6 Best Contact Management Software for Small Businesses in 2022
Jess served on the founding team of a successful B2B startup and has used a wide range of sales and marketing tools over the course of her 15-year career. She uses her industry knowledge to deliver the best answers to your questions about sales tools and sales management.
This article is part of a larger series on CRM.
Contact management features are found in most customer relationship management (CRM) systems. The best contact management software stores categorical and behavioral information about leads, vendors, and customers, streamlines workflows, and offers insights and tools for managing relationships more effectively. We found the six best contact management systems based on cost, usability, features, and use case based on functionalities.
- Apptivo: Overall best contact management software for small businesses looking for the best value
- Agile CRM: Great CRM for sales teams that want telephony tools integrated with contact management software
- Zoho CRM: Excellent CRM contact management system for businesses looking for high-level insights on their contacts
- HubSpot CRM: Best contact management software with free marketing tools
- Really Simple Systems: Solid option for new businesses looking for easy-to-use contact management software
- Bitrix24: Best CRM for businesses that want a contact management system with invoicing and quote tools
The Best Contact Management Software Compared
Provider | Free Plan | Free Trial for Paid Plans | Starting Price for Paid Plans* | Help & Support |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Up to 1 user | 30 days | $8 per user | 24/7 live chat and email support and 24/5 phone support for paid plans |
 | Up to 10 users | ✕ | $9.99 per user | Live chat and email 24/5 or by phone during standard business hours |
 | Up to 3 users | 30 days | $14 per user | Self-help guides, community forum, training videos and webinars, tier-based customer support via email (24/7), phone and live chat (24/5) |
 | Unlimited users | 14 days | $45, includes 2 users seats | Email, live chat, and phone support during standard business hours and HubSpot Academy for learning tutorials |
 | Up to 2 users | 14 days | $14 per user | Email, live chat, and phone support during standard business hours |
 | Unlimited users | 30 days | $39, includes 5 user seats | Help desk, online training, chat with tech support, and email during standard business hours for all paid plans |
*Pricing based on annual billing
Apptivo: Best Overall Contact Management Software
Apptivo
Overall Score: 4.66
OUT OF 5
What We Like
- Cost-friendly contact management system for small businesses
- User-friendly interface
- Wide range of solutions as it can act as a CRM system, ecommerce tool, project management software, and invoice management platform
What's Missing
- Free plan limited to one user
- Limited third-party integration options
- No custom fields in contact records available on free plan
Apptivo Pricing at a Glance*
- Starter: $0 for up to 1 user
- Lite: $8 per user, per month
- Premium: $12 per user, per month
- Ultimate: $20 per user, per month
- Enterprise: Contact for quotes
- Free trial: 30 days
*Pricing based on annual billing. Monthly billing is also available at a higher cost.
Apptivo is a low-cost technology solution that can be used as a CRM, project management tool, call center, and billing management system. Overall, users find Apptivo easy to use in terms of setup, operating the contact management system features, and navigating the interface.
As a whole, we rank Apptivo as the best contact management system overall because of the value you get from the product. Most of the contact management features are available on the free and low-priced subscription tiers. The wide range of solutions offered makes it useful for all types of businesses such as ecommerce, retail, general contracting, real estate, and even manufacturing.
The biggest downside to Apptivo is that the free version is only available for up to one user and doesn’t allow custom contact fields to be added to a record until you are on a paid plan. As an alternative, we recommend HubSpot as the best contact management system for small businesses as it supports an unlimited number of users and custom fields in contact records.
Apptivo Plan Summary
Starter | Lite | Premium | Ultimate | Enterprise | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Lead List Management | |||||
Contact Management | |||||
Tasks, Appointments, and Notes for Contacts | |||||
Contact Filtering | |||||
Custom Fields per Contact Record | 100 | 250 | 350 | 500 | |
Data Migration From Other CRMs | |||||
Clone Contact Records | |||||
Webform-to-Lead | |||||
Contact Record Relationship Mapping | |||||
Facebook Lead Ads Integration | |||||
Google Maps Integration to View in Record |
Apptivo Key Features
- Clone contact records: Duplicate detection of contact data and records as well as the ability to easily duplicate data found in current records
- Webform-to-lead: Automatic lead data imported from online webforms into the contact management system
- Tasks, appointments, and notes: Ability to add, store, and organize tasks, appointments, and notes and link them to contact records
- Google Maps integration: Enterprise plan subscribers can add a Google Maps location within a contact record
- Multi-solution tools: Full, multi-purpose contact management software solution that includes a CRM, project management software, ecommerce tools, billing and invoice management, email marketing tools, and a contact center
Check out our in-depth Apptivo Review to learn more and see if this is the best contact management software for your business.
Agile CRM: Best Contact Management CRM With Telephony Capabilities
Agile CRM
Overall Score: 4.45
OUT OF 5
What We Like
- Free option for up to 10 users, 1,000 contacts, and unlimited deals
- Contact management capabilities also extend to telephone features either built-in or through integrations
- Solid all-around platform with sales, marketing, and help desk management tools
What's Missing
- Customer support limited to standard business hours
- Limited integrations for Free and Starter plans
- Telephone option not available until Regular plan
Agile CRM Pricing at a Glance*
- Free: Up to 10 users
- Starter: $9.99 per user, per month
- Regular: $39.99 per user, per month
- Enterprise: $64.99 per user, per month
*Pricing based on annual billing. Monthly billing is available at a higher cost.
Agile CRM is notability recognized for its combined sales, marketing, and customer service tools. It is also highly acclaimed for being easy to use and cost-efficient by offering a free plan and relatively inexpensive Starter plan that give you custom data fields, unlimited tasks, and document storage in contact records.
The most significant component of Agile CRM related to contact management is the two-way telephone capabilities. Either through a built-in tool or by integrating with voice-over-internet-protocol (VoIP) phone applications like Twilio, you can place calls directly from the single-page contact record and set up automated dialing campaigns as well.
Although Agile CRM offers robust contact management capabilities, one key restriction is the integration and plugins available on the free (up to one) and Starter plan (up to three). For small businesses looking to invest in a low-cost contact management system that gives them more flexibility in integrating with their favorite tools, we recommend Zoho CRM.
Agile CRM Plan Summary
Free | Starter | Regular | Enterprise | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Contact and Company Management | Up to 1,000 | Up to 10,000 | Up to 50,000 | Unlimited |
Plugins/Integrations | 1 | 3 | 50+ | 50+ |
Contacts and Companies | 1,000 | 10,000 | 50,000 | Unlimited |
Custom Data Fields | ||||
Appointment Scheduling | ||||
Unlimited Deals, Tasks, and Documents | ||||
Email Tracking | ||||
Web-to-Lead | ||||
Email Integration | ||||
Two-way Telephony | ||||
Call Recording |
Agile CRM Key Features
- Telephony capabilities: Place and receive calls from the contact management software through built-in phone tools or integrating with third-party VoIP systems
- Single-page contact management: View all contact data, tags, social media, and place calls from one centralized contact page
- Contact timelines: Complete visual of contact activity and engagement, including emails exchanged, content viewed, and social updates on a visual timeline
- Contact web analytics: Insights on web activity of contacts that shows if they browsed your website, what pages they visited, and how much time was spent on each page
Read our expert Agile CRM review to discover if its features, pricing, and best-for scenarios make it the best option for your business.
Zoho CRM: Best Contact Management CRM for High-level Insights on Contacts
Zoho CRM
Overall Score: 4.34
OUT OF 5
What We Like
- Cost-friendly and free plan for up to 3 users
- Highly customizable contact management software
- Robust features with workflow automation, artificial intelligence (AI), and marketing tools
What's Missing
- Clunky interface, can be difficult to navigate
- Limits free plan access to three users
- No data enrichment on the lower-priced plans
Zoho CRM Pricing at a Glance*
- Free: Up to 3 users
- Standard: $14 per user, per month
- Professional: $23 per user, per month
- Enterprise: $40 per user, per month
- Ultimate: $52 per user, per month
- Free trial: 30 days
Add-ons and Native Software:
- Bigin: Free or $7 per user, per month
- Zoho CRM Plus: $57 per user, per month
*Pricing based on annual billing. Monthly billing is also available at a higher cost.
Zoho CRM is arguably the most advanced contact management system on this list due to the CRM and artificial intelligence (AI) combination as well as the many automation options available. It is relatively inexpensive and offers many native integrations, such as Zoho Social, Desk, Campaigns, Bigin, and Analytics. There’s also plenty of customization options to make lists, modules, data fields, links, and buttons depending on your needs and preferences.
Zoho CRM’s platform robustness extends to in-depth and high-level data stored in contact records. In addition to record tagging and storing information about leads and customers, Zoho offers automatic data enrichment from online and social media sites. There are also map integrations to show the geolocation of a contact, Zia AI analysis on when the best time to contact them is, and the option to sync Google contacts in the CRM system.
Zoho’s downfall is that the platform’s interface comes off as clunky and crowded as it contains a lot of buttons and tab options that make the system tough to navigate. For the best contact management software that’s especially easy for new users to use, we recommend Really Simple Systems.
Zoho CRM Plan Summary
Free | Standard | Professional | Enterprise | Ultimate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Lead, Account, and Contact Management | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Document Attachment | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Web-to-Contact Forms | 1 | 5 | 10 | 20 | 100 |
Custom Data Fields | ✕ | 10 per module | 155 per module | 300 per module | 500 per module |
Data Enrichment | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Contact Record Tagging | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Maps Integration | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Sync to Google Contact | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Social Media Lead Generation | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Contact Data Deduplication | ✕ | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Team Record Sharing | ✕ | ✕ | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ |
AI Data Enrichment | ✕ | ✕ | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ |
Best Time to Contact | ✕ | ✕ | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ |
Zoho CRM Key Features
- Custom data fields: Design custom fields within contact records to collect any information your sales team finds relevant
- Best time to contact tool: Analyzed through the Zia AI feature, you can see exactly when the best time to call or email the contact would be for a response
- Data enrichment: Zia AI feature can do data enrichment in contact records based on online information and social media profiles
- Automated data input: Lead data is automatically added into your contact management system from social media lead generation campaigns, online web forms, and synchronization with Google Contacts
Read our Zoho CRM review to explore additional information on the features, plans, usability, and integrations of this platform.
HubSpot: Best for Free Marketing Tools
HubSpot
Overall Score: 4.3
OUT OF 5
What We Like
- Free CRM for unlimited users
- Robust marketing tools within the CRM software
- Excellent user experience, easy-to-use features, and a friendly navigation interface
What's Missing
- Customer support limited to standard business hours
- Plans get expensive after Starter plan
- Data duplication feature not available until higher-priced Professional plan
HubSpot Pricing at a Glance*
- Free: Unlimited users, but limited features
- Starter: $45 per month (includes 2 users seats)
- Professional (Bundled): Sales and Marketing Hub for $1,600 per month for 5 users
- Enterprise (Bundled): Sales and Marketing Hub for $5,000 per month for 10 users
- Free trial: 14 days
*Pricing based on annual billing. Monthly billing is also available at a higher cost.
HubSpot is a marketing-focused CRM system popularized for how easy it is to set up, operate the features, and navigate the interface. There’s also a free-forever plan, available for an unlimited number of users, that offers basic contact management software capabilities, meeting scheduling, and document management.
HubSpot stands out due to its contact management marketing tools, most of which are available in the free CRM version. For instance, you can configure bots on your website to collect new visitor contact information and add it to the CRM. There’s also webform-to-contact conversion, ad audience creation through contacts in the database, and contact list segmentation based on demographic and behavioral information.
Data deduplication is a critical feature for contact management software. It should be noted that while HubSpot does have this tool, it’s not available until the Professional plan, which could be cost prohibitive for small businesses. For the best contact management software that comes with data deduplication in low-cost plans, we recommend Bitrix24 or Really Simple Systems—both offer it in free plans.
HubSpot Plan Summary
Free | Starter | Professional | Enterprise | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Bots to Collect and Store Contact Data of Website Visitors | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Contact Management | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Webforms for Contact Data | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Contact List Segmentation | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Document Sharing per Account | 5 | 5,000 | 5,000 | 5,000 |
Meeting Scheduling | 1 link | 1,000 links | 1,000 links | 1,000 links |
Custom Contact Data Properties | 10 | 1,000 | 1,000 | 1,000 |
Ad Management | Simple website and audiences only | 2 contact and company list audiences | 5 audiences | 15 audiences |
Conversation Routing | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
One-to-One Video Messaging | ✕ | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ |
Automatic Lead Rotation | ✕ | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ |
Duplicate Management | ✕ | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ |
Conversation Intelligence | ✕ | ✕ | ✕ | Up to 1,500 hours per month/account |
HubSpot Key Features
- Basic bots tool: Configure live chat bots to connect your website visitors with a sales rep or collect contact data for the contact management system
- Contact segmentation: Ability to create static lists or dynamic ones that update constantly based contact data criteria to help with more relevant web content and email campaigns
- Ad management: Create audiences from contact databases to target and retarget online ads
- Contact record properties customization: Options for customizable data fields within contact records for specific information relevant to your business
Check out our comprehensive HubSpot CRM review to gain insights on its features, best-for scenarios, and what other users are saying about their experience with this software.
Really Simple Systems: Best Contact Management Software for Usability
Really Simple Systems
Overall Score: 3.75
OUT OF 5
What We Like
- Relatively inexpensive and free for up to 2 users
- Most contact management features are available for free
- High product usability ratings for setting up, operating, and navigating
What's Missing
- Email and automated marketing tools require add-on
- Contact segmentation only available through Advanced Marketing add-on
- Webform-to-contact requires marketing add-ons
Really Simple Systems Pricing at a Glance*
- Free: Up to 2 users
- Starter: $14 per user, per month
- Professional: $30 per user, per month
- Enterprise: $46 per user, per month
- Free trial: 14 days
Add-ons:
- Simple Marketing: Included on Enterprise plan or $22 per month
- Advanced Marketing: $46 per month
- Service Desk: Included on Enterprise plan or $46 per month
*Pricing based on annual billing. Monthly billing is also available at a higher cost.
When subscribed to the base plans and add-ons, Really Simple System’s platform lets you operate your sales, marketing, and customer service departments all in one place. It does have a free plan for up to two users and does not get that expensive, even if you were to purchase the Enterprise plan.
Just as the name suggests, Really Simple Systems is an easy-to-use CRM platform for both new and experienced users. It’s especially simple if you’re evaluating operating the contact management software features. Many of the user reviews indicate the product’s usability as one of its strongest attributes.
The biggest issue with Really Simple Systems is that contact management marketing features such as segmentation, webform-to-contact, and mailing list creation are only available by purchasing an add-on. HubSpot CRM is the best contact management software alternative to consider for access to those marketing features for free.
Really Simple Systems Plan Summary
Free | Starter | Professional | Enterprise | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Unlimited Contacts | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Company Records | 100 | 1,000 | 5,000 | Unlimited |
Task, Events, and Calendars | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Custom Data Fields | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Timelines | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
One-page Contact View | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Record Search and Filtering | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Merge Records | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Google Maps Integration | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Google Contacts Sync | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Email Integration | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Really Simple Systems Key Features
- Custom data fields: Customizable fields within contact records can be tailored to your business’ needs
- Timelines: Collaborative view of notes, emails, and completed tasks related to specific contact records
- One-page contact view: 360-degree view of a contact showing identifiable information, source, notes, and timelines
- Google integrations: Free integration options with Google Contacts to sync data across platforms and Maps to show Google Map location in contact record
Really Simple Systems Google Maps (Source: Really Simple Systems)
Really Simple Systems contact list view (Source: Really Simple Systems)
See how this platform can be an excellent contact management tool for your business by reading our Really Simple Systems review.
Bitrix24: Best Contact Management CRM With Quote & Invoicing Tools
Bitrix24
Overall Score: 3.53
OUT OF 5
What We Like
- Free version for an unlimited number of users
- Multi-channel communication capabilities
- A full business management platform that includes project and human resource (HR) management tools
What's Missing
- Can be challenging to set up and navigate the interface
- Customer support limited to email during standard business hours with minimal live chat support
- Contact segmentation and ad audience design not available on Free plan
Bitrix24 Pricing at a Glance*
- Free: Free for unlimited users
- Basic: $39 per month for up to 5 users
- Standard: $79 per month for up to 50 users
- Professional: $159 per month for unlimited users
- Free trial: 30 days
*Pricing based on annual billing, reflecting a 20% discount compared to monthly pricing. Monthly billing is available at a higher cost or save 40% off monthly pricing by committing to a two-year subscription.
Bitrix24 is another CRM solution on this list with a free-forever plan for unlimited users. In addition to contact management, it also has solid project management features, human resource management tools, and a full ecommerce-specific module for online retail businesses.
While the system’s contact management features include deduplication of records, data merging, timeline views, and filterable contacts, it’s the quote and invoice management features that make it stand out from the other CRMs. Users can easily create and save quotes or invoices in contact records then email them directly as PDF files. There are even options to convert deals into quotes or invoices, and to convert quotes to invoices.
Unfortunately, this platform is one of the more difficult systems on this list to set up and navigate. Really Simple Systems and HubSpot are the best contact management systems for small businesses that prioritize product usability in their buying decisions.
Bitrix24 Plan Summary
Free | Basic | Standard | Professional | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Users | Unlimited | Up to 5 | Up to 50 | Unlimited |
Unlimited Contacts | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Custom Data Fields | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
One-page Contact Profiles | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Timelines | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Automated Duplicate Detection | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Omnichannel Contact Center | Facebook, Instagram, and Telegram | Everything in Free plus WhatsApp, Viber, and Apple Business Chat | Everything in Free and Basic | Everything in Free and Basic |
CRM Webforms | Up to 100 forms | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Searchable/Filterable Contacts | Up to 1,000 | Up to 100,000 | Up to 200,000 | Unlimited |
Telephone and Email Contact Center | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Google Maps Integration | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Contact Segmentation | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Lead-to-Contact Conversion | ✕ | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ |
Duplicate Record Merging | ✕ | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ |
Facebook and Google Ad Audiences | ✕ | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ |
Bitrix24 Key Features
- Quote and invoice management: Ability to generate, save, and email quotes and invoices from contact records
- Google Maps integration: Allows users to add Google Maps location into contact records
- Duplicate record management: Automatic duplicate detection tools and ability to merge records with parallel data
- Custom data fields: Free, fully customizable data fields in contact records to tailor for your business’ needs
- Client profile view: Full contact and customer view with general information and tab organization for deals, invoices, orders, quotes, and activity history
Check out our comprehensive Bitrix24 review for an in-depth analysis of pricing, features, and usability.
How We Evaluated the Best Contact Management Software
To determine which are the best contact management systems for small businesses, we evaluated the various CRMs in terms of functionality and usability. For instance, capabilities like contact data enrichment, contact record deduplication, and the ability to customize contact data fields are important elements of this feature. We also evaluated general system characteristics like product price, ease of use, and customer support.
Overall, we found Apptivo to be the best contact management system for small businesses. It offers the most value of any CRM on this list in terms of pricing and the range of solutions that extend its CRM features to include ecommerce, invoicing, and project management. Best of all, a majority of Apptivo’s contact management software tools, such as filtering, contact data storage, tasks, notes, and appointments, are included in the free version.
The tabs below offer insight into our evaluation process:
40%
Pricing
20%
General Features
15%
Ease of Use
15%
Help & Support
10%
Expert Score
40% of Overall Score
Cost is typically among the most important criteria for any business, so it was the most heavily weighted. Pricing took into account free plan availability, scalable pricing options, and having options to pay monthly or save by paying annually.
20% of Overall Score
We looked at overall features we feel are necessities, such as CRM integration options, analytics tools, and a mobile app. We also evaluated features specific to contact management, like data field customization, the contact information that can be collected, record deduplication, data enrichment, and the ability to filter or segment contact lists.
15% of Overall Score
The solutions were also evaluated on platform usability. This was analyzed in terms of the expertise needed to set up an account, the ease of integrating with native or third-party applications, and the skill required to use the contact management features. We also reviewed the overall intuitiveness of navigating the system’s interface.
15% of Overall Score
Extensive support and service help prevent poor user experiences and outcomes users may encounter while using any of these CRM software platforms. Help and support were evaluated in terms of customer service hours and the availability of support via phone, live chat, and email.
10% of Overall Score
In addition to firsthand experience with these software systems, we evaluated what users say about each product. These criteria consider how customers feel, based on their reviews, to gain insight on platform popularity, ease of use, and overall value for the price.
*Percentages of overall score
