Tag: Best Options

In our digital age, it’s easy to hop on the internet and see how a company fares based on its reviews. This simple rating can send a customer to your site or run away in fear. Reputation management software makes it possible to track ratings and offer tools to boost your company’s status as well.

Best Reputation Management Software

• Podium – Best Overall 
• Birdeye – Best for Large Businesses
• Swell – Best All-in-One 
• Yext – Best for Customization
• Grade.us – Best for Review Management
• NiceJob – Best for Small Businesses
• Sprout Social – Best for Social Media

Software

Price

Review Monitoring

Review Generation

Customer Tracking

Reporting and Analytics

Podium

$189 to $649 per month

Monitor reviews on Facebook and Google with a text

Automated process to generate more reviews

Text marketing campaigns, customer database

In-depth reporting that gives a comprehensive view of online reputation

Birdeye

$299 to $399 per location per month, custom options available

Monitor reviews from 250+ sites from one dashboard

Automatically get new reviews via any communication method

Interact with customers via messaging and video chat

See reviews and ratings over time

Swell

Have to schedule a demo to receive pricing information

One place to monitor and track all reviews

Automated text-based review requests with templates

Send surveys through text or email

Review and understand your reputation data

Yext

$4 to $19 per week

View, filter, label, and analyze reviews

Send pre-built or customized review invitations to customers

No options listed to track customers

Pre-built insights with competitive intelligence, report builder

Grade.us

$25 to $110 per seat per month

Email alerts, reviews listed on dashboard

Review funnel uses email and text to give clients a list of sites to review on

Local client finder to locate new prospects

Track reviews over any length of time

NiceJob

$75 to $290 per month depending on company size

View and analyze reviews from a number of websites

Can automate review invites, send through SMS

Read and post customer journeys

No additional reporting

Sprout Social

$89 to $249 per user per month

Easily monitor reviews across sites from one location

Tools for listening to audiences on different platforms

Inbox connecting to all social media accounts

Reports on response rates and times

Podium

$189 to $649

★★★★★

4.7

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Podium stands out as the best reputation management software with its automated processes and tools for building a solid client base. You can get reviews with the push of a button and answer questions through a customizable online chat. With everything Podium offers, the interface can get cluttered and bog down the system.

Why we chose it: Podium brings easy-to-use review generation and monitoring alongside customer retention strategies to keep your business in the spotlight.

• Automate review generation
• Built-in web chat
• Text marketing campaigns

• Interface can get cluttered
• Customer service can be slow
• App can run slow at times

Pricing: Podium has three tiers of service to help boost your online reputation. Prices increase substantially, but so do the features.

The Essentials plan has a $189 monthly price tag and offers the tools you need to get your reputation management off the ground. It tops out at 1,000 contacts but gives access to reviews and text marketing campaigns.

Podium’s self-titled plan removes the client limit while adding in one-click automations. You can customize your web chat with personal branding. Jumping to $449 per month, it also introduces segmentation tools for more effective marketing.

On the Professional level, you can increase marketing contacts to 1,000 customers and make the most of Podium’s automated processes. The plan costs $649 per month but allows you to maximize efficiency while building your reputation.

Birdeye

$299 to $399

★★★★★

4.5

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Birdeye’s information-packed dashboard reveals review information from upwards of 250 business sites. Furthermore, you can retain customers visiting your site with intelligent chatbot capabilities. Pricing can start high for smaller businesses and is unclear when gathering information from Birdeye’s website.

Why we chose it: Birdeye makes excellent use of artificial intelligence and an unlimited client base to efficiently boost reputation in large companies.

• No client limits
• Monitor reviews from 250+ sites in one location
• Intelligent web chat

• Pricing is not transparent
• Expensive for small businesses
• Most popular plans do not include surveys or insights

Pricing: Birdeye has two fleshed-out plans with an option to customize a service of your own. Plans can be pricey for smaller businesses but don’t place limitations on the number of clients.

At $299 per month, Standard is the cheapest service offered. The reputation management software provides a dashboard for monitoring and responding to reviews from over 250 sites on the web. Messaging capabilities allow communication with customers through video or text.

The Professional plan adds web chat functionality to your system for $399 per month. This intelligent web chat can learn to answer repeat questions, or you can answer them manually.

You’ll have to contact Birdeye’s sales team to obtain pricing for its Premium plan. This tier brings with it the ability to generate surveys, insights, and support tickets that other plans don’t have.

Swell

Contact Swell

★★★★★

4.3

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Swell doesn’t hold features back for those willing to pay top dollar, instead offering everything from text message campaigns to surveys in one convenient location. These tools are specifically designed to bring in and retain clients every step of the way. The software can inundate clients with review requests when they don’t respond quickly enough.

Why we chose it: Swell makes all its features available out of the gate where other reputation management companies require expensive add-ons. These tools fit into one platform for simplicity and ease of use.

• All tools included in one package
• Messages gathered in one convenient inbox
• Text-based surveys

• Pricing information is hidden
• Unclear differences between plans
• Can spam clients with review requests

Pricing: Swell hides its pricing information away, requiring you to schedule and participate in an online demo before knowing what you’ll have to pay. Costs differ whether you need the service for a single location or multiple ones, but functionality appears to be the same.

Yext

$4 to $19 weekly

★★★★★

4.4

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Yext shines the most in its customization, enabling users to personalize most aspects of the reputation management software. From review invitations to analysis, you can build these tools up the way you choose. Those with programming skills can take advantage of APIs to take customization to a whole new level. For all it does have, Yext is missing a good tool to track customers and generate repeat business.

Why we chose it: Yext offers seemingly limitless customization options both within the app and with the content you send to clients.

• Easy to customize software with APIs
• Pre-built or custom review invitations
• Easy to filter and analyze reviews

• Expensive to use
• No customer tracking capability
• Listings scale with service tiers

Pricing: Yext starts with an Emerging package with a limited number of listings for $4 per week. It does not include top sites such as Facebook and Google, severely limiting optimization.

Next, the Essential plan features 14 of the top sites to list your company on, including Google, Yahoo, and Facebook. It does throw in some basic review analysis for $9 weekly.

The Complete tier combines the listings from the two previous plans for $10 a week. It also unlocks advanced analytic tools to see what’s driving the most traffic. Finally, the Premium service adds both advanced review monitoring and website widgets to the Complete tier for $19 per week.

Grade.us

$25 to $110

★★★★★

4.5

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Grade.us puts a professional shine on your review process, enabling you to add in your branding every step of the way. Review monitoring and reporting are second to none, and you can easily view how your business is doing across multiple sites from one dashboard. Grade.us would be even better if it had a mobile app and offered interaction with social media.

Why we chose it: Grade.us’s review management tools are second to none, allowing you to keep close tabs on how your business reputation looks across an unlimited number of sites.

• 14-day free trial
• White-label
• Unlimited review sites

• No mobile app
• Does not access social media
• Minimal integrations

Pricing: Grade.us’s four plans actually decrease in price per seat (client location) but require you to purchase more seats as you go. The breakdown of features doesn’t change much from tier to tier.

The Solo plan is designed for a single seat and costs $110 per month to use. You’ll have access to unlimited review sites and all the review management tools that make Grade.us so popular from the get-go. Basic white labeling allows you to insert your company’s information and hides any mention of Grade.us.

Grade.us’s Professional tier offers the same features, but for $60 per seat instead. The catch is that you have to buy at least three seats to order this package, a minimum fee of $180 per month.

At Agency level, the price per seat drops to $40 but requires the purchase of at least 10 seats. This platform also includes API access and the option to pick up premium white label tools for an extra $440.

By the time you reach Partner, the price per seat drops even further to $25 per month. You’re required to invest in at least 100 seats for a minimum price of $2500. The Partner plan includes free premium white label and single sign-on.

NiceJob

$75 to $290

★★★★★

4.2

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NiceJob makes it possible to automate review invites for listings on a number of sites, including Facebook and Google. Additional tools are somewhat basic, and the reputation management software lacks the means to generate reports. Recommendations sent through social media help get the word out about your small business that much faster.

Why we chose it: NiceJob’s low price point makes it an affordable way to get your small business listed on top-tier sites like Facebook and Google.

• 14-day free trial
• Low base price
• Can send recommendations through social media.

• Price increases with company size
• Somewhat limited listings
• No reporting tools

Pricing: NiceJob has a single tier of service with all its features linked in. It costs only $75 per month for businesses with up to 2,500 customers but goes up from there. The company offers a 14-day free trial if you want to try things out. For an additional $99 per month, NiceJob will add in a custom-designed website and a guaranteed 10% increase in sales.

Sprout Social

$89 to $249

★★★★★

4.2

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Sprout Social focuses mainly on boosting business through social media with carefully worded and timed posts. It doesn’t reach every platform out there but does an excellent job with the ones it does. The mobile app lacks in features, forcing most interactions to occur through a PC.

Why we chose it: Sprout Social allows you to maximize your impact on social media through trend analysis and paid reporting in one simple bundle.

• Organize project work intuitively
• Add resources as your project grows
• Provide context with notes and descriptions

• Not mobile friendly
• No multi-users allowed
• Price too high

Pricing: Sprout Social has three plans to choose from based on your needs. No matter which option you select, you can try it out risk-free with a 30-day trial.

The Standard tier at $89 per month includes five social profiles and an all-in-one inbox for messages coming in from social media. There are also some rudimentary management tools for reviews posted on Facebook, Google, TripAdvisor, or Glassdoor. 

Going Professional doubles the number of social profiles while introducing reporting and keyword trend analysis across social media accounts. Costing $149 per month, it also includes tools for optimizing posts and paid social reporting.

Advanced at the top of the tier list adds in automations in the form of chatbots and link tracking. For all it gives, the plan will set you back $249 per month.

Methodology for the Best Reputation Management Software

We took a look at several factors when deciding which reputation management companies deserved a spot on top. These are the features that carried the most weight.

• Review Generation and Monitoring: Nothing is more important to reputation management than being able to build a long list of positive reviews. The best reputation management software makes it easy to monitor reviews across all sites while providing a means to generate even more.
• Site Listings: Reviews carry different weight depending on the site they’re posted on. While it’s important to get positive reviews on a number of sites, you don’t want to overlook big names like Facebook and Google that people tend to visit first.
• Social Media Access: Social media talks, and people listen. Although these apps aren’t built for reviews, a positive word about your business can bring in clients just as effectively as Google. 
• User-friendly: Most reputation management software is packed with features to keep tabs on reviews. Some also provide a means to communicate with clients through email or chat, and most allow report generation to see how things are trending over time. The top platforms keep things clean while making it simple to access the information you need. 
• Customer Support: Your reputation is, in many ways, the lifeblood of your company. Reputation management software is a great way to track how your business is doing, unless it’s not working correctly. A company with strong customer support can have you back on your feet in no time.
• Price: It takes money to make money, but there’s no need to break the bank. Spending more on reputation management software typically means additional features, but there’s nothing wrong with starting with a package you can afford and working up from there.

Bottom Line on Reputation Management Software

Reputation management software offers tools you can’t get elsewhere for monitoring and generating new reviews for your company. Using these features can help bring in new and repeat customers that will keep your business going strong. Our top choice is Podium for its rich feature base, but any service on this list can bring you the results you’re looking for.

Building strong relationships with the best CRM Software Systems helps customers by increasing sales and running a successful small or midsize business However, it takes time and effort to keep track of vital information related to your prospects and customers. That’s where customer relationship management (CRM) software comes in. CRM is a centralized system that lets you easily track and organize everything related to customers and sales. 

With all of the options on the market, choosing a CRM might seem intimidating, but fortunately, there are a lot of great products available. In this article, we review eight different CRM software systems for small businesses that will help you choose the product that is best for you.

Best CRM Software

1. Salesforce Essentials – Best CRM Software Overall
2. Bigin by Zoho CRM – Best CRM Software for Affordability
3. Freshsales – Best CRM Software for Automation
4. Pipedrive – Best CRM Software for Tracking Sales Pipelines
5. Monday CRM – Best CRM for Customization
6. Capsule – Best CRM Software for Contact Management
7. Less Annoying CRM –  Best CRM Software for Individuals and Small Teams
8. HubSpot CRM – Best CRM Software With a Free Plan

Product

Pricing

Contact Management

Sales Management

Automations

Reporting and Analytics

Integrations

Salesforce Essentials

$25 per month

Yes

Yes

Yes, with AI

Yes

Yes, with Salesforce’s services and third-parties

Bigin by Zoho CRM

$0 to $12 per month

Yes

Yes

Yes, with AI

Yes

Yes, with Zoho’s services and third-parties

Freshsales

$0 to $69 per month

Yes

Yes

Yes, with AI

Yes

Yes, with Freshwork’s services and third-parties

Pipedrive

$12.50 to $99 per month

Yes

Yes

Yes, with AI

Yes

Yes, with third party services

monday.com CRM

$0 to $16 per user per month (billed annually with minimum user requirements)

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes, with monday.com’s services and third-parties

Capsule

$18 to $54 per month

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes, with third party services

Less Annoying CRM

$15 per user per month

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes, with third party services

HubSpot CRM

$0 to $1200 per month

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes, with HubSpot’s services and third-parties

Salesforce Essentials: Best CRM Software Overall

Pricing: $25 per user per month

4.7

★★★★★

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Salesforce is one of the giants of CRM software and with Essentials, the company has created a comprehensive CRM product that has the features most needed by small businesses at a competitive price. Within its single paid tier, you’ll get a robust CRM product that offers not only the basics of CRM software like contact and sales management, but also an advanced feature set tailored to the needs of small business users. 

This includes automatically syncing contacts from your email, stage tracking of deals, automatic information record population with Einstein Activity Capture, and customer support across email, phone, social channels as well as a self-service center. 

There’s also a mobile app as well as customizable reporting tools and dashboards that give you insight into your ongoing sales pipelines and customers. Essentials also lets you integrate with other Salesforce apps and popular third-party Software-as-a-service (Saas) offerings like Dropbox, Zapier, and DocuSign.

Why we chose it:

Salesforce Essentials is our overall top pick due to its excellent features and affordable price. If you’re a small business that wants a complete CRM software solution from an established industry player, then Salesforce is worth considering.

Pricing: 

$25 per user per month (billed annually)

• Comprehensive contact and sales management features
• Deal pipeline tracking
• A variety of automations to reduce workflow
• Integrates with a number of third-party services

• Not mobile friendly
• No multi-users allowed
• Price too high

Bigin by Zoho CRM: Best CRM Software for Affordability

Pricing: $0 to $12 per user per month

4.5

★★★★★

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Bigin by Zoho CRM’s calling card is the affordable pricing of its robust CRM product that’s designed around the needs of small businesses. Keeping expenses low is important for small businesses, and with three plans that range in price from free to $12 per user per month, Bigin offers excellent value for the money.

All tiers include a mobile app, pipeline management, deal workflows, contact storage, and telephony integration. Higher tiers offer more refined features such as customizable dashboards and charts, workflows with date/time based triggers, AI-enhanced automation tools, and email integration.

In addition to the excellent pricing scheme, one of the attractions of Bigin is its integration with other Zoho products, which run the gamut from accounting to marketing to customer support. You’ll also be able to integrate with external apps like Zapier, Gmail, and Microsoft Office. 

Why we chose it: 

We think that Bigin by Zoho CRM offers one of the best values of any of the products we’ve reviewed. If keeping the cost of your CRM product down without sacrificing on features is important to you, then you should take a look at Bigin CRM.

Pricing: 

Free plan: $0 / Express: $7 per user per month / Premier: $12 per user per month (all prices billed annually)

• Affordable plans, including a free tier
• Provides many of the CRM features most small businesses will need
• Strong integration options

• There are no pre-made email templates
• Limits on custom field creation

Freshsales: Best CRM Software for Automating Sales

Pricing: $0 to $69 per user per month

4.4

★★★★★

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Freshsales is a small business-friendly CRM system that offers potent automation tools powered by artificial intelligence. It’s the CRM offering of Freshworks, a company that also makes customer service, marketing, and human resource products. With Freshsales, you’ll get all the features standard in other CRM software, such as contact management, deal management, a mobile app, and sales reports. The product is well designed and allows for cloud telephony and has a sophisticated pipeline management system with a funnel view that separates out deal stages.

Where Freshsales differentiates itself from competitors is at higher paid tiers, where you’ll have access to artificial intelligence (AI) functionality. With the Freddy AI system, you’ll be able to automate lead generation and qualification, predict which deals have the best chance of closing, and make monthly and quarterly sales forecasts. These sophisticated tools, which aren’t available on every CRM software, give users powerful ways to boost their sales numbers.

If you’re looking to do more than just CRM, Freshsales also integrates with Freshworks other products as well as with outside apps like Zapier, DocuSign, and QuickBooks through a marketplace and API.

Why we chose it:

If you’re looking for a CRM system that will reduce the workload on your staff and boost sales through advanced automation and AI functionality, then Freshsales should be one of the CRMs on your vetting list.

Pricing:

Free plan: $0 / Growth: $15 per user per month / Pro: $39 per user per month / Enterprise: $69 per user per month (all prices billed annually)

• Excellent automation capabilities that save time and effort
• Comprehensive reporting features
• Variety of pricing plans to fit most budgets

• Free plan lacks reporting features
• Higher level tiers might be too expensive for some small businesses

Pipedrive: Best CRM Software for Tracking Deal Pipelines

Pricing: $12.50 to $99 per user per month

4.3

★★★★★

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Pipedrive, true to its name, is a top choice for those who want to be able to keep close track of their ongoing sales deals. Pipedrive’s account management system is organized around deal pipelines, with information such as current deal stage, value, and associated people all available in an accessible visual format. The intuitive and well-designed user interface makes gathering information about your deals a breeze and saves you time when analyzing your deal flow.

But Pipedrive offers more than just deal monitoring tools, as it provides other standard CRM features such as contact management, reporting and analytics tools, and communication tracking. It also has some premium features, like AI-powered automation tools that allow you to set activity reminders, automatically engage in lead nurturing, and record and store information based on triggers. There’s also integration with third-party apps like Google, Microsoft Outlook, and more than 300 others on Pipedrive’s Marketplace.

Why we chose it: 

Pipedrive is a CRM system that’s designed to help you improve your sales process. It’s a good choice for those who are looking to increase revenue while also taking advantage of other commonly available CRM features.

Pricing: 

Essential: $12.50 per user per month / Advanced: $24.90 per user per month / Professional: $49.90 per user per month / Enterprise: $99 per user per month (all prices billed annually)

• Pipeline workflow makes it easy to focus on sales management
• AI-powered automation tools add functionality 
• Excellent email and communication tracking features

• Some features are restricted to upper price tiers
• Focus on sales may not appropriate for all businesses

monday.com CRM: Best CRM Software for Customizability

Pricing: $0 to $16 per user per month plus Enterprise rate

4.1

★★★★★

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Work operating system (OS) monday.com is best known for its cloud-based work management platform that allows teams to collaborate on tasks and projects on a wide variety of business processes. monday.com CRM is a sales and customer-focused product, and it combines its sophisticated and highly customizable user interface system with contact management, sales management, and reporting and analytics tools.

Where monday.com shines particularly well is in the area of customizability. Using a flexible drag-and-drop interface, you’ll be able to create tailored sales pipelines, contact templates, and custom automations. There are also clear and concise visual reporting tools that provide real-time snapshots of your customers and current deals.

The CRM software also integrates with the rest of the monday.com suite of products, which includes tools for project management, marketing, support, and service for clients. You can also connect data stored in monday.com with other third-party services like Slack, Shopify, and Dropbox.

Why we chose it:

monday.com CRM is a well-designed CRM system that should be at the top of your list if you want to be able to fully customize your sales experience, either because you have special requirements or you simply prefer to “do-it-yourself.”

Pricing:

Individual: $0 / Basic: $8 per user month / Standard: $10 per user per month / Pro: $16 per user per month / Enterprise: Custom pricing (all prices billed annually with minimum user requirements)

• Powerful customization tools allow you create an interface tailored to your needs 
• Broad integration with the rest of Monday’s project management tools and third-party services
• Excellent reporting and analytics tools

• No free plan, and pricing tiers are complicated
• Learning curve in configuring and using the interface
• Plans have minimum number of users, increasing the price

Capsule: Best CRM Software for Contact Management

Pricing: $18 to $54 per month

4.0

★★★★★

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Capsule CRM offers some of the best contact management tools of any of the products we reviewed. In addition to letting you save key information, you’ll also be able auto-enrich contacts with social information, categorize your contacts with customizable tags, and store every interaction you’ve ever had with them. Especially valuable is a well-designed search tool that lets you access vital information about your contacts, such as the date of last contact or conversation history, quickly and easily. You’ll also be able to attach documents to your contacts, create custom lists, and send emails to a special address attached to your accounts.

Contact management isn’t all that Capsule has to offer. There’s also a sales management tool that lets you track sales deals using a visual pipeline. Also included are task and calendar tools, sales analytics, and email templates that can be sent directly from within Capsule using Outlook or Gmail. Other services like QuickBooks, Zapier, and Mailchimp can also be integrated into Capsule. 

Why we chose it:

We think that Capsule is particularly useful for companies who want powerful tools that will help them to nurture close relationships with their prospects and customers.

Pricing: 

Professional: $18 per user per month / Teams: $36 per user per month / Enterprise: $54 per user per month (all prices billed monthly)

• Powerful and thoughtfully designed contact management tools
• Wide range of SaaS integrations available
• Email tools make reaching your customers easy

• Reporting and analytic options are somewhat limited
• Lowest tier plan is relatively expensive

Less Annoying CRM: Best CRM Software for Individuals & Small Teams

Pricing: $15 per user per month

3.8

★★★★★

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Less Annoying CRM wants to give individuals, small teams, and small businesses the tools to keep track of their customers and deals. It does this by offering affordable pricing, a solid feature set, and a clean and modern user interface design. With Less Annoying, the basics of contact management, sales pipelines, and task management are covered. In addition, you’ll also have access to advanced functionalities, such as a contact search feature, built-in calendar, reporting tools, and customization options.

The user experience makes Less Annoying a snap to use, with the workspace area as the hub that gives you access to your contacts, reports on your current deal pipelines, agenda items, tasks that are due, and recent activity. While there isn’t a mobile app, you’ll be able to sync across all your devices using a web client.

Why we chose it:

Individuals and small teams who are looking for a CRM tools that has excellent features and uncomplicated pricing should take a look at Less Annoying CRM.

Pricing:

$15 per user per month

• Solid feature set for the price, with everything most small businesses will need
• User friendly design makes accessing your sales flow and customers simple
• Built-in calendar helps with planning

• Lack of mobile app
• Flat rate pricing model might not suit all users

HubSpot CRM: Best CRM Software for a Free Plan

Pricing: $0 to $1,200 per month

3.6

★★★★★

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Hubspot, which is known mainly for its online marketing tools, does what seems unlikely in offering you a functional and comprehensive CRM software that doesn’t cost any money. The free CRM software gives you a mobile app, unlimited users, contact management with the ability to store up to one million contacts, and deal management, so you can store, manage, and report on what your sales team has cooking. You get access to email templates, website tracking of contacts, reporting dashboards, integration with email services like Gmail and Outlook, and limited sales tools, such as meeting scheduling, 200 monthly email notifications, and 15 monthly minutes per month of call time.

In order to get higher limits and more features, you’ll need to buy the Sales Hub Starter tier, which starts at $45 per month. That plan increases the limits from the free plan and provides higher-end features like sales automations, calendar syncing, and conversation routing. There are also two higher tiers with further functionality, but they are significantly more expensive. All of the plans, free or paid, integrate into HubSpot’s other products for marketing, service, contact management, and operations. There’s also access to the HubSpot App Marketplace, which allows you to integrate popular services like Gmail, Google, and Slack. 

Why we chose it:

If you’re looking to get into a free and functional–if somewhat limited–CRM system, then HubSpot’s product offers little risk and the ability to test out the company’s other service offerings.

Pricing:

Free: $0 / Starter: $45 per month / Professional: $450 per month / Enterprise: $1,200 per month (all prices billed annually)

• Free plan provides significant functionality
• Access to HubSpot’s other services, especially its marketing plans, is a draw
• Large App Marketplace provides access to hundreds of external SaaS products

• Free plan places usage limitations
• Higher-tiered plans are expensive and geared towards larger enterprises

Methodology for the Best CRM Software

In determining a star rating for the CRM software for small business, we looked at the following criteria:

• Pricing: The pricing of the software was assessed for monthly fees, per-user fees, and any add-on fees.
• Contact management features: The product’s capabilities in managing contacts, including functionalities in overall information storage, communication tools, and search tools.
• Sales management features: The product’s capabilities in terms of managing ongoing sales deals and processes.
• Automations: The product’s functionalities when it comes to automating sales and communications activities.
• Integrations: The product’s ability to integrate with internal and third-party SaaS services

Bottom Line on Best CRM Software

Choosing the best CRM software for your small or midsize business is an important step in developing stronger connections with your customers and attracting new prospects. The most important features of a CRM system are contact management, sales process management, and reporting and analytics tools.

All of the CRM systems reviewed here provide these key functions, as well as allowing you to automate your workflows and integrate your customer data with third-party services. Our pick for the best CRM for small businesses is Salesforce Essentials because it’s one of the most comprehensive CRM solutions systems at an affordable price.

Today’s call center software connects humans and machines to address the needs of customers. Through automation and artificial intelligence, calls are seamlessly routed through carefully designed flowcharts before a live agent ever picks up the phone, saving time and money in the process. This article showcases the best call center software options currently on the market.

Best Call Center Software At a Glance

• RingCentral – Best Overall
• Nextiva – Best for High Volume Calling
• Zendesk – Best for CRM Tools
• Five9 – Best for AI Support
• Avaya – Best for Customer Routing
• Channels – Best for Small Teams
• Talkdesk – Best for Automation

Software

Price

Interactive Voice Response

Call routing and Distribution

Omni-channel Support

Reporting and Analytics

RingCentral

Must contact sales

Advanced IVR with visual flow designer

Features automatic incoming call distribution

30+ digital channels with omnichannel routing

Real-time analytics

Nextiva

Must contact customer support for pricing

Helps customers via voice or keypad

Automatic call routing

Chat, email, phone, SMS

View interactions with agents, call recording

Zendesk

From $49 to $150 per agent per month

Can record prompts, build multi-level interface in higher-tier plans

Can route to specific people or groups

Works with phone, email, text, social channels

Pre-built analytics dashboards

Five9

Hidden pricing, must request a quote

Digital intelligent virtual agents

Proprietary White Paper software

Phone, chat, email, and social media

Real-time dashboards and wallboards

Avaya

From $41 to $106 per agent per month, custom plans are available

Intelligent self-service 24/7

Uses business rules and internal/external context to route customers

Digital co-workers across all channels, including web, voice, SMS, social, email, and video.

Powerful reporting and analytics

Channels

From $0 to $62 per agent per month

Available with higher-tier plans

Limited call forwarding, does offer voicemail

Can handle SMS and calling

Call history, real-time dashboard

Talkdesk

From $75 to $125 per user per month

Virtual agent to guide calls

Talkdesk Studio allows the creation of customer journeys without the need for code

Connect with clients on the channel of their choosing

Real-time dashboards and customer experience analytics

RingCentral: Best Overall Call Center Software

Contact sales

★★★★★

4.7

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RingCentral’s visual interactive voice response allows you to build out a flowchart of prompts on your computer so there’s no confusion about where customers will end up as they navigate through options.

Pricing isn’t transparent for RingCentral’s call center software, so you’ll need to call sales to work out those details. All of RingCentral’s advanced features are available as add-ons to lower-tier plans, so you can theoretically build your own package.

Why we chose it: RingCentral provides interactive voice response and call distribution at any price point. The service is engineered to handle omnichannel communication from more than 30 unique digital channels.

• Visual interactive voice response setup
• Omnichannel support for over 30 digital channels
• Automatic incoming call distribution

• Pricing is not transparent
• Integrations are an additional cost add-on
• Designed to complement VoIP software that starts at $20 per month on its own

Pricing: The Contact Center service the RingCentral offers has a total of four tiers to consider. As expected, each adds an additional layer of tools as you move up the price ladder. Unfortunately, RingCentral does not spell out what these costs are and requires you to call their sales team.

Even with its lowest Essentials tier, you’ll have access to automatic call distribution and visual interactive voice response system. This is enough to get smaller businesses up and handling incoming calls. RingCentral also throws in 90 different types of reports, some in real-time.

Its Standard tier adds in omnichannel routing for over 30 digital channels, so customers can contact you any way you choose. Premium adds in quality management tools, where the Ultimate plan tacks on workforce and performance management. Read our ultimate RingCentral review to learn more.

Nextiva: Best Call Center Software for High Volume Calling

Contact sales

★★★★★

4.7

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Nextiva strives to be the perfect balance between incoming and outgoing communications. In doing so, it has the capability to handle high amounts of voice and digital interactions from within. Pricing isn’t made known without a phone call, and all of Nextiva’s CRM tools require a completely separate package.

Why we chose it: This robust software for call center communication is designed to handle more calls with less work both inbound and outbound calls. To learn more about Nextiva’s features and pricing, read our complete Nextiva review.

• Plans offer free phones
• Real-time dashboards and wallboards that cover all systems
• Several pre-built integrations

• Omnichannel not available in the lowest tier
• Unclear pricing options
• Call center software does not incorporate any CRM tools

Pricing: Although pricing is hidden away off the table, Nextiva splits up its four plans based on use. Each plan offers free phones to help bring its software to life.

The Core plan has the tech to handle high call volumes with IVR and call routing. Should you need more channels, the Premium service adds in chat, email, and SMS communication. Nextiva’s Optimum plan brings in management tools for workforce optimization, and Ultimate has workflow automation tools and interactions analytics to help train your team.

Zendesk: Best Call Center Software for CRM Tools

From $49 to $150

★★★★★

4.5

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Zendesk contains the features necessary for a strong call center package while throwing in customer relationship management (CRM) tools as well. While not every tier has interactive voice response, each does have answer bots to help customers along. Call routing pushes calls to the correct group within your organization, while voicemail and call monitoring tools help keep callers happy.

Why we chose it: Zendesk stands out by folding CRM tools into its call center package to keep them coming back for more.

• AI answer bots
• Several call monitoring tools
• Handles multiple channels of consumer interaction

• IVR is only available at higher tiers
• On the pricey side
• Weak support from Zendesk

Pricing: Zendesk has four tiers of call center service plans to accommodate businesses of differing sizes. Monthly costs are not cheap, but Zendesk justifies this by being a call center and CRM package rolled up into one.

At $49 per user per month, the Suite Team plan doesn’t skimp on features. You’ll be able to communicate with customers through phone, text, email, and several social media channels.

The software can route callers to the best group and offers voicemail if no one can be reached. There are also several pre-built analytics dashboards for reporting. While not the same as IVR, AI bots can immediately answer common questions.

The Suite Growth plan at $79 per month for each user doubles the amount of AI bots you can use while boosting storage size and including a customer service portal.

Suite Professional at $99 per user monthly integrates interactive voice response and a slew of call monitoring tools to help identify what’s working and what isn’t.

Zendesk’s final tier sits at $150 per user and contains custom team roles and more APIs that larger businesses will need.

Five9: Best Call Center Software for AI Support

Hidden pricing

★★★★★

4.6

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Five9 delivers tools to make each of your call center agents’ lives easier through smart AI. Agent Assist provides real-time coaching alongside transcriptions so agents can get to the next call that much faster. Five9 also offers a means to connect to customers through the channel they prefer the most. Unfortunately, little can be done to do away with annoying spam calls and occasional call drops.

Why we chose it: Five9’s intelligent virtual agents and Agent Assist use the latest AI tech to remove redundant work and coach live agents to better outcomes.

• Agent Assist AI
• Intelligent Virtual Agents
• Can engage customers through multiple channels

• No transparent pricing information
• Limited capability to eliminate spam calls
• Can have issues with calls dropping

Pricing: The four tiers of service comprising Five9’s feature sets are a bit of an enigma, devoid of pricing information on the website. Although you’ll have to place a call to understand what Five9 will cost you, its AI capabilities can’t be beaten no matter which you choose.

The Core plan gives live agents access to the Agent Desktop Plus center for connecting with customers. You’ll have to step up to the Premium plan to tap into digital channels that consumers may prefer to interact with.

Should you go Optimum, you’ll unlock workforce management tools to effectively manage teams wherever they may be. Five9’s Ultimate plan throws in workflow automation and analytics to keep things running as efficiently as possible.

Avaya: Best Call Center Software for Customer Routing

From $41 to $106

★★★★★

4.2

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Avaya makes it easy to route callers to the best person within your business through a series of business rules and contexts that you can create. Digital assistants can ask the right questions to guide consumers where they need to go. Built-in analytics allow a close look at each customer’s journey through their experience and help identify any weak points.

Why we chose it: Customers hate being stuck in queues or running in circles through automated prompts. Avaya intelligently walks consumers through voice or digital experiences to get them where they need to be as fast as possible.

• Robust call routing system
• Digital agents work across all channels
• Powerful reporting and analytics

• Highest tier is the only one to contain voice and digital experiences
• Plans are expensive
• Lacks integrations with other software

Pricing: Pricing options break down into three tiers specific to digital and voice service. None of these plans are cheap, and you’ll need to invest in the top-tier plan to build a complete call center package.

At $41 per user per month, Avaya’s Digital plan incorporates everything short of calling. Here you can handle all communication from email, web chat, text, or social media through a live team or digital helpers. The plan also contains powerful reporting tools and automated routing.

The Voice plan is just for the call experience but adds in the same intelligent routing and automated customer experience. You can build visual workflows and use reporting tools to make changes as needed, all for $71 per user monthly.

The All Media package is a very obvious mash-up of Avaya’s two previous plans. At $106 per month, it also saves you a couple bucks from buying each plan individually. In addition, this tier includes workforce engagement tools to boost performance.

Channels: Best Call Center Software for Small Teams

From $0 to $62

★★★★★

4.1

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Channels offers a free solution that contains just enough for a small business to start building a call center platform. Its features don’t run deep, but a flat rate per month can be helpful for smaller teams. While you won’t stay at the free plan for long, Channels makes it easy to grab additional features like IVR when you need them.

Why we chose it: Channels offers a free plan to get your call center off the ground and taps into integrated voice and automation as needed.

• Can make one-click calls straight from a browser
• Very reasonable pricing strategy
• Integrates well with other software

• Businesses will outgrow the free plan quickly
• Limited to phone or SMS
• Call routing is simplistic

Pricing: With a Free tier ripe for the picking, Channels offers an appealing package for small businesses to sink their teeth into. You’re limited to three users and only 250 phone calls, but you’ll be able to personalize your setup with a welcome message, voicemail, and integrations with other tools you may use.

When you’re ready, the Plus plan at $24 per month also includes three users. This tier adds SMS capability and interactive voice response to minimize your staff’s time on the phones.

The Advanced tier allows five users at a time on your system to make an unlimited number of calls. These additions help scaling businesses, but for $62 per month, the plan doesn’t have a whole lot of additional meat.

Talkdesk: Best Call Center Software for Automation Tools

From $75 to $125

★★★★★

4.1

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When you’re trying to maximize employee output and remove redundant tasks, Talkdesk is call center software worth considering. Its tools work to help you automate every step of the consumer journey while still providing a stellar experience. Real-time feedback helps ensure you’re delivering the experience you’re paying for.

Why we chose it: Talkdesk’s Contact Center software is built around automation tools that give customers an enjoyable experience and keep your team working on things only they can do.

• Talkdesk Studio call routing software
• Over 60 ready-to-go integrations
• Omnichannel support tools for engagement across most media

• Expensive call center software
• Lackluster tutorials
• Agent assist is only available as an add-on at the highest tier

Pricing: Even the lowest tier Talkdesk offers will set you back $75 per user every month, which is a considerable chunk for any business. Admittedly, this price point contains nearly all the automation features that help it rise above other software for call centers. Most automation can be set up with a few clicks, but you’ll also receive API access if you want to do a little more.

CX Cloud Elevate costs $95 per user per month but adds some omnichannel access through popular digital means and SMS. You can also perform quality controls to make sure the system is working as intended in cloud based solution.

Talkdesk’s final tier runs $125 per user but includes custom reports and Guardian software that monitors employees for non-work-related activities. The very best tools such as Agent Assist and workforce management are not part of any package and are add-ons that can increase your monthly price even further.

Methodology for the Best Call Center Software

When it comes to shopping for call center software, it’s imperative to balance cost with the features your business will need to succeed. Consider the following points when deciding which platform works best for you.

• Connectivity: In this day and age, consumers can use any of several digital channels to engage in business. Only the best software for call centers allows communication across a wide variety of options.
• Automation: Redundant workflows take up time and energy that could be better utilized elsewhere. Call center software worth its weight will offer ways to automate these processes to get people doing what they do best.
• Customer Experience: A customer wants to feel a personal experience when they engage with your business. The top software allows you to personalize greetings and prompts while getting customers where they need to be quick.
• Reporting: Call centers can be fast-paced environments, making it tricky to track down areas of improvement. Services to support call centers benefit from providing an inside look at what’s working (and what’s not) at a glance.
• Price: Money makes the world go round, and any business building a call center for the first time has a lot on their plate already. Most software for call centers isn’t cheap but can save money in the long run through the tools mentioned above.

Bottom Line: Call Center Software

Software for call centers offer a means to communicate with customers as efficiently as possible. Through AI and automated techniques, these services can deliver customer satisfaction exactly where they need to be through phone, text, email, or other media streams. Tools can also help identify areas where communication breaks down to foster improvements to keep consumers coming back for more.