Recommended Free Tools
Close is a sales-focused CRM that combines lead and pipeline records with built-in calling, SMS, email, workflows and reporting. It can suit a small, phone-and-email sales team that wants fewer separate tools, but the useful team features are split across plans and communication usage is billed separately. The prices below are the current figures shown on Close’s pricing page accessed September 28, 2026—not verified historical 2025 prices.
What Close CRM does
Close is designed around active sales conversations rather than general-purpose customer management. A workspace can hold contact and lead records, track pipeline activity, send email and SMS, place calls, record calls, schedule follow-ups and report on activity. Close also lists a mobile app and its Chloe AI sales agent; AI access is included on every tier through a monthly credit allowance.
The product’s main appeal is consolidation: representatives can work from CRM records while using communication tools in the same system. That focus is narrower than an all-department CRM, so teams should check whether they need marketing, service or highly customized enterprise administration before choosing it.
Close CRM pricing and plan differences
Close’s official page lists per-user subscription prices. Annual-billing figures are monthly equivalents billed on an annual term; the page also states that calling and SMS are usage-based and billed at cost.
#1 Best Overall
| Plan | Monthly billing | Annual billing | What Close lists |
|---|---|---|---|
| Solo | $19/user/month | $9/user/month | One user, a 10,000-lead limit and no workflows; 500 monthly AI credits |
| Essentials | $49/user/month | $35/user/month | Team collaboration, unlimited contacts and leads, built-in forms, email, calling and SMS; 1,000 monthly AI credits |
| Growth | $109/user/month | $99/user/month | Automated workflows, power dialer, custom activities and bulk email; 1,500 monthly AI credits |
| Scale | $149/user/month | $139/user/month | Role permissions, lead-visibility rules, predictive dialer, unlimited call-recording retention and live call coaching; 2,000 monthly AI credits |
Close says AI credits refresh monthly without rollover and that additional credits are available. Its pricing page should be checked again before purchase because plan contents and prices can change.
Communication charges are extra
Subscription seats do not represent the entire bill. Close says most outbound calls cost around $0.02 per minute, while phone numbers start at about $1 per month. Actual calling and SMS costs depend on usage, destination and message volume, so estimate those charges from your team’s expected activity rather than multiplying only the seat price.
Rank #2
Trial and refund terms shown by Close
The current pricing page advertises a 14-day trial with no credit card required and a 30-day money-back guarantee. Confirm the terms and eligibility on the live page before relying on them.
Features that matter to a sales team
CRM records and pipeline work
Close puts contacts, leads, communication history and follow-up activity in one sales workspace. Essentials removes Solo’s single-user and lead-limit constraints by adding team collaboration and unlimited contacts and leads.
Email, calling and SMS
Email, calling and SMS are built into the Essentials plan and above. This is useful when representatives need to move between channels without maintaining separate activity logs, but the metered communication charges must be included in total-cost planning.
Automation and dialers
Automated workflows, the power dialer, custom activities and bulk email begin on Growth. Predictive dialing is reserved for Scale. A team choosing Close primarily for outbound automation should therefore compare the Growth or Scale price—not the lower Solo or Essentials headline.
Administration, coaching and recordings
Scale adds role permissions and lead-visibility rules for tighter administration, plus unlimited call-recording retention and live call coaching. Those controls are material for managers who need segmented access, coaching workflows or long-term recording storage.
AI credits
Close lists Chloe AI access on every plan with tiered monthly credits. The published allowances are 500 on Solo, 1,000 on Essentials, 1,500 on Growth and 2,000 on Scale. Credits do not roll over, and the page says extra credits can be purchased.
Quick wins for a faster PC:
Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →Best Value
Close CRM pros and cons
Potential advantages
- Sales communication is integrated: CRM records sit alongside calling, SMS and email tools.
- Useful progression by tier: Teams can move from basic collaboration to workflows, dialers and advanced permissions as requirements grow.
- Practical follow-up aids: TechRepublic’s September 5, 2024 review highlighted templates, reminders and notifications among the positives it reported.
- Short evaluation path: Close currently advertises a 14-day trial without a credit card.
Potential drawbacks
- Plan gates are significant: Workflows and power dialing require Growth, while predictive dialing, detailed permissions and live coaching require Scale.
- Usage billing complicates budgeting: Calling and SMS are additional, variable costs.
- Learning curve and bugs were reported: TechRepublic summarized user-reported concerns about a learning curve, comparatively high cost and minor bugs in its 2024 review. Those are dated, attributed reports—not findings from a current hands-on test—and may not describe the present release.
- Solo is intentionally limited: It supports one user, caps leads at 10,000 and excludes workflows.
Who should choose Close?
Good fit
- Small or midsize sales teams whose daily work is outbound calling, texting and email follow-up.
- Organizations that prefer one sales workspace instead of stitching a CRM to separate telephony and messaging tools.
- Managers who specifically need power or predictive dialing, call coaching or role-based lead visibility and are prepared to pay for Growth or Scale.
Look elsewhere when
- You need a broad marketing, customer-support or enterprise platform rather than a sales-conversation system.
- Your communication volume is high but difficult to forecast, making usage-based charges unacceptable.
- You require advanced administration on an entry-level budget; Close places those controls on Scale.
How to compare Close with alternatives
Close’s comparison page names Pipedrive, HighLevel, HubSpot, Zoho, Salesforce, Outreach, Apollo, Salesloft and Copper. It organizes comparisons around team size, pricing, calling, email automation, training and implementation, and whether an administrator or developer is needed. Because that page is vendor-authored, treat its winner claims as positioning rather than independent testing.
For a fair shortlist, compare each candidate at your actual seat count and expected call/SMS volume. Check:
- Whether calling, texting and recording are included or metered.
- Which automation and dialer functions are available at the required tier.
- Permission, visibility and coaching controls for managers.
- Implementation effort and the need for specialist administration.
- Total recurring cost, including communication usage.
A practical Close evaluation checklist
- Write down the number of users, expected monthly call minutes and SMS volume.
- Decide whether you need workflows and power dialing (Growth) or permissions, predictive dialing and coaching (Scale).
- During the trial, import a representative set of leads and test your real follow-up sequence across email, calls and SMS.
- Check how your team handles recordings, lead visibility and reporting before committing to an annual term.
- Review the live Close pricing page for current plan limits, AI-credit terms, usage rates and refund conditions.
Is Close CRM worth it?
Close is worth considering when integrated sales communication is more valuable than having the lowest seat price. Essentials is the practical starting point for a collaborative team; Growth is the relevant tier for workflow-driven outbound sales; Scale is aimed at organizations needing advanced controls and coaching. Solo is mainly for a single user with modest lead volume.
The decision should be based on fully loaded cost and fit, not the subscription number alone. Add expected calling and SMS usage, verify that required features are in the chosen tier, and treat older user-review summaries as context rather than proof of current performance.
Do these 3 things before closing this tab:
1Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute2Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problems3Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesPartner disclosure
Close operates a partner program at Close’s Partner Program. The company says approved affiliates and creators can earn 30% of first-year subscription revenue, with lifetime earnings available as accounts scale; approval and agreement terms still apply. This article does not recommend a physical product or an Amazon item: Close is subscription software, and the available evidence does not show that a particular laptop, headset or book is required to use it.
Quick Recap
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.
