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Customer Support · head to head

Freshservice vs SugarCRM

Freshservice logo

Freshservice

Customer Support

Modern IT service management

From
$19/month
Free plan
No
SugarCRM logo

SugarCRM

CRM

Customer relationship software for your business

From
$59/month
Free plan
No

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Freshservice change, problem and release management require the Pro plan at $99 per agent per month, so core ITIL processes sit two tiers up; SugarCRM every plan carries a 15 user minimum, so the entry cost is 15 seats regardless of team size
  • They diverge on capability: Freshservice covers Incident management, SugarCRM covers Contact management.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Freshservice and SugarCRM actually diverge.

Attributes where Freshservice and SugarCRM differ
AttributeFreshserviceSugarCRM
Starting price$19/month$59/month
CategoryCustomer SupportCRM
Founded20102004

Identical on both: pricing model (subscription), free tier (No), platforms (Web, Ios, Android), user rating (Not yet rated).

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 Freshservice

  • Incident management
  • Asset management
  • Change management
  • Knowledge base
  • Automation
  • Microsoft Teams
  • AWS
  • Azure

Only in SugarCRM

  • Contact management
  • Sales pipeline
  • Lead management
  • Marketing automation
  • Customer service
  • Mobile app
  • Salesforce
  • HubSpot

Both cover

  • Reporting
  • Slack
  • SOC2
  • ISO27001
  • GDPR
  • Web support
  • Ios support
  • Android support

What people use each for

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

Freshservice

  • IT service management and internal help desk ticketingnot SugarCRM
  • Asset management and change control for IT teamsnot SugarCRM

SugarCRM

  • CRM for sales, marketing and service teamsnot Freshservice
  • Managing accounts, opportunities and customer history at mid market scalenot Freshservice

Where each one falls short

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

Freshservice

  • Change, problem and release management require the Pro plan at $99 per agent per month, so core ITIL processes sit two tiers up
  • Every plan includes only 100 ITAM asset units, with more sold separately regardless of tier
  • Orchestration transactions are metered monthly, from 1,000 on Starter to 20,000 on Enterprise, with extra packs at $250 per 1,000
  • The Freddy AI copilot is a $29 per agent per month add on on top of Pro or Enterprise
  • Sandbox and audit logs are Enterprise only, which carries no published price

SugarCRM

  • Every plan carries a 15 user minimum, so the entry cost is 15 seats regardless of team size
  • At $59 per user on Standard that minimum makes the real floor $885 a month
  • All three tiers are billed annually with no monthly option
  • The vendor still directs buyers to sales for a package rather than treating the published rate as final

Pricing, plan by plan

Freshservice

$19/month
  • Starter$19/month
    • Incident management
    • Knowledge base
    • Self-service portal
  • Growth$49/month
    • Asset management
    • Approval workflows
    • SLA management
  • Pro$95/month
    • Problem management
    • Change management
    • Release management
  • Enterprise$119/month
    • Freddy AI
    • Audit logs
    • Custom SSL

SugarCRM

$59/month
  • Standard$59/month
    • Accounts management
    • Lead tracking
    • Quotes
  • Advanced$85/month
    • Mail and calendar integration
    • Case management
    • Sugar Intelligence
  • Premier$135/month
    • Geo mapping
    • Enhanced storage 2x
    • LinkedIn connector

Which should you pick?

Choose Freshservice if

  • You need incident management.
  • You work on Web, Ios, Android.
  • You also want asset management.

Choose SugarCRM if

  • You need contact management.
  • You work on Web, Ios, Android.
  • You also want sales pipeline.

Questions people ask

Is Freshservice or SugarCRM better?
Neither clearly leads. Freshservice starts at $19/month and SugarCRM at $59/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Freshservice or SugarCRM?
Freshservice starts at $19/month and SugarCRM at $59/month.
Does Freshservice or SugarCRM run on more platforms?
Both run on Web, Ios, Android, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
What is Freshservice best used for?
Freshservice is most often used for it service management and internal help desk ticketing, asset management and change control for it teams. Of those, it service management and internal help desk ticketing and asset management and change control for it teams are not what SugarCRM is typically brought in for.
What can Freshservice do that SugarCRM cannot?
Freshservice covers Incident management, Asset management, Change management, Knowledge base. SugarCRM covers Contact management, Sales pipeline, Lead management, Marketing automation. Both handle Reporting, Slack, SOC2, ISO27001.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Freshservice: How much does Freshservice cost?

Freshservice is priced per agent per month on annual billing: Starter at $19, Growth at $49 and Pro at $99. Enterprise is quoted by sales. Freshworks states annual billing is 20% cheaper than monthly.

Source
SugarCRM: How much does SugarCRM cost?

SugarCRM costs $59 per user per month for the Standard plan, $85 per month for Advanced, and $135 per month for Premier. All plans require annual billing and a 15-user minimum.

Source
Freshservice: Does Freshservice have a free trial?

Yes. Freshworks states you get free unrestricted access to all features available in Freshservice for 14 days after sign up, plus 3 free Day Passes for occasional agents.

Source
SugarCRM: What is included in the Advanced plan?

The Advanced plan at $85 per user per month includes everything in Standard plus mail and calendar integration, case management, Sugar Intelligence, and Sugar Predict features.

Source
Freshservice: Which Freshservice plan includes change management?

Problem management, change management, major incident management and release management all start on the Pro plan at $99 per agent per month. The Growth plan at $49 covers service catalog, SLA and on-call management.

Source
SugarCRM: What distinguishes the Premier plan?

The Premier plan costs $135 per user per month and adds geo mapping, 2x enhanced storage, LinkedIn connector integration, and enhanced support compared to the Advanced plan.

Source
Freshservice: How much does Freddy AI cost on Freshservice?

Freddy AI Copilot is an optional add-on at $29 per agent per month on the Pro plan. The Freddy AI Agent in its Classic form is included on the Enterprise plan.

Source
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