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Fat Free CRM

Simple, clean, lightweight open source CRM – built with Ruby on Rails – perfect for small teams and businesses who want no bloat

🏠

Self-Hosted (Free Forever – Recommended)

Completely free • Unlimited users • Easy Rails install • Very low resource usage

Self-Host Guide →
☁️

Hosted Options (Third-Party)

No official cloud • Community/third-party Rails hosting available (~$5–$25/month)

See Hosted Options →

🏠 Self-Hosted (Free Forever)

Download ZIP • Install on Ruby on Rails server • Lightweight and fast – great for small teams.

Download Latest ZIP (from our server)

Downloaded directly from our mirror (latest stable version – always free)

Installation Steps

# Manual install (recommended for production) 1. Download ZIP from our server (button above) 2. Install Ruby 3.0+ and Rails 6/7 3. Unzip and cd into folder 4. bundle install 5. cp config/database.yml.example config/database.yml 6. Edit database.yml (PostgreSQL/MySQL/SQLite) 7. bundle exec rake db:create db:migrate db:seed 8. rails server # Docker (quick test) docker run -d -p 3000:3000 --name fat-free-crm fatfreecrm/fat-free-crm # Requirements Ruby 3.0+, Rails 6/7, PostgreSQL/MySQL/SQLite • RAM: 1 GB • Setup time: 10–30 minutes

Requirements: Ruby 3.0+, Rails 6/7, Database • Works on VPS or local • Setup time: 10–30 minutes

☁️ Hosted Options (Third-Party)

No official hosted version – use Rails-friendly hosting providers.

  1. Choose a Rails host (Heroku, Render, Railway, Fly.io, DigitalOcean App Platform)
  2. Deploy from GitHub repo: https://github.com/fatfreecrm/fat_free_crm
  3. Configure database (PostgreSQL recommended)
  4. App ready in minutes

Pricing (approx. Feb 2026, per month):

  • Basic VPS / PaaS: $5–$15 (self-manage)
  • Managed Rails host: $15–$40 (automatic scaling)

Self-Hosted vs Hosted – Detailed Comparison 2026

Factor Self-Hosted Third-Party Hosted
Upfront Cost $0 $0 trial
Monthly Cost $5–$20 (VPS) $5–$40
Data Ownership 100% yours Yours (they host)
Setup Time 10–30 minutes 5–15 minutes
Maintenance You manage Managed
Support Community + wiki Provider
Customization Full Ruby/Rails access Limited
Backup You Automatic
Scalability Unlimited Plan dependent
Best For Small teams, simplicity, cost-saving No maintenance needed

Which option is better for YOUR business?

Small team / budget

→ Self-Hosted

1-year cost $60–$240. Free forever, simple setup.

No server skills

→ Third-Party Hosted

1-year cost $60–$480. Managed Rails hosting.

Need clean & lightweight CRM

→ Self-Hosted

No bloat, easy to extend with Rails.

Fat Free CRM is ideal for teams who want a simple, no-nonsense CRM – self-hosting is the best path for cost and privacy.