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Customer Support · head to head

Hiver vs Krayin

Hiver logo

Hiver

Customer Support

Gmail-based help desk

From
Free
Free plan
Yes
Full reviewWebsite
Krayin logo

Krayin

CRM

Open source Laravel CRM for sales teams that want to own the code

From
Free
Free plan
Yes
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Hiver hiver tiers as captured 28 December 2023: Lite at $15/user/month capped at 2 shared inboxes (up to 10 users each), Pro at $39/user/month capped at 5 shared inboxes and 50 shared labels, Elite at $59/user/month, all annual pricing with higher month-to-month rates of $19/$49/$69; Krayin it is far less mature than EspoCRM, SuiteCRM or Vtiger, with thinner reporting, weaker forecasting and fewer built-in integrations, so evaluations that start from a feature checklist will not favour it.
  • They diverge on capability: Hiver covers Shared inbox, Krayin covers Lead pipelines.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Hiver and Krayin actually diverge.

Attributes where Hiver and Krayin differ
AttributeHiverKrayin
Pricing modelsubscriptionOpen source, no licence fee
PlatformsWeb, Chrome-extensionWeb, Self-hosted, Docker, Linux
CategoryCustomer SupportCRM
Founded2011Unknown

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), 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 Hiver

  • Shared inbox
  • Email assignment
  • Collision detection
  • Email notes
  • Templates
  • Analytics
  • Gmail
  • Google Workspace

Only in Krayin

  • Lead pipelines
  • Contacts and organisations
  • Quotes
  • Workflow automation
  • Email integration
  • Custom attributes
  • Roles and permissions
  • Laravel package architecture

What people use each for

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

Hiver

  • Shared inbox managementnot Krayin
  • Customer support via Gmailnot Krayin
  • Team email collaborationnot Krayin

Krayin

  • A PHP or Laravel development shop wants a CRM it can fork and rebrand for clients without paying per seat or negotiating an OEM licence.not Hiver
  • An organisation under data residency rules needs the customer database physically on its own infrastructure, which rules out every hosted CRM.not Hiver
  • A small sales team wants an unlimited-user CRM where adding a tenth or fiftieth user costs nothing beyond server capacity.not Hiver
  • A Bagisto ecommerce store wants a CRM from the same vendor that shares its technology stack and conventions rather than a bridged integration.not Hiver

Where each one falls short

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

Hiver

  • Hiver tiers as captured 28 December 2023: Lite at $15/user/month capped at 2 shared inboxes (up to 10 users each), Pro at $39/user/month capped at 5 shared inboxes and 50 shared labels, Elite at $59/user/month, all annual pricing with higher month-to-month rates of $19/$49/$69

Krayin

  • It is far less mature than EspoCRM, SuiteCRM or Vtiger, with thinner reporting, weaker forecasting and fewer built-in integrations, so evaluations that start from a feature checklist will not favour it.
  • Practical functionality such as certain telephony, messaging and marketing connectors sits in paid marketplace extensions from Webkul, so the free CRM plus the extensions you actually need is not free.
  • The roadmap is controlled by a single services company whose revenue depends on selling implementation and extensions, so there is a structural incentive against making the core complete.
  • You are responsible for the whole operational burden: PHP and MySQL hosting, backups, security patching, mail deliverability and upgrades, and a botched upgrade of a customised install is your problem alone.
  • The cloud hosting page does not publish prices, so the managed option that would remove that burden cannot be budgeted without contacting sales, which undercuts the transparency the open licence otherwise offers.

Pricing, plan by plan

Hiver

Free
  • FreeFree
    • 2 users
    • Email management
    • Basic analytics
  • Lite$19/month
    • Unlimited users
    • Email templates
    • Notes & @mentions
  • Pro$49/month
    • CSAT surveys
    • SLA management
    • Custom reports
  • Elite$69/month
    • Round-robin
    • Skill-based routing
    • Okta SSO

Krayin

Free
  • Self-hostedFree
    • Full MIT-licensed source
    • Unlimited users
    • No feature gating
  • Cloud hosting and extensions$undefined/month
    • Starter and Pro managed hosting packs from Webkul
    • Premium extensions sold individually in the Krayin marketplace
    • White label and custom development quoted separately

Which should you pick?

Choose Hiver if

  • You need shared inbox.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Chrome-extension.
  • You also want email assignment.
Hiver review

Choose Krayin if

  • You need lead pipelines.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Self-hosted, Docker, Linux.
  • You also want contacts and organisations.
Krayin review

Questions people ask

Is Hiver or Krayin better?
Neither clearly leads. Hiver starts at Free and Krayin at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Hiver or Krayin?
Hiver starts at Free and Krayin at Free.
Does Hiver or Krayin run on more platforms?
Hiver runs on Web, Chrome-extension. Krayin runs on Web, Self-hosted, Docker, Linux.
Can I use Hiver for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Hiver best used for?
Hiver is most often used for shared inbox management, customer support via gmail, team email collaboration. Of those, shared inbox management and customer support via gmail are not what Krayin is typically brought in for.
What can Hiver do that Krayin cannot?
Hiver covers Shared inbox, Email assignment, Collision detection, Email notes. Krayin covers Lead pipelines, Contacts and organisations, Quotes, Workflow automation.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Krayin: Is Krayin really free?

The CRM itself is MIT licensed with no user limit and no enterprise edition. Premium extensions, managed hosting and custom development from Webkul are paid.

Krayin: Who maintains it?

Webkul Software of Noida, India, the same company behind the Bagisto open source ecommerce platform.

Krayin: What do I need to run it?

A standard LAMP or LEMP stack with PHP, Composer and MySQL or MariaDB. Any host that runs Laravel will run Krayin.

Krayin: How does it compare to EspoCRM?

EspoCRM is more mature with deeper reporting and a longer track record. Krayin is easier for a Laravel developer to extend and has a more permissive licence.

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