While CiviCRM does not come with a price tag, there are costs to installing and maintaining the software. Learning to use such a powerful system will also require an investment of time and/or professional support. For most organizations, hiring a CiviCRM partner like AGH Strategies can be the most affordable and efficient way to get started with the system.
This guide will help you assess the cost of setting up and using CiviCRM.
Support and Hosting
Hosting and Maintenance
CiviCRM has similar hosting requirements as Drupal or WordPress, and it is most powerful when it is installed within your main website. That means that you don’t need separate hosting for CiviCRM. Howerver, you should ensure that you have a virtual or dedicated server with at least 2GB of RAM, and up-to-date versions of Linux, Apache or Nginx, MySQL or equivalent, and PHP.
Hosting managed by a CiviCRM expert ensures your server will meet your system’s needs. CiviCRM experts are knowledgeable in Drupal and WordPress, so you can reduce costs by using a single vendor. The base hosting costs for a typical CiviCRM site range from $10-80 per month, Including management, you should expect to pay $50-200 per month for a plan that includes your CRM and website.
Training and Support
It’s possible to teach yourself CiviCRM. Free resources are available at docs.civicrm.org, and a StackExchange site features crowdsourced questions and answers. For most organizations, and initial formal training helps staff get started using CiviCRM effectively and sets them on the road to being self-sufficient. A custom training for staff will cost $400-500 per two-hour session, while public trainings range from $30-600 per person depending upon length and format.
A CiviCRM expert can become familiar with your organization and provide additional tailored support on an hourly basis. CiviCRM specialists can use tools to manage your upgrades and create upgrade preview sites. Specialists’ staff will also be familiar with the new version–able to anticipate upgrade issues or new features to configure.
Comprehensive support and hosting from AGH Strategies starts at just $210 per month. Learn more.
Installation and Configuration
Installing CiviCRM is not inherently difficult, and the requirements are similar to Drupal or WordPress. However, it is fundamentally a bigger and more complex application than those content management systems. It is best to hew close to standard, well-documented environments.
Installing CiviCRM is faster and more reliable with a CiviCRM specialist, thought. They can spot problems before starting the installation, and it’s more cost-effective than paying for trial and error on the part of staff or a web developer. A CiviCRM specialist will also assess your needs and configure CiviCRM accordingly. It pays to have an expert who knows the options and capabilities of the software and can match them to your needs.
Server, website, and CiviCRM configuration and installation starts at $900 with AGH Strategies, and includes 12 months of optimized hosting at no additional cost. Learn more.