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EspoCRM VS Payload CMS

Compare EspoCRM VS Payload CMS and see what are their differences

EspoCRM

EspoCRM is open source CRM (Customer Relationship Management) software that allows you to see, enter and evaluate all your company relationships regardless of the type.

Rating
5.0 · 2 reviews
Pricing
Open source Free Free trial
Promote on VibeVoted
Alternatives Is it good?
Payload CMS

Headless CMS and Application Framework built with Node.js, React and MongoDB

Rating
5.0 · 1 review
Pricing
Open source
Promote on VibeVoted
Alternatives Is it good?
LineHQ.co.uk
UK virtual numbers that forward to any phone, with recording, voicemail-to-email and prepaid billing. Local, 07 mobile, 0800 and 03 lines from £4.99/mo. sponsored
Note: These products don't have any matching categories. If you think this is a mistake, please edit the details of one of the products and suggest appropriate categories.

Which is more popular?

Based on our record, Payload CMS seems to be more popular. It has been mentioned 94 times since March 2021.

social mentions
0 vs 94
user rating
5.0 vs 5.0
CRM popularity
100% vs 0%
alternatives listed
240+ vs 197

Base details

Website, pricing, platforms and company facts side by side.

EspoCRM
Payload CMS
Website espocrm.com payloadcms.com
Pricing
Open source Free Free trial
Open source Official pricing
Platforms
REST API PHP JavaScript NGINX +1
—
Company Startup from Ukraine · 2014 —
Listed in
CRM Open Source Sales Sales Workflow Marketing Customer Support Business Management +4
CMS JavaScript SaaS Tech +1

About EspoCRM and Payload CMS

In their own words, as submitted to SaaSHub.

EspoCRM
Payload CMS

EspoCRM is a web-based application designed with the needs of startups, small and mid-size companies in mind. The software offers a wide range of features for automating every aspect of your business - from simple management of customer interactions and monitoring of the deal progress to advanced...

Read more about EspoCRM

Built with React + TypeScript, Payload is a free and open-source Headless CMS. Finally, a CMS that works the way you do. No black magic, all TypeScript, and fully open-source.

Read more about Payload CMS

Features and specs

What each product offers, as listed by its team.

EspoCRM 8 features
Payload CMS 7 features
  • Sales management
    Quotes, Sales Orders, Invoices
  • Marketing Automation
    Campaigns, Email Templates, Target Lists
  • Customer Support
    Customer Portals
  • Inventory Managment
    Products & Product Catalogs
  • Telephony
    Voip Integration, Voice Messages, Inbound & Outbound Calls
  • Team Collaboration
    Real-time Notifications, Stream, Shared Calendars
  • Reports & analytics
    Grid & List Reports, Revenue Forecasts
  • Data Synchronization
    Google Contacts & Calendar, Outlook Contacts & Calendar
  • Headless CMS
    Payload CMS is a headless content management system, allowing for flexibility in how content is delivered and displayed across different platforms.
  • Customizability
    It is highly customizable, enabling developers to tailor the backend and content management experience to specific project requirements.
  • Developer-friendly
    Built with modern technologies such as Node.js and React, Payload CMS is designed to be intuitive and efficient for developers.
  • Open-source
    Payload CMS is open-source, providing transparency and the ability to contribute to its development or modify it according to your needs.
  • Rich Media Support
    It supports a wide range of media types, making it easy to manage and deliver rich content.
  • Advanced Access Control
    Payload CMS includes advanced access control features, allowing for fine-grained permissions and security settings.
  • Extensible API
    The CMS provides a powerful and extensible API, facilitating seamless integration with other services and applications.

Possible disadvantages

  • Learning Curve
    As a powerful and highly customizable CMS, it may have a steeper learning curve for developers unfamiliar with its ecosystem.
  • Initial Setup Complexity
    Setting up Payload CMS initially can be more complex compared to some other CMS solutions that offer more out-of-the-box simplicity.
  • Smaller Community
    As a relatively newer and niche CMS, Payload CMS has a smaller community compared to more established CMS platforms, potentially limiting available resources and third-party plugins.
  • Hosting Requirements
    Being a Node.js application, it may require specific hosting environments that can support Node.js, which might not be as widespread as hosting for PHP-based systems.
  • Performance Overhead
    Complex customizations and integrations can introduce performance overhead, requiring additional optimization and scaling efforts.
  • Documentation
    Depending on the level of functionality required, the available documentation might not cover all edge cases or complex scenarios, leading to potential challenges during development.

Analysis

An editorial look at what each product does well and who it suits.

EspoCRM
Payload CMS

Overall verdict

  • EspoCRM is a robust and versatile CRM solution that is well-suited for organizations looking for an open-source option with customizable features. It is generally positively reviewed for its ease of use and the value it provides at a competitive cost.

Why this product is good

  • EspoCRM is considered a good choice because it offers a user-friendly interface, a variety of features that cater to small and medium-sized businesses, and it is highly customizable. It allows businesses to manage their relationships and automate workflows effectively. Additionally, it is open-source, which provides flexibility in terms of development and integration with other tools and systems.

Recommended for

  • Small to medium-sized businesses
  • Organizations looking for an open-source CRM solution
  • Companies requiring a customizable CRM system
  • Businesses that need workflow automation and efficient relationship management
  • Teams looking for an easy-to-use interface with good community and support options

Overall verdict

  • Yes, Payload CMS is a good option for many use cases.

Why this product is good

  • Payload CMS offers a modern and flexible headless architecture, which allows developers to create custom content management experiences using JavaScript and Node.js.
  • It provides a clean and intuitive admin interface that is designed to be easily customizable to fit different client needs.
  • Payload CMS includes built-in features like access control, versioning, and a robust API, which makes managing content efficient and secure.
  • The developer-centric approach means it's highly extendable and works seamlessly with modern development workflows.

Recommended for

  • Developers seeking a customizable, JavaScript-based headless CMS.
  • Projects that require a flexible content infrastructure and easy integration with other JavaScript libraries or frameworks.
  • Teams looking for a CMS that can scale with their application and development needs.
  • Organizations that need advanced content management capabilities such as complex access control and content versioning.

Videos

Walkthroughs and reviews on video.

EspoCRM 3 videos + Add
Payload CMS 3 videos + Add

Using EspoCRM

More videos

  • - EspoCRM - General Overview | CRM
  • - Workflow in EspoCRM | Powerful Automation in your Business

Payload CMS

More videos

  • - Building a Professionally Designed Website with NextJS, TypeScript, and Payload CMS - Episode 1
  • - Building a Professionally Designed Website with NextJS, TypeScript, and Payload CMS - Episode 2

Category popularity

How often each product is chosen within a category, 0–100% relative to the other.

Score bands 0–20 21–40 41–50 51–60 61–100
EspoCRM
Payload CMS
100% 100%
CRM
0% 0%
0% 0%
CMS
100% 100%
100% 100%
Sales
0% 0%
0% 0%
Blogging
100% 100%

User comments

Share your experience with using EspoCRM and Payload CMS. For example, how are they different and which one is better?

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Reviews and articles

External articles and on-site reviews we used to compare the two products.

EspoCRM 5.0 · 2 reviews
Payload CMS 5.0 · 1 review
  • Open-source solution that truly meets your needs
    SaaSHub review
    · Aug 2025

    We’ve been using EspoCRM for over a year already and so far it has met all of our needs. The ability to shape the system around our work processes has been the biggest advantage for us. We’ve customized fields,...

  • A convenient CRM platform for lead management and marketing
    SaaSHub review
    · Mar 2025

    We use EspoCRM to solve many tasks. In particular, the marketing department actively uses this platform for lead storage, contact management and email automation.

  • Best Headless CMS
    SaaSHub review
    · May 2023

    Payload CMS is the most customizable & flexible CMS which exists

  • Best Node.js CMS platforms for 2022
    blog.logrocket.com · Dec 2021

    Payload comes with built-in email functionality. We can use this to handle password reset, order confirmation, and other use cases. Payload uses Nodemailer to process emails.

Social recommendations and mentions

Recommendations tracked on public social media and blogs since March 2021.

EspoCRM 0 mentions
Payload CMS 94 mentions

Tracking EspoCRM since Mar 2021.

  • A Complete Guide to Building a Payment System with Payload CMS and Lemon Squeezy
    Learn how to build a full payment system using the modern stack of Payload CMS, Next.js API Routes, and Lemon Squeezy, including a deep dive into debugging common API errors. - Source: dev.to / about 1 year ago
  • Run Payload Jobs on Vercel (Serverless) — Step‑by‑Step Migration
    I recently did a video tutorial on using jobs and queues in PayloadCMS and the solution I provide will not work in a Vercel deployment, runs locally and will probably also run on Railway because those are actual servers. - Source: dev.to / about 1 year ago
  • How to Run Payload CMS in Docker
    Payload is an open source backend framework and it is mainly used as a content management system. - Source: dev.to / over 1 year ago

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Alternatives to EspoCRM and Payload CMS

When comparing EspoCRM and Payload CMS, you can also consider the following products.

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