6 Best Contact Management Software for Sales 2023

Read our independent editorial review of the best contact management software for salespeople, including the best use cases for each option.

Contact management software is a tool that stores and organizes lead and customer data in a centralized location. The best contact management software are typically CRMs that allow users to create segmented lists, track interactions, and easily update contact information so they can better engage new leads and keep current customers happy. To help you find an efficient way to store and access contact data, we’ve evaluated the top contact management software.

Here are the best contact management software solutions:

  • Zoho CRM: Best for multichannel contact management (free starting price)
  • Freshsales: Best for AI-powered contact management (free starting price)
  • HubSpot CRM: Best free software with premium upgrades (free starting price)
  • monday sales CRM: Best for visual contact management (free starting price)
  • EngageBay: Best option for contact behavior tracking (free starting price)
  • Insightly: Best software for project management (free starting price)

How We Evaluated the Best Contact Management Software

In our evaluation of the top options for contact management, we first defined six weighted categories based on factors that tend to be the most important to users. Then, we used a list of key subcriteria to assign every option a score out of five in each category. Finally, we used that information to determine an overall score for all software on our list and identify primary use cases.

Evaluation Criteria

We prioritized each software’s cost and contact management CRM features like activity tracking, profile enrichment, and records management. Next, we reviewed ease of use and customization to ensure each software is accessible and can be tailored to users' needs. We also considered each software’s advanced features and quality of support.

Cost:
25%
Core Features:
25%
Ease of Use:
15%
Customization:
15%
Advanced Features:
10%
Customer Support:
10%

Note: All per-user prices are with a one-year commitment unless noted.

Per our scoring, Zoho CRM is the top contact management software overall; it also placed first in core features and customization, and tied in cost. Keep reading to understand how each contact management software option fared in all categories.

Zoho CRM: Best for Multichannel Contact Management

Integrates with social media and other channels to enrich and track contact data in real time.

Price Range: Free to $52 per user, per month (15- to 30-day free trial)

Overall Rating star-fullstar-fullstar-fullstar-full Cost star-fullstar-fullstar-fullstar-full Core Features star-fullstar-fullstar-fullstar-full Ease of Use star-fullstar-fullstar-full star-full Customization star-fullstar-fullstar-fullstar-full Advanced Features star-fullstar-fullstar-fullstar-full Customer Support star-fullstar-fullstar-full star-full

Pros:

  • Great social media integration
  • Omnichannel communication tracking
  • Free data backups with paid plans

Cons:

  • Free plan missing social media tools
  • AI is only for Enterprise and up
  • Setup takes time

Zoho CRM is a contact management solution known for its tight social media integration. Syncing with Facebook and other social networks enables you to have conversations with leads and prospects (which are then saved) and automatically enrich contact data. Zoho CRM also allows users to track and interact with contacts via email, telephony, and other channel integrations. It’s the best CRM for businesses that run multichannel marketing campaigns.

Even though Zoho CRM has great multichannel contact management functions, its customer service can be improved. If your team is looking for great user support, check out EngageBay, which won in this category and also provides some multichannel contact management tools.

Zoho CRM Pricing

  • Free Version: Supports 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: 15 to 30 days
  • Access to Zoho One Marketplace Apps

Zoho CRM Key Features

  • Omnichannel: Integrate Zoho CRM with email, telephony, social media, and more.
  • Social Tab: View contacts’ conversations from Facebook, Twitter, and other platforms.
  • Record Tagging: Create tags based on select criteria to help segment contacts.
  • Data Backup: All paid plans include 2-4 free data backups per month.

Zoho CRM - Contact Management Software

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Freshsales: Best for AI-Powered Contact Management

Harnesses the power of artificial intelligence to add, score, and engage with contacts.

Price Range: Free to $69 per user, per month (21-day free trial)

Overall Rating star-fullstar-fullstar-fullstar-full Cost star-fullstar-fullstar-fullstar-full Core Features star-fullstar-fullstar-fullstar-full Ease of Use star-fullstar-fullstar-full star-full Customization star-fullstar-fullstar-fullstar-full Advanced Features star-fullstar-fullstar-fullstar-full Customer Support star-fullstar-fullstar-fullstar-full

Pros:

  • AI scores & engages contacts
  • Basic & advanced segmentation
  • Centralized contact activity timeline

Cons:

  • No fully-featured free plan
  • Add-ons are useful but costly
  • AI limited in Growth plan

Freshsales is contact management software with built-in AI automation. Known as Freddy, this AI assistant engages with contacts, scores leads, and deletes duplicate contact data — it also automates email sends, invoicing, and general data entry. Sales reps can keep contact info organized in Freshsales by segmenting using demographics and behaviors. Busy professionals needing to streamline their sales process should check out this CRM.

While Freshsales has great AI-powered tools, it lacks robust marketing features and customizations in its lower paid tiers. If having these functions is important for you, try Zoho CRM, which won for core features and customization.

Freshsales Pricing

  • Growth: $15 per user, per month (free for 3 users)
  • Pro: $39 per user, per month
  • Enterprise: $69 per, user per month
  • Free Trial: 21 days
  • Integration with Freshworks’ free marketing and service platform tiers
  • Access to Freshworks Marketplace

Freshsales Key Features

  • Freddy AI: Utilize machine learning to score contacts and engage with leads.
  • Activity Tracking: View every contact interaction through an activity timeline.
  • Segmentation: Sort contacts by demographics or by their typical behaviors.
  • 24/5 Support: Access live support via chat, phone, or email five days a week.

Freshsales contact management software

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HubSpot CRM: Best Free Software With Upgrades

Stores up to one million non-marketing contacts and auto-updates list segments in a free plan.

Price Range: Free to $1,200 per month (Sales Hub)

Overall Rating star-fullstar-fullstar-fullstar-full Cost star-fullstar-fullstar-fullstar-full Core Features star-fullstar-fullstar-full star-full Ease of Use star-fullstar-fullstar-full star-full Customization star-fullstar-fullstar-fullstar-full Advanced Features star-fullstar-fullstar-full star-full Customer Support star-fullstar-fullstar-fullstar-full

Pros:

  • 1MM non-marketing contacts free
  • Automatically updated contact lists
  • Free platform supports unlimited users

Cons:

  • Reports can be more in-depth
  • Free plan lacks automation rules
  • Upgrades may be costly

HubSpot CRM is an industry leader in lead generation that offers a solid suite of free contact management tools. These include email activity tracking, data extraction via Gmail or Outlook, and automatically updated list segments. Plus, unlike most free plans, HubSpot CRM provides up to a million non-marketing contacts at no cost and also supports unlimited users. HubSpot CRM is ideal for small businesses wanting a scalable CRM they can eventually upgrade.

Although HubSpot’s free plan has powerful sales and marketing features, its higher tiers are pricey and you might have to pay extra for additional users. If you need a robust free plan with less expensive paid upgrades, look into Zoho CRM, which won for core features and tied for cost.

HubSpot CRM Pricing

  • Free Version: Supports unlimited users
  • Sales Hub Starter: $18 per month for 2 users
  • Sales Hub Professional: $450 per month for 5 users
  • Sales Hub Enterprise: $1,200 per month for 10 users
  • Additional users can be purchased for extra
  • Integration with HubSpot's free marketing, service, and other tools
  • Access to HubSpot App Marketplace

HubSpot CRM Key Features

  • Free Non-Marketing Contacts: Store up to 1 million non-marketing contacts for free.
  • Inbox Insights: Integrate the CRM with Gmail or Outlook for detailed contact data.
  • Email Tracking: Receive notifications every time a recipient opens an email.
  • List Segmentation: Generate segmented lists to aid in automated email campaigns.

HubSpot CRM contact management software

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monday sales CRM: Best for Visual Contact Management

Features a limitless contact database with color-coded boards and a visual interface.

Price Range: Free to $24+ per user, per month (14-day free trial)

Overall Rating star-fullstar-fullstar-fullstar-full Cost star-fullstar-fullstar-fullstar-full Core Features star-fullstar-fullstar-fullstar-full Ease of Use star-fullstar-fullstar-fullstar-full Customization star-fullstar-fullstar-fullstar-full Advanced Features star-fullstar-full star-fullstar-full Customer Support star-fullstar-full star-fullstar-full

Pros:

  • Highly-customizable dashboards
  • Easy import from Excel or Sheets
  • Segment contacts with tags

Cons:

  • Limited free and basic activity logs
  • Can be expensive for larger teams
  • Lacking live support options

monday sales CRM is a customizable, user-friendly platform by monday.com that lets you build and organize an unlimited database of contacts using its kanban-style visual boards. Store your contacts' data like deals, priority tags, and phone numbers and add notes to each board to display info like appointment schedules or project tasks. Then create color-coded tags that show keywords associated with a contact or labels that help you track your tasks and projects.

Even though monday sales CRM is easy to use and set up, its support solutions could be improved. If your team needs intuitive software and robust customer service, check out EngageBay, which has top-notch user support and is highly visual.

monday sales CRM Pricing

  • Free Version: Support for 2 users
  • Basic CRM: $10 per user, per month
  • Standard CRM: $14 per user, per month
  • Pro CRM: $24 per user, per month
  • Enterprise: Contact for quote
  • Free Trial: 14 days
  • Access to app marketplace

monday sales CRM Key Features

  • Unlimited Contacts: Build and visually track a limitless database for your contacts.
  • Customizable Boards: Choose from over 200 templates and over 30 column types.
  • Tags: Segment contacts and organize multiple boards by creating color-coded tags.
  • Data Import: Transfer spreadsheets from Excel or Google Sheets in a few clicks.

monday sales CRM contact management software

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EngageBay: Best for Contact Behavior Tracking

Provides a holistic view of your contact’s profile, interests, and engagements on a single page.

Price Range: Free to $73.59 per user, per month

Overall Rating star-fullstar-fullstar-fullstar-fullstar-full Cost star-fullstar-fullstar-full star-full Core Features star-fullstar-fullstar-full star-full Ease of Use star-fullstar-fullstar-fullstar-full Customization star-fullstar-fullstar-fullstar-full Advanced Features star-fullstar-fullstar-fullstar-full Customer Support star-fullstar-fullstar-fullstar-full

Pros:

  • Free appointment scheduler
  • Offers biennial subscription discount
  • Robust customer support

Cons:

  • Limited contacts across paid tiers
  • Free plan only supports 2 lists
  • Phone support requires upgrade

EngageBay is a cloud-based CRM with robust features for contact management and customer behavior tracking. Build comprehensive profiles for your contacts from multiple touch points like web email, social media, and communication history, then track them individually on a single page. When your contacts open or reply to your email campaigns, this interaction is updated into your database so you can use this info to segment them into or to personalize your content.

While EngageBay has a great customer tracking tool, you need to upgrade to more expensive tiers for advanced contact management features. If you need an affordable option with tight multichannel tracking functions, try Zoho CRM, which won in core features and tied in pricing.

EngageBay Pricing

  • CRM & Sales Bay Free Version: Supports up to 15 users
  • CRM & Sales Bay Basic: $11.95 per user, per month
  • CRM & Sales Bay Growth: $45.99 per user, per month
  • CRM & Sales Bay Pro: $73.59 per user, per month

EngageBay Key Features

  • 360-Degree Customer View: Access your contact’s info and engagements in one page.
  • Contact Segmentation: Group your contacts based on their profile, behavior, and more.
  • Smart Scheduling: Automate appointments with your contacts using a free scheduler.
  • Contact Tracking: Monitor your contact’s real-time interactions across touch points.

EngageBay contact management software

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Insightly: Best Software for Project Management

Helps sales teams manage contact engagements and projects using collaborative tools.

Price Range: Free to $99 per user, per month (14-day free trial)

Overall Rating star-fullstar-fullstar-full star-full Cost star-fullstar-fullstar-full star-full Core Features star-fullstar-fullstar-fullstar-fullstar-full Ease of Use star-fullstar-fullstar-fullstar-full Customization star-fullstar-fullstar-fullstar-full Advanced Features star-fullstar-full star-fullstar-full Customer Support star-fullstar-full star-fullstar-full

Pros:

  • Flush with project management tools
  • Visual kanban-style pipeline
  • Robust automations in paid tiers

Cons:

  • User support could be better
  • Free plan only supports 2,500 records
  • Limited file storage for lower tiers

Insightly is a collaborative CRM with robust project management tools that help you track and manage your contacts' information and activity. Add your contacts to the CRM with its automatic data importing feature and then use its list view tool to segment them into lists. Set auto reminders for follow-ups and appointment schedules with your contacts, or use its built-in milestone tracker to set deadlines and to update them with the progress of their projects.

Insightly is great for project management but it lacks the advanced sales features that your team might need. If you’re looking for a CRM with powerful sales tools, you can explore Zoho CRM, which is flush with these features and integrates with Zoho Projects.

Insightly Pricing

  • Free Version: Supports up to 2 users
  • Plus: $29 per user, per month
  • Professional: $49 per user, per month
  • Enterprise: $99 per user, per month
  • Free Trial: 14 days
  • Access to Insightly’s app library

Insightly Key Features

  • Project Management: Track engagement with contacts and set project milestones.
  • Linking: View direct relationships between contacts, opportunities, projects, and more.
  • Kanban View: Organize and segment your contact list using colorful kanban boards.
  • Mobile App: Capture and automatically record  business card info and via your phone.

Insightly contact management software

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Top 4 Contact Management Software Features

The best options for contact management include these functions:

Contact History & Activity Tracking

Lead Management

Profile Enrichment

Contact Database

Monitor and record engagements with your contacts from multiple touch points and in every stage of the sales process.

Capture, track, and nurture your leads throughout their journey toward becoming a paying customer for your business.

Access in-depth data about your contacts using social and publicly listed information.

Create and keep detailed contact records like social media profiles, communication history, and sales activities in a centralized location.

Bottom Line: Best Contact Management Software

If you’re still relying on spreadsheets to manage your contacts, consider any of the options above to help organize and streamline your data. What’s more, the best contact management software options are also CRMs, which means you’ll be able to avail of other functions that will make your overall sales process even more efficient. If you’re specifically trying to manage leads, check out our guide on the best lead management software.

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