LionDesk vs Top Producer: Which Is Better for You in 2021

LionDesk and Top Producer provide real estate agencies tools for generating, organizing, and communicating with buyer or seller leads. However, with a starting price of $21, LionDesk is the lower-cost solution. That said, Top Producer offers a more complete solution for brokerages that want to manage their entire real estate business, not just outreach, in a single tool.

Generally speaking, a real estate customer relationship management (CRM) software should offer tools for handling property transaction management, monitoring property listings, and generating prospective buyer and seller leads. Here is when to use LionDesk or Top Producer specific business cases based on our evaluation:

• LionDesk: For small real estate businesses looking for a low-cost CRM offering marketing communication tools
• Top Producer: For agencies that want a comprehensive agency management solution

LionDesk vs Top Producer at a Glance

Pricing (annual billing)	From $21 to $83 per month	From $60 to $105 per user, per month
Ease of Use	Low technical skill needed to set up and operate but challenging interface to navigate	Low technical skill needed to set up and operate but interface is tough to navigate, especially for new users
Expert Score	3 out of 5 stars	4.13 out of 5 stars
Customer Support	Available during standard business hours via phone, live chat, and email	Available during standard business hours via phone, live chat, and email
Mobile Application	✔	✔
Integrations	Robust set of generic and industry-specific integration options	Robust set of generic and industry-specific integration options
Lead Generation Capabilities	Facebook ads and real estate listing websites	Real estate listing websites
Website Creation Tools	✔	Built-in IDX website designer
Bulk Email Campaigns	N/A	✔
	Visit LionDesk	Visit Top Producer

How We Evaluated LionDesk vs Top Producer

To directly compare LionDesk and Top Producer, we looked at essential factors agencies value when evaluating an industry-specific CRM for real estate. These two software products were evaluated according to their pricing, general CRM features, ease of use, customer support, our expert score, and features offered that are specific for a real estate agency operation.

Best Price Value: LionDesk

Free Option Available	N/A	N/A
Starting Price (annual billing)	$21 per month	$60 per user, per month
Highest Tiered Pricing (annual billing)	$83 per month	$105 per user, per month
Billing Options	Annual and monthly	Annual and monthly
Free Trial	30 days	N/A

LionDesk offers real estate businesses a better overall price value—regardless of the fact the two use different pricing models. Starting at just $21 per month, LionDesk allows users access to mass email and texting campaigns, transaction management tools, and lead generation through Facebook ads.

Top Producer starts at $60 per user, per month, which includes their CRM platform for tracking leads, monitoring sales performance, and getting insights on property listings. For the website design tool and comprehensive lead management system, users need to upgrade to the Professional or Advanced subscription plan.

Winner: LionDesk wins the pricing value round for offering more budget-friendly prices and the option for a 30-day free trial.

Best for Marketing Communication: LionDesk

Automated Drip Campaign Channels	Text, email and phone calls	Text and email
Video Marketing Capabilities	✔	N/A
Lead Integration Sources	Facebook ads and third-party real estate listing sites	Third-party real estate listing sites like Zillow and Trulia

LionDesk and Top Producer can each integrate with the multiple listing services (MLS) platform and third-party listing sites for tracking listings and generating leads. Each can also work with an internet data display (IDX) website for posting market listings: LionDesk through integrations and Top Producer through a built-in website design tool.

However, when it comes to communicating information to potential buyer or seller leads, LionDesk will be the better choice. Not only do they offer the additional phone call drip campaign channel and the ability to generate leads through Facebook ads, but they also have built-in video creation and deployment tools for sending personalized and educational video content via text and email.

LionDesk video recording page (Source: YouTube)

Best Transaction Management Features: Tie

Import of MLS Property Listings	✔	✔
Automated Task Management	✔	✔
Commission Tracking	✔	✔
Workflow Customization	✔	✔

Transaction management involves monitoring and completing all tasks associated with finalizing a deal—in this case, the deal being a real estate transaction. Both LionDesk and Top Producer offer users the ability to manage transactions within the platform, and both do so on the lowest-tiered pricing plan.

Top Producer transaction management page (Source: Top Producer)

Winner: No winner—both CRMs offer transaction management capabilities on their lowest-priced plan.

Best Mobile Application: Top Producer

Operating Systems	iOS and Android	iOS, Android, and Blackberry
Additional Syncing Required?	Syncing required for contact lists	None
Mobile Capabilities	Contact management, communication features, and task management	Everything from the web application except access to content templates (letters, flyers, and so on)

Because much of a real estate agent’s work happens in the field, a comparison of each CRM’s mobile application is crucial to a full evaluation. Top Producer is a clear winner in this regard. Their mobile application features are a full extension of their web application, with the exception of the ability to access templates for marketing content. There also is no need for additional data syncing from the web application, so users have access to everything they need when they log in.

The LionDesk mobile application, on the other hand, is restricted to contact management functionality, communications through text, email, or phone, and task management. It also requires the synchronization of your contact list from the web application.

Top Producer mobile app contacts page (Source: GetApp)

LionDesk mobile home screen (Source: LionDesk)

Winner: Top Producer wins this section because of its comprehensive mobile features, multiple operating systems, and no requirements for additional data syncing.

Best for Usability: Top Producer

Ease of Setting Up Account	Low technical skill needed to set up an account	Low technical skill needed to set up an account
Skill Needed to Operate Features	Low technical skill needed to operate the features	Low technical skill needed to operate the features
Intuitiveness of Navigating the Interface	Interface is difficult to navigate	Interface is difficult to navigate for new users

Regarding ease of use, both CRMs are easy to set up and do not require any special technical skills for using their built-in tools. The main negative reviews for both CRMs have to do with navigating the interface. Users who found it difficult cited outdated design as the main reason.

While both interfaces could use improvement, the overall consensus is that Top Producer is difficult to navigate at first, but becomes more intuitive once users adapt to it. LionDesk, on the other hand, remains challenging to navigate, even for experienced users, due to clunky layouts and lack of instructional buttons within the platform.

LionDesk dashboard design (Source: YouTube)

Top Producer contact list page (Source: YouTube)

Winner: Top Producer due to ease of setting up and operating the platform, and ease of use once users adapt to navigating the interface.

Best Customer Service: Top Producer

Customer Service Hours	Standard business hours	Standard business hours
Live Chat Support	✔	✔
Phone Support	✔	✔
Email Support	✔	✔
One-on-One Training	Included in Elite plan	Included in Starter plan

When comparing the customer help and support provided by LionDesk and Top Producer, both CRMs appear to be identical regarding when customer service is available and on which channels. However, a slight difference is apparent when looking at the one-on-one training provided.

LionDesk requires users to subscribe to the Elite plan at $83 per month to have access to one-on-one training. Top Producer includes their one-on-one training in their Starter plan at just $40.50 per user, per month as a part of their customer success program, in which they also host weekly “Ask Us Anything” live sessions on their Facebook page.

Winner: Top Producer because of its multichannel availability and one-on-one training sessions that are available on their lowest-priced plan.

Best Alternatives to LionDesk & Top Producer

Even though LionDesk and Top Producer are both considered excellent CRM solutions for real estate agencies, they may not be the best option available for your business. If you prefer to look into other product attributes like a specific app integration or automation capabilities, you can explore other platforms.

Here are some of the best alternatives to LionDesk and Top Producer:

• Follow Up Boss: For agencies looking for software with advanced automation tools
• Propertybase: For real estate businesses looking for tools with built-in e-signature and document management features
• Copper: For small real estate businesses that use Google Workspace products

Want to check out more real estate-specific CRMs? Check out our review of the best CRMs for real estate agencies.

Bottom Line

Even with the narrow focus that LionDesk and Top Producer have in offering solutions specifically for real estate businesses, each CRM can still be better suited for particular situations. LionDesk stands out in its cost-effectiveness for marketing campaign tools and lead generation capabilities, while Top Producer’s array of built-in real estate features offer a fully centralized system for managing a real estate firm.