CRM · head to head
Krayin vs Zoho Desk
Krayin
CRM
Open source Laravel CRM for sales teams that want to own the code
- From
- Free
- Free plan
- Yes
The short version
- Each has a real cost: 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.; Zoho Desk free plan caps at three user licenses; paid plans (Express, Standard, Professional, Enterprise) are billed annually to get the listed rate, with monthly billing costing more, and light user seats are priced separately from full agent seats
- They diverge on capability: Krayin covers Lead pipelines, Zoho Desk covers Ticket management.
- Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Krayin and Zoho Desk actually diverge.
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 Krayin
- Lead pipelines
- Contacts and organisations
- Quotes
- Workflow automation
- Email integration
- Custom attributes
- Roles and permissions
- Laravel package architecture
Only in Zoho Desk
- Ticket management
- Multi-channel support
- AI assistant
- Automation
- Knowledge base
- Reporting
- Zoho CRM
- Slack
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
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 Zoho Desk
- An organisation under data residency rules needs the customer database physically on its own infrastructure, which rules out every hosted CRM.not Zoho Desk
- A small sales team wants an unlimited-user CRM where adding a tenth or fiftieth user costs nothing beyond server capacity.not Zoho Desk
- A Bagisto ecommerce store wants a CRM from the same vendor that shares its technology stack and conventions rather than a bridged integration.not Zoho Desk
Zoho Desk
- Multi-channel supportnot Krayin
- IT help desknot Krayin
- Customer servicenot Krayin
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
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.
Zoho Desk
- Free plan caps at three user licenses; paid plans (Express, Standard, Professional, Enterprise) are billed annually to get the listed rate, with monthly billing costing more, and light user seats are priced separately from full agent seats
Pricing, plan by plan
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
Zoho Desk
Free- FreeFree
- 3 agents
- Email ticketing
- Help center
- Standard$14/month
- Social channels
- Workflow automation
- Customer happiness ratings
- Professional$23/month
- Multi-department
- Round-robin assignment
- Custom fields
- Enterprise$40/month
- AI Zia
- Multi-brand help center
- Advanced analytics
Which should you pick?
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.
Choose Zoho Desk if
- You need ticket management.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Web, Ios, Android.
- You also want multi-channel support.
Questions people ask
- Is Krayin or Zoho Desk better?
- Neither clearly leads. Krayin starts at Free and Zoho Desk at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Krayin or Zoho Desk?
- Krayin starts at Free and Zoho Desk at Free.
- Does Krayin or Zoho Desk run on more platforms?
- Krayin runs on Web, Self-hosted, Docker, Linux. Zoho Desk runs on Web, Ios, Android.
- Can I use Krayin for free?
- Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
- What is Krayin best used for?
- Krayin is most often used for 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., an organisation under data residency rules needs the customer database physically on its own infrastructure, which rules out every hosted crm., a small sales team wants an unlimited-user crm where adding a tenth or fiftieth user costs nothing beyond server capacity., a bagisto ecommerce store wants a crm from the same vendor that shares its technology stack and conventions rather than a bridged integration.. Of those, 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. and an organisation under data residency rules needs the customer database physically on its own infrastructure, which rules out every hosted crm. are not what Zoho Desk is typically brought in for.
- What can Krayin do that Zoho Desk cannot?
- Krayin covers Lead pipelines, Contacts and organisations, Quotes, Workflow automation. Zoho Desk covers Ticket management, Multi-channel support, AI assistant, 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.
Zoho Desk: What is the starting price and trial period?
Zoho Desk offers a free forever plan with 3 user licenses, plus paid tiers starting from ₹420 per user per month when billed annually. A 15-day free trial is available without requiring a credit card.
SourceKrayin: Who maintains it?
Webkul Software of Noida, India, the same company behind the Bagisto open source ecommerce platform.
Zoho Desk: Are there lock-ins or hidden costs?
No lock-ins and no hidden costs. Once your 15-day free trial ends, your plan automatically downgrades to the free plan.
SourceKrayin: 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.
Zoho Desk: What payment methods are accepted?
Zoho Desk accepts Visa, MasterCard, American Express, and PayPal. Bank transfer or check transfer is accepted for yearly subscriptions.
SourceKrayin: 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.
Zoho Desk: Are there discounts for annual commitments?
Yes, Zoho Desk offers discounts on upfront annual commitments, with savings up to 34% off monthly rates.
SourceRelated pages
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