Bigin vs Zoho CRM: Which Should a Small Business Start With?

Bigin is Zoho’s pipeline-first CRM for small teams, priced from USD 7 per user per month, while Zoho CRM is the full platform, starting around USD 14 per user per month with far deeper automation, customisation and reporting. Start with Bigin if you have one sales process and under 10 users; start with Zoho CRM if you need multiple teams, approval processes, custom modules or integrations with the rest of Zoho.

Both products come from Zoho and Bigin can be upgraded to Zoho CRM with a built-in migration tool, so the choice is not permanent. This guide compares pricing, features and limits, and explains the signs that it is time to move from Bigin to Zoho CRM.

Key takeaways

• Bigin is built for simplicity: pipelines, contacts, basic automation and WhatsApp, from USD 7 per user per month billed annually.
• Zoho CRM is built for process: Blueprint, advanced workflows, custom modules, territories and deep analytics.
• Upgrading is supported: Bigin has a one-click upgrade that moves contacts, companies, pipelines, activities and notes into Zoho CRM.
• Automation does not carry over cleanly: plan to redesign workflows and reports when you move to Zoho CRM.

What is the difference between Bigin and Zoho CRM?

Bigin is a lightweight CRM designed around pipelines. It suits micro and small businesses that want to track deals, follow up on time and stop running sales from spreadsheets and WhatsApp chats.

Zoho CRM is a configurable sales platform. It handles leads, accounts, contacts, deals, products, quotes and custom data, with process enforcement, role-based security and integrations across Zoho One. It takes longer to set up, but it grows with far more complex sales operations.

How much do Bigin and Zoho CRM cost?

At the time of writing, Bigin’s pricing page lists a free plan for one user, Express at USD 7, Premier at USD 12 and Bigin 360 at USD 18 per user per month billed annually. Monthly billing is a few dollars higher.

Zoho CRM offers a free edition for up to three users, then Standard, Professional, Enterprise and Ultimate editions, commonly listed at about USD 14, 23, 40 and 52 per user per month billed annually. Prices vary by region, so check Zoho CRM’s pricing page in your currency.

Licences are only part of the cost. A Zoho CRM rollout usually needs partner time for data design, automation and training, which our complete Zoho implementation pricing guide breaks down.

What can Bigin do well?

Bigin covers what most small sales teams actually use day to day, without the clutter of a full CRM. Higher Bigin plans add more pipelines, automations and custom fields.

• Visual pipelines with drag-and-drop stages, up to 15 pipelines on Bigin 360
• Built-in telephony, email integration and WhatsApp integration on paid plans
• Workflow automation with plan-based limits, plus stage transition rules on Premier
• Payment links, mass email and mobile apps for field sales
• Integrations with Gmail, Outlook, Microsoft Teams, QuickBooks and Zapier

For a trading company, clinic or agency with a single sales motion, Bigin is often enough for the first year or two. The risk is forcing it to do jobs it was not designed for, such as multi-team routing or complex approvals.

When is Zoho CRM the better choice from day one?

Some businesses should skip Bigin entirely. If any of these apply, the cost of migrating later outweighs the savings of starting small.

• You run separate inbound, outbound or channel sales teams that need different processes
• Managers need to enforce steps, such as mandatory fields or approvals before a discount
• You need custom modules for projects, properties, policies or service contracts
• You plan to connect Zoho Books, Desk, Campaigns or an ecommerce store within a year
• You need territory management, role hierarchies or field-level security

Zoho CRM’s Blueprint, available from the Professional edition, is often the deciding feature. Our comparison of Zoho CRM Blueprint vs workflow automation shows how it enforces a sales process rather than just reacting to it.

What are the signs you have outgrown Bigin?

Most teams feel the limits of Bigin before they see them on a pricing page. These are the signals we recommend watching.

1. You keep hitting automation or custom field limits on your current plan.
2. Reps track key data in spreadsheets because Bigin has nowhere to store it.
3. Leadership wants forecasting and reports Bigin cannot produce.
4. You need lead scoring or nurturing before contacts reach a pipeline.
5. Several Zoho apps are in use and data is being copied between them by hand.

If the last point sounds familiar, you may need more than Zoho CRM. Read the signs you have outgrown a single Zoho app before choosing between a CRM upgrade and Zoho One.

How do you upgrade from Bigin to Zoho CRM?

Zoho provides an upgrade path inside Bigin. An administrator chooses a Zoho CRM edition, completes payment, and runs the migration from Zoho CRM’s data migration settings. Zoho’s help article on upgrading from Bigin to Zoho CRM lists what moves across.

Migration respects the target edition’s limits, so moving to Standard can drop pipelines or custom fields that exceed its caps. Workflows, reports and email templates should be treated as a redesign, not a copy.

What should a proper Zoho CRM upgrade include?

The migration tool moves data. It does not design your lead process, security model or reporting. A good upgrade project covers these steps:

• Audit of current Bigin pipelines, fields, automations and add-ons
• Data model for leads, accounts, deals and any custom modules
• Blueprint or workflow design for each sales process
• Roles, profiles and sharing rules for managers and reps
• Dashboards and forecasts leadership will actually use
• Integrations with Zoho Books, email, telephony and WhatsApp
• User training and a two-week hypercare period

For the full scope, see what a Zoho CRM setup actually includes. Skipping design is the main reason rollouts stall, as explained in why most Zoho CRM rollouts fail.

Why choose Amwhiz for your Bigin or Zoho CRM setup?

Amwhiz is a Zoho Authorized Partner with in-house developers. We help small businesses pick the right starting point, set up Bigin properly when it is the right fit, and run the upgrade to Zoho CRM when the business outgrows it, including data clean-up, Blueprint design and integrations. Our Apollo.io and Zoho CRM integration case study shows the kind of duplicate-safe data work a growing CRM needs. Still comparing editions? Start with our guide on how to choose the right Zoho package.

Frequently asked questions

Is Bigin the same as Zoho CRM?

No. Both are made by Zoho, but Bigin is a simpler pipeline-focused CRM for small teams. Zoho CRM is a full platform with deeper automation, customisation and reporting.

How much does Bigin cost?

At the time of writing, Bigin has a free plan for one user, and paid plans from about USD 7 per user per month billed annually. Premier costs about USD 12 and Bigin 360 about USD 18 per user per month.

Can I move from Bigin to Zoho CRM later?

Yes. Bigin has a built-in upgrade that moves users, companies, contacts, pipelines, activities, notes and attachments into Zoho CRM. Workflows, reports and add-ons need to be rebuilt or re-purchased.

Is Zoho CRM too complex for a small business?

Not if it is set up well. Zoho CRM has a free edition for up to three users and a Standard edition for small teams, but it needs more configuration than Bigin to be useful.

Which is better for WhatsApp sales, Bigin or Zoho CRM?

Both support WhatsApp integration. Bigin is quicker to set up for simple chats, while Zoho CRM lets you trigger WhatsApp templates from workflows and Blueprints across more complex processes.