SHSelfHostIndex

CiviCRM vs Monica

A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted crm & business apps options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.

Not the right match-up?
CI CiviCRM CRM for nonprofits, NGOs, and advocacy groups VS MO Monica Personal CRM to remember the people you know
FeatureCiviCRMMonica
CategoryCRM & Business AppsCRM & Business Apps
LicenseAGPL-3.0AGPL-3.0
LanguagePHPPHP
Setup difficultyMediumMedium
Min. RAM1,024 MB512 MB
Deploymentbare-metal, sourcedocker, bare-metal
GitHub stars★ 762★ 24,983
First released20052017
ReplacesSalesforce, BlackbaudSalesforce, HubSpot

Why pick each one

Choose CiviCRM if…

  • Released under the AGPL-3.0 license
  • Written in PHP
CiviCRM details

Choose Monica if…

  • Unique personal CRM focus
  • Helps maintain relationships
  • Open source
Monica details

Frequently asked questions

Is CiviCRM or Monica better?

Neither is universally better. Monica has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.

Are CiviCRM and Monica free and open-source?

Yes. CiviCRM is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and Monica under AGPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.

Can I run CiviCRM and Monica with Docker?

CiviCRM: check the project docs for container support. Monica: yes.

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