Best CRM for ecommerce brands
Ecommerce customer relationships run through order history, subscriptions and support conversations, not deal stages. Compared on price and which piece of that each tool actually owns.
Want to see it first? Book a demo
Klaviyo wins for an ecommerce brand that wants unified customer data and messaging as the center of its stack, positioning itself as 'the B2C CRM' with a self-service Customer Hub and helpdesk built in. Gorgias wins instead for a brand whose main pain point is support ticket volume, since it's the only one of the three priced by ticket count rather than usage or subscriber count.
The short answer
- Klaviyo's free tier covers up to 250 active profiles and 500 emails a month. Paid tiers grow with your contacts and messages, priced through a calculator with no fixed number, per klaviyo.com/pricing.
- Recharge starts at $99/month (Starter) plus 1.49% + $0.19 per transaction, with a Plus tier at $499/month adding bundles, loyalty programs and a lower transaction rate, per getrecharge.com/pricing.
- Gorgias prices by tickets, from 50 to 5,000 a month, and is 'never priced per agent.' Every plan has an AI Agent, and cost follows solved chats, not seats, per gorgias.com/pricing.
Ecommerce customer data, subscription and support tools compared
| Tool | Starting price | Pricing model | Cold outbound allowed? | Own database? | What it owns | Best for | Not for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Klaviyo | Free (250 profiles); paid usage-based, no flat number | By contacts and messages sent | Not built for cold outbound; opt-in marketing only | No, hosted multi-tenant SaaS | Customer data, email/SMS marketing, a self-service Customer Hub and helpdesk | A brand wanting unified customer data as the center of its Shopify stack | A brand wanting a flat, predictable monthly price instead of usage-based billing |
| Recharge | $99/mo (Starter) + 1.49% + $0.19/transaction | Flat tier plus per-transaction fee | Not applicable, subscription retention tool | No, hosted multi-tenant SaaS | Subscriptions, cancel saves, failed-payment recovery, win-back flows | A brand running a subscription program wanting retention tools built for that model | A brand without a subscription product; Recharge is scoped entirely to that model |
| Gorgias | Priced by ticket volume, no per-agent fee | By tickets handled per month (50 to 5,000+) | Not applicable, support tool, not outbound | No, hosted multi-tenant SaaS | One support inbox, AI Agent that solves tickets, Shopping Assistant | A brand whose support ticket volume is the main cost driver, not agent headcount | A brand wanting sales pipeline or deal-stage features in the same tool |
Figures checked on klaviyo.com/pricing, getrecharge.com/pricing and gorgias.com/pricing, September 2026.
How each one fits an ecommerce brand
Klaviyo
Positions itself directly as 'the B2C CRM,' combining email and SMS marketing with a Customer Hub for self-service order tracking and a built-in helpdesk. Its Klaviyo Data Platform for deeper customer data sits as a separate paid add-on. Pricing is entirely usage-based with no static number to quote. Not for: a brand wanting a fixed monthly price it can budget against exactly.
Recharge
Built for subscription stores. You get one checkout, a customer portal with no-password login, gift and prepaid plans, and tools that stop cancels and win back lapsed buyers. Bundles and loyalty programs are reserved for Plus and Custom tiers. Not for: a brand without a subscription product, since the entire tool is scoped to that model.
Gorgias
One support inbox that links to Shopify, BigCommerce, Magento and WooCommerce. Every plan includes an AI Agent that Gorgias says solves 60% of tickets on the spot, plus a Shopping Assistant for shoppers before they buy. It's explicitly a support platform, not a sales CRM with pipeline features. Not for: a brand wanting deal tracking or a sales pipeline in the same tool.
How to choose
Choose Klaviyo if customer data and email are the heart of your store. Choose Recharge if you sell subscriptions and want to cut cancels. Choose Gorgias if support tickets are your biggest load. These tools pay off most once order volume or your subscriber list makes manual replies slow.
Disclosure: SalesCrew is our product. It is built for B2B sales: outbound, a pipeline and an inbox for reaching businesses. A brand selling wholesale or to retail buyers can run that side in SalesCrew, beside the customer stack above.
Questions
- Does an ecommerce brand need a traditional CRM, or these instead?
- Almost always these instead. A classic B2B CRM with deal stages doesn't fit a store well. In ecommerce, what you track is each buyer's orders and messages, not a sales deal. Klaviyo, Recharge and Gorgias each cover a different piece of that: customer data and messaging, subscription retention, and support conversations.
- Why doesn't this page show a flat starting price for Klaviyo?
- Because there isn't one beyond its free tier. Klaviyo's paid plans are priced by use: the cost grows with your contacts and messages. Its site gives a calculator, not a fixed price for a set number of contacts, per klaviyo.com/pricing. Its free tier covers up to 250 active profiles and 500 emails a month.
- What does Recharge actually cost?
- $99/month for its Starter tier, aimed at brands launching a subscription program, plus 1.49% + $0.19 per transaction. Its Plus tier is $499/month with a lower transaction rate and adds bundles and loyalty features, per getrecharge.com/pricing.
- Is Gorgias priced per agent like most helpdesk software?
- No, and that's a real differentiator. Gorgias says it prices by ticket count, from 50 to 5,000 tickets a month, 'never priced per agent,' per gorgias.com/pricing. Its AI Agent is included on every plan, with costs tied to how many conversations it resolves rather than a flat seat fee.