The Best Salesforce StarterAlternativefor Small Businesses
OnePageCRM is an ideal Salesforce alternative. While Salesforce Starter tries to do everything for everyone, OnePageCRM focuses on helping small businesses manage contacts, follow up religiously, and close more sales. Here’s how they compare.
OnePageCRMOnePageCRM is a sales-first CRM that turns your contact list into a prioritized list of next steps. All leads have follow-ups, and the system always pushes you to follow through with them.
- Best for
- Small teams that sell and grow through follow-ups and personal outreach.
- Core feature
- Action Stream
- Starting price
- $9.95 per seat/month
Salesforce StarterSalesforce Starter is a scaled-down version of an enterprise software. It bundles sales, marketing, service, and commerce tools into one platform.
- Best for
- Large teams that want an all-in-one tool.
- Core feature
- Unified dashboard
- Starting price
- $25 per seat/month
Overview
| What the price includes | OnePageCRM$9.95per month (billed annually) | Salesforce Starter$100per month (billed annually) |
|---|---|---|
| CRM workflows | ||
| Browser extension for auto lead capture | Only for companies, not contacts | |
| Follow-up tracking | ||
| Overall Value | ||
| Reasonable price range | ||
| Equal support | Email, live chat, and phone on all plans | Two-day response time by default |
| No hidden fees | Web forms and route planner included | |
| Business Impact | ||
| Powerful entry plan | CRM workflows require upgrade | |
| Email automation | Email sequences | Sequences via Flow Builder |
| Scalability | ||
| Speed | ||
| Simple navigation | ||
| Centralized workspace | Action Stream | |
| Lead capture | Any web page | Companies only |
Ease of Use
Which of the two CRMs is easier for beginners to use?
Zero Learning Curve, OnePageCRM
Built for ease of use, OnePageCRM lets you handle everything from a single page. You can manage contacts, send emails, make calls, schedule follow-ups, advance deals, and so much more. And since that page resembles an email inbox, you’ll be working with an interface you already know how to use.
- One page does everything
- Looks like your email inbox
- Includes only features you’ll use
- Built for beginners
Enterprise-Level Complexity, Salesforce Starter
In contrast, Salesforce Starter pushes you to work from numerous tabs. The CRM has different tabs for Sales, Marketing, Service, and Commerce tools, each with its own subtabs. Moreover, its extensive feature list makes the CRM hard for most solo and small businesses to figure out.
- Work from numerous tabs
- Enterprise-grade design
- Wide range of functionalities
- For experienced users
Pricing
From which CRM does your small business get more for its money?
Affordable for Small Teams, OnePageCRMOnePageCRM’s entry plan starts from $9.95 per user/month, and it comes with all the features your small business needs. We’re talking follow-up tracking, workflow automations, email sync, lead capture, pipelines, and more. No vital feature is reserved for upper plans.
- Small business pricing
- All core features from the start
- No hidden fees
Premium Pricing, Salesforce StarterSalesforce Starter costs $25 per user/month, which puts it well above the market average for a small business CRM. And even at that price, you still don’t get access to workflow automation, quick customer support, or more than 1GB of file storage.
- Priced for medium-sized businesses
- 1GB of file storage space
- Extra cost for faster support
Customer Support
Which CRM gives you better support when you need it most?
VIP Support, Every Time, OnePageCRMWith OnePageCRM, every customer gets the same VIP support, no matter what plan they’re on. Even on the free trial, you can reach a real human through phone, email, live chat, or a screen-sharing session. You also get free access to the Sales Academy, plus live webinars throughout the year.
- VIP assistance on every plan
- Phone, email, live chat, screen share
- Free Sales Academy + certifications
- Live demos and webinars
More Money for Better Help, Salesforce StarterIn Salesforce Starter, the kind of support you get depends on how much you’re paying. By default, the response time for support is 2 days. If you want faster support, you’ll need to pay an extra 30% of your license fees.
- Tiered support plans
- Two-day default response time
- Better support costs 30% extra
- Live chat with an AI agent
Contact Management
Do contact profiles help you sell, or just store data?
Built for Selling, OnePageCRM
Contact profiles in OnePageCRM are laid out so that the things that matter most for selling appear first. You see essential sales information first, followed by your next steps and deals. Less relevant data appear further down. Some are even hidden under a ‘Show all’ button, so you don’t get distracted while working on a sales opportunity.
- Focused contact profiles
- Most vital sales info comes first
- Hides less crucial fields
Built for Storing Data, Salesforce Starter
Contact profiles in Salesforce Starter try to show you everything at once. You’ll see personal details, tasks, events, call logs, sales opportunities, support cases, files, and a Google Maps view, all on the same page. Worse yet, there’s no hierarchy to show which ones are more vital to your sales process.
- Comprehensive contact profiles
- All fields visible at once
- Google Maps view
Follow-up Tracking
How well do these CRMs help you stay in touch with and nurture contacts?
Customer Follow-ups, OnePageCRM
To help you convert more contacts into customers, OnePageCRM nudges you to schedule a follow-up activity for each of them. And to ensure you actually carry out those activities, the CRM organizes and color-codes all contacts based on how urgently their follow-ups need to happen.
- Follow-up activities for each contact
- Auto-prioritized follow-up list
- Next step suggestions (AI)
Generic To-Do List, Salesforce Starter
Salesforce Starter lets you manage tasks, but they don’t have to be tied to any particular contact. So, they’re really just generic to-dos, rather than legit reminders to stay in touch or re-engage with someone.
- Pop-up to-do list
- Activity and event management
- Due and overdue tabs
Email Sync
Which CRM makes it easier to sell using your email?
Powerful Emailing, OnePageCRM
OnePageCRM has a two-way sync with Gmail, Outlook, and other email providers (IMAP/SMTP). From inside the CRM, you can reach out to your contacts, receive emails from them, and store every conversation. You can also schedule emails for later or reach out to contacts en masse.
- Gmail, Outlook, and IMAP
- Automatically filtered inbox
- Email open tracking
Basic Email Sync, Salesforce Starter
Salesforce Starter, too, offers a two-way email sync. However, it only connects with Gmail and Microsoft Outlook accounts. And if you’d rather not connect your inbox, there’s a BCC-to-Salesforce address you can use to log emails.
- Gmail and Outlook
- CRM-focused inbox
- Log emails via BCC
Instant Lead Capture
How easily can each CRM help you save new leads from the web?
Built for Contacts, OnePageCRM
OnePageCRM’s free browser extension grabs contact details from any web page, social profile, or email inbox with one click. The lead lands in your CRM, along with all its details filled in.
- Capture contacts in one click
- Works on any website
- Captures from email and socials
Built for Companies, Salesforce Starter
Salesforce Starter has a browser extension, as well, but it’s mostly for capturing companies, rather than individual people. What’s more? It only works well if used on the companies’ websites.
- Focuses on companies
- Built for company websites
Pipeline Management
How do the two CRMs handle your sales pipeline?
For Sales and Delivery, OnePageCRM
OnePageCRM gives you a Kanban pipeline to track, manage, and close sales opportunities. And so the product or service you sold reaches the customer as and when due, this CRM also offers a pipeline to track and manage the delivery process. You can even use it for onboarding, implementation, feedback, or any other post-sales activity.
- Kanban view
- Manage delivery and post-sales
- Sales forecasting
For Sales and Support Tickets, Salesforce Starter
From the start, Salesforce Starter lets you create as many pipelines as you want. But unlike OnePageCRM, you can only use these pipelines to track sales opportunities and customer support cases.
- Unlimited pipelines
- Track sales and customer tickets
- Comprehensive dashboards
Integrations
Which CRM connects better with the tools you already use to run your small business?
Focused on Small Businesses, OnePageCRM
OnePageCRM integrates with around 40 carefully chosen apps that small businesses already rely on. The likes of Gmail, Outlook, QuickBooks, Xero, Mailchimp, and other similar ones. If you need something more niche, you can integrate via Zapier and Webhooks. There’s even a full API for custom builds.
- 40+ small business apps
- Zapier and Webhooks support
- API for custom integrations
Exhaustive Marketplace, Salesforce Starter
Salesforce Starter offers you over 9,000 integrations through AppExchange. The problem is, you’ll need a Pro subscription.
- 9,000+ integrations
- Native Slack sync (two-way)
- Gated integrations
Add-Ons
What’s included with the basic CRM, and what costs extra?
Free Tools, OnePageCRMOn top of its affordable pricing, OnePageCRM throws in a bunch of free tools to help you sell better. You get free web forms for capturing leads, an AI route planner that maps efficient routes for field sales reps, and a free business card scanner on the mobile app.
- Free web forms
- AI route planner
- Business card scanner
Paid Extras, Salesforce StarterSalesforce Starter costs more than the average small business CRM, and still only gives you one extra tool. You only get a free mobile app builder. For other extras, like better and faster customer support, as well as certain AppExchange integrations, you’ll need to pay.
- Paid customer support upgrade
- Mobile app builder
- Paid AppExchange integrations
When to Use Either CRM Software
Choose OnePageCRM if:
- You want a CRM you can start using in minutes
- Your sales depend on consistent, personal follow-ups
- You don’t want to pay extra for better customer support
Choose Salesforce Starter if:
- You have CRM experience or have an expert in-house to help you handle the CRM setup
- You need tools for sales, marketing, service, and commerce
- You plan to grow into the wider Salesforce ecosystem eventually
OnePageCRM vs. Salesforce Starter features
 OnePageCRMRead the review › | Salesforce StarterRead the review › | |
|---|---|---|
| Core Features | ||
| Mobile app | Includes AI route planner | Android and iOS |
| Contact management | ||
| Follow-up tracking | ||
| Pipelines | Unlimited | |
| Duplicate management | ||
| Centralization Tools | ||
| Centralized workspace | ||
| Dashboard | Simple analytics | |
| Number of integrations | 40+ | 9+ |
| Communication Tools | ||
| Two-way email sync | Gmail and Outlook (IMAP/SMTP on Business and Max) | |
| Click-to-call options | ||
| Multi-channel inbox | ||
| Meeting scheduling | ||
| Simple Automation | ||
| CRM workflows | Upper plan only | |
| Sales email sequences | Upper plan only | Via Flow Builder |
| Free web forms | ||
| Browser extension for auto lead capture | Only for companies, not contacts | |
| Customer Support | ||
| Email support | ||
| Live chat | ||
| Phone support | ||
| Pricing | ||
| Starting price | $9.95 per seat/month | $25 per seat/month |
| Free trial | 21 days | 30 days |
| Free plan | ||
| Next paid plan | Affordable ($19.95 per seat/month) | Expensive ($100 per seat/month) |
Frequently asked questions
No, it’s not. The Starter Suite is a stripped-down version of the larger Salesforce platform, but it still retains some complexity. For one, the sheer number of tabs and subtabs makes the CRM more difficult to navigate. And since it comes equipped with such a wide range of functionalities—a lot of which small businesses don’t need—its learning curve is steeper.
Not really. First off, since the CRM houses too many tabs and features, it can be harder for non-tech-savvy solo or small businesses to learn and use. And although it attempts to offer Salesforce functionality at a lower price point, $25 per user is still above what the average small business CRM costs.
If Salesforce doesn’t seem like a good fit for your small business, OnePageCRM is one alternative you can try. Unlike Salesforce Starter, OnePageCRM is built specifically for small businesses. It has a familiar and beginner-friendly interface that anyone can start using immediately. It also comes equipped with only the features your small business will need and actually use to manage contacts and sales. To top it off, it’s one of the most affordable CRM software for small businesses.
Yes, it is. Salesforce Starter costs $25 per user/month, which is well above the average. Yet, it has no follow-up tracking, and keeps automation on a pricier plan. On top of that, quicker support costs 30% of your net license fees. And if you’d like to move up from Starter, you’ll need to shell out $100. In contrast, OnePageCRM costs just $9.95, and it still covers everything your small business needs, like follow-up tracking, automation, and quality support.
Yes, it is. OnePageCRM is designed to be easy for beginners to use. That’s why its interface resembles an email inbox and the contact pages look like social media profiles—things you’re already familiar with. It’s also why the CRM allows you to handle your whole business from a single page. Adding to its simplicity is how OnePageCRM includes only the tools your small business will actually need and use.
Yes, you can export your data from Salesforce Starter. Just go to Setup (the gear icon on the top right-hand corner of your screen), click on the Quick Find box, and search for “Data Export”. Then open the Data Export module, select what kind of data you want to export, and decide whether or not you want files to be exported, as well. Once you go through the process, you’ll get an email leading you to where you’ll download your data.
Need a good Salesforce Starter alternative
for your small business?
Salesforce Starter is an enterprise software that’s trying so hard to be ‘the one’ for small businesses. If you want a Salesforce alternative that’s actually built for your small business, OnePageCRM is it.