Best for
Best for independent service businesses that run the whole client path from enquiry to payment themselves.
- Freelancers
- Small and mid-sized
CRM Comparison
HoneyBook vs. SuiteCRM
At a glance
At a glance
Best for
Best for teams that want a full-featured CRM on their own server, with the option to buy hosting, support and a warranty from the vendor.
- Small and mid-sized
- Enterprise
Cataleo does not name a winner. Both statements come from the vendors themselves.
Full Comparison
| Criterion | HoneyBook | SuiteCRM |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | From $29 / month Starter plan, billed yearly. Payment processing is charged on top, from 2.7% plus 10 cents per card transaction and 1.5% for ACH bank transfers. | Free (self-hosted); managed hosting from £50 / month The software is a free AGPLv3 download and you pay only for your own infrastructure. SuiteCRM Ltd sells fully managed hosting from £50 a month, standard support at £1,200 for ten hours a year, SuiteASSURED from £3,350 a year and implementation from £2,520 as a one-off. |
| Free trial | 30-day trial, no credit card required | Free download, plus a free trial of SuiteCRM Hosted and a demo |
| Team size | Up to 2 team members on Essentials, unlimited on Premium | Not stated |
| API | Not stated | Yes, a V8 REST API, with legacy V4.1 REST and SOAP kept for backwards compatibility |
| Languages | Not stated | More than 60, per the vendor |
| Hosting | Not stated | Self-hosted on your own server (PHP 8.1 to 8.4 with MySQL, MariaDB or MSSQL), or fully managed hosting from SuiteCRM Ltd |
| Contacts and companies | Yes, clients and projects with lead forms, questionnaires and a client portal | Yes, Leads, Accounts, Contacts and Targets in a 360-degree view of each customer, with a no-code Configuration Studio for custom fields, layouts and new modules |
| Deal pipeline | Yes, a project pipeline from enquiry through proposal, contract and invoice to payment | Yes, Opportunities with customisable sales processes, carried through to Quotes, Invoices and Contracts |
| Email and calendar | Yes, Gmail and Outlook email, Google Calendar, a built-in meeting scheduler, plus business phone and SMS | Yes, an email module with templates, shared and personal calendars, and calls, meetings, tasks and notes |
| Workflow automation | Yes, workflow automations from the Essentials plan | Yes, workflow automation that fires actions once set conditions are met, including on case management |
| Reporting and forecasting | Basic reports on Starter, standard reports on Essentials, advanced reports on Premium | Yes, a reporting module for real-time custom reports and scheduled reports, plus dashboards assembled from dashlets |
| Integrations and API | Integrations with QuickBooks Online, Gmail, Outlook, Google Calendar, Zoom, Calendly, Mailchimp, Flodesk and Zapier | Yes, a V8 REST API, with the legacy V4.1 REST and SOAP endpoints kept for backwards compatibility |
| AI features | stated Yes | No |
| Deployment | Cloud (SaaS), Browser-based | more entries Cloud (SaaS), Browser-based, On-premise |
| Support | Not stated | Community forum |
| Onboarding | Not stated | Documentation and knowledge base, Personal consulting |
| Company size | Freelancers, Small and mid-sized | Small and mid-sized, Enterprise |
| Integrations | QuickBooks Online, Gmail, Outlook, Google Calendar, Zoom, Calendly, Mailchimp, Flodesk, Zapier | Not stated |
Add a tool
Adds a column to the table, from the tools in this category.
Row where the values differ The small markers point at the lower number, the longer list or the stated feature. They describe the data, they are not a verdict.
The short version
Key Differences
- Starting price HoneyBook From $29 / month SuiteCRM Free (self-hosted); managed hosting from £50 / month
- Free trial HoneyBook 30-day trial, no credit card required SuiteCRM Free download, plus a free trial of SuiteCRM Hosted and a demo
- Deployment HoneyBook Cloud (SaaS), Browser-based SuiteCRM Cloud (SaaS), Browser-based, On-premise
- Company size HoneyBook Freelancers, Small and mid-sized SuiteCRM Small and mid-sized, Enterprise
- AI features HoneyBook Yes SuiteCRM No
Every line is one datapoint from the table above, picked automatically. Nothing here is written text.
The trade-offs
Strengths and Limitations
HoneyBook
Strengths
- Proposals, contracts, invoices and payments live in the same client file
- 30-day trial of nearly every feature, no credit card required
- Client portal, scheduler and lead forms are included from the entry plan
- HoneyBook AI drafts emails and summarises projects and meetings
Limitations
- Available only in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom and Australia
- Automations, team members and the QuickBooks Online link start at the Essentials plan
- No time tracking or project costing
- Payment processing is charged on top of the subscription, from 2.7% plus 10 cents per card transaction
SuiteCRM
Strengths
- Free and open source under AGPLv3, with no per-user licence fee
- Broad module set covering sales, campaigns, cases, knowledge base, projects, a customer portal and surveys
- Configuration Studio adds fields, layouts and whole modules without code
- Managed hosting, support hours and the SuiteASSURED warranty are available from the vendor
- More than 60 languages, and the vendor states ISO 9001 and ISO 27001 certification
Limitations
- Self-hosting means running PHP and database updates, backups and security yourself
- The repository states that SuiteCRM 8 is not yet as feature complete as the mature 7 series
- Paid support is bought in blocks of hours rather than included with the free download
Plans
Pricing
HoneyBook
- Starter $29 Per month, billed yearly. Unlimited clients and projects, invoices, payments, proposals, contracts, calendar, templates, client portal, basic reports, up to 2 lead forms and HoneyBook AI.
- Essentials $49 Per month, billed yearly. Adds the scheduler, automations, the QuickBooks Online integration, up to 2 team members, up to 10 lead forms, SMS reminders, standard reports and removal of the HoneyBook branding.
- Premium $109 Per month, billed yearly. Adds unlimited team members, priority support, multiple companies, advanced reports and unlimited lead forms.
SuiteCRM
- Self-hosted Free A free open-source download under AGPLv3; you pay only for your own infrastructure.
- Fully managed hosting From £50 Per month. Hosting, security, updates, backups and support from SuiteCRM Ltd.
- Standard Support £1,200 Ten support hours a year, with 20 percent off when bought with fully managed hosting.
- SuiteASSURED From £3,350 Per year for ten care hours. Adds a warranty, legal indemnities, priority support and compliance features.
What users say
Review Scores · opens after launch
HoneyBook
- Ease of use
- Not rated yet
- User interface
- Not rated yet
- Onboarding
- Not rated yet
- Support and service
- Not rated yet
- Value for money
- Not rated yet
- Features
- Not rated yet
No reviews yet. Be the first to review this tool. Every review is checked for fairness before it appears, and the vendor cannot have one removed.
SuiteCRM
- Ease of use
- Not rated yet
- User interface
- Not rated yet
- Onboarding
- Not rated yet
- Support and service
- Not rated yet
- Value for money
- Not rated yet
- Features
- Not rated yet
No reviews yet. Be the first to review this tool. Every review is checked for fairness before it appears, and the vendor cannot have one removed.
Where this comes from
Where this comes from
HoneyBook https://www.honeybook.com · checked against the official source on 2026-08-30
SuiteCRM https://suitecrm.com · checked against the official source on 2026-09-14
This table lists factual criteria taken from information the vendors publish themselves. For how we put it together, see the methodology.