“What does a CRM cost?” is the question every vendor in this category has learned to dodge. Some publish a rate card; more hide behind “request a demo.” The real answer has less to do with sticker prices than with the pricing model the vendor chose — per seat, per office, per transaction, or quote-gated — because the model decides what happens to your bill when you grow. Here is how to price a real estate CRM without waiting for a sales call.
The four pricing models in the category
- Per seat. A monthly rate times your headcount. Predictable per agent, and it scales linearly — every hire raises the bill.
- Bundled seats. A flat plan that includes a block of users, with add-on seats cheaper than the per-seat entry rate. The crossovers matter more than the sticker: there is always a headcount where the next tier becomes cheaper.
- Per office or enterprise quote. Pricing gated behind a demo. Common at the enterprise end of residential and in commercial. You cannot budget against it until you sit through the call.
- Flat monthly. One published price regardless of headcount within a tier. Rare, and worth reading the allowances carefully when you find it.
Most brokerages discover the model matters more than the number. A $69-per-seat plan and a $499-including-10-users plan are the same product category with different arithmetic — and the cheaper one depends entirely on how many agents you have this year and next.
What sits outside the base price
Whatever the model, the line items that move the real number tend to be the same across the category:
- Calling and dialers. Frequently a per-user add-on rather than included. If your team lives on the phone, price it in on day one — it can be a third of the entry cost again.
- Onboarding and data migration. Some vendors bundle it, some invoice it, some make it your problem. Ask for the number in writing before signing.
- Text and email usage. Follow-up platforms increasingly meter messaging. Check whether “unlimited” means unlimited, or means subject to a fair-use allowance.
- Connectors and integrations. MLS/IDX feeds, transaction platforms, e-signature. Ask which are live today versus planned, and which cost extra.
BrokerDIY’s published answer
We publish what is settled: a 14-day free trial on every plan, then Starter $29/mo, with Pro and Team above it and Enterprise scoped for multi-office brokerages. Setup is $0 on every tier, pricing is flat monthly rather than per transaction, and every tier’s rate and monthly action allowance is on the pricing page.
Run your own comparison
For named vendors, we keep cost guides with the figures each one publishes, checked and dated: Lofty, kvCORE / BoldTrail, Sierra Interactive, Follow Up Boss, and the transaction side — Dotloop, SkySlope, DocuSign. To add up your whole stack rather than one line of it, the brokerage software cost calculator does the arithmetic, and what brokerage software costs in 2026 covers the category picture.
Questions to ask any vendor
- At my exact headcount — today and in twelve months — which tier is cheapest, and where is the next crossover?
- What is billed separately from the base plan: calling, texts, onboarding, migration, connectors?
- What does it cost to add or remove agents mid-term?
- If I leave, what does the export include — contacts only, or notes, tasks, and communication history too?
Pricing described for BrokerDIY is as published on our own pricing page. For every other vendor, verify current pricing directly with them before deciding — published figures age, and quote-gated pricing can only be learned on the call.