If you had to choose between Salesforce.com and SugarCRM for your company’s CRM solution, which would you pick?

Most people think it’s simply a tossup. Cost aside (Salesforce is nearly 4 times more expensive), it’s easy to see why people feel this way. The similarities between the two products are glaring and frequent. So then, what really separates these two products?

1. So what are the real differences between Salesforce vs SugarCRM?

One of the most frequently asked questions we get from clients is ‘which is better, Salesforce or Sugar?’

In fact, we find ourselves telling clients about the differences between them so often we decided to blog about it. So this is it, our no holds barred comparison on the differences and similarities of Salesforce and SugarCRM.

Let’s start with what they have in common – more than you than you might think. Both Salesforce and SugarCRM are pioneers in the CRM movement. They both challenge the Bill Gates Microsoft archetype and ascribe to the clean aesthetic of Steve Jobs’ Apple. Both were created in California. Salesforce is based in San Francisco and SugarCRM comes from Cupertino, California in the Santa Clara Valley – also the home of Apple Inc.

Now for the differences…

2. Editions and Pricing

Salesforce.com comes in five different editions, ranging in price from $24 per user per year to $3,000 per user per year. While all of the editions are – in their most basic forms – the same product, there are certain features and functions that are enabled or disabled, depending on the edition purchased. Without a doubt, Salesforce.com’s most popular edition is their Enterprise Edition. With a price point of$1,500 per user per year, it is their middle of the line solution and comparable to Sugar Professional which is $420 per user per year. In comparison their second most popular instance the Professional Edition, is priced at $780 per user per year.

3. In comparison

SugarCRM has four different editions of their commercial product: Professional, Corporate, Enterprise, and Ultimate. They have a free open-source solution titled Community.

Sugar’s cheapest instance is Sugar Professional (comparable to Salesforce Enterprise at $1,500 per user per year), with a price point of $420 per user per year. From there Sugar prices rise slowly – but at their most expensive, Sugar is still only half of the most expensive instance of Salesforce.com. Sugar Corporate costs $540 per user per year while Sugar Enterprise is priced at $720 per user per year and Sugar Ultimate costs $1200 per user per year.

Sugar licensing prices are constant no matter which of the four hosting options you choose. It should be said though that some hosting options, mean additional costs.