Best WhatsApp CRM for small businesses in India (2026)

A WhatsApp CRM keeps every customer who messages you in one list: their chat, their details, tags, notes and what happened next. For a small business it replaces the notebook, the Excel sheet and the "who was that number?" moment.

The tools that sell as a WhatsApp CRM work in two different ways, and that difference matters more than any feature list.

Two kinds of WhatsApp CRM

A team inbox with a CRM around it. Your staff answer chats by hand from a shared inbox. They tag each customer, fill in fields, assign chats and send broadcasts to segments. The CRM is as good as the time your team puts into it. DoubleTick, WATI, Interakt, AiSensy and Gallabox are built this way, with chatbots and AI agents added on top.

An AI agent that fills the CRM itself. The agent answers the customer, and while it chats it saves the details you asked for: name, area, the date they want, the service, the size. Your team steps in only when it hands a chat over. Agent24 works this way.

Neither is better for everyone. A sales team chasing leads all day wants the first. A one-owner salon, clinic, homestay or café that can't sit on WhatsApp all day usually wants the second.

What a small business actually needs from a WhatsApp CRM

1. Every chat becomes a contact automatically, from WhatsApp and ideally from Instagram and the website too.
2. The same details on every contact, so you can filter later: everyone in one area, everyone who asked about one service last month.
3. Tags and private notes for your team.
4. A clear hand-over: you see when a customer needs a person, take over the chat, and hand it back.
5. The whole history in one place, including voice notes and photos.
6. Bookings and orders next to the contact, not in a different app.
7. A phone and a computer, because the owner is rarely at a desk.

The tools compared

Prices change often, so they live on each tool's own comparison page, read on their pricing pages on the day each page says.

Agent24

An AI agent that answers on WhatsApp, Instagram and your website and keeps the CRM as it goes. Every person who writes becomes a contact. The agent saves the details you list under Agent → Details to collect, and the Filters sheet is built from them, plus the date added and where the customer came from. Contacts have tags, team notes, an activity log and a short summary of the customer. Voice notes are transcribed. When the agent hands over, the team is told and can take over from the contact page or the Chats view, then hand the chat back to the bot.

Bookings, room stays, orders and payment links are part of the same product, so they show on the contact's activity, not in a separate tool.

What it doesn't do: bulk campaigns to your whole list, sales pipelines with deal stages, or Shopify sync. See Contacts, details and filters.

DoubleTick

A WhatsApp CRM and team inbox for sales teams, with a strong phone app, tags, custom contact fields, chat assignment, broadcasts to segments and many integrations. AI agents come on its Pro + AI plan. A good fit for a sales team of five or more. Agent24 vs DoubleTick.

WATI

A team inbox and marketing platform: broadcasts, chatbot flows, the Astra AI agent and Shopify integrations, with Instagram and web chat too. A good fit when WhatsApp marketing and support run from one inbox. Agent24 vs WATI.

Interakt

WhatsApp commerce with a team inbox, campaigns, catalog and Shopify, with AI agents as an add-on. A good fit for online stores. Agent24 vs Interakt.

AiSensy

Broadcasts and click-to-WhatsApp ads first, with a team inbox and an AI agent add-on. A good fit when most of your WhatsApp is marketing. Agent24 vs AiSensy.

Gallabox

Lead qualification for sales teams: drip campaigns, a lead pipeline, CRM sync and AI voice on the top plans. Agent24 vs Gallabox.

Respond.io

An omnichannel inbox for WhatsApp, Instagram, Messenger and email, with workflows and AI agents, priced in US dollars. A good fit for growing teams that work many channels. Agent24 vs Respond.io.

All of them side by side: the comparison table.

How to choose

• You broadcast offers to thousands of customers every week: pick a marketing-first tool (AiSensy, WATI, Interakt).
• You run a sales team that chases leads: DoubleTick or Gallabox.
• Your team works email as well as chat: Respond.io.
• You are one business and nobody has time to type every reply or fill in every field: an AI agent that keeps the CRM itself, like Agent24.

Test it with your real customers

1. Write down five real questions customers asked last week, including one awkward one.
2. Ask each tool's bot those questions, or ask for a live demo with them.
3. Check what ends up on the contact: did the details get saved, or does someone have to type them?
4. Check the hand-over: does your team get told, and can they reply from their phone?
5. Add up the real price: billing period, seats, AI credits, GST and Meta's message charges.

On Agent24, the private test chat shows exactly what the agent would save, before you connect your number. Getting started.

Frequently asked questions

What is a WhatsApp CRM?

A customer list built from your WhatsApp chats: each customer's messages, details, tags, notes and history in one place, shared by your team, usually on the WhatsApp Business Platform.

Can I use a WhatsApp CRM with the free WhatsApp Business app?

Not properly. Software can only read and send messages through the WhatsApp Business Platform. The app has labels, but no shared CRM, no automatic contacts and no AI agent.

Do I still need a CRM if an AI agent answers my chats?

Yes, and it should be the same tool. The agent saves the details while it chats, so the CRM fills itself and your team sees the whole story when they take over.

Does Agent24 send bulk WhatsApp campaigns?

No. It answers and acts on the messages customers send, and sends reminders and booking or order updates. For bulk offers to your whole list, a marketing-first tool fits better.

Which WhatsApp CRM is cheapest for a small business?

It depends on what you count. Check whether the AI is in the plan or an add-on, how many seats are included, whether billing is quarterly or yearly, and whether GST is included. Each comparison page lists these for one tool.