Start with what you need the CRM to do
- List the people you track: supporters, volunteers, members, clients or partners.
- Write down the three reports your board or funders ask for most often.
- Note where your contact data lives today, such as spreadsheets, an email tool or an old database.
- Count how many staff need to sign in, since most CRM programs count licenses per user.
- Name one person who will own the CRM and keep the data clean.
- Decide which data you must not store, such as card numbers or health details, unless the tool and your policies are set up for it.
Salesforce Nonprofit Cloud (Power of Us)
Salesforce says that through its Power of Us program any eligible nonprofit receives 10 Nonprofit Cloud Core licenses at no cost. Additional licenses are discounted for eligible nonprofits rather than free, and Salesforce notes that most of its products use annual contracts.
Salesforce is very flexible, which also means it usually needs setup time and someone who knows how to configure it.
Source: Salesforce Power of Us program
Microsoft Dynamics 365 and Power Apps
Microsoft lists Dynamics 365 Sales for relationship management with constituents, volunteers and beneficiaries at a nonprofit discount, not free. Microsoft also lists Power Apps as free for up to 10 users for eligible nonprofits, which some small teams use to build a simple contact or case tracker on top of Microsoft 365.
If your team already works in Microsoft 365, keeping contacts in the same tenant can make sign-in and security simpler.
Sources: Microsoft offers for nonprofits; Microsoft nonprofit eligibility
HubSpot for Nonprofits
HubSpot offers a nonprofit discount on new Professional and Enterprise tier products for nonprofits in North America, Australia and New Zealand, on an annual contract. Starter tier products are excluded. It is a discount, not a free license, and you apply by contacting HubSpot sales.
Source: HubSpot for Nonprofits
CiviCRM (open source)
CiviCRM is open source software built for nonprofit and civic organizations and released under the GNU AGPL v3 license. The software itself is free to use. You still need somewhere to host it and someone to install, update and secure it, which is where most of the real cost and effort sits.
Source: About CiviCRM
Before you move your data
- Export a full copy of your current contacts and keep it somewhere safe.
- Remove duplicates and old records before the import, not after.
- Turn on multi-factor authentication for every CRM user on day one.
- Give each person their own sign-in. Do not share one account.
- Test the import with a small batch first and check the fields match.
- Write a short note on who can see which records and why.
Source: CISA Secure Our World
Common questions
Is there a truly free CRM for nonprofits?
Salesforce says eligible nonprofits get 10 Nonprofit Cloud Core licenses at no cost, and CiviCRM is free open source software that you host yourself. Microsoft Power Apps is free for up to 10 users for eligible nonprofits. Most other offers are discounts.
Which CRM is easiest for a very small nonprofit?
It depends on the tools you already use and who will look after the CRM. A team that lives in Microsoft 365 may prefer to stay there. A team with a volunteer who knows Salesforce may prefer Power of Us. Start from the checklist at the top of this page.
Do we need a CRM or is a spreadsheet enough?
A shared spreadsheet can work for a few hundred contacts and one or two users. A CRM helps when several people update records, you need history for each person, or you need repeatable reports for funders.
Can TRUE.org help us choose a CRM?
Ask for free help below and tell us how many people you track and what you use today. A person replies in writing, and tells you plainly if a request is outside what we can help with.