The Best Free CRM Software (And Where Each One Falls Short)

Looking for free CRM software? Good news: there are legitimate options. Bad news: every "free" CRM has catches you should know about before you invest hours setting one up.

I've tested the major players and I'll tell you exactly what you get for $0, where you'll hit limits, and when you'll realistically need to upgrade. Let's cut through the marketing fluff.

Quick Verdict: Which Free CRM Should You Choose?

Here's the short version:

• HubSpot Free CRM – Best interface and ecosystem, but recently slashed contact limits from 1 million to 1,000
• Zoho CRM Free – 3 users, basic automation included, good for very small teams
• Freshsales Free – 3 users with built-in phone and chat, but limited reporting
• Agile CRM Free – 10 users and 1,000 contacts, but the platform feels dated

If you need a full-featured CRM and have budget, check out our best CRM software guide or CRM for small business roundup.

HubSpot Free CRM

HubSpot is the most popular free CRM, and for good reason—the interface is genuinely excellent. But the free plan has gotten significantly worse recently.

What You Get Free

The free CRM includes contact management, email tracking with Gmail/Outlook integration, deal pipeline visualization, and basic reporting. You can send up to 2,000 marketing emails per month across your entire account. The platform also includes live chat, forms, and landing pages—though everything carries HubSpot branding.

The Big Catches

HubSpot reduced their free contact limit from 1 million to 1,000 contacts in early 2024. That's a massive change that transforms this from a "grow with us" platform to a trial period. Many businesses hit this 1,000 contact threshold within months because HubSpot counts all contact records—prospects, customers, leads, even unqualified contacts.

Other limitations you'll run into:

• Only 2 users for many features
• 1,000 marketing contact limit (you can store more, but can't email them)
• 5 email templates maximum
• 1 deal pipeline
• 3 dashboards with 10 reports each
• No automation workflows or sales sequences
• Mandatory HubSpot branding on forms, emails, chat, and landing pages
• No custom reports
• No role-based permissions—everyone sees everything

Some users have reported that new accounts can no longer connect their inbox (send/receive emails through the system) without a paid plan. That's arguably the main functionality of a CRM.

When You'll Need to Pay

Most businesses hit limitations within 6-12 months. The Starter plan runs about $50/month and removes branding, adds light automation, and increases limits. Full automation requires Professional tier, which gets expensive fast.

HubSpot's free plan works best for solo founders or teams of 1-2 with simple CRM needs and small contact lists. For growing teams, the costs escalate quickly.

Zoho CRM Free

Zoho takes a different approach—fewer features, but more usable for actual work.

What You Get Free

The free plan supports up to 3 users and includes lead, contact, and account management, basic workflow automation, customizable dashboards, email integration, and mobile access. You also get access to integration with other Zoho applications.

The Catches

Storage is tight—only 10MB for your organization. The free plan also limits you on:

• Custom lists (5 per module)
• Email notifications (150 per day)
• No custom reports or advanced analytics
• No email marketing or marketing dashboards
• Basic reporting only

Pricing If You Upgrade

The Standard plan costs $14/user/month (billed annually) or $20/month if paid monthly. It removes the 3-user limit, expands storage to 200MB, and adds mass emailing (250/day), multiple pipelines, custom dashboards, forecasting, and more workflows.

Professional runs $23/user/month and Enterprise hits $40/user/month for AI features and heavy customization.

For a deeper dive on CRM costs, see our cheapest CRM software comparison.

Freshsales Free (Freshworks)

Freshsales offers a genuinely useful free tier with built-in communication tools.

What You Get Free

The free plan supports up to 3 users and includes contact management, deal tracking, built-in phone (with Freshcaller), live chat, email templates, Kanban views, and 24x5 support. No credit card required to start.

The Catches

The free version is quite limited beyond basics:

• No access to the activity dashboard
• No custom fields
• No reports available
• No sales funnel view in deals
• No integrations (Slack, Zoom, etc. require Growth plan)
• No lead scoring or workflows

Also, many "built-in calling features" mentioned on their pricing page actually require subscribing to additional Freshworks products like Freshcaller, which drives up costs.

Pricing If You Upgrade

Growth plan: $9/user/month (billed annually) adds lead scoring, workflows, integrations, and the features you'd actually expect from a CRM.

Pro plan: $39/user/month gets you multiple pipelines, AI insights, call analytics, and forecasting.

Enterprise: $59/user/month for custom modules and advanced permissions.

Freshsales is solid for very small teams willing to work within limitations. The $9/month Growth plan is reasonable if you outgrow free.

Agile CRM Free

Agile CRM has the most generous user limit on free—10 users—but comes with tradeoffs.

What You Get Free

The free plan supports up to 10 users with 1,000 contacts. You get contact management, deal tracking with one pipeline (called "Tracks"), basic lead scoring, appointment scheduling, custom data fields, and email support.

The Catches

Agile's free plan has significant restrictions:

• 1,000 contact/company limit
• 1 campaign workflow only
• 1 automation rule
• 1 integration
• 500 API calls per day
• 5,000 branded emails (then you pay per email)
• No two-way email sync (requires Starter plan)
• No marketing automation or social monitoring
• Email support only (no phone)

Some users report that Agile CRM development appears abandoned, so don't expect cutting-edge features. The interface feels dated compared to HubSpot or Freshsales.

Pricing If You Upgrade

Starter: $8.99/user/month (billed every 2 years) or $14.99/month gets you 10,000 contacts, two-way email sync, and more integrations.

Regular: $29.99/user/month adds telephony and more automation.

Enterprise: $47.99/user/month for dedicated support and onboarding.

Agile works if you need more users on free and can live with an older platform. But for anything serious, you're probably better off with Zoho or Freshsales.

Comparison Table: Free CRM Limits

When Free CRM Makes Sense

Free CRM works if you're:

• A solo founder or freelancer managing under 1,000 contacts
• Testing whether you actually need a CRM before committing
• Running a side project or early-stage startup with minimal budget
• A very small team (2-3 people) with simple sales processes

When You Should Just Pay

Skip the free tier headaches if:

• You have 3+ salespeople who need full access
• You'll hit 1,000+ contacts within a few months
• You need automation to save time on follow-ups
• You want professional emails without "Powered by [CRM]" branding
• You need reporting to actually understand your pipeline

For most growing businesses, a paid CRM tier ($10-20/user/month) is worth it. Check our CRM software comparison for detailed pricing breakdowns.

Alternatives Worth Considering

If you've got budget but want to keep costs low:

Close CRM – Built for sales teams who actually make calls and send emails. No free tier, but the paid plans include features other CRMs charge extra for. Read our Close CRM reviews and pricing breakdown.

Monday.com – Has a free tier for up to 2 users. More of a work management tool with CRM capabilities. See our Monday.com pricing guide.

Bottom Line

HubSpot's free CRM is probably where you should start—the interface is excellent and the learning curve is gentle. Just know you'll likely outgrow it fast.

Zoho CRM Free is the most practical for small teams who want basic automation without paying.

Freshsales Free works if built-in calling matters to you.

Agile CRM gives you the most users for free, but the platform feels stuck in 2017.

The real question isn't "which free CRM is best"—it's whether the time you'll spend hitting limitations and working around restrictions is worth saving $15-50/month. For most businesses, it's not.