Softwr

Software · head to head

Close vs Heap

Close logo

Close

Software

The inside sales CRM of choice for startups & SMBs

From
$9/month
Rated
-
Heap logo

Heap

Software

Product analytics for the modern product team

From
Free
Rated
-

The short version

  • Only Heap has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Close hidden costs beyond subscription: calling charges (~$0.02/minute), SMS usage fees, phone numbers ($1-5/month), AI call assistant ($50/month + $0.02/min transcription); Heap no built-in A/B testing or feature flags; requires integration with separate tools for experimentation
  • They diverge on capability: Close covers Built-in calling, Heap covers Autocapture.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Close and Heap actually diverge.

Attributes where Close and Heap differ
AttributeCloseHeap
Starting price$9/monthFree
Free tierNoYes

Identical on both: pricing model (Unknown), platforms (Web, iOS, Android), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Unknown), founded (2013).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Close

  • Built-in calling
  • Email automation
  • SMS messaging
  • Pipeline management
  • Lead management
  • Activity tracking
  • Reporting
  • Mobile app

Only in Heap

  • Autocapture
  • Retroactive analytics
  • Session replay
  • Funnel analysis
  • User segmentation
  • Path analysis
  • Data science
  • Virtual events

Both cover

  • Zapier
  • Segment
  • SOC2
  • GDPR
  • Cloud deployment

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Close

  • Inside salesnot Heap
  • Outbound salesnot Heap
  • Lead managementnot Heap
  • Sales engagementnot Heap
  • Pipeline trackingnot Heap

Heap

  • User behavior analysisnot Close
  • Conversion optimizationnot Close
  • Product adoptionnot Close
  • Customer journey mappingnot Close
  • A/B testing analysisnot Close

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Close

  • Hidden costs beyond subscription: calling charges (~$0.02/minute), SMS usage fees, phone numbers ($1-5/month), AI call assistant ($50/month + $0.02/min transcription)
  • No built-in lead lists, company intelligence, or contact enrichment; must source leads separately
  • Limited marketing automation compared to competitors like HubSpot; lacks lead scoring and nurturing campaigns
  • Calling cost at scale can double effective monthly cost for high-volume SDR teams making 50+ calls per day
  • Limited customization of data model compared to Salesforce; cannot create fully custom objects or complex relationships

Heap

  • No built-in A/B testing or feature flags; requires integration with separate tools for experimentation
  • Group analytics and advanced features require a sales conversation, not self-serve
  • Cloud-only deployment; no self-hosted option for data security or compliance requirements
  • Session replay lacks developer debugging tools compared to PostHog
  • Pricing for Growth and Pro plans requires direct sales contact; no transparency on how pricing scales

Pricing, plan by plan

Close

$9/month
  • Solo$9/month (annual)
    • 1 user only
    • 10,000 leads max
    • Calling, email, SMS
  • Essentials$35/month (annual)
    • Unlimited contacts
    • Team collaboration
    • 1,000 AI credits/month
  • Growth$99/month (annual)
    • Automation workflows
    • Power dialer
    • Bulk email
  • Scale$139/month (annual)
    • Role-based permissions
    • Predictive dialer
    • Unlimited recording

Heap

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Up to 10,000 monthly sessions
    • Basic charts
    • 6 months data history
  • Growth$null/custom
    • Custom session pricing
    • Sense AI assistant
    • 12 months data history
  • Pro$null/custom
    • Custom session pricing
    • Account analytics
    • Engagement matrix
  • Premier$null/custom
    • Custom session pricing
    • Data warehouse integration
    • Unlimited projects

Which should you pick?

Choose Close if

  • You need built-in calling.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want email automation.

Choose Heap if

  • You need autocapture.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want retroactive analytics.

Questions people ask

Is Close or Heap better?
Neither clearly leads. Close starts at $9/month and Heap at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Close or Heap?
Heap has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $9/month for Close and Free for Heap.
Does Close or Heap run on more platforms?
Both run on Web, iOS, Android, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
Can I use Heap for free?
Yes. Heap has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Close starts at $9/month.
What is Close best used for?
Close is most often used for inside sales, outbound sales, lead management, sales engagement. Of those, inside sales and outbound sales are not what Heap is typically brought in for.
What can Close do that Heap cannot?
Close covers Built-in calling, Email automation, SMS messaging, Pipeline management. Heap covers Autocapture, Retroactive analytics, Session replay, Funnel analysis. Both handle Zapier, Segment, SOC2, GDPR.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Close: What are Close's pricing plans and what do they include?

Close offers four plans: Solo ($9-19/user/month), Essentials ($35-49), Growth ($99-109), and Scale ($139-149). All include calling, email, SMS, and Chloe AI agent access. Essentials adds unlimited contacts and team collaboration. Growth adds automation, power dialer, and custom activities. Scale adds role-based permissions and unlimited recording. Annual billing saves up to 50%.

Source
Heap: What does Heap's autocapture feature do?

Heap's autocapture is a single code snippet that automatically captures every click, swipe, tap, pageview, and form fill on your website and apps without requiring manual event setup. Once installed, Heap captures the entire digital experience of every user on every platform with no ongoing engineering maintenance needed.

Source
Close: What are the hidden costs in Close's pricing beyond the subscription?

Close charges usage-based fees for calling (~$0.02 per minute), SMS charges per message, and phone number rentals ($1-5/month). The AI Call Assistant add-on costs $50/month plus $0.02 per minute for transcription. Heavy outbound calling teams can see their total costs increase 30-50% beyond the base seat price.

Source
Heap: What are Heap's pricing plans and how much do they cost?

Heap offers a Free plan for up to 10,000 monthly sessions. Growth, Pro, and Premier plans use custom session-based pricing that requires contacting sales for a quote. Free includes basic charts and 6 months data history. Growth adds the Sense AI assistant. Pro adds account analytics. Premier adds data warehouse integration and dedicated customer success management.

Source
Close: What is Chloe, Close's AI sales agent, and what can it do?

Chloe is an AI sales agent built into Close that automatically calls leads, qualifies prospects through real conversations, and can book meetings while updating the CRM automatically. Chloe features AI-generated call summaries, transcripts, and action items automatically logged to contacts.

Source
Heap: Does Heap include session replay and A/B testing?

Heap includes integrated session replay showing exactly what users did on your site. However, Heap does not include built-in A/B testing or feature flags. Teams requiring these capabilities must use separate tools or integrate with third-party platforms.

Source
Close: Does Close include lead lists, data enrichment, or contact information?

No. Close does not provide built-in lead lists, company intelligence, or contact enrichment features. Organizations must source leads separately or use third-party data providers. This differs from platforms like HubSpot which include integrated lead databases.

Source
Heap: What integrations does Heap support?

Heap supports over 100 integrations connecting to business tools including marketing platforms, CRMs, and data warehouses. This allows insights to reach relevant teams and ensures data flows to other business systems automatically.

Source
Close: What communication features does Close include?

Close includes built-in calling with automatic call logging, email templates and bulk email capabilities, SMS messaging with tracking and automation, email syncing with Gmail, and automated follow-up workflows. All communication happens within the CRM platform.

Source
Heap: Does Heap offer self-hosting or is it cloud-only?

Heap is cloud-only and does not offer self-hosted options. Organizations requiring on-premises deployment should consider alternatives like PostHog which supports self-hosting alongside its cloud product.

Source
Close: Does Close have marketing automation capabilities?

Close's marketing automation features are limited compared to HubSpot. It includes basic email sequences, task reminders, and workflow automation, but lacks advanced lead scoring, nurturing campaigns, and detailed marketing analytics. Organizations requiring extensive marketing automation need separate tools.

Source
Heap: What is Sense and how does it help with analytics?

Sense Chat is Heap's AI assistant that enables users to access analytics without extensive technical knowledge. It allows teams to ask questions about user behavior and get answers directly without lengthy onboarding or technical expertise, making insights more accessible to non-technical stakeholders.

Source

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