for any users growing business. 

Apptivo is an affordable and easy to use CRM software that has an array of customization available and works perfectly for business reporting.  

With Apptivo you can even start a Free version to test out whether you enjoy or will use the applications available. Free only does support one user, so keep that in mind. Lite is only $8 per user, per month – Premium is $12 per user, Ultimate is $20, and there is an Enterprise level, but you need to contact the team to see the pricing. 

Free trials of the paid tiers do exist with Apptivo, and they last 30 days. Minimal technical knowhow is needed to get started as it is all fairly easy to learn and understand. The mobile app can send invoices and manage any leads your company may have, along with other features. 

The flexible custom reports system and views features helps sales teams add custom fields to their liking to find records and other such features. 

Contactually is a well-known CRM built with realtors in mind. The clean interface and comprehensive features make it a perfect addition to any real estate agents programs.  

The ‘best time to send’ email intelligence features, personal automated campaigns, and text/email templates being included make this worth every penny of the higher cost and free up a lot of time and money otherwise spending trying to juggle all of those at once during the day. 

It does start at $69 per user / per month, but for the ease of use and integrated library that you can easily just choose, customize, and go with – it takes the time and hassle out of your hands and allows you to better serve your business and clients. 

E-commerce business has become more and more popular and robust as the internet goes on. Being able to keep up with a CRM is a smart and time saving venture. Pipedrive is built with ecommerce in mind. 

Each paid tier has a 14-day free trial if you’d like to test it out and see how it helps your business. Their Essential plan starts at $12.50 per month, per user. Advanced is $24.90, Professional is $49.90, and the Enterprise tier is $100 per user, per month and all can be billed annually. 

Essential has 2GB of storage space, get access to Smart email BBC, all sales management provisions, chat and email support, API access, and all of the native system integrations. Above this tier the other options receive more features and higher storage limits. 

Nutshell is a marketing focused powerhouse CRM software that comes at a modest cost per month and an easy to use and follow design. 

Nutshell’s native marketing integration makes it easy to personalize emails and other marketing posts to your specific customers needs and likes, instead of always sending off one generic email for everyone that may not hit all of the desired bases, increasing customer click through and purchases. 

MailChimp and Constant Contact will automatically add customers to targeted drip campaigns as well, based on where they might be in your sales pipeline. You can automatically earn new leads off those by pairing it with a tool such as Reply. 

Pricing starts at $19 per month while the Professional cost is $39 per user, per month – and these can be paid for annually as well.  

Pipeliner is a visual and easy to use CRM that caters to salespersons and education systems. There is training software as well for in person, webinars, etc. that you can set up and use. It works on Windows and Mac products. 

API, calendar reminders, contact management, customizable fields and more, mobile access, social media integrations, and interaction tracking are just a few of the robust features that Pipeliner has to offer that can allow you to make your education work easier. 

Little set-up is needed and once that is done, you can get a current and up to date visual on your stats and projects on one simple place. You can track and manage everything, and there are loads of customizable options to personalize what you need for your work days. 

Maximizer CRM is a software made by Canadians, for Canadian businesses and companies and has been around since the 1990’s. It’s relatively affordable starting at $29 per month, per user. 

The ability to organize all of your customer information and access everything on mobile as well, in real time, is always a plus and even more important these days where if you’re not in the office, you can still access everything important simply with your smartphone. 

It starts at $29 per month for their Small Office package, $49 per month for Business, and there are other additional options as well such as Business Insights and more for $89 per month – You just need to check on their website which works best for you in regard to which features you need for your current business/company. 

It’s perfect for a growing business and works just as well for already established companies that are looking for a good way to streamline their information and options. There is a free trial available, but no free version so once the trial period is ended, you do have to pay monthly/annually.