What a CRM actually costs an Indian business, line by line

CRM pricing pages are designed to be hard to compare. Different units, different billing periods, different things bundled. Here is how to build a number that survives contact with the invoice.

Start with the unit, not the price

Almost every CRM is priced per user, per month. That matters more than the headline figure, because it is the number that grows. A plan at ₹1,400 a seat is not expensive at three people and is a serious line item at thirty.

So the first thing to write down is not a budget. It is a headcount, including the people who will need a login next year.

Then the billing period

Monthly billing almost always costs more — typically about 20% more than paying annually, which is the discount TicAte uses too. Two consequences worth thinking about:

• A price quoted "from ₹X" is usually the annual rate. Check which one you are reading.
• An annual commitment on a CRM you have not used yet is a real risk. Paying monthly for the first quarter and switching later is often worth the premium.

Then GST

18% on top, always. If you are GST-registered you will generally claim it back as input tax credit, so compare vendors on the pre-GST number and budget the cash-flow gap. If you are not registered, that 18% is a real cost and belongs in your comparison.

The costs that are not on the pricing page

This is where two apparently similar quotes diverge:

• Implementation and data migration. Often quoted separately, sometimes as a large one-off. Ask whether importing your existing contacts and deals is included.
• Training. A CRM nobody uses costs the full subscription and returns nothing.
• Storage. Attachments add up fast if your business runs on scanned documents or site photographs.
• API access. Some vendors put the developer API on a higher tier. We do too — it starts on Professional — but you should know before you build against it.
• Per-feature upsells. Analytics, custom objects, extra pipelines. Check which of those you need, on which tier.

Build the number

Take your headcount, multiply by the per-seat annual rate, add 18% GST, add implementation and training, and compare that total against doing nothing. That last comparison is the one most buyers skip, and it is usually the one that justifies the spend: a forgotten follow-up on a single mid-sized deal normally costs more than a year of licences.

The pricing page has a calculator that does the arithmetic — set the seats and it shows the subtotal, GST and the total payable, including a TicAte WhatsApp plan if you want the suite total in one place.

What we charge, plainly

Free for two seats. Then per seat, per month, excluding GST: Standard ₹299, Professional ₹599, Enterprise ₹749, paid annually at launch pricing until 31 December 2026 — half the standing price. Pay yearly and that price holds for the twelve months you have paid for; monthly billing moves with the list price. Larger teams are quoted after a conversation, because past twenty or thirty seats the rollout matters more than the licence.

If you want to test the arithmetic against real deals before paying anything, the free two-seat plan has no trial clock, and the product page lists what each tier includes.