You booked a demo to find out what a CRM costs. Forty-five minutes later you have watched a slick screen-share, given up your cell number, and you still do not have a price. That is not an accident: three of the biggest names will not print a number on their website, and the ones that do bury the real cost in setup fees, per-seat add-ons, and lead packages that quietly double the bill.
For a solo agent in 2026, real estate CRM software runs from about $69 a month (Follow Up Boss Grow) to $1,000-plus a month (BoomTown, reported), and the true first-year cost is almost always higher than the headline because of setup fees ($500 to $5,000), per-user charges, annual contracts, and paid lead add-ons. Three vendors publish prices. Three make you sit through a demo to get one. This teardown covers all six.
Table of contents
- What a leaky CRM actually costs you
- Two kinds of pricing: transparent vs demo-gated
- Follow Up Boss pricing
- BoldTrail (kvCORE) pricing
- Sierra Interactive pricing
- Real Geeks pricing
- CINC pricing
- BoomTown pricing
- The hidden fees nobody quotes you
- Three real cost scenarios: solo, team, brokerage
- Steal this: the pricing-call script
- Objections
- Frequently asked questions
What a leaky CRM actually costs you
A CRM exists for follow-up, and follow-up is where agents leak money. Industry data says roughly 48% of agents never follow up after the first attempt, and only about 10% make more than three attempts, while most sales take five or more touches (Hyperleap, 2026). Half the money you spend on leads dies after one text.
The median existing-home price hit $429,100 in August 2026, up 1.6% year over year, with existing-home sales down to a 3.98 million annual pace, off 2.0% for the month (NAR). At a 2.5% buy-side commission, one recovered deal is worth ~$10,700. A CRM at $300 a month costs $3,600 a year, so one saved deal pays for it three times over, and in a thinner market every lead matters more. The real question is not “what is cheapest,” it is “what is the smallest reliable system that makes me follow up, and what does it truly cost once every fee is on the table.”
Two kinds of pricing: transparent vs demo-gated
There are two camps, and the split tells you a lot. The transparent camp (Follow Up Boss, Sierra Interactive, Real Geeks) puts prices on the website. The demo-gated camp (BoldTrail, CINC, BoomTown) makes you book a call. There is no public price for those three, so every figure below for them is a reported number from review sites, not an official quote. It means you walk in with no bargaining power. Here is the whole field at a glance.
| Vendor | Entry price (2026) | Billing model | Setup fee | Leads included? | Pricing type |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Follow Up Boss | $69/user/mo (Grow) | Per user | None reported | No | Published |
| Sierra Interactive | ~$299.95/mo (Starter) | Flat + seats | $500 (monthly billing) | No | Published |
| Real Geeks | ~$299/mo (Establish) | Flat + $25/user | $500 | No (paid add-ons) | Published |
| BoldTrail (kvCORE) | ~$499/mo (reported) | Per seat, tiered | ~$999 (reported) | Add-on | Demo-gated |
| CINC | ~$899/mo (reported) | Tiered + ad spend | ~$1,000 to $5,000 (reported) | Yes (bundled) | Demo-gated |
| BoomTown | ~$1,000/mo (reported) | Tiered + ad mgmt | ~$750 to $1,700 (reported) | Yes (bundled) | Demo-gated |
Entry monthly cost for a solo agent, in US dollars. Follow Up Boss is per user; the rest are flat platform minimums. Figures marked * are reported estimates for demo-gated vendors, not official quotes (full sources listed at the end).
Follow Up Boss pricing
Follow Up Boss is the transparent anchor most small teams use. Pricing is public and per user, with no setup fee and month-to-month billing, rare here (Follow Up Boss):
- Grow: $69/user/month (about $58/user billed annually).
- Pro: $499/month for up to 10 users, then about $49 per extra user.
- Platform: $1,000/month for up to 30 users, then about $20 per extra user.
Where the bill grows. It is a CRM, not a lead source, so most agents run it alongside leads they pay for separately, and it is strictly per user: a five-agent team on Grow is $345/month, and the automations that matter live on Pro at $499. Do not mistake the $69 headline for your stack cost.
Right for: a solo agent or small team that already has leads and wants a great CRM, no contract.
BoldTrail (kvCORE) pricing
BoldTrail is the rebranded kvCORE from Inside Real Estate, the classic demo-gated product. There is no public price, so every figure here is reported, a range not a quote. Reported pricing puts a solo setup around $499 to $750/month and teams around $499 to $999/month, with a reported one-time setup fee near $999 and annual contracts as the norm (AgentFlow Tools; The Pro Toolkit). PPC ad management is a paid add-on.
Where the bill grows. The annual contract (no real month-to-month trial), per-seat pricing inside each tier, and the ad-management add-on that turns a $499 platform into a $1,500 all-in spend. The common complaint: it is more platform than a small shop can configure and use.
Right for: an established team that will use the breadth, has someone to run it, and can commit for a year.
Sierra Interactive pricing
Sierra publishes its pricing. Public tiers for 2026 (Sierra Interactive; Luxury Presence):
- Starter:
$299.95/mo annual ($359.95 monthly), 1 user. - Essential:
$399.95/mo annual ($474.95 monthly), 3 users. - Growth:
$599.95/mo annual ($724.95 monthly), 5 users.
A $500 setup fee on month-to-month billing is waived if you pay annually. The base gets you the CRM, one IDX website, and one MLS feed.
Where the bill grows. The best features are line items: Lead Engage AI texting runs about $199/month and is not on Starter, extra users cost more, and ad management is separate. So the “$299” plan is one seat without the AI texting most people buy Sierra for; a three-seat team that wants it is closer to $600/month before ads.
Right for: a team that wants a strong IDX website plus CRM and will pay annually to skip setup.
Real Geeks pricing
Real Geeks is the other transparent anchor and undercuts Sierra on the base. Reported tiers start around $299/month (Establish) and climb through $599 (Grow), $999 (Expand), and $1,599 (Conquer), with extra users about $25/month for seats two through ten (Real Geeks). Note the recent change: the setup fee doubled from $250 to $500 on June 1, 2025 (Real Geeks). Lead packages sit on top: Social ~$299/mo, Search ~$599/mo, Seller ~$599/mo, with Geek AI texting free once you buy one.
Where the bill grows. The base is a website plus CRM, not leads. Turn on a lead package and you have roughly doubled your bill, and the “free” AI texting is only free because you bought the ad package. The $299 on a chart is rarely what a Real Geeks lead user pays.
Right for: a solo agent or small team wanting an affordable IDX site plus CRM, adding leads later.
CINC pricing
CINC (Commissions Inc) is demo-gated and built around leads. Every number is reported: pricing starts around $899 to $900/month solo and commonly lands at $1,500 or more for teams, with all-in monthly spend of $1,800 to $3,500-plus once ad spend, AI add-ons, a dialer, and training are included (RobinFlow; Luxury Presence). A reported $1,000 to $5,000 setup fee may apply, and term contracts are typical.
Where the bill grows. CINC bundles paid lead generation, so the platform fee is the floor. Ad spend sits on top, which is how a “$899” tool becomes a $2,000-plus line. You are buying a lead machine and a contract, not a lightweight CRM.
Right for: a well-funded team that wants bundled leads and can commit to the spend.
BoomTown pricing
BoomTown is the priciest of the group, also demo-gated. Reported figures start around $1,000/month for the entry Launch plan, with a reported $750 to $1,700 setup fee, 12-month contracts, and all-in spend of $2,500 to $5,000-plus per month once ad management (reported at ~15% of ad spend) and MLS pass-through are included (Luxury Presence; AgentFlow Tools). Some reports put the Launch commitment above $20,000 for the year once PPC minimums are counted.
Where the bill grows. Everywhere: setup fee, annual contract, ad-management percentage, and PPC minimums stack into a serious commitment. It is capable, but priced for large teams.
Right for: an established, high-volume team that can justify five figures a year.
The hidden fees nobody quotes you
The monthly number is the part they show you. Four costs quietly inflate it, and you met them vendor by vendor above:
- Setup fees: $500 at Sierra and Real Geeks, a reported $999 to $5,000 at the demo-gated three, landing in month one when you are least sure the tool will stick.
- Per-seat charges: a tool that looks cheap for one agent scales linearly with your team.
- Annual contracts: if it does not fit by month three, you are still paying in month nine.
- Lead add-ons: layered on top of the platform fee, so budget for the platform and the leads.
The fifth is the one nobody mentions until you leave. Data export and migration: moving contacts, tags, and history and reconnecting integrations commonly runs $8,000 to $25,000 (LowCode, industry estimate), plus two to four weeks of lost productivity. That is exactly why vendors are comfortable with annual contracts: once your database lives in their system, leaving is expensive.
Three real cost scenarios: solo, team, brokerage
What you pay depends on your size. Here is the field priced for three operations, using published prices and reported midpoints for the demo-gated vendors.
Scenario 1: the solo agent (one seat, already has some lead flow).
- Follow Up Boss Grow: $69/mo ($828/year, no setup).
- Real Geeks Establish:
$299/mo + $500 setup (**$4,088 first year**, before leads). - CINC (reported):
$899/mo + setup (**$11,000-plus first year**, leads bundled).
Scenario 2: the five-person team (wants automation and reporting).
- Follow Up Boss Pro: $499/mo ($5,988/year, ten seats included).
- Sierra Growth + AI texting:
$599 + $199 = **$798/mo** (~$9,576/year annual). - BoldTrail (reported): ~$999/mo +
$999 setup (**$12,987 first year**, before ads).
Scenario 3: the fifteen-agent brokerage (wants a platform and leads).
- Follow Up Boss Platform: $1,000/mo for up to 30 users ($12,000/year, CRM only).
- BoomTown (reported): platform + setup + ad management ($2,500 to $5,000-plus/mo all-in, so $30,000 to $60,000-plus/year).
- GoHighLevel Unlimited: $297/mo regardless of headcount (HighLevel), $3,564/year no matter how many agents you add.
Notice the pattern: per-seat tools punish growth. The bigger the team, the more you pay for the same software. A flat-price platform flips that math, which is the whole reason it exists.
Steal this: the pricing-call script
Pricing a demo-gated vendor means walking into a sales call without a number. Read them off your screen, in order, before you book a BoldTrail, CINC, or BoomTown demo.
And here is the message to send when you leave a CRM. Vendors count on the switch being annoying enough that you never start. Make it a two-minute email:
Send that, get your data as a clean CSV, and your next move is easy. A platform like GoHighLevel imports a CSV in minutes, and if you would rather not touch a spreadsheet, that is what a migration or a dedicated GHL VA is for. Leaving is a task, not a trap, once your data is in your hands.
Where a flat-price platform fits
Every tool above is per seat or per team. If what you need is reliable follow-up, speed-to-lead texting, and a warm sphere, the flat-price alternative is a platform like GoHighLevel: $97/month Starter or $297/month Unlimited, the same price for one agent or thirty (HighLevel). The catch: a raw platform is a blank canvas, and configuring it for real estate is real work.
That is the gap the Real Estate Snapshot closes: a pre-built real estate configuration (IDX capture, buyer and seller pipelines, follow-up sequences, expired revival, showings and reviews) installed for a one-time $1,197 instead of a per-seat fee. You never pay more for hiring, and you own the setup. For targets to build against, see our conversion benchmarks; for when a custom build is worth it, the build-versus-buy breakdown.
Objections
“Isn’t the cheapest option going to be the worst?” No. Follow Up Boss is the cheapest transparent entry at $69 and one of the best pure CRMs around. Price here tracks how much is bundled (leads, ads, websites), not how good the core software is. A cheap CRM plus your own lead source often beats an expensive all-in-one you half use.
“I already pay for Follow Up Boss. Should I switch?” Maybe not. If it works and your team is small, the per-user cost is reasonable and switching carries a real migration cost ($8,000 to $25,000, industry estimate). The case gets strong when your seat count climbs, or when you pay separately for a texter, website, and scheduler one platform would replace.
“Do I need to be technical to run any of this?” For the all-in-one platforms, somewhat, which is why setup fees exist. For a done-for-you configuration, no: someone else does the technical part, and a dedicated GHL VA can run it for you.
“The demo-gated tools include leads. Isn’t that a better deal?” Sometimes, if you would buy those leads anyway. But bundling is how a $499 platform becomes a $2,000 commitment, and it ties your CRM to your lead source, so leaving one means leaving both. Keep them separate and you keep your bargaining power.
Back to that demo. You left without a price because the price is the weakest part of the pitch. Get every number in writing, and remember the cheapest reliable path is usually a flat-rate platform you own, not a per-seat contract that punishes you for growing.
Frequently asked questions
Frequently asked questions
How much does real estate CRM software cost in 2026?
For a solo agent, from about $69/month (Follow Up Boss Grow) to $1,000-plus/month (BoomTown, reported). Follow Up Boss ($69/user), Sierra Interactive (from ~$299.95/mo) and Real Geeks (from ~$299/mo) publish prices; BoldTrail, CINC and BoomTown are demo-gated with reported starts of ~$499, ~$899 and ~$1,000/month before setup and ad spend.
Which real estate CRMs hide their pricing?
BoldTrail (formerly kvCORE), CINC and BoomTown are demo-gated: you have to book a sales call to get a quote. Follow Up Boss, Sierra Interactive and Real Geeks publish theirs. Because the demo-gated three have no public price, every figure for them is a reported estimate from review sites, not an official quote.
What hidden fees should I watch for with a real estate CRM?
Setup fees ($500 at Sierra and Real Geeks, a reported $999 to $5,000 at the demo-gated vendors), per-seat charges that grow with your team, annual contracts, paid lead add-ons on top of the platform fee, and data-migration costs when you leave (an industry-estimated $8,000 to $25,000).
Is Follow Up Boss or BoldTrail cheaper?
Follow Up Boss: $69/user/month, no setup fee, no contract. BoldTrail is demo-gated with a reported ~$499/month start, a reported ~$999 setup fee and annual contracts. BoldTrail bundles more (website, IDX, ad add-ons), but on price and flexibility Follow Up Boss wins for a small team.
Why is a flat-price platform cheaper for a team?
Per-seat pricing charges you more every time you add an agent. A flat-price platform like GoHighLevel charges $97 to $297/month regardless of headcount, so the per-agent cost drops as you grow. That is why growing teams move off per-seat CRMs. The Real Estate Snapshot configures that platform for real estate for a one-time $1,197, with no setup fee and no annual lock-in.
Sources
- Follow Up Boss: Pricing; CloudTalk pricing breakdown
- Sierra Interactive: Pricing; Luxury Presence breakdown
- Real Geeks: 2025 setup-fee update; Real Geeks blog
- BoldTrail (kvCORE): AgentFlow Tools; The Pro Toolkit
- CINC: RobinFlow; Luxury Presence
- BoomTown: Luxury Presence; AgentFlow Tools
- NAR: Existing-Home Sales, August 2026
- Hyperleap: Real estate lead response statistics, 2026
- LowCode: CRM migration cost (industry estimate)
- HighLevel: Pricing