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Our research shows that Salesforce is better than Microsoft Dynamics, due to its depth of features, robust range of integrations, and customizability.
That said, both CRMs are respectable choices, particularly for larger businesses. When it comes to customer relationship management software there are many services out there, but these two providers are giants among the rest.
Salesforce is certainly the popular CRM software option, used by thousands of businesses worldwide, thanks largely to its massive features catalog. Microsoft Dynamics, meanwhile, is a great choice for those whose businesses are already integrated with other Microsoft services, such as Outlook and Office 365.
For a thorough look at the benefits and features of Salesforce and Microsoft Dynamics CRM, take a look at our head to head comparison table, below:
| Free trial | Starting price | Most expensive plan | Verdict | Data cap in basic plan | Email marketing | Social marketing | Content marketing | Paid marketing | Omnichannel features | Marketing campaigns | API | Email Comms Channel | Phone Comms Channel | Website Live Chat Comms Channel | Lead capture | Accept payments | Onboarding | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Microsoft Dynamics 365 | |||||||||||||||||||
| 30 days | 30 days | ||||||||||||||||||
| $65 per month | |||||||||||||||||||
| $1,500 per month | |||||||||||||||||||
| An incredibly popular and highly scalable CRM for all businesses | A robust CRM platform that embeds brilliantly with Microsoft products | ||||||||||||||||||
| 612MB/user | 10GB + 5GB/20 users | ||||||||||||||||||
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| Google Ads integration | | ||||||||||||||||||
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| Open | Yes | ||||||||||||||||||
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| Additional cost | |
A good way to discover a CRM that can be customized for your needs is to use our handy CRM Quotes Tool to receive tailor-made, zero-obligation CRM cost quotes that take into account your company's individual needs and scale.
Microsoft Dynamics vs Salesforce: CRM Systems Compared
Microsoft Dynamics and Salesforce are reputable CRM brands from two of the biggest names in global software. While Microsoft is well-known for its consumer and business software – including the ubiquitous Windows and Office platforms – Salesforce is more of a CRM purist.
Indeed, Salesforce is almost a byword for CRM software, it's become so well-established in the field. But that's not to say Microsoft is anything to scoff at. In fact, one of the strongest things going in Microsoft Dynamics' favor is how well this platform can integrate with other Microsoft software. Chances are, your business is already running plenty of other Microsoft tools, so adding Dynamics may be a smart choice.
Let's look in a little more depth at the pros and cons of each of these big-name CRM providers.
Pros
- Integrates with Microsoft products
- Features on par with Salesforce catalog
- Robust, 24/5 support options
Cons
- Decidedly expensive
- Limited API, particularly compared to Salesforce
- No free plan
Microsoft Dynamics
The first thing to know about Microsoft Dynamics is that it is heavily integrated into other Microsoft applications. Microsoft's integration doesn't just extend to its desktop software, either.
Even LinkedIn, which Microsoft acquired in 2016, integrates with Dynamics CRM. The platform uses design language similar to other Microsoft software, making it easier for anyone who's already familiar with the look and feel of modern Microsoft applications to feel right at home.
Most of the various Microsoft Dynamics services use a dashboard as their starting point similar to Salesforce. Here, you get at-a-glance information about the current state of your business. In Dynamics CRM for Sales, for example, the dashboard supplies current sales revenue, the average deal size, and your sales force's lead conversion rate.
Dashboards are completely customizable and usually take the form of a tiled interface with large lettering for key numerical data, as well as large charts and graphs.
Let's take a look at three platforms offered by Microsoft Dynamics 365: Sales, Marketing, and Service.
Pros
- Lots of data visualization functionality
- Robust support and help options
- Top tier business integrations and business processes
Cons
- A bit on the expensive side
- No lead capture functionality
- Limited lead communication features
Microsoft Dynamics 365 Sales
The primary starting point for many is Microsoft Dynamics 365 Sales. This core CRM app uses predictive analytics to better enhance the sales team's snapshot data and help make better decisions. This is also where Microsoft's LinkedIn integration comes into play; the LinkedIn Sales Navigator (available at higher pricing tiers) leverages your professional network to get introductions to potential leads through a mutual connection.
Beyond sales there's a customer service module that can present key data such as open cases and email history as a dashboard or you can drill deeper with a timeline of interactions. Dynamics also uses a guided three-step process (identify-research-resolve) for dealing with customer services issues. Harnessing Microsoft's server power, Dynamics offers intelligent chatbots that can help customer service agents surface important data about their customers.
For companies that need it there are also project and field service modules to help manage ongoing services delivered to a client, as well as those times your company needs to send a technician into the field.
Pros
- Great email marketing features
- Robust support and help options
- Plenty of team organization and coordination tools
Cons
- No paid or content marketing
- Very limited social media features
- Lacks business training
Microsoft Dynamics 365 Marketing
When it comes to CRM for marketing, the range of products and prices is substantial. The Microsoft Dynamics 365 Marketing platform is one the higher end of that spectrum, offering robust automation functionality that can save your team a lot of time.
Still, in the realm of CRM for marketing, Microsoft Dynamics 365 Marketing can be a bit limited, largely because it can only be used for email. The platform offers no features for social, paid, or content marketing, which can be a bit limiting when it comes the scalability you'd want with a CRM that's this expensive.
It does integrate excellently with other Microsoft products, though, and you'll get top notch customer support, training, security, and onboarding, so it's up to you!
Pros
- Lots of potential add-ons make for customizable platform
- Robust support and help options
- Most security features of CRM on the list
Cons
- A bit on the expensive side
- No built-in customer feedback options
- Many features reserved for Enterprise plan
Microsoft Dynamics 365 Service
Microsoft Dynamics 365 is probably the best option out of the three, offering a good option for the price. It only offers email support built in, but thanks to the myriad of Microsoft add-ons, you can integrate phone, website live chat, social media, and instant messaging app communications. They'll cost a bit extra, but it could be worth it to have a more complete customer service process.
Even better, Microsoft Dynamics 365 Service comes with a bunch of team infrastructure features that can make managing your team that much easier. Pair with software like Outlook and Teams, you'll be able to manage a remote team flawlessly.
It's worth noting that most of these additional features are in the more expensive Enterprise plan, but the overall pricing of Microsoft Dynamics 365 Marketing is at least competitive in the market, unlike the previously mentioned CRMs.
Pros
- 30-day free trial
- Tailored pricing plans
- Provides sales and service functionality
- Lots of analytics and data provided
Cons
- Lacks basic marketing features
- Limited help and support functionality
- Busy interface can be hard to use
Salesforce
Widely known as one of the best CRM systems around, Salesforce has much cause for confidence. The company insists, for example, that Salesforce can outdo its main competitors. In truth, the functions of Salesforce and Microsoft Dynamics are broadly similar.
Where Dynamics has its modules, Salesforce has its various “clouds,” such as Sales Cloud and Service Cloud. These two form the major components of its CRM solution. There's also Salesforce Pardot, the company's marketing automation platform, which is a great option for streamlining your process for reaching and retaining customers.
Pros
- Wide range of help & support options
- Lots of customization opportunities
- Provides a good infrastructure for supporting multiple sales teams
Cons
- Lack of digital selling tools on all plans
- Definitely expensive compared to competitors
Salesforce Sales Cloud
Sales Cloud offers all the essential features you need for CRM, such as managing opportunities, leads, contacts, accounts, and email integration (Gmail and Outlook). Alternatively, users can access Salesforce data from within Gmail. This is similar to Microsoft’s Relationship with Sales feature we discussed earlier.
Pros
- Great infrastructure for managing teams
- Lots of customization opportunities
- Plenty of communication channels
Cons
- No built-in customer feedback options
- Comparatively quite expensive
Salesforce Service Cloud
Service Cloud also offers a number of essential features such as the ability to chat with customers across multiple platforms including IM, social media, and SMS. There’s also an integrated field service option and the ability to see all communication with particular customers.
Pros
- Very strong email marketing features
- Good data visualization options
- Allows for omnichannel automation on all plans
Cons
- Extremely expensive compared to competitors
- Limited social, paid, and content marketing options
- Few team organization and coordination tools
Salesforce Pardot
Salesforce and Microsoft Dynamics 365 offer similar options when it comes to their marketing automation platforms and the price reflects that. You'll be able to automate your marketing efforts to make a bigger impact on your potential customers. The primary focus is email, but it does offer limited features for social, content, and paid.
Salesforce is a bit expensive, though, particularly when you consider the limited features it offers compared to others in the industry. Even worse, it doesn't offer great help and support, which can be vital to the success of a good CRM.
Microsoft Dynamics Pricing vs Salesforce Pricing
While business software pricing is typically pretty cut and dry, Microsoft Dynamics and Salesforce represent, arguably, two of the most thorough and confusing pricing systems you can find. They both offer a seemingly endless array of add-ons, optional packages, and core functionalities that can make the process a bit intimidating.
In hopes of making it a bit less daunting, we've covered each providers pricing plans and options to give you a better idea of what you're signing up for and how much it's going to cost you.
Microsoft Dynamics Pricing
Microsoft offers its CRM platform under the Dynamics 365 app, which caters to a wide range of business types. As such, pricing for the platform depends on what kind of business area your company falls under.
Below, we'll breakdown the pricing for Microsoft Dynamics 365 Sales, Microsoft Dynamics 365 Marketing, and Microsoft Dynamics 365 Service.
| Free trial | Free plan | Starting price | Most expensive plan | Verdict | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 |  |  | ||||
| Microsoft Dynamics 365 Sales | Microsoft Dynamics 365 Marketing | Microsoft Dynamics 365 Customer Service | ||||
| 30 days | 30 days | 30 days | ||||
| | | | ||||
| $65/user/month | $50/user/month | |||||
| $162/user/month | $1,500 per month | $95/user/month | ||||
| An expensive, robust tool for analytics that's better suited to current Microsoft users | A bit too expensive for most, but great for managing teams closely | A great, customizable platform aimed at larger businesses |
Microsoft Dynamics 365 Sales
The Microsoft Dynamics 365 Sales platforms offers the most plans in the bunch, with a total of four. The prices start a bit high compared to Salesforce, but have a smaller range, topping out at barely more than half of Salesforce's most expensive plan.
Here's a breakdown of the four pricing plans for Microsoft Dynamics 365 Sales:
| Plan | Price | Users | Storage | Lead scoring | API | Custom reports | Custom automation builder | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | | | | |||||
| Professional | Enterprise | Premium | Relationship Sales | |||||
| $65 per user per month | $95 per user per month | $135 per user per month | $162 per user per month | |||||
| Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited | |||||
| Database: 10GB | Database: 10GB | Database: 10GB | Database: 10GB | |||||
| | Add-on | Predictive scoring | Add-on | |||||
| | | | | |||||
| | | | | |||||
| | | | |
Microsoft Dynamics 365 Service
With only two plans, the Microsoft Dynamics 365 Service platform might seem a bit limited. But as long as you're a bigger company in need of some robust features, these are competitively priced. Still, it's worth considering the expense you could incur if you need additional channels other than email, as they will cost you extra.
Here's a breakdown of the two pricing plans for Microsoft Dynamics 365 Service:
| Plan | Price | Email Comms Channel | Phone Comms Channel | Website Live Chat Comms Channel | Social Media Channels | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | | |||||
| Professional | Enterprise | |||||
| $50 per user per month | $95 per user per month | |||||
| | | |||||
| | | |||||
| | Add-on required | |||||
| | Add-on required |
Microsoft Dynamics 365 Marketing
No need for a table on this one! Microsoft Dynamics 365 Marketing only offers one pricing plan — compared to Salesforce Pardot's four — which costs $1,500 per month, allows for unlimited users, and has a contact limit of 10,000 contacts. It can notably only help with email marketing, which can be a deal breaker, especially for the price. Still, if you're already set up with Microsoft, it can be a valuable addition to the business.
Salesforce Pricing
Salesforce is definitely a more affordable option than Microsoft Dynamics, although it's only slightly less complex as far as how it works.
| Free trial | Free plan | Starting price | Most expensive plan | Verdict | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | | | ||||
| 30 days | 30 days | | ||||
| | | | ||||
| A scalable, highly customizable platform that's great for managing teams | An fully-featured yet pricey CRM solution with excellent team management tools. | A very expensive option that provides robust email and omnichannel features |
Salesforce Sales & Service Cloud Pricing
The most common options for CRM are the Sales Cloud and Service Cloud, which give you all the CRM functionality you need for your sales or customer service business.
Each platform offers four different pricing plans, which conveniently line up in price and functionality: Essentials, Professional, Enterprise, and Unlimited.
Sales and Service can also be bought as a bundle, with the Essentials plan still costing just $25 per user per month, but different pricing for the remaining plans: The Professional plan for a Sales/Service bundle costs $100 per user per month, the Enterprise plan costs $175 per month, and the Unlimited plan costs $325 per user per month.
| Plan | Price | Users | Storage | Lead scoring | API | Custom reports | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BEST FOR SMB | | | | ||||
| Essentials | Professional | Enterprise | Unlimited | ||||
| 10 | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited | ||||
| File storage: 1GB | File storage: 10GB + 2GB per license | File storage: 10GB + 2GB per license | File storage: 10GB + 2GB per license | ||||
| | | | | ||||
| | $15 per user per month | | | ||||
| | | | |
Salesforce Pardot Pricing
In addition to the Sales Cloud and Service Cloud options, Salesforce Pardot is a popular option for those in those looking for a CRM for marketing. It offers a robust platform that can help you automate a wide range of processes to save your business time. It is a bit expensive, especially considering its limited features in some areas, but it could still be the right fit for your company.
Here's how the pricing breaks down for the different Salesforce Pardot plans:
| Plan | Price | Users | Storage | Email marketing | Social marketing | Content marketing | Paid marketing | Omnichannel features | Contact limit | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | | | | |||||||
| Growth | Plus | Advanced | Premium | |||||||
| Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited | |||||||
| 100 MB | 500 MB | 10 GB | 10 GB | |||||||
| | | | | |||||||
| | | | | |||||||
| | | | | |||||||
| | | | | |||||||
| | | | | |||||||
| 10,000 | 10,000 | 10,000 | 75,000 |
Verdict: Salesforce or Microsoft Dynamics – Which to Pick?
If you are already working within a dedicated Microsoft infrastructure, then take a hard look at Dynamics CRM to see if the integration with other Microsoft services will be useful to you.
For smaller, price-sensitive companies, however, Salesforce is probably the better option since the starting cost is a lot lower especially for CRM-only teams of 5 or less.
The downside with the cheaper Salesforce options is that you cannot customize them to the same extent as the the higher priced tiers. Both services offer mobile apps for employees on the go, but based on app reviews Salesforce has the clear lead there.
As we said earlier the key to deciding on a CRM is finding a service that fits your needs in terms of functionality, price, and customizability. For that you really need a bespoke quote that takes all of those factors into account.
Frequently Asked Questions
Check out our Best CRM for Small Business guide for more information
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