Keeping track of customers is easy enough when you only have a few. You can generally make do with notes in your inbox, a spreadsheet of leads and the odd reminder in your calendar.
But once enquiries start coming from different places, quotes need chasing, sales conversations drag on, and more than one person is speaking to customers, you need a more structured solution. That is where customer relationship management (CRM) software comes in.
A CRM system gives your business a central place to manage contacts, leads, deals, customer notes, tasks and follow-ups. Some tools keep things simple, while others add sales automation, marketing campaigns, reporting, AI features and customer service tools.
Based on features, pricing, usability and suitability for small businesses, this guide compares some of the best CRM systems for UK small businesses, including options for sole traders, growing sales teams and companies that need a more customisable platform.
The 9 best CRM systems
| CRM provider | Best for | Starting price |
|---|---|---|
| Creatio | Custom CRM workflows and automation | From £32 per user per month |
| Salesforce | Growing businesses that want a scalable CRM | From £20 per user per month |
| Pipedrive | Sales pipeline management | From £14 per seat per month, billed annually |
| Monday.com | Visual sales workflows | From £10 per seat per month, billed annually |
| Capsule | Simple CRM for small teams | From £14per user per month, billed annually |
| HubSpot | Free CRM and all-in-one sales tools | From £7 per seat per month on annual billing |
| Zoho CRM | Low-cost all-round CRM | From £12 per user per month, billed annually |
| Freshsales | Built-in phone, chat and sales tools | From £7 per user per month, billed annually |
| Workbooks | UK-based CRM for established SMEs | From £32 per user per month |
Creatio
Creatio is great for businesses that want more than a basic contact database. It combines CRM, workflow automation, AI and no-code tools, making it particularly useful if you’re a growing business that wants a CRM you can mould to your needs.
That is the main reason it takes the top spot. Creatio is not the cheapest CRM on the market, and it is probably more than a very small business needs if all you want is somewhere to store names and phone numbers. But for businesses with a defined sales process, several customer touchpoints or plans to automate more of their admin, it offers plenty of room to grow.
Creatio’s CRM covers sales, marketing and service, and its no-code tools allow users to modify and build workflows using visual tools and natural language. It also puts AI automation at the centre of the platform, with predictive, generative and agentic automation features designed to reduce manual work.
Key features
- No-code workflow design: Build and adapt CRM workflows without relying heavily on developers
- Sales CRM: Manage leads, accounts, opportunities, activities and customer relationships
- Marketing and service tools: Add campaign management and customer service workflows as your needs grow
- AI automation: Use predictive, generative and agentic AI features to reduce manual admin
- Scalable platform: Suitable for businesses that want to start with CRM and expand into wider workflow automation
Creatio pricing
| Growth | From £32 per user per month | Small and growing businesses that want AI-native automation |
| Enterprise | From £61 per user per month | Businesses that need more advanced CRM and workflow capabilities |
| Unlimited | Custom pricing | Larger teams that want broad access across the platform |
Salesforce
Salesforce is one of the best-known names in CRM, and it remains a top choice for small businesses that want a system they can grow into. It is particularly useful if you expect your sales process to become more complex over time, or if you want to connect sales, marketing, service and ecommerce in one wider platform.
For very small teams, Salesforce can feel like a lot. There are simpler and cheaper CRMs in this list. But if you are building a proper sales function, hiring reps, tracking pipeline value and need stronger reporting, Salesforce is hard to ignore.
Key features
- Contact and account management: Keep customer records, activity and sales history in one place
- Sales pipeline tracking: Manage opportunities and see where deals sit in the sales process
- Marketing and service options: Add email campaigns, service tools and commerce features depending on your plan
- Automation: Automate sales and service processes as the business grows
- Reporting: Build dashboards and forecasts to track performance across your team
Salesforce pricing
| Free Suite | £0 per user per month | Testing basic Salesforce tools |
| Starter Suite | £20 per user per month | Small businesses that want sales, service and marketing in one starter package |
| Pro Suite | £80 per user per month | Growing teams that need stronger sales, marketing and service features |
| Sales Cloud Enterprise | £140 per user per month, billed annually | More advanced sales teams that need AI and automation |
Pipedrive
Pipedrive is ideal if you’re looking for a straightforward, sales-focused CRM. It’s built around pipelines, deals and follow-ups, helping you to see exactly where each opportunity sits and what action you need to take next.
It doesn’t try to do everything, which is part of the appeal. If your main priority is keeping sales activity organised, chasing leads at the right time and giving your team a clear view of the pipeline, Pipedrive is one of the easiest CRMs to get to grips with.
Pipedrive’s current plans are Lite, Growth, Premium and Ultimate. Its own support documentation says these new plan names replaced the older Essential, Advanced, Professional, Power and Enterprise structure.
Key features
- Visual sales pipelines: Track deals through each stage using a simple pipeline view
- Lead and deal management: Manage leads, deals, contacts and calendar activity in one place
- Email sync and tracking: Sync email and track opens and clicks on higher plans
- Workflow automation: Automate repetitive sales tasks and follow-ups
- Sales reporting: Use reports and dashboards to understand activity, conversion and forecast value
Pipedrive pricing
| Lite | From £14 per seat per month, billed annually | Small teams starting with CRM |
| Growth | From £39 per seat per month, billed annually | Sales teams that need email sync and automation |
| Premium | From £59 per seat per month, billed annually | Teams that need more advanced sales tools and reporting |
| Ultimate | From £79 per seat per month, billed annually | Larger or more structured sales teams |
monday CRM
With its visual tools, flexible, colourful and customisable interface, monday CRM is great for teams that want to manage leads, deals, tasks, quotes and internal handovers in one place.
It is especially useful if your business already uses monday.com, or if you want a CRM that feels closer to a project management board than a traditional sales database. The trade-off is that you may need to spend a little time setting it up properly so your boards, automations and dashboards don’t become cluttered.
Key features
- Customisable boards: Build CRM boards around leads, deals, accounts, tasks or customer projects
- Pipeline management: Track opportunities across different stages and owners
- Automations: Set up reminders, status changes and handovers between team members
- Dashboards: Create dashboards to monitor sales activity and performance
- Quotes and invoices: Create and share quotes and invoices, with limits depending on plan
monday CRM pricing
| Basic | From £10 per seat per month, billed annually | Individuals and small teams getting started with CRM |
| Standard | From £14 per seat per month, billed annually | Growing teams that need more CRM features |
| Pro | From £24 per seat per month, billed annually | Teams that need more advanced dashboards and automation |
| Ultimate | Custom pricing | Larger teams that need enterprise-level controls |
Capsule
Capsule is easy to understand, tidy to use and a neat solution if your priorities are contact management, opportunity tracking, task reminders and a clear view of customer relationships.
It isn’t the most advanced platform in this list, but that’s fine if you’re just seeking a clean and reliable CRM that does everything you need it to and nothing more. That means you don’t end up forking out for features and capabilities you’ll never use.
Capsule offers a free plan for up to two users, with paid plans adding more contacts, reporting, automations, project boards, multiple pipelines and AI features.
Key features
- Contact management: Store customer details, notes, emails and activity history
- Opportunity tracking: Manage potential sales and see where each deal stands
- Task management: Set reminders and follow-up actions so nothing gets missed
- Sales pipelines: Use one or multiple pipelines, depending on plan
- Integrations: Connect Capsule with tools such as Xero, QuickBooks, Gmail, Outlook, Mailchimp and Zapier
Capsule pricing
| Free | Free | Up to two users managing a small number of contacts |
| Starter | From £14 per user per month, billed annually | Small businesses with one to five employees |
| Growth | From £27 per user per month, billed annually | Small sales teams that need automations and reporting |
| Advanced | From £42 per user per month, billed annually | Larger sales teams with more complex pipelines |
HubSpot
HubSpot is one of the most popular starting points for small businesses because its free CRM is genuinely useful. It gives you somewhere to manage contacts, deals, tasks, forms, live chat and basic sales activity before you are ready to pay for more advanced tools.
The main thing to watch is cost as you grow. HubSpot’s free and Starter tools are attractive, but Professional and Enterprise plans can become expensive once you add seats, onboarding and multiple hubs. That said, if you want CRM, marketing, sales and service tools on one platform, it is one of the strongest options.
HubSpot’s free CRM functionality is available for up to two users and 1,000 contacts, with no expiration date.
Key features
- Free CRM: Manage contacts, deals, tasks and basic sales activity without paying upfront
- Sales tools: Use pipelines, meeting links, email templates and email tracking
- Marketing and service options: Add forms, live chat, service tools and marketing features
- Automation: Access more advanced workflows on higher-tier plans
- Large app marketplace: Connect HubSpot with a wide range of sales, marketing and business tools
HubSpot pricing
| Free | Free | Very small teams starting with CRM |
| Starter | From £7 per seat per month | Small businesses that want core paid CRM tools |
| Professional | From £702 per month | Sales teams that need more automation and scaling tools |
| Enterprise | From £3,000 per month | Larger teams that need advanced control and flexibility |
Zoho CRM
Zoho CRM covers the main CRM essentials, including leads, contacts, deals, tasks, workflows, reports and automation, all for a very competitive price.
It is particularly worth considering if you already use other Zoho apps, such as Zoho Books, Zoho Desk or Zoho Campaigns. The wider Zoho ecosystem is one of its strengths, though you might find that setup takes more effort than simpler tools such as Capsule or Pipedrive.
Zoho CRM has a free edition for up to three users and paid plans that scale from Standard through to Ultimate.
Key features
- Lead and deal management: Track prospects, opportunities and customer activity
- Workflow automation: Automate follow-ups, alerts and routine sales tasks
- Sales forecasting: Use reports and forecasts to understand likely revenue
- Email and marketing tools: Connect CRM activity with email and campaign features
- Zoho ecosystem: Integrate CRM with other Zoho business apps
Zoho CRM pricing
| Free | Free for up to three users | Micro businesses and very small teams |
| Standard | From £12 per user per month, billed annually | Small businesses that need core CRM features |
| Professional | From £18 per user per month, billed annually | Sales teams that need stronger automation |
| Enterprise | From £35 per user per month, billed annually | Businesses that need advanced customisation and AI features |
| Ultimate | From £42 per user per month, billed annually | Larger teams that need higher limits and more advanced capabilities |
Freshsales
Freshsales, from Freshworks, is a practical CRM that offers sales tools and customer communication features in one place. It includes built-in chat, email and phone features, which can be useful if your team spends a lot of time speaking to leads and customers.
It is also a good option if you want a free plan to start with, but know you may need automation, multiple pipelines, AI scoring or custom reports later. The interface is fairly approachable, and the paid plans are competitively priced compared with many larger CRM platforms.
Freshsales offers a free plan for up to three users, plus Growth, Pro and Enterprise paid plans.
Key features
- Built-in phone, email and chat: Manage customer conversations from inside the CRM
- Kanban views: View contacts, accounts and deals in a simple visual format
- Basic workflows: Automate simple sales tasks on the Growth plan
- Freddy AI features: Access AI scoring, sales emails and deal insights on higher plans
- Custom reports: Build more detailed reporting on Pro and Enterprise plans
Freshsales pricing
| Free | Free for up to three users | Small teams just starting out |
| Growth | From £7 per user per month, billed annually | Startups and SMBs needing pipeline management |
| Pro | From £29 per user per month, billed annually | Growing teams that need AI assistance and advanced sales features |
| Enterprise | From £49 per user per month, billed annually | Larger businesses that need customisation and governance |
Workbooks
Workbooks is a UK-based CRM that’s great for more established small and medium-sized businesses. It offers CRM, sales, marketing and customer service features, as well as clear pricing and genuinely helpful support.
It’s probably not the first choice for a one-person business looking for a free CRM. But if you have a proper sales process, need customer service case management, want to create quotations or need to connect CRM with finance and order processes, Workbooks is worth considering.
Workbooks offers a 30-day free trial, with its CRM package starting from £32 per user per month.
Key features
- Opportunity and pipeline management: Track sales opportunities from lead to close
- Quotations: Create and send quotes from inside the CRM
- Customer service: Manage tickets and customer cases
- Office 365 integration: Connect CRM activity with Microsoft tools
- Business management options: Add order, invoicing and contract features on higher plans
Workbooks pricing
| Free Trial | £0 for 30 days | Testing the CRM before committing |
| CRM | £32 per user per month | Core CRM, opportunity management and customer service |
| CRM Pro | £48 per user per month | CRM users that need the available extensions included |
| Business | £67 per user per month | Teams that also need orders, invoices and contracts |
| Business Pro | £82 per user per month | More advanced CRM and business management needs |
How to choose the right CRM system
The best CRM system is the one your team will actually use. A powerful platform is not much help if it is too complicated, too expensive or too detached from the way your business sells.
Before choosing, think about what problem you are trying to solve. A sole trader may only need a better way to manage contacts and reminders. A small sales team might need pipeline tracking, email templates and basic automation. A growing business may need reporting, permissions, customer service tools and integrations with accounting, marketing or project management software.
It is also worth thinking about where your business is heading. Switching CRM later can be painful, especially once customer data, email history, automations and reports are all tied into one platform. Choosing a tool that gives you enough room to grow can save you work further down the line.
Which CRM system is best for your business?
For businesses that want a highly customisable CRM with automation and room to scale, Creatio is our top pick. It’s best suited to companies that want to build CRM workflows around their own sales, marketing and service processes, rather than forcing everything into a rigid template.
Salesforce is a strong choice for growing businesses that want a well-established CRM platform with plenty of scale. Pipedrive is better for sales-led teams that want a clean pipeline view and simple deal tracking. monday CRM works well for visual teams that want CRM to sit alongside project and workflow management, while Capsule is a sensible option for smaller businesses that want something simple and tidy.
The right CRM should make your life easier, not introduce unnecessarily complex processes into your operations. Start with the features you genuinely need, check the total cost for your team size, and choose a system that fits the way your business already works.
