Close
Pipedrive
| Feature | Close | Pipedrive |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | From $49/mo | From $14/mo |
| Free Plan | ✗ No | ✗ No |
| Rating | 4.5 / 5 | 4.4 / 5 |
| Best For | inside-sales-teams, startups, smbs, call-heavy-teams | sales-teams, small-businesses, startups, agencies |
| Founded | 2013 | 2010 |
| Calling | ✓ | ✗ |
| Email Sequences | ✓ | ✗ |
| Pipeline | ✓ | ✗ |
| Sms | ✓ | ✗ |
| Predictive Dialer | ✓ | ✗ |
| Reporting | ✓ | ✓ |
| Workflows | ✓ | ✗ |
| Visual Pipeline | ✗ | ✓ |
| Activity Tracking | ✗ | ✓ |
| Email Integration | ✗ | ✓ |
| Ai Assistant | ✗ | ✓ |
| Automations | ✗ | ✓ |
| Web Forms | ✗ | ✓ |
✓ Close Pros
- Built-in VoIP calling and SMS
- Powerful email sequences with tracking
- Designed specifically for inside sales workflow
- Fast setup — productive in minutes not weeks
✗ Close Cons
- No free tier available
- Limited marketing automation
- Fewer integrations than HubSpot or Salesforce
✓ Pipedrive Pros
- Visual pipeline is intuitive
- Activity-based selling methodology
- Easy to set up and use
- AI Sales Assistant included
✗ Pipedrive Cons
- No free tier
- Marketing features are add-ons
- Reporting less powerful than HubSpot
The Verdict
Close is built for inside sales teams and startups, with a focus on calling and email-sequences. Pipedrive targets sales teams and small businesses and leads with visual-pipeline and activity-tracking.
On pricing, Pipedrive is the clear winner for budget-conscious users — starting at $14/mo compared to $49/mo for Close. That $35/mo difference adds up quickly for growing teams.
Neither tool offers a free plan, so factor the subscription cost into your decision from the start.
Both tools are a solid fit for startups — in those cases, the decision often comes down to workflow style and how your team prefers to organize work.
This is a genuinely close comparison. If you can, sign up for both free trials (where available) and run a one-week test with your actual team tasks before deciding.
