Close CRM vs Monday.com Monday CRM
Side-by-side comparison — pricing, features, ratings, use cases. Find which CRM fits you best.
🔍 Independently researched ·
📊 Data-driven
· ⭐ Ratings from G2 (real user reviews)
74/100
45 € starting
High-velocity outbound sales teams that rely on phone, text, and email and want a single tool combining CRM, calling, me
💰 Pricing
Starting at 45 €
🔧 Features
✓ Api Available✓ Free Tier✓ Mobile App✓ Gdpr Compliant✓ Sso Support✓ Integrations✓ Analytics✓ Automation✓ Team Collaboration✓ Soc2 Compliant
📋 Assessment
💪 Strengths
- The Power Dialer is Close's crown jewel. On the Growth and Scale plans, this feature automatically queues the next call after a rep finishes a conversation, eliminating the dead time between calls. It's a massive time-saver for high-volume callers, boosting call attempts by up to 3x. The dialer also handles click-to-call from any contact record, and calls are automatically logged with timestamps, making manual data entry unnecessary.
- Native communication tools: Close has built-in VoIP calling, SMS, and email sequences. SMS can be sent from contact records with templates, emails can be tracked for opens and clicks, and call notes can be taken within the platform. This integration means reps don't need to juggle multiple tools or worry about missed logs — everything is centralized in one interface.
- Automation that triggers on call behavior: Beyond typical workflow automation, Close lets you create triggers based on call outcomes, such as 'schedule a follow-up task if a call is not connected' or 'send an SMS if a call is marked as interested.' This is particularly useful for maintaining consistent follow-up, and it can be set up with a visual builder without extensive coding knowledge.
- Comprehensive call tracking and analytics: Close captures detailed call data, including duration, outcome, and recording. The analytics dashboard shows team performance metrics like calls made per day per rep, connect rate, and talk time. This granular data helps sales managers identify coaching opportunities and adjust strategies.
- Ease of use and minimal learning curve: The interface is intuitive, and most reps can start making calls within minutes. The design is clean, with a focus on actionable data. Sales teams unlikely to get bogged down in complex configuration.
⚠ Watch out for
- The Power Dialer and advanced automation are locked behind the $99/user/month Growth plan. For a small team, this can be a significant jump in cost, but without it, the platform loses its edge. This tiering might be a deal-breaker for budget-conscious companies that still have high call volume.
- Telephony usage is billed separately: While per-minute rates are competitive, they are added on top of subscription fees. SMS charges are also usage-based. Teams that don't monitor their usage can see surprise bills, as close does not have unlimited minutes on any plan.
- No free forever plan: The 14-day trial may be sufficient to test basic features, but it's short of a full evaluation cycle. Some teams need more time to assess integration with their existing stack or to run a proper sales campaign.</li>
- Limited native integrations: Close has an API and a few native integrations with popular tools like Zapier, but it lacks out-of-the-box integrations with many marketing automation platforms or helpdesk software. This can require extra setup for teams with a diverse toolstack.</li>
- Site hasn't been redesigned in years: Some users find the interface a bit dated compared to newer CRMs. While functional, the UI might not feel as modern as competitors like HubSpot or Pipedrive.</li>
🎯 Best for
High-velocity outbound sales teams that rely on phone, text, and email and want a single tool combining CRM, calling, messaging, and automation.
🚫 Who should skip
Inbound-only teams or large enterprises that need full marketing automation, complex permission hierarchies, and deep third-party integration ecosystems.
📚 Learning curve
Moderate — basic dialing and CRM functions can be learned in a few hours, but mastering automation workflows, Power Dialer settings, and custom reporting takes more time.
🧑⚖️ Verdict
Close CRM is a superb choice for inside sales teams that rely on phone calls as their primary sales channel. The Power Dialer and native communication tools provide a distinct productivity advantage. However, it's not for businesses needing a general-purpose CRM or those on a tight budget. If you ma
77/100
Free tier
Small to mid-sized sales and account teams that want a visual, customizable, collaborative pipeline tool without heavy I
★ Best
💰 Pricing
🆓 Free tier available
Starting at 11 €
🔧 Features
✓ Api Available✓ Free Tier✓ Mobile App✓ Open Source✓ Gdpr Compliant✓ Integrations✓ Analytics✓ Automation✓ Team Collaboration✓ Hipaa Compliant
📋 Assessment
💪 Strengths
- Highly Visual and Intuitive Pipeline: The drag-and-drop deal pipeline is a standout. Sales reps can easily move deals between stages, visualize the entire sales process at a glance, and focus on closing. This visual approach is especially effective for onboarding new team members, as it minimizes the learning curve and makes sales management more accessible compared to less visual CRMs.
- Deep Customization: monday CRM allows users to customize virtually everything—boards, columns, automations, and views. You can create columns for custom fields, automate routine tasks like lead assignment and follow-up emails, and switch between Kanban, Gantt, or calendar views. This flexibility means the CRM can adapt to your unique sales process rather than forcing you into a rigid structure.
- Strong Integrations: With native integrations for Gmail, Outlook, Slack, Zoom, and over 100 other tools, monday CRM fits into your existing workflow. For example, you can sync emails directly to deal cards, start video meetings from a deal, and get Slack notifications when a deal changes. This connectivity reduces context switching and keeps all sales data in one place.
- Sales Automation: On Standard and Pro plans, you get access to automation recipes that can handle repetitive tasks. You can automate email sequences, notification triggers, and even lead routing. This helps sales teams scale their efforts without adding manual work, freeing up time for building relationships and closing deals.
- Real-Time Collaboration: Built on monday.com's Work OS, the CRM features real-time collaboration tools like mentions, file sharing, and activity feeds. This makes it easy for sales teams to work together on deals, share notes, and stay aligned. The Comments section on deals allows for quick internal discussions, which is particularly useful for remote teams.
⚠ Watch out for
- 3-Seat Minimum: All paid plans require a minimum of 3 seats, which can be frustrating for solo entrepreneurs or very small teams. You end up paying for unused licenses, increasing your monthly cost unnecessarily. This is a significant barrier for those who just want a simple, personal sales tracking tool.
- Essential Features Gated: Email sequences and advanced reporting are only available on Standard or Pro plans. On the Basic plan, you're limited to deal tracking and basic workflows. This means if you need email automation—a core CRM feature for many—you'll have to pay more, making the entry-level plan less attractive than competitors like HubSpot, which offers email templates on free tiers.
- Pricing Can Escalate: With a per-seat model and a 3-seat minimum, costs increase with your team. Compared to flat-rate CRMs like Pipedrive (which also has per-seat pricing) or Capsule CRM, monday CRM can become expensive for larger teams. Monthly billing adds ~18%, so long-term costs require careful budgeting. The cheapest plan comes to $36/month minimum, but to get useful features, you'll likely need Standard at $51/month.
- Learning Curve for Advanced Features: While the visual pipeline is intuitive, the heavy customization options can present a learning curve. New users may feel overwhelmed by the number of board types, column types, and automation options. It may take time to configure the CRM to your liking, and some users might find the sheer amount of options distracting.
- Limited Reporting on Lower Tiers: The Basic plan offers basic dashboards, but for more detailed sales forecasting and advanced reporting, you'll need to upgrade. On the Pro plan, you get advanced analytics like funnel charts and team performance. If reporting is crucial to your sales process, you'll need to budget for the more expensive tiers.
🎯 Best for
Small to mid-sized sales and account teams that want a visual, customizable, collaborative pipeline tool without heavy IT support.
🚫 Who should skip
Budget-conscious solo users or very small teams (under 3 people) who need a free or low-cost CRM, and enterprises needing deep sales force automation or advanced B2B reporting.
📚 Learning curve
Moderate — the interface is easy to pick up, but configuring custom fields, automations, and workflows takes time and practice.
🧑⚖️ Verdict
Monday CRM is an excellent choice for teams that value visual, customizable sales management and are already invested in the monday.com ecosystem. However, the 3-seat minimum and gating of key features make it less appealing for solo operators or small teams on a budget. If you need robust email aut
📊 Use Case Suitability
Higher score = better fit. Scores from editorial review.
Use CaseClose CRMMonday.com Mond
High-Volume Cold Calling95—
Built-in VoIP, parallel and power dialer options, and native call recording make
Outbound Sales Email Sequences90—
Close includes email sequencing, automation, and open/reply tracking directly in
Inside Sales Pipeline Management85—
Visual pipelines, activity tracking, and custom stages let inside sales reps and
Real-Time SMS Follow-Up Campaigns82—
Native two-way SMS with automated reminders and personalized text templates is w
Sales Team Coaching and Activity Monitoring75—
Call recordings, activity dashboards, and leaderboards help managers review reps
Visual Sales Pipeline Management—92
The board-based interface makes it easy to drag deals across stages, track progr
Small Business CRM—85
Flexible workflows and quick setup are great for small teams, though the 3-seat
Team Collaboration on Sales Deals—88
Comments, file attachments, and shared boards keep sales and account teams align
🧭 Which One Should You Pick?
Choose Close CRM if...
- You are: High-velocity outbound sales teams that rely on phone, text, and email and want a single tool combining CRM, calling, me
- 👍 Built-in VoIP calling, SMS, and email in one platform — no separate dialer or tab switching required
- 👍 Power Dialer (Growth and Scale plans) dramatically increases connect rates and is a major time-saver
- 👍 Automation features support call-based workflows, lead routing, follow-up tasks, and custom triggers
- 💰 From $49/mo
- ⚠ Trade-off: No free forever plan; the 14-day trial can be tight for evaluating long-term wor
Choose Monday.com Monday CRM if...
- You are: Small to mid-sized sales and account teams that want a visual, customizable, collaborative pipeline tool without heavy I
- 👍 Highly visual and intuitive drag-and-drop deal pipeline that reduces training time for new sales rep
- 👍 Deeply customizable boards, columns, and automations, letting you adapt the CRM to unique sales proc
- 👍 Strong third-party integrations with Gmail, Slack, Zoom, and over 100 other tools.
- 💰 From $12/mo
- ⚠ Trade-off: All paid plans require a 3-seat minimum, forcing small teams to pay for unused l
❓ Frequently Asked Questions
Does Close CRM offer a free plan?
Close does not have a permanent free plan. It offers a 14-day free trial on all paid plans, after which pricing starts at $9 per user per month for Solo (1 user only).
Are calling and SMS included in the subscription price?
No. The monthly subscription covers the software, but call minutes and SMS/MMS messages are billed separately based on telephony rates and prepaid credits you choose.
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