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CRM · head to head

Freshsales vs SuiteCRM

Freshsales logo

Freshsales

CRM

Smart CRM for growing businesses

From
$19/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
SuiteCRM logo

SuiteCRM

CRM

Open source fork of SugarCRM with no per user licence fee, sold as hosting and support

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only SuiteCRM has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Freshsales contact scoring, sales sequences and territory management require the Pro plan at $39 per user per month, more than four times the Growth price; SuiteCRM the interface still carries SugarCRM conventions from over a decade ago, and sales teams used to modern CRMs frequently resist adoption, which is the most common reason SuiteCRM projects fail rather than any technical limit.
  • They diverge on capability: Freshsales covers Contact management, SuiteCRM covers Studio module builder.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Freshsales and SuiteCRM actually diverge.

Attributes where Freshsales and SuiteCRM differ
AttributeFreshsalesSuiteCRM
Starting price$19/monthFree
Pricing modelsubscriptionOpen source, no licence fee
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWeb, Ios, AndroidWeb, Linux, Self-hosted, iOS, Android
Founded2010Unknown

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (CRM).

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 Freshsales

  • Contact management
  • Lead scoring
  • Sales pipeline
  • Activity tracking
  • Email sync
  • AI insights
  • Workflow automation
  • Gmail

Only in SuiteCRM

  • Studio module builder
  • Workflow engine
  • Opportunity and quote management
  • Case management
  • Campaign module
  • Reporting engine
  • Security groups
  • REST API

What people use each for

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

Freshsales

  • Sales CRM with built in email, phone and chatnot SuiteCRM
  • Managing deals, pipelines and sales sequencesnot SuiteCRM

SuiteCRM

  • An organisation with two hundred occasional CRM users where per seat pricing from Salesforce or HubSpot would dominate the budgetnot Freshsales
  • A public sector body or regulated firm that must host customer data on infrastructure it controlsnot Freshsales
  • A company that needs custom modules modelling its own objects and wants to build them in Studio rather than pay for platform licencesnot Freshsales
  • A business that wants open source economics but whose procurement requires a warranty, which SuiteASSURED suppliesnot Freshsales

Where each one falls short

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

Freshsales

  • Contact scoring, sales sequences and territory management require the Pro plan at $39 per user per month, more than four times the Growth price
  • Forecasting insights, custom modules, sandbox and audit logs are Enterprise only at $59 per user per month
  • Every published price requires annual billing
  • The Freddy AI agent is billed separately at $49 per 100 sessions
  • Branded documents are a further $19 per user add on
  • No contact limits are stated for any tier on the pricing page

SuiteCRM

  • The interface still carries SugarCRM conventions from over a decade ago, and sales teams used to modern CRMs frequently resist adoption, which is the most common reason SuiteCRM projects fail rather than any technical limit.
  • Zero licence fee does not mean zero cost: hosting, ten hours of annual support and a quick start implementation together run into thousands of pounds before anyone has configured a pipeline.
  • The integration marketplace is small compared with Salesforce or HubSpot, so common connections to marketing, telephony and finance tools are often paid third party add-ons or custom builds.
  • Upgrades between major versions can break customisations made outside Studio, so heavily customised instances tend to lag behind current releases and accumulate security debt.
  • Native email marketing and campaign functionality is basic next to a dedicated tool, so most deployments end up paying for a separate marketing platform and syncing it, undoing part of the cost saving.

Pricing, plan by plan

Freshsales

$19/month
  • Starter$19/month
    • Contact & account management
    • Pipeline management
  • Growth$39/month
    • Everything in Starter
    • Sales automation
    • Territory management
  • Pro$65/month
    • Everything in Growth
    • Forecasting
    • Advanced customization

SuiteCRM

Free
  • Self-hostedFree
    • GPL licensed with no per user fee at any user count
    • All core CRM modules included
    • You provide hosting, upgrades and support
  • Managed hosting$50/month
    • Hosting, security patching, updates and monitoring
    • Still no per user licence fee
    • Support purchased separately
  • Standard support$1200/year
    • Ten support hours per year
    • Discount available when bought with managed hosting
    • Does not include implementation work
  • SuiteASSURED$3350/year
    • Warranty and legal indemnification over the open source code
    • Priority support and security assurances
    • Aimed at organisations whose procurement rules block unwarranted open source

Which should you pick?

Choose Freshsales if

  • You need contact management.
  • You work on Web, Ios, Android.
  • You also want lead scoring.
Freshsales review

Choose SuiteCRM if

  • You need studio module builder.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Linux, Self-hosted, iOS, Android.
  • You also want workflow engine.
SuiteCRM review

Questions people ask

Is Freshsales or SuiteCRM better?
Neither clearly leads. Freshsales starts at $19/month and SuiteCRM at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Freshsales or SuiteCRM?
SuiteCRM has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $19/month for Freshsales and Free for SuiteCRM.
Does Freshsales or SuiteCRM run on more platforms?
Freshsales runs on Web, Ios, Android. SuiteCRM runs on Web, Linux, Self-hosted, iOS, Android.
Can I use SuiteCRM for free?
Yes. SuiteCRM has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Freshsales starts at $19/month.
What is Freshsales best used for?
Freshsales is most often used for sales crm with built in email, phone and chat, managing deals, pipelines and sales sequences. Of those, sales crm with built in email, phone and chat and managing deals, pipelines and sales sequences are not what SuiteCRM is typically brought in for.
What can Freshsales do that SuiteCRM cannot?
Freshsales covers Contact management, Lead scoring, Sales pipeline, Activity tracking. SuiteCRM covers Studio module builder, Workflow engine, Opportunity and quote management, Case management.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Freshsales: Is there a free trial for Freshsales?

Yes, Freshsales offers a 21-day free trial with no credit card required and no strings attached.

Source
SuiteCRM: Is SuiteCRM really free?

The software is, at any user count. SalesAgility charges for managed hosting from about 50 GBP per month, support from about 1,200 GBP per year and SuiteASSURED from about 3,350 GBP per year.

Freshsales: How do I learn pricing for Freshsales?

Pricing is not listed on the main product pages. The site directs users to request a demo or sign up for the free trial to discuss pricing with the sales team.

Source
SuiteCRM: How does it relate to SugarCRM?

It is a fork of SugarCRM Community Edition, created after SugarCRM discontinued its open source release.

Freshsales: Is a demo required to see pricing?

The site prominently features demo and trial signup options, suggesting that pricing is discussed during the sales consultation process rather than published as standard tiers.

Source
SuiteCRM: Are there per user fees?

No. This is the central commercial argument for it, particularly for organisations with many occasional users.

SuiteCRM: What is SuiteASSURED?

A paid subscription that adds warranty, indemnification and legal protections on top of the open source licence, for buyers whose procurement rules block unwarranted software.

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