FreshBooks vs. Zoho CRM

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
FreshBooks
Score 8.7 out of 10
Small Businesses (1-50 employees)
FreshBooks is an accounting service for small businesses. The solution enables users to send and manage invoices, track billable time and collect online payments. The vendor’s value proposition this that their solution provides a straightforward service that simplifies the billing process.
$21
per month
Zoho CRM
Score 8.6 out of 10
N/A
Zoho CRM is a simple, very low-cost CRM option for the smaller end of the SMB segment. The product has several useful integrations with other products, including QuickBooks, and Google Apps and Google Docs. The product also has an integrated project management module.
$14
per month
Pricing
FreshBooksZoho CRM
Editions & Modules
Lite
$21
per month
Plus
$38
per month
Premium
$65
per month
Select
Custom Pricing
Standard
$14.00
Per User/Per Month
Professional
$23.00
Per User/Per Month
Enterprise
$40.00
Per User/Per Month
Ultimate
$52.00
Per User/Per Month
Plus
$57.00
Per User/Per Month
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
FreshBooksZoho CRM
Free Trial
YesYes
Free/Freemium Version
YesYes
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoYes
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup fee$14 /user/month
Additional Details10% discount for annual pricing.
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
FreshBooksZoho CRM
Considered Both Products
FreshBooks
Chose FreshBooks
FreshBooks is more simple to implement and very fast to adapt into a small business operation that is looking for an international operation market. About this direction, we are not a large enough company to get SAP Business and have a complicated implementation operation. And …
Zoho CRM

No answer on this topic

Features
FreshBooksZoho CRM
Customization
Comparison of Customization features of Product A and Product B
FreshBooks
9.1
35 Ratings
16% above category average
Zoho CRM
7.9
277 Ratings
3% above category average
API for custom integration9.330 Ratings8.0203 Ratings
Plug-ins8.926 Ratings00 Ratings
Custom fields00 Ratings8.2275 Ratings
Custom objects00 Ratings7.9222 Ratings
Scripting environment00 Ratings7.6178 Ratings
Security
Comparison of Security features of Product A and Product B
FreshBooks
10.0
41 Ratings
20% above category average
Zoho CRM
8.1
266 Ratings
3% below category average
Single sign-on capability10.01 Ratings8.2231 Ratings
Role-based user permissions9.941 Ratings8.1261 Ratings
Reporting & Analytics
Comparison of Reporting & Analytics features of Product A and Product B
FreshBooks
7.5
57 Ratings
4% below category average
Zoho CRM
-
Ratings
Dashboards8.957 Ratings00 Ratings
Standard reports8.755 Ratings00 Ratings
Custom reports4.82 Ratings00 Ratings
General Ledger and Configurable Accounting
Comparison of General Ledger and Configurable Accounting features of Product A and Product B
FreshBooks
7.5
56 Ratings
2% below category average
Zoho CRM
-
Ratings
Accounts payable8.041 Ratings00 Ratings
Accounts receivable9.455 Ratings00 Ratings
Cash management7.03 Ratings00 Ratings
Bank reconciliation7.02 Ratings00 Ratings
Expense management6.651 Ratings00 Ratings
Time tracking7.642 Ratings00 Ratings
Multi-currency support7.01 Ratings00 Ratings
Regulations compliance6.021 Ratings00 Ratings
Self-service portal9.13 Ratings00 Ratings
Order Management
Comparison of Order Management features of Product A and Product B
FreshBooks
9.4
49 Ratings
21% above category average
Zoho CRM
-
Ratings
Pricing8.839 Ratings00 Ratings
Order entry9.337 Ratings00 Ratings
Credit card processing9.641 Ratings00 Ratings
Cost of goods sold10.01 Ratings00 Ratings
Sales Force Automation
Comparison of Sales Force Automation features of Product A and Product B
FreshBooks
-
Ratings
Zoho CRM
8.2
288 Ratings
6% above category average
Customer data management / contact management00 Ratings8.4279 Ratings
Workflow management00 Ratings8.1266 Ratings
Territory management00 Ratings8.3196 Ratings
Opportunity management00 Ratings8.4253 Ratings
Integration with email client (e.g., Outlook or Gmail)00 Ratings8.3248 Ratings
Contract management00 Ratings8.4203 Ratings
Quote & order management00 Ratings7.9203 Ratings
Interaction tracking00 Ratings7.8249 Ratings
Channel / partner relationship management00 Ratings8.0192 Ratings
Customer Service & Support
Comparison of Customer Service & Support features of Product A and Product B
FreshBooks
-
Ratings
Zoho CRM
8.0
221 Ratings
5% above category average
Case management00 Ratings8.1213 Ratings
Call center management00 Ratings7.5172 Ratings
Help desk management00 Ratings8.3189 Ratings
Marketing Automation
Comparison of Marketing Automation features of Product A and Product B
FreshBooks
-
Ratings
Zoho CRM
8.2
266 Ratings
6% above category average
Lead management00 Ratings8.3261 Ratings
Email marketing00 Ratings8.1219 Ratings
CRM Project Management
Comparison of CRM Project Management features of Product A and Product B
FreshBooks
-
Ratings
Zoho CRM
8.2
263 Ratings
7% above category average
Task management00 Ratings8.3248 Ratings
Billing and invoicing management00 Ratings8.1180 Ratings
Reporting00 Ratings8.3242 Ratings
CRM Reporting & Analytics
Comparison of CRM Reporting & Analytics features of Product A and Product B
FreshBooks
-
Ratings
Zoho CRM
8.2
258 Ratings
8% above category average
Forecasting00 Ratings8.1216 Ratings
Pipeline visualization00 Ratings8.1235 Ratings
Customizable reports00 Ratings8.4249 Ratings
Social CRM
Comparison of Social CRM features of Product A and Product B
FreshBooks
-
Ratings
Zoho CRM
7.9
165 Ratings
6% above category average
Social data00 Ratings7.9164 Ratings
Social engagement00 Ratings7.8156 Ratings
Integrations with 3rd-party Software
Comparison of Integrations with 3rd-party Software features of Product A and Product B
FreshBooks
-
Ratings
Zoho CRM
8.3
210 Ratings
11% above category average
Marketing automation00 Ratings8.5207 Ratings
Compensation management00 Ratings8.1138 Ratings
Platform
Comparison of Platform features of Product A and Product B
FreshBooks
-
Ratings
Zoho CRM
8.3
230 Ratings
10% above category average
Mobile access00 Ratings8.3230 Ratings
Best Alternatives
FreshBooksZoho CRM
Small Businesses
QuickBooks Self-Employed (discontinued)
QuickBooks Self-Employed (discontinued)
Score 9.0 out of 10
Salesmate
Salesmate
Score 10.0 out of 10
Medium-sized Companies
Zoho Books
Zoho Books
Score 9.1 out of 10
Creatio
Creatio
Score 9.1 out of 10
Enterprises
SAP S/4HANA Cloud
SAP S/4HANA Cloud
Score 8.5 out of 10
Creatio
Creatio
Score 9.1 out of 10
All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
User Ratings
FreshBooksZoho CRM
Likelihood to Recommend
8.3
(75 ratings)
8.4
(311 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
7.6
(18 ratings)
7.6
(42 ratings)
Usability
9.5
(20 ratings)
7.9
(172 ratings)
Availability
10.0
(2 ratings)
8.9
(7 ratings)
Performance
8.0
(1 ratings)
8.4
(8 ratings)
Support Rating
6.0
(11 ratings)
6.4
(69 ratings)
In-Person Training
-
(0 ratings)
8.0
(1 ratings)
Online Training
-
(0 ratings)
5.7
(8 ratings)
Implementation Rating
10.0
(1 ratings)
5.5
(16 ratings)
Configurability
-
(0 ratings)
5.1
(114 ratings)
Contract Terms and Pricing Model
-
(0 ratings)
9.5
(21 ratings)
Ease of integration
-
(0 ratings)
7.1
(5 ratings)
Product Scalability
-
(0 ratings)
6.1
(6 ratings)
Professional Services
-
(0 ratings)
8.3
(7 ratings)
Vendor post-sale
-
(0 ratings)
8.0
(13 ratings)
Vendor pre-sale
-
(0 ratings)
8.1
(13 ratings)
User Testimonials
FreshBooksZoho CRM
Likelihood to Recommend
FreshBooks
I recommend FreshBooks to anyone running a service-based business that needs invoicing, time reporting, and accounting tools. FB is adept in all three of these scenarios and isn't overly complicated like similar accounting packages I have used. I love how I can write estimates and proposals, manage the business development process from the software, and quickly convert prospects to invoiced clients.
Read full review
Zoho
Interfacing with our target clients at the correct minute is crucial in today's society. Another valuable include is its capacity to coordinated with other programs. It helps me in keeping track of the every day work emails I send to my colleagues or get. Zoho CRM makes it straightforward to consequence or send out information agreeing to our needs. Zoho makes a difference keep in mind individuals by means of e-mail and pop-ups, which dispenses with the issue of overlooking follow-ups and reminders. This not as it were helps within the organization of this incredible instrument but moreover within the execution of data.
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Pros
FreshBooks
  • Invoicing - FreshBooks basically ensures our accountants spend less time on invoices via its automated invoicing system, which sends invoices to our customers and clients alike and also send them regular reminders for them to pay up their bills.
  • Collecting business insights - FreshBooks enable our company analysts measure our business performances via data reports provided by FreshBooks' intuitive dashboard. Allowing us do a comparative analysis of key business metrics of a current month against past months and determine if the business is growing.
  • Expense tracker - We have recently embraced FreshBooks as an expense tracker for teams at our company branch. Thusfar, FreshBooks has performed very well, making our expense management a perfect operation; ensuring teams do not exceed their planned budget and also eliminating the need for tracking expenses on excel spreadsheets.
Read full review
Zoho
  • Hooks into our website and can import data from forms.
  • Has great automation tools built in.
  • Reporting features are great.
  • Easy to learn, makes it easy for us to onboard new users onto it.
  • Fairly customizable. We have fine tuned it to work the way we need it to.
Read full review
Cons
FreshBooks
  • I can brand invoices with my business logo, but I might like to change colours of the invoices themselves to match the rest of my business documents. That isn't a major point at all, but it's something that I'd like to see.
  • Freshbooks doesn't remember the categories that similar expenses were previously assigned to. It would be nice if Freshbooks would suggest a category for an already saved vendor, to ensure the consistency of expense reporting.
  • The home page of a Freshbooks account has a great graph display of expenses and income, but it only shows the last 6 months. This is still very useful, but I'd like to be able to see this kind of graph for different periods of time.
Read full review
Zoho
  • Need some way to switch a field type without losing the pre-existing data.
  • The settings controls should be broken out differently - I don't like that I can't keep some users from exporting all contact records (i.e., the entire Contacts module) because if the export function is turned off, the export function of Reports for those same modules is also blocked.
  • Frustrating that only 3 custom lookup fields are allowed per module in our license.
Read full review
Likelihood to Renew
FreshBooks
At the current needs of our business, FreshBooks suits us perfectly - it allows online access by our accountant to the system for GST purposes, easy input of expenses and tracking of Profit and Loss statements. FreshBooks customer service is great as well - very understanding and accommodating.
Read full review
Zoho
i have already renewed my subscription twice. I am in the 3rd Year now. I have been using it for a while and have been recommending to my friends as well.. have attended ZOHOLICs the annual program of zoho and it gave me new insights of managing the crm solutoin.
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Usability
FreshBooks
FreshBooks is very easy to use even for novices. If you're looking for an online accounting software that is full of features, has great aesthetics and is user-friendly, then this is definitely the software for you. I've been using it for several years now and despite being tempted to switch by other vendors, I like the feel of FreshBooks and it's mobile features.
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Zoho
The methodology of the 'out of the box' user interface is fairly easy to learn. In some cases however, the interface is not consistent throughout the software. Upgrades to the interface has certainly improved some of this--- but now we are seeing the same kinds of inconsistencies across Zoho apps, particularly those more recently added to their platform. This issue is not major in that everybody on staff seems able to learn how to work the programs--- it's just annoying and less than efficient when inconsistent user interfaces or inconsistent terms are used in the programs and/or the requisite documentation.
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Reliability and Availability
FreshBooks
FreshBooks is easy to use and always works!
Read full review
Zoho
In my many years using Zoho, I think there were only 1 or 2 days when there was something happening and I was not able to log in. Sure, it wasn't fun and we all panicked a bit, but right after that, all was well and work-life continued. Being cloud based, I'm never worried about losing my iPhone, iPad or Laptop as I know I can log in anywhere on any device and workflow won't stop.
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Performance
FreshBooks
No answers on this topic
Zoho
I don't recall every having any issues with a page not loading due to it being a Zoho issue. Anytime I've had any issues with something being wonky, I clear cache and that has always solved the problem. Or a simply computer reboot and we're back, hard at work. Look, I don't expect any product to delivery 100%, 100% of the time but if I had any consistent ongoing issues, I would have left many years ago. I still keep my eyes open to what is new but after a quick evaluation, I know Zoho will long be my home.
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Support Rating
FreshBooks
I think the support level for FreshBooks is on par with a 6 because the folks behind this application do a fairly good job at providing support for their customer base. I still don't think they are at an elite level when it comes to supporting but are getting there although too slow in my opinion.
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Zoho
We did the training and that was a huge waste of money. The information provided was basic and the instructor was sloppy (he even forgot to turn off his mic when he used the restroom - no one should ever hear what we heard). I offered up a 9 because we were able to find what we needed on your website.
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In-Person Training
FreshBooks
No answers on this topic
Zoho
I attended a Zoho-Holics event in Austin, TX, several years ago, and it blew my mind. So many industries were represented using Zoho in so many different ways. It was unbelievable all that I learned from that experience, as there were features that I wasn't aware of that I immediately started using. Best of all, the trainers were patient and knowledgeable
Read full review
Online Training
FreshBooks
No answers on this topic
Zoho
There is an endless supply of YouTube videos from Zoho and the many Zoho partners/consultants. Plus, Zoho has it's own library of training videos and webinars to learn from plus an entire community at the ready to answer any questions. While Zoho has been available for many years, there are constantly new training videos and webinars available for the novice and the experienced users.
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Implementation Rating
FreshBooks
I haven't changed my mind since my first evaluation. Freshbooks is still meeting my needs, easy to use, etc.
Read full review
Zoho
When you switch CRMs, you can automatically assume everything isn’t going to match up correctly. We had used Salesforce for 10+ years and had a ton of data and customizations. It was not a clean transfer, but we were able to sort it all out. The only issue that really bothered me was Zoho support. Even simple questions couldn’t be answered over chat, and we would have some team members try for hours to find the right answer
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Alternatives Considered
FreshBooks
FreshBooks does very well in comparison, especially since it is free software for Barclays bank users. Sage software is much worse than FreshBooks. However, Xero and QuickBooks, the market leaders, are still ahead with usability, additional features, reporting, and connection with third-party software providers. We chose FreshBooks as it does everything we require from this type of software.
Read full review
Zoho
Free user access was one reason to use it more than any other software. Also, for a mid-size organization, the Salesforce cost was a little higher, and Pipedrive was almost similar to Zoho. As we were already using Zoho, we found no urgency to switch.
Read full review
Contract Terms and Pricing Model
FreshBooks
No answers on this topic
Zoho
I think Zoho CRM is priced at a reasonable amount. Simply put, you get what you pay for and Zoho does not disappoint. My organization is comfortable with what we pay and pleased with continually renewing the software. The billing frequency is just right. There are no complaints on our end
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Scalability
FreshBooks
No answers on this topic
Zoho
We're still in the early stages of scaling this across departments. We have high aspirations of doing this, but it takes time to migrate to the new system and to help people get acquainted of doing their work in a different way thru Zoho.
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Professional Services
FreshBooks
No answers on this topic
Zoho
In addition to being a user of Zoho CRM, we are a reseller as well. Often, at times our Partners request for on-boarding the platform configuration for them. During such requirements, we have utilized the Professional services team directly from the Zoho CRM team. Our partner feedback was quite positive, throughout.
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Return on Investment
FreshBooks
  • In reality, we do not implement all of its use at the moment in order to determine an adequate ROI.
  • In our approach to the use of the system, it seems to us a considerable time saving by achieving the integration of the Mexican subsidiary with its parent located in the US.
  • Financial reports meet the necessary USGAAP requirements.
Read full review
Zoho
  • because we are new to the CRM world, we wanted a product that was reasonably priced, yet had the features we were looking for
  • we have found a much higher customer engagement rate and ROI
  • we used to "lose" customers in our makeshift process. Now, all customers are being attended to.
Read full review
ScreenShots

FreshBooks Screenshots

Screenshot of the dashboardScreenshot of an invoice overviewScreenshot of an example of a customizable invoiceScreenshot of an invoice appearing across devicesScreenshot of expensesScreenshot of time tracking

Zoho CRM Screenshots

Screenshot of Deals - Cash in on all opportunities. Close more deals. Great sales management is all about prioritizing, tracking, and monitoring the deals in your pipeline. Zoho CRM gives you everything you need to manage deals across territories and sales structures.Screenshot of Activities - Keep track of all the tasks, meetings, calls, events, or activity records. Neatly organize the numerous records along with the activities associated to them such as follow-up, pre sales and post sales activities, phone conversations etc.