Blackbaud CRM vs Salesforce Sales Cloud comparison

Blackbaud and Salesforce are both solutions in the CRM category. Blackbaud is ranked #37 with an average rating of 8.0, while Salesforce is ranked #2 with an average rating of 8.2. Blackbaud holds a 0.4% mindshare in CRM, compared to Salesforce’s 8.1% mindshare. Additionally, 66% of Blackbaud users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 94% of Salesforce users who would recommend it.

Blackbaud CRM

Read 1 Blackbaud CRM review

238 Views
221 Comparison Views

66% willing to recommend

Salesforce Sales Cloud

Read 117 Salesforce Sales Cloud reviews

5,106 Views
3,676 Comparison Views

94% willing to recommend

Blackbaud CRM

Salesforce Sales Cloud

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Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between Blackbaud CRM and Salesforce Sales Cloud based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft, Salesforce, SAP and others in CRM.

To learn more, read our detailed CRM Report (Updated: August 2025).

Buyer's Guide

CRM

August 2025

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Helped 865,164 peers since 2012

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

Categories and Ranking

Blackbaud CRM

Ranking in CRM

37th

Average Rating

8.0

Reviews Sentiment

7.2

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Salesforce Sales Cloud

Ranking in CRM

2nd

Average Rating

8.4

Reviews Sentiment

6.9

Number of Reviews

117

Ranking in other categories

Opportunity Management (1st), Sales Force Automation (2nd), Conversation Intelligence Software (3rd)

Mindshare comparison

As of August 2025, in the CRM category, the mindshare of Blackbaud CRM is 0.4%, down from 0.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Salesforce Sales Cloud is 8.1%, down from 10.6% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

CRM

Featured Reviews

reviewer2596560

IT Specialist at a educational organization with 1-10 employees

Integrated profiles increase centralization and streamline donor management

We were using it for managing our donor database The solution provided an integrated profile, which was helpful for having everything together available in one place. One area of improvement is the UI and UX, which could be more upgraded. It looks a little dated compared to modern UI and UX, and…

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Kamal Deep

Founder and Salesforce Consultant at SaaSnic

Experience exceptional project enhancements and seamless automation integration

Salesforce Sales Cloud itself is a wonderful solution, and there are two different versions: Lightning and classic. The Lightning version is a new generation version compatible with any mobile device, whether it's a phone, iPad, or any size of screen. The reporting and analytics functionalities, especially with the Einstein feature, are wonderful because it allows for analysis of data regarding your opportunity pipeline, giving insight into how long it will take to close deals. This gives a great understanding of running different levels of campaigns and defining smart workflows, where if one task is done, the other task can automatically get created and assigned to different team members. This flexibility is a key benefit of Salesforce Sales Cloud. Lead management is a great feature in Salesforce Sales Cloud because if you go for enterprise and above licenses, you can define different record types. For example, if one company is into two different businesses such as real estate and car reselling, both being opposite, this can be defined in Salesforce Sales Cloud, allowing for different workflows, fields, and mechanisms that do not affect each other's operations. The predictive insight feature known as forecasting is a very old feature of Salesforce Sales Cloud, giving predictions based on your pipeline and previous opportunity closings. The new Einstein analytics feature is more advanced and is enabled with AI, providing better forecasting based on your current pipeline. Salesforce Sales Cloud is working smartly with AI to help close more deals based on opportunity stages, trends, and industries, advising on the steps to take next. Lead generation is the most important thing because every sale starts from the lead. At the lead level, different stages and resources can be defined. You can capture leads from various resources, with Salesforce Sales Cloud offering a web-to-lead feature and integrations with LinkedIn to fetch data. Once a lead is qualified and converted into opportunities, there are stages with percentages, and workflows can help in easily closing deals.

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Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

Pros

"It was stable."

"The reporting is easy and helpful."

"The product is very fast and responsive. There's no lag time when you are on the platform."

"The user interface is pretty simple."

"The tool is very good in terms of stability, support, and features."

"I find the forecasting the most valuable feature. It's valuable because there are two types of forecasting, customizable and collaborative forecasting."

"The most significant features of Salesforce Sales Cloud that boosted our sales productivity are workflow management and integrated commentary. Workflow management allows us to progress from exploration and qualification to closing a sale. The integrated commentary feature lets us open conversation threads around a sale and bring in team members, enhancing collaboration."

"There is a ton of information on the dashboard. Reports are also there for us. We can analyze information across the team and across a period, such as quarterly or annually."

"The tracking and monitoring of daily activities within each account is the most valuable aspect of Salesforce Sales Cloud. It allows for staying informed about ongoing activities, ensuring comprehensive visibility into the progress made within each account on a regular basis. Additionally, the plugins that are available, such as ZoolInfo are useful."

More Salesforce Sales Cloud pros

Cons

"One area of improvement is the UI and UX, which could be more upgraded."

"The solution is secure. However, they could always improve on security."

"I don't like the way parent-child relationships work in transactions between records in Salesforce Sales Cloud. NetSuite is a little bit more user-friendly in that sense. Salesforce Sales Cloud requires that you build everything from scratch. I don't like that. It leaves a lot of thinking and solutions to the consultants and the process is more prone to errors."

"It would be nice if they had an ERP offering or a firm strategic partnership with a best-in-class ERP. So rather than say they're just ERP agnostic, you would pick whichever ERP you want, which is very generic. I think it would have a lot of merit if they partnered strategically with a best-in-class trusted ERP platform or acquired an ERP platform."

"CI/CD is the biggest room for improvement. Deployment between environments and configuration."

"Sales Cloud could improve in areas such as AI integration, particularly for templates."

"I would like to see a more affordable licensing model."

"Salesforce is a powerful tool and you need specialists to create or to develop new functionalities. It is a difficult platform to learn to manage and you need years to know the whole product."

"The user interface could be more intuitive. I had some challenges with how to convert from a lead to an opportunity."

More Salesforce Sales Cloud cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

Information not available

"Implementation and add-ons may be additional costs."

"Sales Cloud is quite expensive."

"I've seen the prices for Salesforce Sales Cloud, but I haven't been the one to handle the money. As someone who's only visually looked at the price, I would imagine it's on the pricier side, but they do have a ton of leverage, and seeing that everyone I've worked for has always been dedicated to continuing Salesforce. I've never worked for anyone who has threatened to leave. Everyone has accepted the pricing for what they offer."

"It's expensive, storage being the most costly aspect."

"The price of the product is very high. I rate the product price a ten on a scale of one to ten, where one means low price, and ten means expensive."

"We have a yearly license, and there are no hidden costs. Considering the Indian market, the pricing is reasonable. I don't consider it to be on the high side."

"In terms of investment value and return of the investment, Salesforce right now is pretty good on the Western markets where the price of the employees is pretty high."

"Pricing is reasonable."

More Salesforce Sales Cloud pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

No data available

Computer Software Company

11%

Financial Services Firm

Manufacturing Company

University

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

No data available

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Blackbaud CRM?

I don't have pricing to compare against.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Blackbaud CRM?

One area of improvement is the UI and UX, which could be more upgraded. It looks a little dated compared to modern UI and UX, and there's potential for it to be more intuitive. Also, the ability to...

See all answers

What is your primary use case for Blackbaud CRM?

We were using it for managing our donor database.

See all answers

What do you like most about Salesforce Sales Cloud?

The features of Sales Cloud most useful for testing and running email campaigns are highly valuable.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Salesforce Sales Cloud?

With today's generative AI capabilities like ChatGPT ( /products/chatgpt-reviews ), it should be possible to directly communicate with the software rather than navigating through the entire system ...

See all answers

What is your primary use case for Salesforce Sales Cloud?

I generally use Salesforce Sales Cloud ( /products/salesforce-sales-cloud-reviews ) for our sales process, setting up the entire opportunity lifecycle from lead generation to contract closure. It h...

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Comparisons

Microsoft Dynamics CRM vs Blackbaud CRM

Compared 48% of the time

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Microsoft Dynamics CRM vs Salesforce Sales Cloud

Compared 22% of the time

SAP CRM vs Salesforce Sales Cloud

Compared 20% of the time

Oracle CX Sales vs Salesforce Sales Cloud

Compared 5% of the time

Camunda vs Salesforce Sales Cloud

Compared 4% of the time

Oracle CRM vs Salesforce Sales Cloud

Compared 4% of the time

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Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

CRM

August 2025

Download Blackbaud CRM product report

Buyer's Guide

Salesforce Sales Cloud

July 2025

Download Salesforce Sales Cloud product report

Also Known As

No data available

Sales Cloud, SFDC, Salesforce

Overview

Blackbaud CRM helps organizations by providing a complete supporter view and an organization-wide toolset for managing your constituent base. Blackbaud CRM brings industry-leading fundraising, online applications, actionable prospect research and analytics, and multichannel direct marketing together in one platform to enable an integrated view of the constituent experience across your organization. Blackbaud CRM features prospect research tools that enable your organization to build in-depth prospect profiles, including analytics offerings that provide guidance around a prospect's propensity to give. These tools allow you to prioritize donors and successfully move them through their donor lifecycle to a major gift.

Blackbaud

Salesforce Sales Cloud is a comprehensive CRM platform designed for efficient lead management, sales forecasting, and customer engagement, offering extensive customization and cloud-based accessibility.

Aimed at enhancing business efficiency, Salesforce Sales Cloud supports core business processes like CRM, lead and opportunity management, sales forecasting, and customer engagement. Its robust integration capabilities allow seamless connectivity with ERP systems and various applications. The platform offers pipeline tracking, process automation, and advanced sales cycle management. Users appreciate its cloud-based accessibility, allowing teams to operate remotely and manage sales operations effectively. However, users highlight concerns about its complexity, cost, and the need for a more intuitive interface.

What features does Salesforce Sales Cloud offer?

Customization: Tailor the CRM to meet specific business requirements.
Robust Reporting: Comprehensive analytics and data insights.
Lead Management: Efficiently manage and convert leads.
API Integration: Seamless connectivity with multiple applications.
Cloud Accessibility: Work from anywhere with cloud-based access.

What benefits should be evaluated in Salesforce Sales Cloud reviews?

Enhanced Productivity: Streamline sales processes with automation.
Improved Collaboration: Facilitate team coordination and client engagement.
Accurate Forecasting: Make informed decisions with reliable sales forecasts.
Flexibility: Accommodate diverse industry needs with ease.
Legacy System Integration: Efficiently update and integrate with existing systems.

Salesforce Sales Cloud is widely implemented across industries such as finance, healthcare, and retail, supporting sales teams in tracking and managing sales operations. Its use extends to reporting, collaboration, and enhancing client interactions, allowing companies to tailor Salesforce to meet industry-specific requirements efficiently.

Salesforce

Sample Customers

Charleston Battery, Virgin London Marathon, EdVenture Children's Museum

Coca-Cola Enterprises, Kuoni Global Travel Services, Financial Times, Just Eat, Jobsite, H.R. Owen, PlayerLayer, O2, DMGT, Philips, Xtreme.ie, Business Stream, Remote Asset Management, Dialogue Group

Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft, Salesforce, SAP and others in CRM. Updated: August 2025.

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