Freshsales has the lowest entry price in this group at $9 per user per month on annual billing, while Zoho CRM and Pipedrive start at $14 per user per month. HubSpot Sales Hub, Zoho CRM and Apollo.io offer a free option, so a small team can start without a monthly subscription. Salesforce Sales Cloud starts at $25 per user per month and suits larger teams that need deep customization and forecasting.
We compared 8 options for best sales automation software reviews. Each profile below lists the price, free plan, pros and cons as published by the company.
On this page
Best sales automation software reviews: comparison table
Swipe the table sideways on a phone to see every column.
| # | Name | Best for | Starting price | Free plan / trial | Link |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | HubSpot Sales Hub | All round sales CRM and automation | $10 per seat per month | Yes | Visit |
| 2 | Salesforce Sales Cloud | Large teams and deep customization | $25 per user per month | Free trial (30 days) | Visit |
| 3 | Pipedrive | Visual pipelines for small teams | $14 per seat per month | Free trial (14 days) | Visit |
| 4 | Zoho CRM | Value and wide feature range | $14 per user per month | Yes | Visit |
| 5 | Freshsales | Low cost CRM with built in phone and chat | $9 per user per month | Free trial (21 days) | Visit |
| 6 | ActiveCampaign | Email automation with a CRM | $15 per month | Free trial (14 days) | Visit |
| 7 | Apollo.io | Prospecting data and sequences | $49 per user per month | Yes | Visit |
| 8 | monday CRM | Visual boards and no code workflows | $12 per seat per month | Free trial (14 days) | Visit |
The 8 best best sales automation software reviews, in detail
HubSpot Sales Hub
Best for: All round sales CRM and automation
HubSpot Sales Hub is a sales CRM built on the HubSpot Smart CRM, and it covers deal tracking, meeting scheduling, email templates, sequences and pipeline management in one place. The free plan covers up to 2 users. Starter adds more pipelines and calling minutes, while Professional adds forecasting, conversation intelligence, playbooks and up to 300 workflows.
- Enterprise adds up to 1,000 workflows and deal approvals.
- The pricing page opened for this review shows a Starter offer of $10 per seat per month, with Professional from $90 and Enterprise from $150 per seat
- Add the one time onboarding fee of $1,500 on Professional or $3,500 on Enterprise to the first year total.
- HubSpot fits a team that wants one system for contacts, deals, email and reporting.
Pros
- Free plan for up to 2 users
- wide range of sales, marketing and service tools in one system
- sequences, workflows and forecasting on higher plans
Cons
- Professional and Enterprise carry one time onboarding fees of $1,500 and $3,500
Salesforce Sales Cloud
Best for: Large teams and deep customization
Salesforce Sales Cloud covers leads, opportunities, forecasting, quoting and pipeline management at a scale few other tools in this list match. Starter Suite starts at $25 per user per month, while Pro Suite is $100 per user per month on annual billing. Above those suites sit Core at $195, Advanced at $395 and Max at $550 per user per month, all billed annually.
- Sales Cloud editions carry a 30 day free trial.
- Salesforce stands out for the depth of its objects, approval flows, reports and integrations, and the way it can be shaped around a complex sales proc
- Core adds advanced forecasting and Premier Success, while Max adds Agentforce for Sales, Spiff for commissions and Sales Planning.
- API access is a separate $25 per user per month add on for Pro Suite.
Pros
- Very deep customization and forecasting
- large integration ecosystem
- separate editions for small and large teams
Cons
- Higher plans cost $195 to $550 per user per month, and setup often needs an admin or partner
Pipedrive
Best for: Visual pipelines for small teams
Pipedrive is a sales CRM built around a visual pipeline, and it suits a team that wants to see every deal, its stage and its next step at a glance. Lite starts at $14 per seat per month on annual billing, Growth is $39, Premium is $59 and Ultimate is $79 per seat per month. Monthly billing costs more, at $24, $49, $79 and $99 per seat per month for the same four plans.
- Every plan starts with a 14 day free trial and no card is required to start the trial.
- There is no permanent free plan.
- Lite covers lead, calendar and pipeline management, while Growth adds full email sync, automations, email sequences and forecast reports.
- Premium adds LeadBooster, Projects and Smart Docs, and Ultimate adds data enrichment, security rules and a sandbox.
Pros
- Clear visual pipeline and simple setup
- automations and sequences from the Growth plan
- 14 day free trial with no card required
Cons
- No free plan, and email sync and automations start on Growth at $39 per seat per month
Zoho CRM
Best for: Value and wide feature range
Zoho CRM is a full CRM with sales automation, and it offers one of the widest feature ranges for its entry price in this group. The free edition covers up to 3 users, and the subscription editions are Standard at $14, Professional at $23, Enterprise at $40 and Ultimate at $52 per user per month on annual billing. Monthly billing costs more, at $20, $35, $50 and $65 per user per month.
- Subscription editions carry a 15 day free trial.
- Standard covers core CRM tools, while Professional adds Blueprint process management, CPQ, inventory and portals.
- Enterprise and Ultimate add more customization and governance.
- A buyer should still read the full price picture, because support, extra storage, backup and portal access are priced separately.
Pros
- Free plan for up to 3 users
- four subscription editions from $14 to $52 per user per month
- wide range of features for the price
Cons
- Support, storage, backup and portal access can add cost beyond the licence price
Freshsales
Best for: Low cost CRM with built in phone and chat
Freshsales is the sales CRM from Freshworks, and it combines contact and deal management with built in phone, email and chat in one workspace. Growth starts at $9 per user per month on annual billing, Pro is $39 and Enterprise is $59 per user per month. A 21 day free trial gives full access to the subscription features, and there is no permanent free plan on the current pricing page.
- Growth includes a Kanban pipeline, contact lifecycle stages, built in chat, email and phone, and basic workflows.
- Pro adds contact scoring, deal insights, territory management, sales sequences and multiple pipelines.
- The step from Growth to Pro is steep, at more than four times the price, and it contains the features most sales teams regard as core automation, so b
Pros
- Lowest entry price in this group
- built in phone, email and chat
- no onboarding fee listed
Cons
- Pro costs $39 per user per month, more than four times Growth, and sequences sit on Pro
ActiveCampaign
Best for: Email automation with a CRM
ActiveCampaign is an email marketing and automation platform with a CRM, and it is the strongest choice in this group for a team whose sales work starts with email. Starter costs $15 per month on annual billing at the 1,000 contact band, Plus is $49, Pro is $79 and Enterprise is $145 per month at the same band. Monthly billing costs about 20 percent more.
- There is no permanent free plan, and a 14 day free trial is offered.
- The price is set by contact count, not by seat count, so the total moves when the list grows.
- At 5,000 contacts, Starter is $79 per month and Plus is $145 per month.
- Starter includes email marketing, basic automation and forms, with 1 user and a send allowance of 10 times the contact limit.
Pros
- Strong automation builder with many ready made recipes
- CRM included on subscription plans
- clear contact based pricing bands
Cons
- Price rises with contact count, and Starter limits each automation to 5 actions and 1 user
Apollo.io
Best for: Prospecting data and sequences
Apollo.io is a sales platform that combines prospecting data, enrichment, sequences and calling in one system. The free plan costs $0 and includes 900 credits per year and 2 sequences, while Basic is $49 per user per month on annual billing with 30,000 credits per year, unlimited sequences and CRM integrations. Professional is $79 per user per month with 48,000 credits per year, a US dialer and AI research, and Organization is $119 per user per month with 72,000 credits per year, an international dialer and single sign on.
- Apollo.io suits a team that does outbound prospecting every day, because it removes the need for a separate data tool, sequencing tool and dialer.
- One limit is that all seats on an account must be on the same plan, so the plan must fit the highest need user.
- Set per user credit caps and track credit use each week, because unused credits expire at the end of each billing cycle.
Pros
- Free plan with 900 credits per year
- large contact database with sequences and dialer in one place
- clear per seat pricing
Cons
- Credits do not roll over, and all seats on an account must be on the same plan
monday CRM
Best for: Visual boards and no code workflows
monday CRM is the CRM product from monday.com, and it uses visual boards to manage leads, deals and sales tasks. Basic is $12 per seat per month on annual billing, Standard is $17 and Pro is $28 per seat per month, with Ultimate quoted by sales. Monthly billing costs $18, $25 and $41 per seat per month for the same three plans.
- Every plan has a three seat minimum, so the real entry cost on Basic is $36 per month on annual billing, not $12.
- Basic covers 1,000 active contacts and deals, one dashboard and 20 quotes and invoices per month.
- Standard raises the limit to 10,000 contacts and deals and adds 250 custom automations per month.
- Pro adds forecasting, mass emails and email sequences.
Pros
- Visual boards that are easy to read
- no code automations from Standard
- clear per seat pricing
Cons
- Three seat minimum on every plan, and Basic has no custom automations
How we chose
We compared the pricing pages, plan tables and feature lists for each tool on 12 November 2026, and we checked the free plan, trial length, entry price and the plan that adds core automation. We gave weight to tools that publish a clear price and that cover a distinct job, such as CRM automation, email automation or outbound prospecting. We did not claim hands on testing, and we did not use review scores, awards or customer counts to rank the tools. Prices change, so confirm the total for your seat count and billing term before you buy.
What to check before you buy
Check the plan that adds the automation you need, because the entry plan often lacks sequences, workflows or custom automations. Check the billing term, because annual billing is cheaper per month but commits the team for 12 months. Check seat minimums, contact limits and credit limits, because a three seat minimum, a contact band or a credit pool can change the total. Check add ons for phone, SMS, documents, API access and support, and check data import and export. Check the trial terms and renewal terms, because a one time fee and a price rise at renewal can change the first and second year totals.
Frequently asked questions
What is sales automation software?
Sales automation software covers tools that handle repeat sales tasks, such as lead capture, follow up emails, deal stage changes, task creation and pipeline updates. A CRM with automation can move a deal, send a note and set a task when a lead replies, so a rep spends less time on admin and more time on calls. The best fit depends on whether the team needs CRM automation, email automation or outbound prospecting.
Which sales automation tool is cheapest to start?
Freshsales Growth is the cheapest entry plan in this group at $9 per user per month on annual billing, followed by monday CRM Basic at $12 and Pipedrive Lite and Zoho CRM Standard at $14 per user per month. HubSpot Sales Hub, Zoho CRM and Apollo.io also offer a free option, so a very small team can start at $0. Check the plan that adds automation, because the cheapest plan may lack sequences or workflows.
Is there a free sales automation tool?
Yes, HubSpot Sales Hub offers a free plan for up to 2 users, Zoho CRM offers a free plan for up to 3 users, and Apollo.io offers a free plan with 900 credits per year. Pipedrive, Freshsales, ActiveCampaign and monday CRM offer a free trial instead, with trial lengths from 14 to 21 days. A free plan suits a test or a very small team.
Do I need a CRM and a sales automation tool?
Most teams need both jobs done, and many tools in this list do both in one product. HubSpot Sales Hub, Salesforce Sales Cloud, Pipedrive, Zoho CRM, Freshsales and monday CRM are CRMs with automation built in. ActiveCampaign is email automation with a CRM, and Apollo.io is prospecting data with sequences. Pick a CRM first if deal tracking is the main job, and add a prospecting tool if outbound volume is the main job.
How much should a small team budget for sales automation?
A team of 5 users can expect $45 per month on Freshsales Growth, $70 per month on Zoho CRM Standard, $85 per month on monday CRM Standard, $195 per month on Pipedrive Growth and $245 per month on Apollo.io Basic, all on annual billing before tax. Add onboarding fees and add ons to those totals, and budget for the higher plan from the start if forecasting or sequences are needed.
Which tool is best for outbound prospecting?
Apollo.io is the best fit in this group for outbound prospecting, because it combines a contact database, enrichment, sequences and a dialer in one plan from $49 per user per month. HubSpot Sales Hub and Pipedrive also cover sequences, but they do not include a large prospecting database in the base price. A team that buys Apollo.io should track credit use each week, because credits expire at the end of each billing cycle.
Sources
- https://www.hubspot.com/
- https://www.hubspot.com/pricing/sales
- https://www.salesforce.com/
- https://www.salesforce.com/sales/pricing/
- https://www.pipedrive.com/
- https://www.pipedrive.com/en/pricing
- https://www.zoho.com/
- https://www.zoho.com/crm/zohocrm-pricing.html
- https://www.freshworks.com/crm/
- https://www.freshworks.com/crm/pricing/
- https://www.activecampaign.com/
- https://www.activecampaign.com/pricing
- https://www.apollo.io/
- https://www.apollo.io/pricing
- https://monday.com/
- https://monday.com/crm/pricing
Prices and features were read on each company’s own website in November 2026. They change often, so confirm the current offer on the official site before you sign up or buy.