By Alpit Patel and the aibrevo team · October 22, 2026 · 8 min read
CRM WhatsApp and SMS Integration Compared 2026: Native, Add-On or Third-Party
Which CRMs send WhatsApp and SMS natively, which sell it as an add-on, and which need a third-party app, from vendor pages checked October 22, 2026. Covers Close, Freshsales, Attio, Keap, ActiveCampaign, Bitrix24, Odoo, Insightly, Capsule, Nutshell, Zoho Bigin, HubSpot and GoHighLevel, with every per-message fee the vendors state.
Key takeaways
- Only Close and Keap sell texting inside the product on every plan or tier we checked. Close passes SMS through at cost with no per-message price stated; Keap includes 500 messages and 100 voice minutes, then charges $0.015 per text and $0.01 per minute (US only for marketing texts).
- No CRM here shows a native WhatsApp inbox on its cheapest plan. Zoho Bigin lists email and WhatsApp integration from Express ($7 per user annually), HubSpot needs Marketing Hub or Service Hub Professional or higher, and Odoo's WhatsApp app is Enterprise-only.
- Attio has no native WhatsApp or SMS. Its App Store lists TimelinesAI for two-way WhatsApp and Aircall, Dialpad and 3CX for calls and SMS logging. Close's WhatsApp options are an integration link that opens WhatsApp Web, TimelinesAI, Zapier or the API.
- Meta charges per message since July 1, 2025. HighLevel's help article lists $0.0263 per US and Canada marketing message and $0.0036 per utility message on top of a $10 per sub-account monthly fee.
- Nutshell's cheapest SMS add-on is $15 a month for up to 250 messages, which is $0.06 per message if you use all of them. Its Engagement add-on is $16 per user a month and includes two-way SMS and WhatsApp integration.
Most small-business CRMs do not have a built-in WhatsApp inbox, and the ones that do put it behind a higher plan, an add-on, or Meta’s own per-message fees. SMS is easier: Close and Keap include it, Nutshell and ActiveCampaign sell it as an add-on. This page sorts 13 CRMs into native, add-on and third-party only, using vendor pages checked October 22, 2026, and lists every per-message fee the vendors state.
Method. We read each vendor’s pricing page and, where one existed, its help-center article on WhatsApp or SMS. “Native” means the vendor sells and supports the channel inside its product. “Add-on” means a paid extra from the same vendor. “Third-party” means an app from another company is needed. Where a page did not state a plan or a fee, the table says so. People search these combinations by name, for example “close crm sms pricing”, “attio whatsapp integration”, “freshsales whatsapp integration” and “odoo crm integration with whatsapp”, which is why the table is organised by CRM.
Which CRMs have native WhatsApp and SMS?
| CRM | SMS or texting | Plan and fees the vendor states | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Close | Third-party or link only: integration link to WhatsApp Web, TimelinesAI, Zapier, API | Native, all plans | SMS usage passed through at cost, no per-message price stated; phone lines from about $1 a month; SMS in workflows from Growth ($99 annual); A2P 10DLC needed for US |
| Freshsales | Via Freshworks WhatsApp Business Platform integration (Business Solution Provider) | Not found on the pages we read | Plan requirement not clear; Meta charges per message from July 1, 2025 |
| Attio | Third-party only: TimelinesAI app; Ringover logs WhatsApp and SMS | Third-party only: Aircall, Dialpad, 3CX apps log SMS | App prices are the vendors’ own; not stated on Attio’s page |
| Keap | None listed on the pricing page | Native | Tier 1: 500 messages and 100 voice minutes included; tiers $24 to $279 a month; overage $0.015 per text, $0.01 per minute; US only for marketing texts |
| ActiveCampaign | Add-on (“WhatsApp Messaging”) | Add-on (“SMS Marketing”) | Both marked Add-on on the plan grid; add-on prices not shown in page text |
| Bitrix24 | Pricing page lists WhatsApp among its omnichannel sources; “WhatsApp marketing” listed from Standard | SMS providers listed (for example SMSAPI, E-goi SMS) | Plan for the basic WhatsApp connection not stated on the pricing page |
| Odoo | Native app, Enterprise only; needs WhatsApp Business Platform account | SMS Marketing app; SMS uses in-app purchase credits | WhatsApp message pricing not stated in the docs page we read; IAP credits listed as not included in plan price |
| Insightly | Not listed on the pricing page | Not listed on the pricing page | Not stated |
| Capsule | Third-party: Wati API listed on its integrations page | Not found | Not stated |
| Nutshell | Integration listed under the Engagement add-on | Add-on | Engagement $16 per user a month (two-way SMS, WhatsApp, Messenger, Instagram); separate SMS add-on from $15 a month for up to 250 messages |
| Zoho Bigin | Included from Express: “Email and WhatsApp Business Integration” | Not listed | Express $7 annual or $9 monthly per user; Free plan has no WhatsApp line |
| HubSpot | Native channel, Marketing Hub or Service Hub Professional or Enterprise | Not verified this run | 1,000 template messages a month shared across accounts; 50 business-initiated conversations a day until Business Manager is verified; no per-message fee stated by HubSpot |
| GoHighLevel | Add-on: WhatsApp integration | Native, usage-based | $10 a month per sub-account; US and Canada marketing $0.0263, utility $0.0036 per message; SMS and call rates in LC Phone pricing |
Source: vendor pricing pages and help articles listed under Sources, checked Oct 22, 2026. Salesforce, Zoho CRM, Pipedrive and monday CRM were not re-verified for this page; see the linked monday and GoHighLevel pages for those two.
Does Close CRM have WhatsApp?
Close does not run a native WhatsApp inbox, but it has four documented routes. The simplest needs no extra vendor: an organization admin enables WhatsApp under Settings, Integration Links, and reps click the WhatsApp icon on a lead to open a chat in WhatsApp Web. The deeper route is TimelinesAI, which logs messages as “WhatsApp” activities (text, locations and attachments up to 25 MB), matches them to leads by phone number in international format, and can create a lead when an unknown number messages you. Close also documents a Zapier setup and an API that creates WhatsApp message activities, which then appear like SMS in the activity feed.
Close’s own pricing page lists WhatsApp in its integrations nav and, for SMS, says sending and receiving is included on the plans, with SMS to over a dozen countries including the US, Canada, the UK and Australia.
How much does SMS cost in each CRM?
Only some vendors state a rate. Where a page gives a tier price and a message count, the table below computes the cost per message by dividing one by the other.
| Item | Stated price | Per-message arithmetic |
|---|---|---|
| Close SMS | Passed through at cost; no rate stated | Not computable from the page |
| Keap text overage | $0.015 per text | $0.015 |
| Keap text tier 2 | $24 a month for 1,000 messages | $0.024 if all are used |
| Nutshell SMS add-on, lowest tier | $15 a month for up to 250 messages | $0.06 if all are used |
| HighLevel WhatsApp utility, US and Canada | $0.0036 per message | $0.0036 |
| HighLevel WhatsApp marketing, US and Canada | $0.0263 per message | $0.0263 |
Source: Keap, Nutshell and HighLevel pages, checked Oct 22, 2026. Computed figures divide the tier price by the message cap and are the best case. HighLevel’s WhatsApp fees are on top of $10 per sub-account a month. Texting rules, such as consent and quiet hours, are separate: see the state texting law table.
How does WhatsApp pricing work, and who pays Meta?
Meta, not your CRM vendor, sets the message fee. Its documentation says charges apply per delivered message since July 1, 2025, by category (marketing, utility, authentication) and the recipient’s country, replacing conversation-based pricing. Messages you send inside the 24-hour customer service window after a customer writes are service messages, and Meta states they have been free, with a change from October 1, 2026: each business phone number then gets 1,000 free service messages a month and later ones are charged. Messages from customers to you are never charged. Freshworks’ article repeats the per-message model for Freshsales and Freshchat accounts, and HubSpot’s article refers to Meta’s page for fees.
So a CRM’s WhatsApp price has two parts: what the CRM vendor charges (HighLevel $10 per sub-account, Zoho Bigin’s plan price, Nutshell’s $16 per user, HubSpot’s tier) and what Meta charges per message. Third-party routes add a third part: the bridge vendor’s subscription, such as TimelinesAI for Close and Attio.
What about Vtiger, SugarCRM and other CRMs people ask about?
Searches such as “vtiger whatsapp integration” and “sugarcrm whatsapp integration” show demand, but we could not verify either vendor’s WhatsApp support from a readable primary page today. Vtiger’s pricing page lists “SMS Campaigns” and an SMS integration in its feature areas and no WhatsApp line. SugarCRM’s pricing page text showed prices and no messaging channels. Treat WhatsApp for both as unverified and check the vendor’s marketplace listing before committing.
Which CRM should you pick if you need WhatsApp or SMS?
Pick by channel
- Cold calling and SMS follow-up from one screen: Close, with usage fees on top. Use WhatsApp through the integration link or a bridge.
- Small US business texting its own list: Keap (texts included, overage $0.015).
- WhatsApp as a main channel at low seat cost: Zoho Bigin Express, or HubSpot Professional if you already need its hubs.
- Agency running many client numbers: GoHighLevel’s $10 per sub-account add-on and rebilling, covered in our GoHighLevel WhatsApp answer.
- A CRM without WhatsApp that you want to keep: Attio or Capsule plus a bridge app. Budget the bridge subscription.
- Board-based CRM: see how monday CRM handles WhatsApp.
For total cost beyond messaging, the small business CRM pricing comparison shows yearly seat costs. Accounting sync is a separate question, answered in QuickBooks and Xero integrations by CRM.
When to get help
WhatsApp setup has steps that fail quietly: a Meta Business verification that takes days, templates that need approval, a phone number that is already on the consumer app, and US SMS that needs A2P 10DLC registration before anything is delivered. aibrevo implements Salesforce, HubSpot, Dynamics 365, Zoho CRM, Pipedrive, monday.com, Airtable and GoHighLevel, and quotes per project for any other CRM. If messaging is the reason you are changing CRMs, book a short call or send a message, and see the GoHighLevel service page for the platform where WhatsApp, SMS and rebilling are built in.
Sources
All checked October 22, 2026.
- Close, pricing and WhatsApp help article: SMS, usage pass-through, integration links, TimelinesAI, Zapier, API.
- Freshworks, Overview of WhatsApp Business integration (modified November 6, 2025): Business Solution Provider, per-message pricing, products covered.
- Attio, App Store and TimelinesAI listing: WhatsApp, SMS and call-logging apps.
- Keap, pricing: text features, tiers, overage rates, regional limits.
- ActiveCampaign, pricing: WhatsApp and SMS marked as add-ons.
- Bitrix24, prices: WhatsApp mentions, SMS providers, plan features.
- Odoo, WhatsApp documentation and pricing: Enterprise-only app, account type, items not included.
- Capsule, integrations: Wati WhatsApp listing. Insightly, pricing: no messaging channel listed.
- Nutshell, pricing: Engagement and SMS add-ons.
- Zoho, Bigin pricing: email and WhatsApp integration from Express.
- HubSpot, Connect WhatsApp to the conversations inbox: tiers, limits.
- HighLevel, WhatsApp pricing, billing and rebilling guide and pricing: $10 per sub-account, per-message fees.
- Meta, WhatsApp pricing: per-message model, categories, free service messages.
- Vtiger, pricing and SugarCRM, pricing: feature lists read for messaging channels.