Salesforce is the world's leading CRM platform, offering a comprehensive suite of cloud-based applications for sales, service, marketing, e-commerce, and analytics. Founded in 1999 as the first major cloud CRM, Salesforce has grown into an enterprise platform ecosystem with Salesforce Sales Cloud, Service Cloud, Marketing Cloud, Commerce Cloud, and Einstein AI — serving 150,000+ companies worldwide from startups to Fortune 500s. It defines the category of enterprise CRM with the broadest app ecosystem via Salesforce AppExchange.
Business & ProductivityVerified listing
Salesforce
The world's #1 CRM platform — enterprise-grade sales, service, and marketing automation used by 150,000+ companies.
Best for: Mid-market and enterprise companies with complex sales processes, large sales teams, and the budget and technical resources to implement and maintain a customized CRM at scale
- Free trial
- $25 / user / month
4.3/5 ratingEditorial score 82/100salesforce.com
Starts at
$25 / user / month
Start free trial
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Editorial score82/100
The editorial note
What to know about Salesforce
Is it right for you?
Who Salesforce suits
Choose it if
- Mid-market and enterprise companies with complex sales processes, large sales teams, and the budget and technical resources to implement and maintain a customized CRM at scale
Look elsewhere if
- Small and mid-sized businesses without dedicated Salesforce admins — HubSpot CRM or Pipedrive provide modern, affordable CRM capabilities that don't require specialist implementation and administration
What you get
Key features
- Sales Cloud CRM and pipeline management
- Service Cloud customer support
- Marketing Cloud automation
- Einstein AI and analytics
- Salesforce Flow automation
- AppExchange marketplace
- Tableau CRM analytics
- Slack integration
Works with
Integrations8
What it costs
Pricing
| Plan | Price | What it includes |
|---|---|---|
| Starter Suite | $25 / user / monthBilled monthly | CRM with sales, service, and email marketing for small teams |
| Pro Suite | $100 / user / monthBilled monthly | Advanced automation, forecasting, and quoting tools |
| Enterprise | $165 / user / monthBilled monthly | Customizable CRM, API access, and advanced workflow automation |
| Unlimited | $330 / user / monthBilled monthly | Einstein AI, 24/7 support, and full platform capabilities |
Prices are recorded from the vendor's public pricing page and can change. Check before you buy.
The trade-off
Pros and cons
Pros
- World's most comprehensive CRM ecosystem — 6,000+ apps on AppExchange extend functionality infinitely
- Einstein AI provides intelligent sales forecasting, lead scoring, and automated insights
- Salesforce Flow workflow automation handles complex business processes without custom code
- Extremely customizable — virtually every aspect of the platform can be tailored to business needs
- Market-leading adoption means the largest talent pool of Salesforce administrators and developers
Cons
- Extremely expensive — licensing, implementation, and customization costs are prohibitive for SMBs
- Complex implementation requires Salesforce-certified admins and developers — not self-service
- UI can feel cluttered and overwhelming for sales reps compared to modern CRMs like HubSpot
- Contracts are typically annual with steep renewal costs — switching costs are high after implementation
Quick read
At a glance
- Category
- Business & Productivity
- Pricing model
- Subscription
- Entry plan
- $25 / user / month
- Free plan
- Not listed
- Free trial
- Available
- Website
- salesforce.com
Head to head
Salesforce compared
The verdict
Our take on Salesforce
Salesforce is the right choice for enterprises that need the most powerful, customizable CRM available and have the budget to support it. For smaller teams, the complexity and cost create more problems than they solve. If your team is considering Salesforce before 50+ people or $10M in revenue, HubSpot or Pipedrive will likely serve you better at a fraction of the cost.
Editorial review
From the journal
Editorial review of Salesforce
Salesforce is the right choice for enterprises that need the most powerful, customizable CRM available and have the budget to support it. For smaller teams, the complexity and cost create more problems than they solve. If your team is considering Salesforce before 50+ people or $10M in revenue, HubSpot or Pipedrive will likely serve you better at a fraction of the cost.
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