Atomic CRM vs EspoCRM
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted crm & business apps options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Atomic CRM
Open-source CRM built with React and Supabase
VS
EspoCRM
Fast and lightweight open-source CRM
| Feature | Atomic CRM | EspoCRM |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 83 · Excellent | 88 · Excellent |
| Category | CRM & Business Apps | CRM & Business Apps |
| License | MIT | AGPL-3.0 |
| Language | TypeScript | PHP |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 1,024 MB |
| Deployment | docker, source | docker, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 1,267 | ★ 3,382 |
| First released | 2024 | 2014 |
| Replaces | HubSpot, Pipedrive | Salesforce, HubSpot |
What are Atomic CRM and EspoCRM?
Atomic CRM
Atomic CRM is an open-source CRM toolkit by Marmelab, built with React and Supabase. It manages contacts, deals, tasks, and notes with a kanban-style sales pipeline and is designed to be customized as a starter kit.
- Kanban sales pipeline
- Contact and deal management
- Tasks and notes
- Built on Supabase
EspoCRM
EspoCRM is a fast, lightweight, open-source CRM for managing contacts, leads, opportunities, and customer relationships. It targets small and mid-sized businesses wanting a responsive CRM. It is deployed via Docker or a PHP stack.
- Responsive single-page interface
- Customizable entities and layouts
- Workflow automation
- Email and calendar integration
Atomic CRM vs EspoCRM: key differences
Atomic CRM is written in TypeScript, while EspoCRM is built with PHP. Licensing differs — MIT for Atomic CRM versus AGPL-3.0 for EspoCRM. Atomic CRM is the lighter option, starting around 512 MB of RAM against 1,024 MB for EspoCRM. EspoCRM is the more established project (first released 2014), while Atomic CRM arrived in 2024. EspoCRM has the considerably larger community, at 3,382 GitHub stars versus 1,267.
Why pick each one
Choose Atomic CRM if…
- Released under the MIT license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Active community (1.3k GitHub stars)
- Written in TypeScript
Choose EspoCRM if…
- Fast and responsive
- Highly customizable
- Lightweight
Watch out for
- Advanced extensions are paid
- Smaller ecosystem
Frequently asked questions
Is Atomic CRM or EspoCRM better?
Neither is universally better. EspoCRM has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Atomic CRM and EspoCRM free and open-source?
Yes. Atomic CRM is licensed under MIT and EspoCRM under AGPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Atomic CRM and EspoCRM with Docker?
Atomic CRM: yes. EspoCRM: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, Atomic CRM or EspoCRM?
Atomic CRM has the smaller minimum footprint at 512 MB of RAM, compared to about 1,024 MB for EspoCRM. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.