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Salesforce vs Zoho Books

Salesforce logo

Salesforce

Software

World's #1 CRM

From
$25/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Zoho Books logo

Zoho Books

Software

Simple, smart accounting software for growing businesses

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Zoho Books has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Salesforce sales Cloud tiers as captured 2 January 2024: Starter Suite $25/user/month, Professional $80/user/month, Enterprise $165/user/month, all USD billed annually; Zoho Books payroll only available in Texas and California, limiting US usefulness
  • They diverge on capability: Salesforce covers Contact management, Zoho Books covers Invoicing.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Salesforce and Zoho Books actually diverge.

Attributes where Salesforce and Zoho Books differ
AttributeSalesforceZoho Books
Starting price$25/monthFree
Pricing modelsubscriptionUnknown
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWeb, Ios, Android, ApiWeb, iOS, Android
Founded19991996

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

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 Salesforce

  • Contact management
  • Opportunity management
  • Lead management
  • Reports & dashboards
  • Email integration
  • Workflow automation
  • Mobile access
  • AppExchange

Only in Zoho Books

  • Invoicing
  • Expense tracking
  • Bank reconciliation
  • Financial reports
  • Tax compliance
  • Zoho CRM
  • PayPal
  • Stripe

What people use each for

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

Salesforce

  • Sales managementnot Zoho Books
  • Customer servicenot Zoho Books
  • Marketing automationnot Zoho Books
  • Lead generationnot Zoho Books
  • Analytics & reportingnot Zoho Books

Zoho Books

  • Invoicingnot Salesforce
  • Expense managementnot Salesforce
  • Tax preparationnot Salesforce

Where each one falls short

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

Salesforce

  • Sales Cloud tiers as captured 2 January 2024: Starter Suite $25/user/month, Professional $80/user/month, Enterprise $165/user/month, all USD billed annually

Zoho Books

  • Payroll only available in Texas and California, limiting US usefulness
  • Limited access to historical financial data compared to competitors
  • Customer support is slow with long response times and frustrating workarounds
  • Fewer integrations than QuickBooks Online and Xero
  • User limit restrictions (1-15 depending on plan) compared to Xero's unlimited users
  • Occasional inaccuracies in automatic exchange rate updates for international transactions

Pricing, plan by plan

Salesforce

$25/month
  • Essentials$25/month
    • Account & contact management
    • Opportunity tracking
    • Lead management
  • Professional$80/month
    • Everything in Essentials
    • Complete CRM
    • Lead scoring
  • Enterprise$165/month
    • Everything in Professional
    • Workflow automation
    • Advanced analytics
  • Unlimited$330/month
    • Everything in Enterprise
    • Unlimited customizations
    • 24/7 support

Zoho Books

Free
  • FreeFree
    • 1 user + accountant
    • Unlimited invoices
  • Standard$20/month
    • 3 users
    • Core accounting
  • Professional$60/month
    • 5 users
    • Advanced reporting
  • Premium$120/month
    • 10 users
    • Inventory management

Which should you pick?

Choose Salesforce if

  • You need contact management.
  • You work on Web, Ios, Android, Api.
  • You also want opportunity management.
Salesforce review

Choose Zoho Books if

  • You need invoicing.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want expense tracking.
Zoho Books review

Questions people ask

Is Salesforce or Zoho Books better?
Neither clearly leads. Salesforce starts at $25/month and Zoho Books at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Salesforce or Zoho Books?
Zoho Books has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $25/month for Salesforce and Free for Zoho Books.
Does Salesforce or Zoho Books run on more platforms?
Salesforce runs on Web, Ios, Android, Api. Zoho Books runs on Web, iOS, Android.
Can I use Zoho Books for free?
Yes. Zoho Books has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Salesforce starts at $25/month.
What is Salesforce best used for?
Salesforce is most often used for sales management, customer service, marketing automation, lead generation. Of those, sales management and customer service are not what Zoho Books is typically brought in for.
What can Salesforce do that Zoho Books cannot?
Salesforce covers Contact management, Opportunity management, Lead management, Reports & dashboards. Zoho Books covers Invoicing, Expense tracking, Bank reconciliation, Financial reports.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Zoho Books: Does Zoho Books support payroll?

Zoho Books offers limited payroll integration available only in Texas and California currently. Outside these states, users must use separate payroll software.

Source
Zoho Books: How many users can access one account?

User limits vary by plan: Free tier (1 user + accountant), Standard (3 users), Professional (5 users), Premium (10 users), Elite (15 users). Each business requires separate subscription.

Source
Zoho Books: What integrations does Zoho Books support?

Zoho Books integrates with Shopify, WooCommerce, Razorpay, PayPal, Stripe, Salesforce, Google Sheets, and 500+ apps via Zapier. It integrates with other Zoho products like Zoho Inventory and Zoho Projects.

Source
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