The Nutshell Insider’s Guide
Everything we know about Nutshell 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.
Nutshell
The Insider’s Guide
Sales CRM with email marketing, forms and AI built into every plan
Every plan, grade, refund rule and rival among CRM tools, read from Nutshell’s own pages.
Made by Nutshell (part of WebFX) · 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 Nutshell’s own pages, its app-store listings and our grades. Every fact in it is on Nutshell’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
2.4
GPA, above 19 of the 48 other CRM tools we grade
Nutshell is a sales CRM for small and mid-sized teams, with contact management, drag-and-drop pipelines, email and calendar sync and reporting. Every plan also includes a form builder, landing pages, web chat with an AI chatbot and basic email marketing, while fuller marketing and messaging tools are sold as add-ons. It is priced per user across five tiers with no seat minimums, and the company is part of WebFX.
To get you started, here are 9 things to know about Nutshell, taken from its own pages and our grades.
No rating on record, and it's a CRM to set up: pipelines, stages, email and calendar sync, forms.
- 1
Best for small sales teams that want marketing built in
Nutshell is a sales CRM with email and calendar sync, forms, landing pages, web chat and an AI chatbot on every plan.
- 2
Paid plans start at $13 a month for each person
As its pricing page puts it: $13 per user / month, billed annually ($19 billed monthly).
- 3
You can try it first
14-day free trial, no credit card required
- 4
It runs on 3 platforms
Web, iOS and Android.
- 5
Leads and pipelines
A drag-and-drop board shows where each lead stands. Foundation and Growth have one pipeline, Pro has 5, Business 10 and Enterprise unlimited.
- 6
Email and calendar sync
Two-way sync with Gmail and Outlook keeps emails and calendar events attached to contacts, with email templates and one-click bulk emailing.
- 7
Sales automation
Growth adds lead assignment rules and custom stage goals, and Pro adds sales automation for routine pipeline tasks.
- 8
A 2.4 GPA, above 19 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 Nutshell 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.
Nutshell at a glance
- Pricing
- Free trial, from $13 per user / month, billed annually ($19 billed monthly)
- Free plan
- No
- Free trial
- 14-day free trial, no credit card required
- Runs on
- Web, iOS, Android
- Made by
- Nutshell (part of WebFX), since 2009
- Category
- CRM Software
- Our grade
- 2.4 GPA, fair
The report card
Best for small sales teams that want marketing built in
Nutshell is a sales CRM with email and calendar sync, forms, landing pages, web chat and an AI chatbot on every plan. Foundation is $13 a user on yearly billing, but it stops at 100 active leads and one pipeline. Sales automation and extra pipelines wait for Pro at $42, SMS and proposals are add-ons, and there's no free plan.
| Subject | Grade | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | C | Foundation is $13 a user a month on yearly billing, well below the middle of this category, but 100 active leads and one pipeline is not a sales team's plan. Growth lifts the cap at $25, about the middle, and sales automation and extra pipelines need Pro at $42. |
| Free plan and trial | C | No free plan. The trial is 14 days and asks for no credit card. Every plan does come with 150 free marketing emails a month, but you're paying for the CRM underneath them. |
| Features | B | A drag-and-drop pipeline, two-way Gmail and Outlook sync, bulk email, reports and quotas, sales automation, AI call and meeting summaries, plus forms, landing pages and web chat on every plan. The sales job covered, with a slice of marketing. SMS and proposals are paid add-ons. |
| Ease of use | C | No rating on record, and it's a CRM to set up: pipelines, stages, email and calendar sync, forms. What helps is that live support and onboarding help come with every plan, even the $13 one. |
| Platforms and integrations | B | Web, iPhone and Android, with no desktop app. It connects to Gmail, Google Calendar, Outlook, Calendly, Aircall, DocuSign, Google Meet and Facebook Messenger, and there's an API. |
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 Nutshell is for
- Fits if you're a small sales team and want lead forms, landing pages and web chat inside the CRM
- Works for teams that want live support and onboarding help, which come on every plan
Who it is not for
- Tight if you're on Foundation, with 100 active leads, 1 pipeline and 10 custom fields
- Pricey if you need sales automation or more than one pipeline, which start on Pro at $42 a user
- Skip it if you want a free plan, as there's only the 14-day trial
- Watch out: two-way SMS and social inboxes are $16 a user, and proposals and invoices $79 a month, on top
- Pricey if you pay monthly, at $19 a user for Foundation against $13 yearly, and $49 for Pro against $42
Good to know
Good for
- Small sales teams that want a low per-user entry price
- Teams that want lead capture forms and basic email marketing inside the CRM
- Companies that value live support and onboarding help on every plan
Worth knowing
- There is no free plan; the free trial lasts 14 days.
- Foundation is limited to 100 active leads, 1 pipeline and 10 custom fields.
- Sales automation, multiple pipelines and the meeting scheduler start at Pro, $42 per user / month billed annually.
- Two-way SMS and social inboxes ($16 per user / month) and proposals and invoices ($79 a month) are paid add-ons.
Part 02 · Pricing
What it costs
Every plan, the free plan, ways to pay less and how prices have moved
$13
A month to start, for each person
Nutshell is a paid product with a free trial, starting at $13 per user / month, billed annually ($19 billed monthly).
Foundation
$13
per user / month, billed annually ($19 billed monthly)
Unlimited contacts and storage, email and calendar sync, AI chatbot, form builder and landing pages. 1 pipeline and 100 active leads.
Growth
$25
per user / month, billed annually ($32 billed monthly)
Adds activity reports, sales quotas, lead assignment rules, custom stage goals and hot leads, with unlimited active leads.
Pro
$42
per user / month, billed annually ($49 billed monthly)
Adds 5 custom pipelines, advanced reporting, sales automation, AI lead recaps and next steps, and a meeting scheduler.
Business
$59
per user / month, billed annually ($67 billed monthly)
Adds 10 custom pipelines, the advanced meeting scheduler, audit log and changelog, and additional teams and territories.
Enterprise
$79
per user / month, billed annually ($89 billed monthly)
Adds unlimited pipelines and custom fields, enterprise SSO, read-only SQL data access and phone support.
Trying it first
14-day free trial, no credit card required
Read from nutshell.com on Oct 5, 2026.
Ways to pay less
Annual discount
Lower per-user price with annual billing
The pricing toggle advertises 15% off for annual billing. Listed savings run from $6 to $10 per user a month: Foundation is $13 instead of $19, Enterprise $79 instead of $89.
Stated on nutshell.com
Part 03 · Features
What it does
Its main features, where it runs, what it works with and who makes it
3
Places it runs: Web, iOS and Android
Sales CRM with email marketing, forms and AI built into every plan. Here is what it does, as its own site describes it, and what it covers: public API, AI features, booking links, sales pipeline, workflow automation, forms, reports.
The sales job covered, with a slice of marketing.
- Leads and pipelines
- A drag-and-drop board shows where each lead stands. Foundation and Growth have one pipeline, Pro has 5, Business 10 and Enterprise unlimited.
- Email and calendar sync
- Two-way sync with Gmail and Outlook keeps emails and calendar events attached to contacts, with email templates and one-click bulk emailing.
- Sales automation
- Growth adds lead assignment rules and custom stage goals, and Pro adds sales automation for routine pipeline tasks.
- Reporting and quotas
- Growth adds activity reports and sales quotas, and Pro unlocks advanced reporting. Enterprise includes read-only SQL access to the data.
- AI outcomes and assists
- AI outcomes cover call and meeting summaries, lead research and email campaign drafts, metered at 10 to 150 per user a month by plan. Lighter AI assists are unlimited.
- Forms, chat and email marketing
- Every plan includes a form builder, landing pages, web chat with an AI chatbot and 150 free marketing emails a month. Larger email volumes and SMS are paid add-ons.
Where it runs
- Web
- iOS
- Android
What it works with
- Gmail
- Google Calendar
- Outlook
- Calendly
- Aircall
- DocuSign
- Google Meet
- Facebook Messenger
Nutshell is made by Nutshell (part of WebFX), and has been around since 2009.
Part 04 · Standing
Where it stands
Its grades against its category, and whether to keep it or make your own
19/48
Other CRM tools it is graded above
Nutshell's GPA of 2.4 is higher than 19 of the 48 other CRM tools we grade, and level with 15.
It stands best on features (B, above 18 of 48) and worst on ease of use (C, above 1).
Its paid plans start at $13 a month for each person, against a middle price of $24 for the category: 11 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. Nutshell’s own letter is outlined.
- CValue for moneyAbove 18 of 48
- CFree plan and trialAbove 4 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. Nutshell 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 Nutshell 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 costs $156 a year.
What you could make
- Sales pipeline, forms and reports: an app builder makes these well.
What you could not
- Connections to other products, each kept working as those products change.
- Booking pages that read and write other people's calendars and send the emails.
- A real app for iOS and Android. Something home-made would be a web page.
- It is priced for each person, which means accounts and billing for a team.
- AI features, unless you pay a model provider for each request yourself.
- The depth: we grade its features B, which means it covers the whole job.
What this rests on. Nutshell’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
Pipedrive, Capsule CRM, Less Annoying CRM, Insightly and Zoho CRM
The 5 tools Nutshell is most often weighed against, with where each one differs from it.
- 2.2GPA
Pipedrive
Free trial · from $14/mo
Sales CRM organized around visual deal pipelines.
- Nutshell also covers booking links, forms and reports.
- Pipedrive also covers transcription and kanban boards.
- 2.2GPA
Capsule CRM
Free plan · from $18/mo
Small-business CRM for contacts, sales pipelines and projects.
- Capsule CRM has a free plan. Nutshell does not, though it has a free trial.
- Nutshell also covers booking links and forms.
- Capsule CRM also covers tasks and kanban boards.
- 2.4GPA
Less Annoying CRM
Free trial · from $15/mo
Simple CRM for small businesses at one flat per-user price.
- Only Nutshell lists iOS and Android apps.
- Nutshell also covers booking links and workflow automation.
- Less Annoying CRM also covers tasks and calendar.
- 2.2GPA
Insightly
Free trial · from $29/mo
CRM with built-in project management for after the sale.
- Nutshell also covers booking links and forms.
- Insightly also covers tasks.
- 2.6GPA
Zoho CRM
Free plan · from $14/mo
Sales CRM with a free edition, process automation and Zia AI.
- Zoho CRM has a free plan. Nutshell does not, though it has a free trial.
- Nutshell also covers booking links, forms 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 Nutshell free?
No, Nutshell is a paid product, but you can try it first. 14-day free trial, no credit card required.
How much does Nutshell cost?
Nutshell lists 5 plans. Foundation: $13 per user / month, billed annually ($19 billed monthly).
What platforms does Nutshell work on?
Nutshell is available on Web, iOS and Android.
Does Nutshell offer any discounts?
Nutshell publicly lists the following: Lower per-user price with annual billing.
Does Nutshell have a Windows app?
No Windows app was listed when its pages were read on Oct 5, 2026. Nutshell is listed for Web, iOS and Android.
Does Nutshell have a macOS app?
No macOS app was listed when its pages were read on Oct 5, 2026. Nutshell is listed for Web, iOS and Android.
Is Nutshell open source?
Nutshell is not described as open source on its own site, as read on Oct 5, 2026.
Does Nutshell have an API?
Yes. Nutshell offers a public API, according to its own site.
What does Nutshell integrate with?
Nutshell's listing names Gmail, Google Calendar, Outlook, Calendly, Aircall, DocuSign, Google Meet and Facebook Messenger.
Who makes Nutshell?
Nutshell is made by Nutshell (part of WebFX). It dates from 2009.
What are the alternatives to Nutshell?
The closest alternatives to Nutshell in our directory are Pipedrive, Capsule CRM, Less Annoying CRM, Insightly and Zoho CRM.
How does Nutshell compare with other CRM tools?
Nutshell's GPA of 2.4 is higher than 19 of the 48 other CRM tools we grade, and level with 15.
Is Nutshell good value for money?
ToolGPA grades Nutshell C for value for money. Its paid plans start at $13 a month for each person, against a middle price of $24 for the category: 11 of the 46 others that charge start lower.
Could I make my own version of Nutshell?
To replace Nutshell 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 Nutshell’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 Nutshell's own pages on 5 October 2026. Also tested with a demo account on 2026-06-11.
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 Nutshell (part of WebFX). Prices change, so check nutshell.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
- Nutshell, kept up to dateEverything in this guide, with prices and grades as they are todaytoolgpa.com/tools/nutshell
- 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, "Nutshell: The Insider's Guide", checked Oct 5, 2026. https://toolgpa.com/tools/nutshell
Know someone choosing between CRM tools?
Send them this guide: toolgpa.com/tools/nutshell/guide
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See our other guides
The best-graded CRM tools after Nutshell, 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 Nutshell’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. Nutshell is a trademark of its owner, and this guide is not made, paid for or approved by Nutshell (part of WebFX). Prices and plans change: check nutshell.com before you buy.