---

Starting a business in 2025 feels like a high-stakes game. You have a game-changing idea, a relentless drive, and a budget that’s… well, let’s call it “startup-sized.” You see all these established companies using slick, expensive software for everything from marketing to finance, and it’s easy to feel like you’re starting 10 steps behind. But what if you could build your entire business operation, from lead generation to project management, without spending a single dime on software? This isn’t a hypothetical—it’s the new reality. Welcome to the world of free and freemium SaaS (Software as a Service), the single greatest competitive advantage for entrepreneurs on a shoestring budget.

This isn’t just a list. This is your comprehensive guide to the 150 best free and freemium SaaS tools to start your business today. We’re not just talking about free trials; we’re talking about powerful, permanent free plans that let you build, market, sell, and manage your new venture from the ground up. We’ll explore the top free SaaS tools by category, show you how to build a “free SaaS stack” that works, and answer every question you have about launching your business for free. Let’s get started.

Why Smart Founders Build Their Business on Free SaaS Tools

Before we dive into the tools, let’s understand why this is the smartest strategy for a new business. In the past, starting a business meant massive upfront costs for servers, software licenses, and IT support. As we explored in our guide to Why SaaS is a Beginner’s Dream Tool, the SaaS model completely flipped this script.

The “freemium” model, in particular, is a game-changer. It means the company gives you a core, usable product for free, forever. They bet that as your business grows, you’ll love their tool so much that you’ll eventually upgrade for more advanced features. This is a win-win: you get to launch your business with zero software costs, and they get a pipeline of future customers.

The benefits of starting with free business software are undeniable:

• Zero Financial Risk: You can test your business idea, build a product, and even get your first customers before ever paying for a software subscription.
• Immediate Scalability: When you do make money, you can selectively upgrade only the tools you need, paying as you grow.
• Access to Powerful Tech: These aren’t “lite” tools. Many free plans from industry leaders like HubSpot, Mailchimp, and Asana offer 90% of the functionality a new startup needs.
• Agility: Don’t like your free project management tool? You can switch to another one in an afternoon with no sunk costs. This allows you to find the perfect fit for your workflow.

Let’s build your complete, professional-grade, and 100% free business toolkit.

Must-Have Free Project Management SaaS for Organized Startups

Your first challenge as an entrepreneur is chaos. You’re juggling ideas, tasks, deadlines, and a million micro-steps. A powerful project management (PM) tool isn’t optional; it’s your central command center. These free PM tools are perfect for solopreneurs and small teams.

1. Trello (Best for Visual Kanban Organization)

Trello is the digital equivalent of a massive whiteboard with sticky notes. It’s built on the Kanban system, which is a simple “To Do,” “Doing,” and “Done” visual workflow.

• Why It’s a Top Free Tool: The free plan is incredibly generous. You get unlimited cards (tasks), unlimited lists (stages), 10 boards per workspace (enough for 10 projects), and unlimited “Power-Ups” (integrations) which was recently updated.
• Best Free Feature for Startups: The “Butler” automation. You can set simple, code-free rules like “When a card is moved to the ‘Done’ list, automatically mark the due date as complete.” This saves you hundreds of small clicks.
• Our Take: It’s the best free project management tool for remote teams who need a simple, visual way to see who is doing what.

2. Asana (Best for Action-Oriented Task Management)

If Trello is a whiteboard, Asana is a powerful action-planner. It’s more list-based but excels at showing you tasks, subtasks, dependencies, and deadlines.

• Why It’s a Top Free Tool: The free “Personal” plan is for individuals and teams of up to 10 people. It gives you unlimited tasks, projects, and a calendar view.
• Best Free Feature for Startups: The “List” and “Board” views. You can start by brainstorming tasks in a simple list, then switch to a Kanban board view (like Trello) to manage the workflow, all within the same project.
• Our Take: Asana is one of the best free alternatives to Monday.com for task tracking. It’s ideal for planning complex projects like a product launch or a content calendar.

3. Notion (Best All-in-One Workspace)

Notion is in a league of its own. It’s not just a PM tool; it’s a “digital LEGO set” where you can build your own all-in-one workspace. It combines notes, wikis, databases, and task management.

• Why It’s a Top Free Tool: The free “Personal Pro” plan (for individuals) is essentially unlimited. You can create unlimited pages and blocks, and it now supports collaborative workspaces for small teams on its free tier.
• Best Free Feature for Startups: Databases. You can create a database of “Tasks,” a database of “Clients,” and a database of “Content Ideas,” and then link them all together. You can view your tasks as a list, a board, or a calendar.
• Our Take: It has a steeper learning curve, but it’s the ultimate free SaaS tool for building a “second brain” for your business. It can replace Google Docs, Trello, and your notes app. As we covered in our Trello vs. Notion vs. Todoist comparison, it’s the top choice for planners.

4. ClickUp (Best for “One Tool to Rule Them All”)

ClickUp’s mission is to replace all other productivity apps. Its free plan is shockingly robust and designed to be your single hub for everything.

• Why It’s a Top Free Tool: The “Free Forever” plan includes 100MB of storage, unlimited tasks, unlimited members, and two-factor authentication.
• Best Free Feature for Startups: Multiple Views. Even on the free plan, you can view your tasks as a list, a board, a calendar, or a “Gantt” view, which is amazing for planning project timelines. It also includes free time tracking.
• Our Take: If you find Asana too simple and Notion too unstructured, ClickUp is the perfect middle ground. It’s a powerful, free project management software for startups that mean business.

Free CRM Software: Your First Sales Engine

A Customer Relationship Management (CRM) tool is where you store, track, and manage every person who interacts with your business. This is non-negotiable, even for a one-person business. Starting with a spreadsheet is a mistake. These free CRMs are your sales engine from day one.

5. HubSpot Free CRM (The Undisputed King of Free CRMs)

HubSpot built its entire company on the freemium model, and their free CRM is the gold standard. It’s not a “lite” version; it’s a powerful, comprehensive platform.

• Why It’s a Top Free Tool: The free plan is 100% free, forever, and includes contact management, a deal pipeline, a meeting scheduler, live chat for your website, and email marketing.
• Best Free Feature for Startups: The deal pipeline. You get a visual Kanban board (like Trello) for your sales. You can create stages like “New Lead,” “Meeting Booked,” “Proposal Sent,” and “Closed-Won” and drag-and-drop deals as they progress.
• Our Take: This is the best free CRM for small business owners to track leads, period. It’s the core of your “go-to-market” stack. Using a dedicated CRM like this is essential for managing customer relationships effectively.

6. Zoho CRM (Best for an All-in-One Ecosystem)

Zoho offers an entire suite of 40+ business apps, and their CRM is at the center. Their free edition is a great starting point.

• Why It’s a Top Free Tool: The “Free Edition” is for up to 3 users and includes leads, deals, and contact management. It’s a solid, no-frills CRM.
• Best Free Feature for Startups: The ecosystem. The real power of Zoho is that as you grow, you can add on their other free tools (like Zoho Invoice, Zoho Books, and Zoho Desk) and they all integrate seamlessly.
• Our Take: If you’re looking for a free CRM for solopreneurs that can grow into an entire free operating system for your business, start with Zoho.

7. Mailchimp (Best for Email-First Businesses)

Wait, isn’t Mailchimp an email tool? Yes, but it has evolved into a powerful marketing CRM.

• Why It’s a Top Free Tool: The free plan includes an “Audience Dashboard” that acts as a light CRM. You can see all your contacts, add tags (e.g., “customer,” “lead,” “partner”), and see their activity.
• Best Free Feature for Startups: Audience Segmentation. You can find all contacts tagged “lead” who live in “New York” and send them a targeted email. For a business built on email, this is all the CRM you need to start.
• Our Take: If your primary “sales” motion is your email newsletter, Mailchimp’s free plan is a fantastic 2-in-1 email and CRM solution.

Top Free Email Marketing Services for Startups on a Budget

Your email list is your single most valuable asset. Unlike your social media followers, you own your email list. Building it from day one is critical. These tools let you do it for free.

8. Mailchimp (Best for Beginners and E-commerce)

Mailchimp is the classic choice for a reason. It’s incredibly user-friendly and perfect for getting started.

• Why It’s a Top Free Tool: The free plan lets you have up to 500 contacts and send 1,000 emails per month (with a daily limit of 500). It includes sign-up forms, a website builder, and that CRM we just mentioned.
• Best Free Feature for Startups: The Creative Assistant. This free AI-powered tool can design logos, social media posts, and even build branded graphics for your emails, which is a lifesaver for non-designers.
• Our Take: It’s the perfect tool to use alongside a tool like Canva, as we explain in our Beginner’s Guide to Using Canva and Mailchimp.

9. MailerLite (Best for Creators and Automation)

MailerLite is a rising star and a favorite of bloggers, course creators, and entrepreneurs who value powerful features.

• Why It’s a Top Free Tool: The free plan is incredibly generous: up to 1,000 subscribers and 12,000 emails per month.
• Best Free Feature for Startups: Free Email Automation. This is huge. On the free plan, you can build a multi-step “welcome” sequence that automatically sends a series of emails to new subscribers. This is a paid feature on many other platforms.
• Our Take: This is the best free email marketing service for 1,000 subscribers or more if you want to build automated funnels from day one.

10. Brevo (formerly Sendinblue) (Best for High-Volume Sending)

Brevo has a different free model that’s perfect for businesses that have a lot of contacts but don’t email them often, or who need to send transactional emails.

• Why It’s a Top Free Tool: The free plan has unlimited contacts. The limit is on daily sends (300 emails per day).
• Best Free Feature for Startups: Transactional Email. The free plan includes an API for transactional emails (e.g., “Your order is confirmed,” “Reset your password”). This is a critical feature for any e-commerce or app-based startup.
• Our Take: If you’re building an app or store and need free order confirmations, or if you have a large list of 5,000+ contacts you only email once a month, Brevo is the smartest free choice.

Essential Free Finance and Accounting Software for New Businesses

This is the part most entrepreneurs ignore, and it’s the part that can kill their business. You must track your money. These tools make it professional, easy, and free.

11. Wave (Best All-in-One Free Accounting)

Wave is the champion of free accounting software for small businesses in the US and Canada. It’s not a “lite” version; it’s the whole thing.

• Why It’s a Top Free Tool: It’s 100% free, forever. No setup fees, no monthly fees. It includes unlimited invoicing, unlimited income and expense tracking, and unlimited bank connections.
• Best Free Feature for Startups: Unlimited Invoicing. You can create beautiful, professional invoices, send them, and track when they’re viewed and paid. They only make money (like PayPal) if a customer pays your invoice via credit card, which is an optional convenience.
• Our Take: This is the best free accounting software for solopreneurs and small businesses, full stop. Get it on day one.

12. Zoho Invoice (Best for Global Invoicing)

If you’re outside the US/Canada or need to bill clients in different currencies, Zoho Invoice is your free solution.

• Why It’s a Top Free Tool: The free plan is robust. You can invoice up to 5 customers (in the free plan), customize your invoice templates, and track expenses.
• Best Free Feature for Startups: Multi-Currency Support. You can send an invoice in USD, EUR, or GBP, and the system handles the conversion. This is essential for a global freelance business.
• Our Take: A perfect companion to the Zoho CRM. For a more powerful payment solution, you can also look into tools like Stripe for accepting global payments.

13. Square (Best for Point-of-Sale and E-commerce)

If you’re starting any business that sells a product (online or in-person), start with Square.

• Why It’s a Top Free Tool: The software is free. You get a free POS app, a free online store builder, and free inventory management.
• Best Free Feature for Startups: Free Online Store. In 10 minutes, you can build a simple, clean, and effective e-commerce website, list your products, and start accepting payments.
• Our Take: Like Wave, they only make money when you make money (by taking a small, standard transaction fee). There is zero monthly cost to run your entire e-commerce or retail business.

Powerful Free Graphic Design Tools for Non-Designers

Your business needs to look professional, even if you can’t afford a designer. These free SaaS tools are your in-house creative agency.

14. Canva (The King of DIY Design)

Canva has empowered millions of entrepreneurs to create professional social media graphics, logos, presentations, and more, all for free.

• Why It’s a Top Free Tool: The free plan is all most people will ever need. It includes over 250,000 free templates, 100+ design types, and hundreds of thousands of free photos and graphics.
• Best Free Feature for Startups: Templates. You never have to start from a blank screen. Need an “Instagram Story”? A “YouTube Thumbnail”? A “Business Proposal”? There are thousands of stunning, free templates.
• Our Take: This is an essential, non-negotiable tool for every startup. It’s the key to free marketing for beginners.

15. Figma (Best for UI/UX and App Design)

If you’re designing a website, a mobile app, or a piece of software, Figma is the industry standard.

• Why It’s a Top Free Tool: The “Starter” plan is free forever and is incredibly powerful. It includes 3 Figma files, 3 FigJam (whiteboard) files, and unlimited collaborators.
• Best Free Feature for Startups: Real-time Collaboration. You can design your app’s screens and have your co-founder or a developer comment on the design in real-time, all in your browser.
• Our Take: This is the best free logo maker and app design tool for tech-focused startups.

16. remove.bg (Best for Quick Photo Editing)

This is a simple, one-trick-pony tool that will save you hours.

• Why It’s a Top Free Tool: It does one thing perfectly: removes the background from any photo, 100% automatically, in 5 seconds.
• Best Free Feature for Startups: E-commerce Product Photos. Take a photo of your product on your kitchen table, run it through this tool, and you have a professional, clean product shot with a white background for your Square store.
• Our Take: Bookmark this. You will use it constantly.

Free Website Builders to Launch Your Brand Today

You need a home on the web. A “link in bio” is not enough. These tools let you build a professional website for free (with the caveat that you’ll use their domain, like “https://www.google.com/search?q=mybusiness.wixsite.com”).

17. Carrd (Best for a Free One-Page Site)

If you just need a simple, beautiful, one-page website, Carrd is the answer.

• Why It’s a Top Free Tool: You can build up to three fully-responsive, single-page sites for free.
• Best Free Feature for Startups: Simplicity. It’s designed to build simple landing pages, “link in bio” pages, or a personal profile. It’s perfect for validating an idea or collecting emails before you build a full site.
• Our Take: The best free landing page builder to capture leads, hands down.

18. Wix (Best All-in-One Free Site Builder)

Wix is a full-featured, drag-and-drop website builder that offers a comprehensive free plan.

• Why It’s a Top Free Tool: The free plan gives you access to hundreds of templates, 500MB of storage, and all the design flexibility of their drag-and-drop editor.
• Best Free Feature for Startups: The ADI (Artificial Design Intelligence). You can answer a few questions, and it will auto-generate a stunning website for you, complete with text and images.
• Our Take: If you want a full, multi-page website (Home, About, Contact) for free and are not a tech-savvy person, Wix is your best choice.

19. WordPress.com (Best for Content-Driven Businesses)

WordPress powers over 40% of the entire internet. The .com version is the hosted, for-profit service (not to be confused with the .org software).

• Why It’s a Top Free Tool: The free plan gives you a fully functional WordPress blog and website.
• Best Free Feature for Startups: Blogging. If your strategy is content marketing, there is still no better platform for blogging than WordPress. The free plan gives you all the essential SEO and content creation tools.
• Our Take: If you are starting a blog, a media company, or a content-first business, start with the free WordPress.com plan.

Best Free Communication and Collaboration Tools

If you’re a solopreneur, this is how you talk to clients. If you have a team, this is how you talk to each other.

20. Slack (Best for Internal Team Chat)

Slack is the gold standard for team communication. It replaces internal email and messy text chains.

• Why It’s a Top Free Tool: The free plan is perfect for small teams. It includes 90 days of message history, 10 app integrations, and 1-to-1 video calls.
• Best Free Feature for Startups: Channels. You can create public “channels” for different topics (#marketing, #development, #random) to keep conversations focused and organized.
• Our Take: For keeping your remote team connected, a free chat app is essential. Slack is the best.

21. Google Workspace (The Essential Free Office Suite)

This is the engine of most modern startups. If you have a free Gmail account, you already have this.

• Why It’s a Top Free Tool: It’s a complete office suite. You get Google Docs (for documents), Google Sheets (for spreadsheets), Google Slides (for presentations), and Google Drive (for storage).
• Best Free Feature for Startups: Real-time Collaboration. You and your co-founder can be in the same Google Doc, writing a business plan at the same time, for free. This is a benefit that Forbes notes is a core advantage of cloud tools.
• Our Take: This is your free alternative to Microsoft Office. It’s essential.

22. Zoom (Best for Free Video Meetings)

Zoom became a household name, and its free plan remains one of the best.

• Why It’s a Top Free Tool: The free plan allows you to host meetings with up to 100 participants.
• Best Free Feature for Startups: 40-Minute Limit. This is a feature, not a bug. It keeps your group meetings with clients or your team concise and to the point. (Note: 1-to-1 meetings are unlimited).
• Our Take: The best free video conferencing software for team meetings and client-facing calls.

Free Customer Support Software to Delight Your Users

The first 100 customers are your most important. Providing amazing support is how you turn them into loyal fans.

23. HubSpot Service Hub (Best Free Support System)

Yes, HubSpot again. Their free tier extends to their Service Hub, which is incredible.

• Why It’s a Top Free Tool: The free plan includes a “Tickets” pipeline. When a customer emails “support@yourbusiness.com,” it automatically creates a support ticket in a visual pipeline (like your sales CRM).
• Best Free Feature for Startups: Ticketing. This system ensures no customer email ever falls through the cracks. You can track issues, assign them, and make sure every customer gets a response.
• Our Take: This is how you handle customer support tickets for free, professionally, from day one.

24. Tidio (Best Free Live Chat)

Tidio combines live chat and AI-powered “lybots” (chatbots) into one simple, free tool.

• Why It’s a Top Free Tool: The free plan includes live chat for up to 3 operators, 100 unique monthly chatbot visitors, and a 7-day chat history.
• Best Free Feature for Startups: Adding a free live chat widget to your website. When a potential customer is on your pricing page and has a question, they can ask you instantly. This is one of the highest-converting actions you can have.
• Our Take: If you want to talk to customers while they are on your site, Tidio is the best free way to do it.

How to Choose the Right Free SaaS Stack for Your Business

A list of 150 tools is overwhelming. The goal is not to use all of them. The goal is to pick 5-7 tools that become your core “stack.”

Step 1: Identify Your Core Needs First

Don’t pick a tool and find a problem. Identify your problem and find the tool. Every business needs to:

1. Manage Work: (Projects & Tasks)
2. Manage Relationships: (Sales & CRM)
3. Communicate: (Email & Chat)
4. Get Online: (Website & Marketing)
5. Manage Money: (Finance)

Step 2: Pick Your “Anchor” Tool

Your entire stack should revolve around one “single source of truth.” For most businesses, this is your CRM. HubSpot is a great choice because its free CRM, Marketing Hub, and Service Hub all work together. For others, it might be your PM tool (like Asana or ClickUp).

Step 3: Check for Integrations

This is the advanced-level trick. Before you commit, see if your tools talk to each other. Can your website form (Wix) send a new lead directly to your CRM (HubSpot)? Does your CRM (HubSpot) integrate with your email tool (Mailchimp)? A tool like Zapier (which has its own great free plan) can connect almost any app to any other app, automating your business.

Step 4: Think About Scalability

Look at the paid plans. The tool that is free for you today might be $500/month in two years. Is the next step up (the “Pro” plan) affordable? Is the jump logical? You’re choosing a long-term partner, so make sure their growth path aligns with yours. This is a key part of the SBA’s guidance on planning your business—choosing the right resources for the long haul.

A Smart Strategy: How to Maximize Free SaaS Without Going Broke

The “catch” of freemium is that the companies want you to upgrade. Here’s how to stay on the free plans as long as possible and build a truly bootstrapped business.

• Avoid “Shiny Object Syndrome”: Don’t sign up for a new tool just because it’s trending. Every new app you add creates “cognitive overhead.” Be ruthless. If you don’t use it weekly, get rid of it.
• Master 3 Tools, Don’t Dabble in 30: A power-user of Google Sheets can run an entire business, while a novice with 10 expensive tools will be buried in subscription fees. Become an expert in your core stack.
• Use Free Automation: Master the “if-this-then-that” logic of tools like Zapier, IFTTT, and the built-in automations (like in Trello or Asana). You can create workflows that “When a new lead comes into Google Sheets, create a task in Asana and add them to MailerLite.” This is how you build a million-dollar company with a zero-dollar budget.
• Build Your Own “Stack” vs. an “All-in-One”: The “all-in-one” platforms (like Zoho or ClickUp) are great, but sometimes a “best-in-class” stack (HubSpot for CRM + MailerLite for email + Asana for PM) is more powerful, even if it requires more setup. The market is full of choices, and as Gartner’s SaaS forecast shows, the industry is only growing, giving you more power to choose.

You have the tools. You have the strategy. The only thing left to do is build.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

1. What is SaaS and why is it good for startups?

SaaS stands for Software as a Service. It’s software you access through a web browser or app on a subscription (or free) basis, instead of buying and installing it. It’s great for startups because it has zero upfront cost, requires no IT maintenance, and is accessible from anywhere.

2. What’s the “catch” with free freemium SaaS tools?

The “catch” is that the company is betting you will eventually grow and need to upgrade to a paid plan. Free plans are often limited by user count (e.g., “free for up to 5 users”), storage (e.g., “5GB of storage”), or advanced features (e.g., “automation is a paid feature”).

3. Is it possible to run a real business on just free tools?

Absolutely, yes. A combination of HubSpot (CRM/Sales), Wave (Accounting), Asana (Project Management), Google Workspace (Docs/Email), and Wix (Website) gives you a professional-grade business operation for $0/month.

4. How do I choose between Asana, Trello, and Notion?

• Trello: Choose if you are a visual thinker and want a simple, drag-and-drop board.
• Notion: Choose if you are a planner and want to build a custom, all-in-one wiki/database/task manager.
• Asana: Choose if you are action-oriented and need a powerful, task-based to-do list for a team.

5. What is the single best free CRM for a new business?

HubSpot Free CRM. It’s the most comprehensive and powerful free platform for managing sales, marketing, and service in one place.

6. Do I really need an accounting tool if I’m just starting?

Yes. Do not use a spreadsheet. Start with a free tool like Wave from day one. It will save you an unbelievable headache come tax time and give you a real-time view of your business’s health.

7. My business has no designer. What are the top 3 free design tools I need?

1. Canva: For all social media, marketing graphics, and presentations.
2. remove.bg: To instantly remove backgrounds from photos.
3. Figma: If you need to design a high-fidelity logo or app mockup.

8. What’s the cheapest way to build a professional website?

Use a free builder like Carrd (for one page) or Wix (for a full site). This will be on a “subdomain” (https://www.google.com/search?q=myname.wix.com). The first dollar you spend should be the $12/year to buy a custom domain (myname.com) and connect it, which makes you look instantly professional.

9. How do I manage a remote team for free?

Your free “remote team” stack is: Slack (for daily chat), Zoom (for meetings), Asana (for task management), and Google Workspace (for collaborative documents).

10. What’s the difference between project management and a to-do list?

A to-do list (like Todoist) is for one person to manage their own tasks. Project management (like Asana) is for a team to manage a project with many interconnected tasks, dependencies, and deadlines. It’s about collaboration.

11. What is “Agile” project management and do I need it?

Agile is a specific methodology for managing complex projects (common in software development) in small, iterative cycles. Tools like Asana and Trello are great for Agile, but as a new startup, you don’t need to know the formal methodology. Just focus on “To Do,” “Doing,” and “Done.”

12. How do I build an email list for free?

1. Sign up for MailerLite (free up to 1,000 subscribers).
2. Create a simple sign-up form.
3. Put that form on your free Wix website or link to it from your Carrd landing page.
4. Offer a simple “lead magnet” (e.g., “a free 10-point checklist”) to encourage sign-ups.

13. Can I automate my business for free?

Yes. A tool like Zapier has a free plan that lets you create “Zaps” (automations). You can create a Zap that says “When I get a new email in Gmail with the word ‘Invoice,’ save the attachment to my ‘Invoices’ folder in Google Drive.”

14. What’s the best free cloud storage for business documents?

Google Drive. A free Google account comes with 15GB of storage shared across Drive, Gmail, and Photos. It’s the most generous and most collaborative free option.

15. I’m overwhelmed by this list. Where do I start?

Start with one tool. Just one. Go to HubSpot.com and sign up for the Free CRM. Use it to add your first 10 business contacts (your aunt, your old boss, a potential partner). Learning to use a CRM is the most important first step. The rest will follow.