The EspoCRM Insider’s Guide
Everything we know about EspoCRM in one document: what it costs, its grades, getting a refund, getting help and what else to look at. Read it here, or keep a copy.
EspoCRM
The Insider’s Guide
Open-source CRM you can self-host for free or rent in the cloud
Every plan, grade, refund rule and rival among CRM tools, read from EspoCRM’s own pages.
Made by EspoCRM · checked Oct 5, 2026 · toolgpa.com
Contents
- 01WelcomeWhat it is, who it suits, its grades and the ten things to know first
- 02What it costsEvery plan, the free plan, ways to pay less and how prices have moved
- 03What it doesIts main features, where it runs, what it works with and who makes it
- 04Where it standsIts grades against its category, and whether to keep it or make your own
- 05The alternativesThe tools it is most often weighed against, side by side
- 06Quick answersThe questions people ask about it, each answered in a line or two
- 07About ToolGPAWho made this guide, what else is on the site, and how to cite it
ToolGPA put this guide together from EspoCRM’s own pages, its app-store listings and our grades. Every fact in it is on EspoCRM’s page too, where it is kept up to date. Checked Oct 5, 2026.
Part 01 · Overview
Welcome
What it is, who it suits, its grades and the ten things to know first
2.6
GPA, above 35 of the 48 other CRM tools we grade
EspoCRM is an open-source web CRM for accounts, leads, opportunities, support cases and email campaigns, licensed under AGPLv3. It can be installed on your own server at no charge, or used as a hosted cloud service priced per user with seat minimums. The cloud plans bundle the official extensions, such as workflows, reports, quotes and invoicing, that self-hosted installs buy separately.
To get you started, here are 9 things to know about EspoCRM, taken from its own pages and our grades.
No rating on record, and this isn't an app you open and start using.
- 1
Best for teams that want to host their own CRM
It covers pipelines, workflows, quotes, invoices, support cases and custom entities.
- 2
Paid plans start at $15 a month for each person
As its pricing page puts it: $15 per user / month, minimum 3 users, billed for 6 months or 1 year.
- 3
There is a free plan
Self-hosted EspoCRM is free and open source under AGPLv3, with no per-user fees, on your own server. Official extensions such as the Advanced Pack are bought separately when self-hosting.
- 4
It runs on Web
Web.
- 5
Core CRM and sales pipelines
Accounts, contacts, leads and opportunities with customizable sales stages, probability and expected close dates, shown as lists or a drag-and-drop kanban board.
- 6
Workflows and BPM
Trigger-based and scheduled workflows send emails, update fields or create records, and business processes can be modeled as BPMN 2.0 flowcharts.
- 7
Email sync and mass email
Syncs inbound mail from IMAP mailboxes, sends through SMTP accounts from any record, and runs bulk campaigns to target lists with opt-out handling and tracking.
- 8
A 2.6 GPA, above 35 of 48
That is against the other CRM tools we grade, on value, the free plan, features, ease of use and platforms.
- 9
Keep it
To replace EspoCRM you would be making connections to other products, each kept working as those products change. That is not a weekend's work, with an AI app builder or without one.
EspoCRM at a glance
- Pricing
- Free plan, from $15 per user / month, minimum 3 users, billed for 6 months or 1 year
- Free plan
- Yes
- Free trial
- 30-day free trial of the cloud service
- Runs on
- Web
- Made by
- EspoCRM, since 2014
- Category
- CRM Software
- Our grade
- 2.6 GPA, good
The report card
Best for teams that want to host their own CRM
EspoCRM is an open-source CRM you can run on your own server with no per-user fee, or rent in the cloud from $15 a user. It covers pipelines, workflows, quotes, invoices, support cases and custom entities. But self-hosting means running the server and paying extra for workflows and reports, the cloud needs at least 3 users billed 6 months at a time, and there's no phone app.
| Subject | Grade | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | C | Cloud Basic is $15 a user a month, which is mid-pack for the CRMs here, and you need at least 3 users billed 6 months or a year at a time. Every official extension is included, so you're not paying twice for workflows or reports. Free if you host it yourself, but then those extensions cost extra. |
| Free plan and trial | B | The open-source core is free on your own server, with no per-user fee and no time limit. The catch is you're running the server, and workflows, BPM and reports sit in the paid Advanced Pack. The cloud only gets a 30-day trial. |
| Features | B | Leads and opportunities on a kanban board, trigger-based workflows and BPMN process flows, email sync and mass campaigns, quotes, invoices and inventory, cases with a customer portal, custom entities built in the UI. It covers the CRM job, as long as you're on a cloud plan that bundles the extensions. |
| Ease of use | C | No rating on record, and this isn't an app you open and start using. You're connecting IMAP and SMTP mailboxes, setting up stages and building entities, and if you take the free route you're installing it on a server or with Docker first. |
| Platforms and integrations | B | A web app, with no phone or desktop app on our listing. It connects to Google Calendar, Outlook, Zoom, Stripe, Mailchimp, Twilio, Zapier and Make, and there's a REST API, so you can wire it into whatever else you run. |
An A is worth 4 points, a B 3, a C 2, a D 1 and an F nothing. The GPA is the average of the five.
Who EspoCRM is for
- Fits if you want a CRM on your own server with no per-user fee
- Works for companies that want CRM, quotes, invoices and inventory in one system
Who it is not for
- Skip it if you're one or two people wanting the cloud, as plans need at least 3, 5 or 10 users
- Not for you if you can't run a server and won't pay, because free means self-hosted
- Tight if you self-host and want workflows, BPM or reports, which sit in the paid Advanced Pack
- Watch out: Basic and Enterprise are billed 6 or 12 months at a time, and cloud admins can't install extensions
- Tight if you're on cloud Basic: 100,000 records and 3 GB of files a user, on the web only
Good to know
Good for
- Teams that want to host a CRM on their own server with no per-user fee
- Businesses that need custom entities and business process automation
- Companies wanting CRM, quoting, invoicing and inventory in one system
Worth knowing
- Cloud plans have seat minimums of 3, 5 and 10 users, and Basic and Enterprise are billed for 6 months or 1 year at a time.
- The Basic cloud plan is capped at 100,000 records and 3 GB of file storage per user.
- Workflows, BPM and reports belong to the Advanced Pack extension, which self-hosted installs must purchase.
- Cloud admins cannot install extensions themselves, and Zapier or Make connections need accounts with those services.
Part 02 · Pricing
What it costs
Every plan, the free plan, ways to pay less and how prices have moved
$15
A month to start, for each person. There is a free plan too
EspoCRM has a free plan. Paid plans start at $15 per user / month, minimum 3 users, billed for 6 months or 1 year.
Every official extension is included, so you're not paying twice for workflows or reports.
Self-hosted
Free
The open-source core on your own server, installed directly or with the official Docker image. No per-user fees.
Basic
$15.00
per user / month, min. 3 users, billed for 6 months or 1 year
3 GB of file storage per user and 100,000 records, with the full feature set, all official extensions, API access and 12x5 support.
Enterprise
$25.00
per user / month, min. 5 users, billed for 6 months or 1 year
10 GB of file storage per user and 10,000,000 records, which can be extended for an additional fee.
Ultimate
$69.00
per user / month, minimum 10 users
400 GB of file storage and unlimited records on a private server with a dedicated IP address and your own domain name.
The free plan
Self-hosted EspoCRM is free and open source under AGPLv3, with no per-user fees, on your own server. Official extensions such as the Advanced Pack are bought separately when self-hosting.
Trying it first
30-day free trial of the cloud service
Read from espocrm.com on Oct 5, 2026.
Part 03 · Features
What it does
Its main features, where it runs, what it works with and who makes it
1
Place it runs: Web
Open-source CRM you can self-host for free or rent in the cloud. Here is what it does, as its own site describes it, and what it covers: open source, self-hostable, public API, kanban boards, sales pipeline, workflow automation, reports.
It covers the CRM job, as long as you're on a cloud plan that bundles the extensions.
- Core CRM and sales pipelines
- Accounts, contacts, leads and opportunities with customizable sales stages, probability and expected close dates, shown as lists or a drag-and-drop kanban board.
- Workflows and BPM
- Trigger-based and scheduled workflows send emails, update fields or create records, and business processes can be modeled as BPMN 2.0 flowcharts.
- Email sync and mass email
- Syncs inbound mail from IMAP mailboxes, sends through SMTP accounts from any record, and runs bulk campaigns to target lists with opt-out handling and tracking.
- Quotes, invoices and inventory
- The Sales Pack adds a product catalog, price books, quotes, sales orders, invoices, purchase orders and warehouse inventory tracking.
- Cases, portal and knowledge base
- Support cases are tracked to resolution with priorities and statuses, and a portal lets customers or partners submit cases and read articles.
- Entity Manager and REST API
- Custom entities, fields and relationships are created in the UI without code, and a REST API with OpenAPI support connects external systems.
Where it runs
- Web
What it works with
- Google Calendar
- Microsoft Outlook
- Zoom
- Stripe
- Mailchimp
- Zapier
- Make
- Twilio
EspoCRM is made by EspoCRM, and has been around since 2014.
Part 04 · Standing
Where it stands
Its grades against its category, and whether to keep it or make your own
35/48
Other CRM tools it is graded above
EspoCRM's GPA of 2.6 is higher than 35 of the 48 other CRM tools we grade, and level with 4.
It stands best on free plan and trial (B, above 37 of 48) and worst on ease of use (C, above 1).
Its paid plans start at $15 a month for each person, against a middle price of $24 for the category: 15 of the 46 others that charge start lower.
On features, ease of use and platforms it scores 2.7 out of 4. 3 tools score higher and cost less.
Each grade against the category
Every bar is all 49 CRM tools we grade, cut by the letter each got. EspoCRM’s own letter is outlined.
- CValue for moneyAbove 18 of 48
- BFree plan and trialAbove 37 of 48
- BFeaturesAbove 18 of 48
- CEase of useAbove 1 of 48
- BPlatforms and integrationsAbove 5 of 48
Price against what you get
Each dot is one of 47 CRM tools. Further left costs less; higher up scores better on features, ease of use and platforms. EspoCRM is the marked dot.
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
Keep it, or make your own?
Whether this is something you could build for yourself with an AI app builder, and what you would give up.
Keep it
To replace EspoCRM you would be making connections to other products, each kept working as those products change. That is not a weekend's work, with an AI app builder or without one.
It is one of the better ones too: its GPA of 2.6 is higher than 35 of the 48 other CRM tools we grade. It costs $180 a year. EspoCRM is open source, so there is a third way: take its code and run it yourself.
What you could make
- Sales pipeline, kanban boards and reports: an app builder makes these well.
What you could not
- Connections to other products, each kept working as those products change.
- It is priced for each person, which means accounts and billing for a team.
- The depth: we grade its features B, which means it covers the whole job.
What this rests on. EspoCRM’s listing: what it does, where it runs, what it plugs into and what it costs. It is a judgement about the kind of software this is. We have not built a replacement for it, and making your own means looking after it too. How we decide, and every tool’s verdict.
Part 05 · Alternatives
The alternatives
The tools it is most often weighed against, side by side
SuiteCRM, Vtiger, Twenty, Odoo CRM and Zoho CRM
The 5 tools EspoCRM is most often weighed against, with where each one differs from it.
- 2.4GPA
SuiteCRM
Free plan · from £130/mo
Open-source CRM with no per-user license fees.
- EspoCRM also covers kanban boards.
- SuiteCRM also covers marketing automation.
- 2.8GPA
Vtiger
Free plan · from $12/mo
All-in-one CRM with a free cloud plan and an open-source edition.
- Only Vtiger lists iOS and Android apps.
- EspoCRM also covers kanban boards and reports.
- Vtiger also covers marketing automation and invoicing.
- 2.8GPA
Twenty
Free plan · from $9/mo
Open-source CRM with a custom data model, cloud or self-hosted.
- EspoCRM also covers kanban boards and reports.
- Twenty also covers AI agents.
- 2.8GPA
Odoo CRM
Free plan · from $31.10/mo
Open-source CRM app from the Odoo business suite.
- Only Odoo CRM lists iOS and Android apps.
- 2.6GPA
Zoho CRM
Free plan · from $14/mo
Sales CRM with a free edition, process automation and Zia AI.
- Only Zoho CRM lists iOS and Android apps.
- EspoCRM is open source and self-hostable, according to its own site.
- EspoCRM also covers kanban boards and reports.
Part 06 · Questions
Quick answers
The questions people ask about it, each answered in a line or two
14
Questions, each answered in a line or two
The short version of everything above, for when you only need the answer. Each one is told in full in its part of the guide.
Is EspoCRM free?
EspoCRM has a free plan. Self-hosted EspoCRM is free and open source under AGPLv3, with no per-user fees, on your own server.
How much does EspoCRM cost?
EspoCRM lists 4 plans. Self-hosted: Free.
What platforms does EspoCRM work on?
EspoCRM is available on Web.
Does EspoCRM have an Android app?
No Android app was listed when its pages were read on Oct 5, 2026. EspoCRM is listed for Web.
Does EspoCRM have an iPhone app?
No iPhone app was listed when its pages were read on Oct 5, 2026. EspoCRM is listed for Web.
Is EspoCRM open source?
Yes. EspoCRM is open source, according to its own site.
Does EspoCRM have an API?
Yes. EspoCRM offers a public API, according to its own site.
What does EspoCRM integrate with?
EspoCRM's listing names Google Calendar, Microsoft Outlook, Zoom, Stripe, Mailchimp, Zapier, Make and Twilio.
Does EspoCRM have a free trial?
Yes. 30-day free trial of the cloud service.
Who makes EspoCRM?
EspoCRM is made by a company of the same name. It dates from 2014.
What are the alternatives to EspoCRM?
The closest alternatives to EspoCRM in our directory are SuiteCRM, Vtiger, Twenty, Odoo CRM and Zoho CRM.
How does EspoCRM compare with other CRM tools?
EspoCRM's GPA of 2.6 is higher than 35 of the 48 other CRM tools we grade, and level with 4.
Is EspoCRM good value for money?
ToolGPA grades EspoCRM C for value for money. Its paid plans start at $15 a month for each person, against a middle price of $24 for the category: 15 of the 46 others that charge start lower.
Could I make my own version of EspoCRM?
To replace EspoCRM you would be making connections to other products, each kept working as those products change.
Where this guide comes from
The prices, plans, platforms and features were read from EspoCRM’s own pages on Oct 5, 2026, and the grades were given on Oct 10, 2026. Graded from this listing, whose facts were read from EspoCRM's own pages on 5 October 2026. Also tested with a demo account on 2026-04-06.
Every tool we list gets five grades, A to F, each with its reason, and a GPA that averages them. How each is decided is at toolgpa.com/grades. This guide is ToolGPA’s own work; it is not made, paid for or approved by EspoCRM. Prices change, so check espocrm.com before you buy.
Part 07 · About
About ToolGPA
Who made this guide, what else is on the site, and how to cite it
3,189
Tools graded, in 94 categories
ToolGPA grades software the way a school report grades a pupil: five subjects, a letter for each with the reason written beside it, and a GPA that averages them. Prices, plans and platforms are read from each maker’s own pages and dated, so you always know how fresh a figure is.
Every grade, review and ranking on ToolGPA is our own judgement. No company can pay for a grade or change one. Every tool on the site has a guide like this one, free to download and pass on. It all lives at toolgpa.com.
3,189
tools graded
94
categories
426
price changes on record
579
apps priced in 12 countries
What else is on toolgpa.com
- EspoCRM, kept up to dateEverything in this guide, with prices and grades as they are todaytoolgpa.com/tools/espocrm
- How grades are givenThe rules behind every letter and every GPAtoolgpa.com/grades
- Value chartsWhat each tool costs against what it scores, for every categorytoolgpa.com/charts
- CompareAny two tools side by side, plan by plantoolgpa.com/compare
- Price changesEvery price rise and cut on record, each with its sourcetoolgpa.com/price-changes
- Prices by countryWhat apps cost on the App Store in 12 countriestoolgpa.com/prices-by-country
- Pay lessEvery public discount: yearly billing, students, nonprofitstoolgpa.com/save
- Keep or makeWhich tools are worth paying for, and which you could build yourselftoolgpa.com/keep-or-make
Scan for the live page
Prices and grades as they are today
Quoting this guide?
Please name ToolGPA and link to the live page, so readers can check the figures for themselves:
ToolGPA, "EspoCRM: The Insider's Guide", checked Oct 5, 2026. https://toolgpa.com/tools/espocrm
Know someone choosing between CRM tools?
Send them this guide: toolgpa.com/tools/espocrm/guide
ToolGPA elsewhere: youtube.com/@toolgpa
See our other guides
The best-graded CRM tools after EspoCRM, each with an Insider's Guide of its own.
- CRM Software Insider's GuideEvery one of the 49 CRM tools we grade, compared
- HubSpot Insider's GuideFree CRM at the center of a marketing, sales and service suite3.2 GPA
- Bigin by Zoho CRM Insider's GuidePipeline-based CRM from Zoho for small businesses2.8 GPA
- Bitrix24 Insider's GuideFlat-priced CRM with tasks, chat, video calls and a site builder2.8 GPA
Choosing software? Every tool graded, every price dated.
Compare tools at toolgpa.com ›Everything in this guide is ToolGPA’s own summary of what EspoCRM’s pages, its app-store listings and public reviews said on the dates shown. Grades are our judgement under the rules at toolgpa.com/grades. Every grade, review and ranking on ToolGPA is our own judgement. No company can pay for a grade or change one. EspoCRM is a trademark of its owner, and this guide is not made, paid for or approved by EspoCRM. Prices and plans change: check espocrm.com before you buy.