The Top Zoho Alternatives for a Revamped Operations

For any business or start-up looking to automate and streamline operations with an intuitive and user-friendly software suite, then Zoho is often among the most popular picks. Featuring a “low-code” approach that includes functionalities spanning sales, marketing, and customer support, its CRM and ERP platform has more than 100 million users worldwide, making it one of the largest solutions around.

However, with more than 55 separate applications, many people find navigating the feature bloat of Zoho to be more effort than it’s worth. Sure, it’s comprehensive, but there are still gaps in functionality and features that users never get around to using. This means a cluttered interface and layers of complexity that can actually work against businesses with more specific needs, undercutting its potential for streamlining and automating the most common operational tasks.

So, whether you’re already a Zoho user and you need a break from the constantly competing apps, or you’re a brand-new business that wants to start off on the right foot, here we look at why you might need a Zoho alternative and provide our top ten suggestions for you to consider. Read on to learn more.

Why the Need for a Zoho Alternative?

While Zoho has many fans, some find that the complexity and user experience simply aren’t for them. So, if you’ve ever logged in and started the day with any of these issues at the forefront of your mind, you should explore our Zoho alternatives detailed in the rest of this post.

Top 10 Zoho Alternatives

Explore our top 10 Zoho alternatives here and find the perfect platform for your business.

1. Spike for Teams

By unifying email, team chat, collaborative docs, and video conferencing, Spike for Teams provides the ideal workspace for employees, partners, and clients—even when they don’t use the app. Everything is centralized into one, unified feed that helps streamline workflows, ensuring everyone can stay on topic while simultaneously reducing information silos across your entire organization. Scalability is simple with a range of pricing plans, including a free plan and free email domain for start-ups and small businesses.

Features At-A-Glance 

•   Conversational email
•   Collaboration with non-Spike users
•   Unified inbox & calendar
•   Secure video & audio calls
•   Super search
•   Share notes & tasks
•   Custom email templates
•   Email hosting

Pricing 

Considerably less expensive than Zoho, Spike for Teams is free for up to 5 members, including one Teamspace and a free email address. For growing businesses, the Team package costs $6 per month, per user, while larger organizations are covered by the Business+ package at $9 per month, per user.

2. ProofHub

ProofHub is a versatile project management and team collaboration platform that focuses on simplicity and efficiency. It offers features like task management, Gantt charts, discussions, file sharing, time tracking, and more. The platform provides a centralized workspace for teams to collaborate seamlessly, and also prices per organization, making it an excellent alternative to Zoho for businesses looking for an all-in-one pricing structure that isn’t based on the number of users.

Features At-A-Glance 

• Task management
• Gantt charts
• Discussions
• File sharing
• Time tracking
• Centralized workspace for seamless collaboration

Pricing 

Pricing starts at $45 per month for up to 40 projects with the Essential package, with the Ultimate package costing $89 per month. 14-day free trials are available to test the feature set.

3. Scoro

Scoro is an all-in-one business management software designed to streamline work and automate routine tasks. It combines project management, CRM, billing, and reporting into one platform. Scoro’s features include project planning, time tracking, CRM, invoicing, and advanced reporting.

Features At-A-Glance 

• Project planning
• Time tracking
• CRM
• Invoicing
• Advanced reporting

Pricing 

You can try Scoro for free for 14 days. After that, the Essential package is $26 per user, per month. Standard and Pro packages are $37 and $63 per user, per month respectively, and the Ultimate package is priced on request.

4. LeadSquared

Primarily focusing on lead management and customer relationship management (CRM), LeadSquared includes tools for lead tracking, lead nurturing, and sales automation. LeadSquared offers various pricing plans based on the number of users and features required. Known for its intuitive user interface and ease of use, this platform is designed to deliver the sales and marketing tools teams need to efficiently manage leads and convert them into customers.

Features At-A-Glance 

• Lead tracking
• Lead nurturing
• Sales automation
• Intuitive user interface

Pricing 

Pricing for LeadSquared packages is available on request.

5. Basecamp

Basecamp offers a centralized platform for project management, including task lists, file storage, messaging, scheduling, and collaborative document editing. Being a web-based app, Basecamp allows teams to access and collaborate on projects from anywhere with an internet connection, fostering flexibility and real-time collaboration.

Features At-A-Glance 

• Task lists
• File storage
• Messaging
• Scheduling
• Collaborative document editing
• Web-based

Pricing 

Basecamp Pro Unlimited starts at $299 per month for an unlimited number of users. For smaller businesses and start-ups, Basecamp is priced at $15 per user, per month.

6. Bitrix 24

Combining a project management platform with a CRM, communication tools, and more, Bitrix24 offers task and project tracking, document management, time tracking, and social collaboration features, alongside extensive integration options that allow businesses to connect it with various third-party apps and tools. What’s more, low start-up costs mean an ideal Zoho alternative for small businesses, but flexible scalability means Bitrix24 can grow as you do.

Features At-A-Glance 

• Task and project tracking
• Document management
• Time tracking
• Social collaboration features
• Extensive integration options

Pricing 

A 5GB plan is free to use, with unlimited users but pared-down features. Plans with more storage begin at $49 per month for 5 users and span a huge range of options until you reach the Enterprise plan for 10,000 users for $7999 per month.

7. Insightly

Insightly is a CRM and project management platform that integrates customer relationship management with project planning, sales, marketing, and service features. It offers modern lead and contact management, email tracking, and project pipeline tools that are scalable to your business needs.

Features At-A-Glance 

• Lead and contact management
• Centralized customer data
• App integration and collaboration tools
• Email tracking
• Project pipelines

Pricing 

Insightly offers a broad range of pricing plans depending on your business needs. However, All-in-One packages begin at $349 per month for the Plus package, $899 per month for the Professional, and $2599 per month for the Enterprise.

8. Clarizen (Planview Adaptive Work)

Clarizen is now known as Planview AdaptiveWork and has expanded to include project planning, collaboration, analytics and reporting, and financial management tools. It’s known for robust reporting and analytics capabilities and can be integrated with a broad range of tools such as Salesforce, Slack, GSuite, and ZenDesk. It’s often considered an excellent Zoho alternative for large businesses and corporations with industry-specific needs requiring a platform to integrate with their existing toolset.

Features At-A-Glance 

• Project planning
• Collaboration tools
• Resource management
• Workflow automation
• Robust reporting and analytics capabilities

Pricing 

Pricing is unavailable at the time of writing.

9. Easy Projects

Easy Projects provides a range of features, including task management, resource allocation, time tracking, Gantt charts, and document sharing. It’s designed to build efficient project planning and execution platforms that can easily be tailored to your business requirements.

Features At-A-Glance 

• Task management
• Resource allocation
• Time tracking
• Gantt charts, SCRUM, and Kanban options
• Document sharing
• Efficient project planning and execution

Pricing 

Starts at $5.90 per user, per month for the Essentials package, and moves up to $11.90, and $23.90 for the Business and Platform packages, respectively. Enterprise package pricing is available on demand, and businesses can customize their chosen plans.

10.  Celoxis

Celoxis is a comprehensive project management platform that covers scheduling, resource allocation, budgeting, and reporting. It’s known for its robust feature set and customizable workflows, with a pay-per-use pricing model that ensures it’s a flexible Zoho alternative for businesses who need tighter controls over their budgets.

Features At-A-Glance 

• Scheduling
• Resource allocation
• Budgeting
• Reporting
• Customizable workflows

Pricing 

Pricing is available on request for both Cloud and On-Premise packages. The free client portal allows you to control what you pay for, and the number of users who have access.

Wrap-Up

While Zoho remains a comprehensive option, businesses that need a more tailored approach to their specific needs may want to look elsewhere. In particular, any organization looking to break down information silos and centralize their workflows may be better served by Spike for Teams, allowing streamlined collaboration with all stakeholders—from team members to clients and beyond.

For more information on how Spike for Teams can be your Zoho alternative, contact us today and explore our Resource section for details on our features.