Salesforce alternatives: top competitors compared
Named alongside Salesforce
HubSpotBest forStartups, small and mid-sized businesses and enterprises wanting marketing, sales and service on one CRM.54% of Salesforce answersZendeskBest forSupport teams from startups to enterprises that need omnichannel ticketing with AI automation19% of Salesforce answersZohoBest forBusinesses of all sizes, from startups to enterprises, wanting one suite for sales, support, finance and HR18% of Salesforce answersOutreachBest forRevenue teams, from SDRs and account executives to sales managers, RevOps and customer success, that want prospecting, deal management, coaching and forecasting in one platform.17% of Salesforce answers
Data from SlateIndex weekly runs
Salesforce has a visibility score of 46.2 in Field Service Management, #1 of 39. AI answers that name Salesforce most often also name these 4.
What AI answers fault Salesforce for
Requires a dedicated administrator to manage
Raised in 1 collected answer.
High enterprise pricing
Raised in 1 collected answer.
Heavy, slow implementation that suits large budgets
Raised in 3 collected answers.
Quick reference
| Alternative | Best for | Starting price | Visibility | Key differentiator |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| HubSpot | Startups, small and mid-sized businesses and enterprises wanting marketing, sales and service on one CRM. | Free; paid from $7 per seat / mo | 73.1% | All hubs share one Smart CRM database, with a free tier that never expires. |
| Zendesk | Support teams from startups to enterprises that need omnichannel ticketing with AI automation | $19 per seat / mo | 49.3% | AI agents priced per automated resolution, built into a unified ticketing, messaging and voice platform |
| Zoho | Businesses of all sizes, from startups to enterprises, wanting one suite for sales, support, finance and HR | — | 44.8% | A broad suite of 60+ in-house products on a technology stack and data centers Zoho owns, with no ad-based revenue |
| Outreach | Revenue teams, from SDRs and account executives to sales managers, RevOps and customer success, that want prospecting, deal management, coaching and forecasting in one platform. | Contact sales | 55.1% | Outreach describes itself as the only complete agentic AI platform for revenue teams, where AI agents take action on deals rather than only surfacing insights. |
Alternative 1
HubSpot vs Salesforce →HubSpot
HubSpot suits startups, small and mid-sized businesses and enterprises wanting marketing, sales and service on one CRM..
Quick facts
- Free; paid from $7 per seat / mo · per seat
- Free plan available
- 73.1% visibility score · #1 in Marketing Automation
- 2000+ native integrations
Key features
- Marketing Hub — Marketing automation software for lead generation, campaigns and analytics.
- Sales Hub — Sales software for prospecting, pipeline management, sequences and forecasting.
- Service Hub — Customer service software with help desk workspace, ticketing, knowledge base and customer success tools.
- Content Hub — Content marketing software for websites, landing pages, blogs and podcasts.
HubSpot vs Salesforce
| Dimension | HubSpot | Salesforce |
|---|---|---|
| Visibility score | 73.1% | 46.2% |
| Pricing model | Per seat | — |
| Entry price | Free; paid from $7 per seat / mo | — |
| Free plan | Yes | — |
| Trial | Free plan available | — |
Pros
- intuitive, user-friendly interface
- generous free tier
- all-in-one CRM and marketing platform
- tight CRM integration for live chat and service
- good fit for startups and small businesses
Cons
- higher-tier costs and onboarding fees
- higher month-to-month pricing than annual plans
Alternative 2
Zendesk vs Salesforce →Zendesk
Zendesk suits support teams from startups to enterprises that need omnichannel ticketing with AI automation.
Quick facts
- $19 per seat / mo · per seat
- 49.3% visibility score · #1 in Live Chat & AI Support
- 1800+ native integrations
Key features
- Customer Service — Omnichannel ticketing, messaging, live chat, voice and help center for resolving customer inquiries.
- Employee Service — Service management for internal requests, including IT service management.
- Contact Center — AI-powered contact center across voice and digital channels.
- AI agents — Autonomous agents that resolve issues on any channel, billed per automated resolution.
Zendesk vs Salesforce
| Dimension | Zendesk | Salesforce |
|---|---|---|
| Visibility score | 49.3% | 46.2% |
| Pricing model | Per seat | — |
| Entry price | $19 per seat / mo | — |
| Free plan | No | — |
| Trial | — | — |
Pros
- Industry leader in omnichannel customer support
- Scalable platform for large enterprise teams
- Mature ticketing operations and SLA management
- Extensive marketplace and broad integrations
- Free trial available for 14 days
Cons
- Heavy, slow deployment compared with lighter tools
- High per-agent costs
- AI add-ons billed separately on top of base fee
Alternative 3
Zoho vs Salesforce →Zoho
Zoho suits businesses of all sizes, from startups to enterprises, wanting one suite for sales, support, finance and HR.
Quick facts
- Pricing not available
- 44.8% visibility score · #3 in CRM
Key features
- Zoho CRM — Manage sales, marketing and support in one CRM platform.
- Zoho Desk — Customer service software for support teams.
- Zoho Creator — Low-code platform to build custom business apps.
- Zoho One — Unified suite of 50+ business applications.
Zoho vs Salesforce
| Dimension | Zoho | Salesforce |
|---|---|---|
| Visibility score | 44.8% | 46.2% |
| Pricing model | — | — |
| Entry price | — | — |
| Free plan | — | — |
| Trial | — | — |
Pros
- Strong value for money and low cost
- Free tier for small teams
- Broad functionality and integrated app ecosystem
- Good customization options
- Scales well as businesses grow
Cons
- Less premium user experience
- Pricing varies dramatically across products
Alternative 4
Outreach vs Salesforce →Outreach
Outreach suits revenue teams, from SDRs and account executives to sales managers, RevOps and customer success, that want prospecting, deal management, coaching and forecasting in one platform..
Quick facts
- Contact sales · per seat
- 55.1% visibility score · #2 in Sales Engagement
Key features
- Amplify Essentials — AI-powered intelligence and coaching, with conversation intelligence, real-time coaching and rep performance visibility.
- Amplify Core — AI-powered sales execution for pipeline creation and account management with AI agents.
- Amplify Plus — AI-powered revenue acceleration with live coaching in meetings, automated follow-ups and deal coordination.
- Amplify Pro — Enterprise revenue orchestration with advanced forecasting, territory management and managed services.
Outreach vs Salesforce
| Dimension | Outreach | Salesforce |
|---|---|---|
| Visibility score | 55.1% | 46.2% |
| Pricing model | Per seat | — |
| Entry price | Contact sales | — |
| Free plan | No | — |
| Trial | — | — |
Pros
- Enterprise-grade, mature task-driven sequencing platform
- Deep workflow controls and granular sequence analytics
- Recognized as an enterprise leader by analysts
- Strong multi-channel sequencing, AI-guided selling and forecasting
Cons
- Quote-based pricing with no public prices
- Heavy and complex, slow to configure
- Annual contracts with minimum seat counts
How to choose
Match the pricing model to your cost driver: headcount, usage or features.
| Platform | Pricing model | Starting price |
|---|---|---|
| Salesforce | — | — |
| HubSpot | Per seat | Free; paid from $7 per seat / mo |
| Zendesk | Per seat | $19 per seat / mo |
| Zoho | — | — |
| Outreach | Per seat | Contact sales |
More alternatives
Ranked by how often AI answers name them alongside Salesforce in the latest weekly run.