SugarCRM vs. Salesforce Comparison in 2024 – The Facts

Due to similar features yet a lower price tag, SugarCRM continues to be the most common CRM (customer relationship management) software to compare to the better-known Salesforce. Salesforce is still the industry standard, but if you look at what each platform is capable of, they are not so different. For example, SugarCRM used to be a better fit for small businesses, but it now has many more enterprise level clients with thousands of users per instance and has instituted a 10-user minimum.

Where they differ the most, however, is in the price tag; SugarCRM costs considerably less than Salesforce despite offering almost every feature the Salesforce is capable of. Make no mistake though, Salesforce is still recognized as the industry standard and remains a solid, trusted product.

We’ve created a fresh Salesforce vs. Sugar Comparison Chart for 2023.

1. SugarCRM vs. Salesforce Features

Customizable Deployment Capabilities – With SugarCRM 8, you can drag and drop modules around to customize them and resize any available columns. With Salesforce, modules are controlled from the admin panel, so not all users have access to them.

A major difference to note between SugarCRM and Salesforce is the source code they were built on.

SugarCRM is open-source, meaning that any developer has access to the source code SugarCRM is built on (thus they can develop the source code). Developers can create their own integrations in PHP (the web’s most-taught language) with Sugar . Meanwhile, although Salesforce can be just as customized, it is not open-source and is written in APEX (a proprietary language). This means that a much smaller group of developers can customize Salesforce (only those that know APEX), making a customized deployment much more affordable in Sugar. Creating APIs in Salesforce can only be done within the parameters of their closed-source language.

2. Mobile Editions

Salesforce’s mobile platform is called Salesforce 1, and it’s super easy to configure your own mobile mini apps with it. Sugar has its own SDK (software development kit), a mobile interface that programmers can use to manage and customize the mobile app, but you need a developer to change it. The cost for both is built into the overall software price.

3. Salesforce vs. SugarCRM Pricing

Although price is broken down based on users per month, both software options require annual contracts, and Sugar has instituted a 10 minimum users requirement. Salesforce currently does not have a minimum user requirement.

Sugar Sell Essentials (ideal for growing small businesses) = $49/user/month

Salesforce Sales Cloud Essentials = $25/user/month

Sugar Sell Advanced (best value for larger businesses) = $80/user/month

Salesforce Sales Cloud Professional = $75/user/month

Sugar Sell Premier (most complete CRM plus highest level of support) = $135/user/month

Salesforce Sales Cloud Unlimited = $300/user/month

Download our SugarCRM vs. Salesforce Guide Here!

4. Consider Deployment Methods

Salesforce and Sugar differ in deployment methods, as Salesforce is deployed in a single-tenant fashion – everyone uses one URL – while Sugar is a multi-tenant architecture, meaning everyone gets their own URL to log into. While there is no real advantage to this, because Sugar is multi-tenant, it can be deployed on an individual basis and on-premises. Salesforce can only be hosted in a single-tenant cloud, making it impossible to ever own the software yourself.

On the other hand, an advantage to Salesforce’s single-tenant architecture is that everyone is updated at the same time, so the software behaves as an ever-changing product. SugarCRM’s updates are also automatic, but they happen quarterly instead of daily, as is the case with Salesforce.

Ready to make a CRM investment for your organization, but at a standstill about which CRM is right for your business? You’re not alone – we help companies every day make this important decision. We’re happy to discuss some of the biggest differences between the leading options, and help you get a little closer to a decision – contact us.