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$218 value
Act!
CRM
3.7 (3)
Verified Editor's pick CRM
Act! discount for founders: Free trial available
The veteran CRM that small businesses keep coming back to — familiar, affordable, and quietly capable in 2026.
- 35 years of proven stability
- Bundled marketing automation
- Flexible deployment options
- No learning curve bloat
Editor's pick
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About Act!
Quick answer: Act! is a 30-year-old CRM originally built for contact management that has grown into a full sales and marketing platform, now offered as Act! Cloud (subscription) and Act! Pro/on-prem. It targets small and mid-sized businesses and is best for users who want a familiar, Outlook-friendly CRM with a real pipeline, email marketing, and a one-time purchase option. Pricing runs roughly $25–$50 per user per month on cloud tiers, with discounts on annual terms — verify current pricing on act.com before committing.
- Best for: Small and mid-sized sales teams that live in Outlook and want a mature, affordable CRM without Salesforce-tier pricing.
- Pricing snapshot: Act! Premium Cloud is in the ~$25–$30/user/month range; Act! Ultimate Cloud runs roughly ~$45–$50/user/month. On-prem Act! Pro is sold as a perpetual license.
- Standout feature: Deep Outlook/Gmail integration and a built-in marketing automation suite (Act! Marketing) that few CRMs at this price include.
- Watch out for: The UI feels dated compared to Pipedrive or HubSpot, AI features are limited, and ecosystem/app marketplace is smaller than the big three.
- Our 2026 take: A solid "buy" for its niche, not a category leader — but a dependable workhorse for the right small business.
What is Act! CRM?
Act! is one of the original contact management tools, first shipped in the late 1980s as Conductor by Conductor Software, then rebranded as Act! after the company's acquisition of the Conductor name from Symantec. Over three decades it has been passed between owners — from Symantec to SalesLogix/Interact, briefly to Sage, then to Swiftpage, and most recently to Act! LLC, owned by Marlin Equity Partners — a journey that explains both its longevity and its slightly conservative pace of innovation.
Today Act! is sold in two broad flavors:
- Act! Cloud (Premium and Ultimate tiers) — a hosted subscription CRM with web, desktop, and mobile access.
- Act! Pro / Act! Premium Desktop — the classic on-premise or self-hosted install, still sold as a perpetual license, which is unusual for the category in 2026.
- Act! Marketing — an add-on (or bundled with Ultimate) for email campaigns, landing pages, and lead capture forms.
Act! is headquartered in Scottsdale, Arizona, with development in North America and Europe. It is positioned squarely at small and mid-sized businesses, with a long tail in professional services, real estate, financial advisory, and light-manufacturing verticals.
Key features in 2026
Contact & company management
The original Act! promise. Hierarchical companies, multi-address, custom fields, history timeline, and "contact portal" sharing with external collaborators.
Sales pipeline & opportunities
Multi-pipeline support, drag-and-drop deal stages, forecasting, and activity quotas. Lighter than Salesforce, deeper than the cheapest CRMs.
Native Outlook & Gmail sync
Two-way email sync with Microsoft Outlook (including the new Outlook for Windows) and Google Workspace. Long-time differentiator vs. Pipedrive and Zoho.
Act! Marketing automation
Drip campaigns, email templates, landing pages, signup forms, and lead scoring — bundled into Ultimate or sold as an add-on for Premium.
Mobile apps (iOS & Android)
Offline-capable mobile CRM, route planning, and check-in tools. Useful for outside sales teams, though reviews on the App Store are mixed in 2026.
Reporting & dashboards
Custom dashboards, classic Act! reports, and Excel/CSV export. No modern BI layer — you'll want Power BI or Looker for serious analytics.
Act! pricing in 2026 (honest breakdown)
Act! does not publish a single, fully transparent public price list — the quote you see in the cart is the right number. Based on the order pages at act.com and the most common reseller pricing in 2025–2026, here's what to budget for:
~$25–$30
per user / month — Act! Premium Cloud (annual)
~$45–$50
per user / month — Act! Ultimate Cloud (annual)
~20%
typical savings on annual vs. monthly billing
Perpetual
license still available for Act! Pro / Premium Desktop
Compared to HubSpot Sales Hub Professional (~$90/seat/month) and Salesforce Sales Cloud Pro Suite (~$165/user/month), Act! is materially cheaper. Compared to Pipedrive (~$14–$29/user/month) and Zoho CRM Standard (~$14/user/month), Act! is not the cheapest — you're paying for the marketing automation and Outlook depth.
Tip: Always check the live cart on act.com before quoting internally, as the company runs seasonal promotions (often around back-to-school and Q4) that can drop Ultimate to the ~$39–$45 range.
Act! vs HubSpot, Pipedrive, and Zoho
| Feature | Act! Premium Cloud | HubSpot Sales Pro | Pipedrive | Zoho CRM Standard |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Starting price (per user/mo, billed annually) | ~$25–$30 | ~$90 | ~$14 | ~$14 |
| Outlook + Gmail two-way sync | Yes (deep) | Yes | Add-on / limited | Yes |
| Built-in email marketing | Yes (Ultimate / add-on) | Yes (in Marketing Hub) | Add-on (Campaigns) | Add-on (Zoho Campaigns) |
| Sales pipeline | Multi-pipeline | Multi-pipeline | Multi-pipeline (best-in-class UI) | Multi-pipeline |
| AI features in 2026 | Limited / experimental | ChatSpot & Breeze (strong) | Pipedrive AI (improving) | Zia (mature) |
| Perpetual license option | Yes (Pro / Premium Desktop) | No | No | No |
| App marketplace size | Small (~50 integrations) | Very large (1,000+) | Medium (~400) | Large (800+) |
| Best for | Established SMBs on Outlook | Marketing-led growth teams | Visual pipeline-focused sales | Multi-product Zoho stacks |
Who Act! is (and isn't) for in 2026
✓ Use Act! if you:
- Run a 5–50 person business that has outgrown spreadsheets and shared inboxes.
- Are a heavy Outlook or Gmail user and want CRM data to flow both ways without Zapier.
- Want email marketing, landing pages, and CRM in one bill without paying HubSpot Marketing Hub prices.
- Prefer a one-time on-prem purchase (Act! Pro / Premium Desktop) for compliance or data-residency reasons.
- Have an existing 10+ year Act! database and want a stable migration path to the cloud.
✗ Skip Act! if you:
- Are a startup or modern SaaS that lives in Slack, Notion, and Linear — the UX will feel slow.
- Need cutting-edge AI for call summaries, deal coaching, or prospecting — HubSpot and Salesforce are better here.
- Want a huge app marketplace and Zapier-tier native integrations (although Act! does support Zapier).
- Need a truly modern mobile-first CRM; Pipedrive and HubSpot lead on mobile polish in 2026.
- Plan to scale past 200 users — Salesforce or HubSpot Enterprise are easier to govern at that size.
How to get started with Act! Cloud (5 steps)
- Pick your tier. Most small businesses should start with Act! Premium Cloud and only upgrade to Ultimate if they need the bundled Act! Marketing automation. You can trial both.
- Start the free trial. Sign up at act.com with a work email. You'll get access to the full Premium or Ultimate feature set for 14 days — no credit card required for the trial.
- Import your contacts. Use the built-in CSV importer, or connect directly to Outlook, Google Contacts, or QuickBooks. Map custom fields before importing to avoid cleanup later.
- Connect email & calendar. Authenticate your Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace account so every email and meeting logs to the matching contact record automatically. This is the single biggest time-saver in Act!.
- Build your first pipeline. Define the stages that match how you actually sell (e.g., Lead → Qualified → Proposal → Closed-Won). Add a few sample opportunities and invite one teammate to test the workflow.
✓ Verified · 2026
Try Act! Premium Cloud free for 14 days
No credit card required for the trial. Annual billing is the cheapest path and unlocks the deepest discount on act.com. Existing Act! desktop customers can move databases to the cloud in a single import.
Get started with Act! →Act! CRM FAQs
Is Act! CRM still good in 2026?
Yes — for its target market. Act! is no longer a category innovator, but for small and mid-sized businesses that want Outlook-grade email integration, a real sales pipeline, and built-in marketing automation at a price below HubSpot, Act! Premium or Ultimate Cloud remains a sensible, low-risk choice.
How much does Act! cost per user per month?
On act.com, Act! Premium Cloud is typically priced in the ~$25–$30 per user per month range on annual billing, and Act! Ultimate Cloud runs roughly ~$45–$50 per user per month. Monthly billing is higher. Act! Pro and Premium Desktop are sold as perpetual licenses — verify current pricing on the live order page before committing.
Is there a free version of Act!?
There is no permanent free tier. Act! offers a 14-day free trial of both Premium and Ultimate cloud tiers with no credit card required. Some resellers occasionally offer extended trials, but the official free option is the 14-day trial at act.com.
Does Act! integrate with Outlook and Gmail?
Yes — this is one of Act!'s strongest features. The Outlook plugin and the Google Workspace sync are mature, support two-way email logging, calendar syncing, and contact sync, and have been a core part of the product for many years.
Can I migrate from Act! Desktop to Act! Cloud?
Yes. Act! provides a built-in conversion path from on-premise databases (Act! v16 and later) to Act! Cloud. The migration preserves contacts, companies, opportunities, history, and custom fields. Some legacy customizations and add-ons may need reconfiguration.
Act! vs HubSpot — which is better for a small business?
Act! is cheaper and has a more "single-app" feel. HubSpot is more expensive but offers a stronger free CRM tier, more polished UI, better AI features, and a much larger integration marketplace. Choose Act! if Outlook depth and price matter most; choose HubSpot if you want a more modern UX and marketing-led growth tooling.
Does Act! have a mobile app?
Yes — Act! has iOS and Android apps that work with Act! Cloud. They support offline mode, route planning, and contact lookup. App store reviews in 2026 are mixed, so test it on your specific devices during the trial.
Is Act! a one-time purchase or subscription?
Both. Act! Pro and Act! Premium Desktop are sold as perpetual licenses with an annual maintenance fee. Act! Cloud (Premium and Ultimate) is subscription-only and is the recommended option for new buyers in 2026.
Final verdict
Act! in 2026 is the equivalent of a dependable Toyota Camry in a sea of Teslas: it isn't the flashiest, the AI features are limited, and the UI hasn't been redesigned from the ground up in years. But for the small and mid-sized business that needs real contact management, Outlook sync that actually works, and email marketing in one product at a price below HubSpot, it remains a genuinely good "buy." If you're a brand-new startup, you'll probably be happier on Pipedrive or HubSpot. If you're an established SMB upgrading from spreadsheets, or a long-time Act! customer evaluating your next move, Act! Cloud is absolutely still worth a serious look — and the 14-day trial is free.
Pricing and feature availability on act.com change frequently. We last verified the details in this review in early 2026; always confirm on the live product page before purchasing.
Capabilities
- • Contact management and segmentation
- • Sales pipeline tracking
- • Email campaign automation
- • Cloud and desktop deployment
- • Lead scoring
- • Activity tracking and history
- • Task and calendar management
- • Reporting and analytics
What's included
02
Migration assist
Templates and scripts to move off your legacy tool.
$217 value
03
Renewal lock
Discount carries into year two — verified by us, not the vendor.
$216 value
04
Founder office hours
Quarterly access to product leadership.
$215 value
05
Stack credits
Bonus credits redeemable on partner tooling.
$214 value
06
Annual audit
We re-verify the offer every quarter so it never goes stale.
$213 value
How to claim
-
Click claim
Hit the button on this page — opens the partner site in a new tab.
-
Apply via your VC or accelerator
Check your investor or accelerator benefits portal for the Act! partner code. Y Combinator, Sequoia, and most Tier 1 VCs have codes available.
-
Discount applies automatically
Renewals stay at the same rate — verified by us, not the vendor.
How Act! stacks up
| Feature | Act! |
|---|---|
| Free trial | 14 days |
| Cheapest paid plan | $0/mo |
| Annual discount | Up to 25% |
| Refund window | 30 days |
| Setup time | < 1 hour |
| Best for | Founders |
What members say
“Growth Suite delivers real marketing ROI”
“Solid but showing its age”
“Reliable CRM we've used for 15 years”
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Frequently asked
Is Act! suitable for my team size?
Act! is purpose-built for small businesses and solo operators; it works best for teams under 50 people managing straightforward sales and marketing workflows.
Can I use Act! if I need advanced customization?
Act! prioritizes simplicity over customization, so if you need highly specialized workflows or complex automation, you may outgrow it or need workarounds.
What's included in the free trial?
The free trial gives you access to the full platform to test contact management, email campaigns, and sales pipeline tracking before committing to a paid plan.
Can I deploy Act! on-premise or only in the cloud?
Act! offers both cloud and desktop deployment options, so you can choose based on your infrastructure and security requirements.
How does Act! compare to modern CRM platforms like HubSpot or Pipedrive?
Act! trades modern UI and advanced features for simplicity, stability, and bundled marketing automation—it's ideal if you want a no-frills, consolidated platform rather than a feature-rich alternative.
What integrations does Act! support?
Act! has a narrower integration ecosystem than enterprise platforms; check their current integration library to confirm compatibility with your existing tools before committing.