EspoCRM

EspoCRM gathers what a business knows about its customers into one interface: leads, contacts, sales opportunities, marketing campaigns and support cases, held together in a single record of the relationship. Being open source, the code handling that data can be read by the people trusting it.

Architecturally it is a single-page frontend talking to a REST API backend written in PHP. The backend follows SOLID principles with interfaces, static typing and generics, and is checked at PHPStan level 8. Metadata sits at the center of the application, described with JSON Schema so an IDE can autocomplete every parameter.

A few qualities tend to decide people on it.

• Customization: custom entities, fields, relationships and buttons make it a platform for business applications, not only a CRM.
• Interface: the UI is uncluttered and quick to learn, which matters when a whole sales team has to use it.
• REST API: integrating with other applications is straightforward.
• Developer reach: extensions and custom integrations are a first-class use, with separate documentation for developers.
• Transparency: nothing about how records are stored or processed is hidden from the operator.

Running it takes PHP 8.3 through 8.5 and either MySQL 8.0 or later, MariaDB 10.3 or later, or PostgreSQL 15 or later. Installation can be manual, scripted or containerized, with a Traefik guide for the last case. EspoCRM is licensed under GNU AGPLv3.