In this part, I will analyze the licensing structure and the subscription fees that come along with purchasing the platforms.

I would recommend to read the first blog part: Salesforce vs Microsoft Dynamics.

To do this, I will define the task as follows:

• Only use public information – both Microsoft and Salesforce, of course, offer discounts to major customers. I will not consider these discounts in the comparison.
• Only look into the Sales module; Dynamics Sales and Salesforce Sales Cloud

To compare costs, I have to start deep dive into the licensing structure.

Microsoft sources
Dynamics pricing
License guide

Salesforce sources
Salesforce pricing
Salesforce add ons

This analysis was done in April 2024.

License comparison overview

Salesforce Starter Suite

The Starter Suite version from Salesforce is a very limited edition. It includes tables for Account, Contact, Lead, Opportunity, Case and Products. It also allows you to connect your Gmail or Outlook. The customization options are very limited, for example, you will not have the option to use a sandbox.
As the license name suggests, this in an entry-level license targeting small customers. The strategy is clever: it is hoped that small clients will grow and, consequently, grow with Salesforce.

Microsoft Dynamics doesn’t have this kind of license. I don’t know the reason for this.

Salesforce Professional vs Dynamics Professional

Salesforce Professional offers more features compared to the Starter Suite, but are still intended for smaller businesses.

Salesforce Professional does not include API possibilities which may exclude larger companies in need of more complex solutions. For more information, read: What Is Salesforce Professional Edition? | Salesforce Ben

Dynamics Professional is a comprehensive license suitable for smaller businesses and, if the solution is not too complex, also for larger businesses.  It has a limitation that you can only create 15 custom tables.

Neither of the license includes forecasting features.

Salesforce Enterprise vs Dynamics Enterprise

These two licenses are sufficient for most organizations.

The only features missing from Dynamics Enterprise are predictive scoring and full access to Copilot. Note: with Dynamics Enterprise you will have access to selected Copilot features.

For Salesforce Enterprise, you will receive 1 developer Sandbox and 1 Partial Sandbox. If you need more, they must be purchased. With a Dynamics license, you can create as many sandboxes as you want; the only associated cost is that of data storage.

It is a pretty big jump in cost from Salesforce Professional to Salesforce Enterprise, 80 – 165. This indicates that something is happening, and my analysis is that this is the license you need to buy if you are a larger organization or have a complex business model.

Salesforce Unlimited vs Dynamics Premium

To make this as simple as possible: (almost) everything is included in both licenses except for Copilot.

Despite its name, Salesforce Unlimited has its limitations; only 1 Partial and 1 Full Sandbox are included.

Dynamics Premium has no limitations. If you want to purchase the full Copilot, that’s an add on. For more information about Copilot, read next chapter.

Salesforce Einstein 1 vs Dynamics Premium + Copilot

If you’re aiming for the full experience, this is the way to go. You’ll maximize all features and gain access to the latest developments in Copilot and Generative AI.

Einstein 1 includes Copilot. For a fair comparison with Dynamics Premium, I have incorporated the full Copilot license.

Included data

This is what’s included when you purchase Salesforce Enterprise or Dynamics Enterprise. If you exceed the included data limit, you will need to purchase additional data.

Price comparison – calculated example

• I choose to compare Salesforce Enterprise with Dynamics Enterprise.
• 100 seats is chosen for the example
• I add 1 partial and 1 full sandbox for Salesforce. If you don’t need this, you can subtract this cost.

Conclusion

• Salesforce costs more. A lot more. Is it worth paying the double – or even more? You have to decide this yourself. My recommendation is to always analyze what your needs are, then do a price comparison.

• A reflection I make is that even if Salesforce costs a lot more, they still maintain their position as market leader and continue to acquire new customers.

• Salesforce has a lot of add-ons, which could make it more difficult to calculate the actual price. Here is an article about the hidden costs in Salesforce: Understanding Salesforce cost.

• With this enormous price difference, I find it difficult to recommend Salesforce. The products are similar, and Microsoft Dynamics advantages with the other Microsoft products being very easily integrated. Microsoft also leads the investment in Open AI, which has developed Copilot (that both platforms use).

If you have public information that could complement this blog post – I will gladly take it into consideration!