Monday.com is an excellent project management tool trying to be a CRM. SimpleCRM is a dedicated CRM that excels at customer relationship management. Here's why that difference matters.
"We spent three months trying to turn Monday.com into a CRM for our sales team. It sort of worked, but we were constantly fighting the tool instead of using it. SimpleCRM gave us everything we needed out of the box."
That's Alex, who runs business development for a growing tech company. His experience highlights a crucial point: just because you can use a project management tool as a CRM doesn't mean you should.
Let's compare these two platforms and explore why purpose-built solutions usually win.
The Fundamental Difference
Before diving into features and pricing, let's understand what we're comparing:
Monday.com: Project Management First
- Primary purpose: Project and task management
- CRM capability: Templates and customization
- Design philosophy: Flexible boards for any workflow
- User experience: Generic tool adapted for sales
SimpleCRM: Customer Relationships First
- Primary purpose: Customer relationship management
- CRM capability: Native, purpose-built functionality
- Design philosophy: Sales-specific workflow optimization
- User experience: Built specifically for sales teams
The Analogy:
Using Monday.com as a CRM is like using a Swiss Army knife as a screwdriver. It technically works, but a dedicated screwdriver will always perform better for that specific job.
Setup and Implementation
Monday.com CRM Setup
Monday.com requires significant customization to function as a CRM:
- Choose CRM template: Start with basic sales board
- Customize columns: Add fields for contact info, deal value, etc.
- Set up automations: Create rules for stage changes
- Configure views: Set up Kanban, timeline, and table views
- Create dashboards: Build reporting from scratch
- Train team: Teach your custom workflow
Typical setup time: 2-4 weeks of configuration and testing
SimpleCRM Setup
SimpleCRM works immediately because it's built for sales:
- Sign up: Create account in 30 seconds
- Import contacts: Upload CSV or connect email
- Configure pipeline: Set your sales stages
- Start selling: Everything else works automatically
Typical setup time: 10 minutes to full productivity
"With Monday.com, we spent more time building our CRM than using it. SimpleCRM just worked from day one." - Sarah Kim, Sales Manager
Core CRM Features Comparison
Contact Management
Monday.com Contact Management:
- Contact storage: Custom columns in boards
- Contact details: Must configure fields manually
- Communication history: Manual entry or email add-on
- Contact relationships: Complex linking between boards
- Duplicate management: Manual process
Requires significant setup and ongoing maintenance.
SimpleCRM Contact Management:
- Contact storage: Dedicated contact database
- Contact details: Standard fields plus unlimited custom fields
- Communication history: Automatic email integration
- Contact relationships: Built-in company and deal associations
- Duplicate management: Automatic detection and merging
Works perfectly out of the box with zero configuration.
Sales Pipeline Management
Monday.com Pipeline:
- Pipeline view: Kanban board with custom columns
- Deal stages: Must create and maintain manually
- Deal value tracking: Custom number column
- Probability/forecasting: Requires formulas and setup
- Activity tracking: Manual updates or automation rules
SimpleCRM Pipeline:
- Pipeline view: Purpose-built visual pipeline
- Deal stages: Pre-configured with customization options
- Deal value tracking: Built-in with currency support
- Probability/forecasting: Automatic calculations
- Activity tracking: Integrated with email and calls
Reporting and Analytics
Monday.com Reporting:
- Dashboard creation: Must build from scratch
- Sales metrics: Requires manual formula setup
- Performance tracking: Custom widgets and views
- Forecasting: Complex formulas and maintenance
- Team performance: Manual tracking setup
SimpleCRM Reporting:
- Dashboard creation: Pre-built sales dashboards
- Sales metrics: Automatic calculation of key metrics
- Performance tracking: Built-in conversion and activity reports
- Forecasting: Automatic pipeline-based forecasting
- Team performance: Individual and team analytics
Pricing: Simple vs. Complex
Monday.com Pricing Structure
Monday.com uses per-user pricing with multiple tiers:
- Basic: $8/user/month (very limited for CRM use)
- Standard: $10/user/month (minimum for basic CRM)
- Pro: $16/user/month (needed for advanced features)
- Enterprise: $24/user/month (full functionality)
Hidden costs: Email integration add-on ($5/user/month), advanced reporting features, implementation time.
Real Cost Example: 10-Person Sales Team
Monday.com Pro (What You Need for CRM):
- Software: $160/month (10 × $16)
- Email integration: $50/month (10 × $5)
- Setup time: 80 hours × $50/hour = $4,000
- Ongoing maintenance: 10 hours/month × $50/hour = $500/month
First-year cost: $12,520
Annual ongoing cost: $8,520
SimpleCRM Complete Solution:
- Software: $79/month (unlimited users)
- Email integration: $0 (included)
- Setup time: 2 hours × $50/hour = $100
- Ongoing maintenance: $0 (no maintenance needed)
First-year cost: $1,048
Annual ongoing cost: $948
Savings: $11,472 first year, $7,572 annually
User Experience: Generic vs. Specialized
Monday.com CRM Experience
- Learning curve: Must learn generic tool + your custom setup
- Daily workflow: Multiple clicks for common sales tasks
- Email integration: Clunky, requires multiple steps
- Mobile experience: Generic app not optimized for sales
- Team adoption: Resistance due to complexity
SimpleCRM Experience
- Learning curve: Intuitive for anyone who has done sales
- Daily workflow: Optimized for sales activities
- Email integration: Seamless, automatic syncing
- Mobile experience: Purpose-built sales mobile app
- Team adoption: High adoption due to simplicity
Maintenance and Support
Monday.com Ongoing Requirements
- System maintenance: Regular updates to custom workflows
- User training: Ongoing training as you modify setup
- Automation management: Maintaining custom rules and formulas
- Support model: Generic support not specialized in CRM use cases
SimpleCRM Simplicity
- System maintenance: Automatic updates, no configuration needed
- User training: Minimal training, intuitive interface
- Automation management: Built-in automations that just work
- Support model: CRM-specialized support team
When Monday.com Might Make Sense
Monday.com isn't wrong for everyone. Here's when it might be the right choice:
- Project-heavy business: You need project management AND basic CRM
- Existing user: Your team already uses Monday.com extensively
- Custom processes: Very unique workflows that need extreme customization
- Technical team: You have dedicated people to build and maintain custom CRM
- Integration needs: You need specific Monday.com integrations
Reality check: If your primary need is CRM, a dedicated solution will always serve you better.
Real Customer Stories
Case Study 1: TechStart Solutions
Background: 15-person software consultancy
Challenge: Used Monday.com for projects, tried adapting for sales
Problem: CRM setup took 6 weeks, team avoided using it
Results After SimpleCRM Migration:
- Setup time: 2 hours vs. 6 weeks
- Team adoption: 95% vs. 40%
- Cost savings: $5,000 annually
- Productivity: 30% more time spent selling
- Data quality: Complete contact records vs. scattered data
Case Study 2: GrowthCorp Agency
Background: 8-person marketing agency
Challenge: Monday.com CRM setup was too complex
Problem: Constant maintenance and poor sales workflow
SimpleCRM Impact:
- Email integration: Perfect Gmail sync vs. manual entry
- Pipeline management: Visual, purpose-built vs. generic boards
- Reporting: Automatic sales metrics vs. custom formulas
- Mobile usage: Native sales app vs. generic project tool
- Team satisfaction: 9/10 vs. 4/10
Migration Strategy
If you're currently using Monday.com as a CRM and considering a switch:
Assessment Phase
- Evaluate current setup: How much time do you spend maintaining your Monday.com CRM?
- Measure adoption: What percentage of your team actively uses it?
- Calculate costs: Include setup time, maintenance, and per-user fees
- Identify pain points: What frustrates your team most?
Migration Planning
- Export data: Get all your contacts and deals out of Monday.com
- Map workflow: Identify your actual sales process
- Plan timeline: SimpleCRM migration takes 1-2 days
- Prepare team: Explain benefits of purpose-built CRM
Execution
- Set up SimpleCRM: Import data and configure pipeline
- Train team: 30-minute overview session
- Run parallel: Use both systems for one week
- Complete switch: Move entirely to SimpleCRM
The Bottom Line
Monday.com is an excellent project management tool that can be forced to work as a CRM with enough time and effort. SimpleCRM is a purpose-built CRM that excels at customer relationship management from day one.
The choice comes down to this: Do you want to spend time building a CRM, or do you want to spend time using one?
Ready for a Purpose-Built Solution?
Stop fighting with project management tools and start using a CRM designed for sales. Try SimpleCRM free for 14 days and experience what purpose-built feels like.
Why Choose Purpose-Built CRM:
- ✅ Immediate productivity: Works for sales from day one
- ✅ No maintenance: Built-in functionality that just works
- ✅ High adoption: Teams love tools designed for their work
- ✅ Lower costs: No setup time or ongoing maintenance
- ✅ Better results: Optimized for sales success
Choose the tool built for your job. Choose SimpleCRM.
🔧 Tool Philosophy
You wouldn't use a hammer as a screwdriver, even though it technically works. Similarly, using project management software as a CRM might work, but a dedicated CRM will always work better for managing customer relationships.