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Comparison · CRM
Monica vs Dubsado
A side-by-side editorial comparison of Monica and Dubsado — release velocity, themes, recent moves, and the top alternatives to consider.
Monica vs Dubsado: at a glance
| Feature | Monica | Dubsado |
|---|---|---|
| Sector | CRM | CRM |
| Velocity score | 0.0 | 7.5 |
| Sparks · 30d | 0 | 1 |
| Top themes | personal-crm, self-hosted, rewrite, stalled-beta | crm, ai-features, automation, solo-business |
| Last editorial update | 1mo ago | 21d ago |
| Website | Visit → | — |
What is Monica?
v5 'Chandler' rewrite stalled in beta — newest release is over a year old
Monica's entire recent history is the v5.0.0 'Chandler' rewrite, a ground-up rebuild first released in June 2023 and progressing through five betas. The latest, beta.5 (April 2025), added a Typesense search connector and Keycloak/Kanidm SSO among many fixes. But it is now the newest entry by more than a year, with no stable v5 or further beta since.
What is Dubsado?
Dubsado turns toward AI, adding a call Notetaker and generative form building to its solo-business CRM.
Dubsado is a CRM and business-management suite for solo and small service businesses such as photographers, coaches, and designers. The recent window marks a clear AI turn: an AI Notetaker that records, transcribes, and summarizes client calls, and AI-assisted form creation from a prompt, PDF, or chat. Around the AI work, the product is modernizing core surfaces with a redesigned invoice builder, a public checkout link launched under a new Dubsado Labs experimental track, and rebuilt calendar-sync reliability.
Monica vs Dubsado: editorial side-by-side
Monica
0.0CRM
v5 'Chandler' rewrite stalled in beta — newest release is over a year old
◆ Current state
Monica's entire recent history is the v5.0.0 'Chandler' rewrite, a ground-up rebuild first released in June 2023 and progressing through five betas. The latest, beta.5 (April 2025), added a Typesense search connector and Keycloak/Kanidm SSO among many fixes. But it is now the newest entry by more than a year, with no stable v5 or further beta since.
◆ Where it's heading
The arc is a long, slowing beta cycle that appears to have stalled. Early betas shipped broad feature sets; later ones narrowed to incremental fixes and self-hoster conveniences (SSO, search backends, DAV sync). The gap since April 2025 is the dominant signal: momentum on the rewrite has visibly stalled and a stable v5 has not materialized.
◆ Prediction
Hard to call given the year-plus silence — either a long-delayed v5 stable cut or continued dormancy. The entries don't support confidence either way; the absence of recent activity is itself the most telling data point.
Dubsado
7.5CRM
Dubsado turns toward AI, adding a call Notetaker and generative form building to its solo-business CRM.
◆ Current state
Dubsado is a CRM and business-management suite for solo and small service businesses such as photographers, coaches, and designers. The recent window marks a clear AI turn: an AI Notetaker that records, transcribes, and summarizes client calls, and AI-assisted form creation from a prompt, PDF, or chat. Around the AI work, the product is modernizing core surfaces with a redesigned invoice builder, a public checkout link launched under a new Dubsado Labs experimental track, and rebuilt calendar-sync reliability.
◆ Where it's heading
Dubsado is moving from a manual, template-driven CRM toward one that drafts and captures work for the user. The two AI launches target the most time-consuming parts of a solo operator's day — call notes and form building — while the Labs program signals a faster, ship-early-and-iterate posture. Core-workflow modernization in invoicing and calendar sync runs in parallel to keep the foundation current.
◆ Prediction
Expect more AI-assisted authoring to follow the form builder, likely AI drafting of emails, proposals, or workflows, plus additional Dubsado Labs experiments released early and refined in public.
Alternatives to Monica and Dubsado
Other CRM products tracked by Sparkpulse, ranked by recent ship velocity. Each card links to a full editorial trajectory and lets you pivot into a head-to-head comparison with either Monica or Dubsado.
Cognism
Cognism's tracked feed is all data-enrichment content marketing, with no product releases in view
Twenty
Twenty is rebuilding the open-source CRM around AI agents and meeting capture.
KIMISUITE
An in-house-built business suite that keeps adding apps, wrapped in a trust-and-privacy content push.
Phorest
Phorest keeps grinding down front-desk friction, one Canny request at a time
Pipeline CRM
Pipeline CRM's feed is SEO buyer's-guide content, not a product changelog.
See all Monica alternatives → · See all Dubsado alternatives →
Recent activity from Monica and Dubsado
Latest ship moves from both products, interleaved chronologically. ⚡ = editorial spark.
- 22d agoDubsadoThe Dubsado Notetaker is here. ⚡
- 29d agoDubsadoPublic checkout page: how to use it, and where it's going
- 1mo agoDubsadoEasy form creation is here ⚡
- 1mo agoDubsadoA redesigned invoice builder is live
- 1mo agoDubsadoRebuilt calendar sync reliability plus ~48 smaller updates
- 2mo agoDubsadoTemplate tags and archiving
- 1y agoMonicabeta.5: Typesense search and Keycloak/Kanidm SSO
- 2y agoMonicabeta.4: more vCard exports, markdown notes
- 2y agoMonicabeta.3: DAV client subscriptions and groups
- 2y agoMonicabeta.2: instance administrator, Telegram setup
- 3y agoMonicabeta.1: first release of the Chandler rewrite ⚡
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between Monica and Dubsado?
They serve adjacent needs but don't currently overlap on shipped themes. Dubsado is currently shipping more aggressively (velocity 7.5 vs 0.0), with 1 editorial sparks in the last 30 days against 0. See the at-a-glance table above for a side-by-side breakdown of velocity, recent sparks, and editorial themes.
Is Monica better than Dubsado?
Sparkpulse doesn't pick a winner — we score release velocity, not feature parity. Dubsado is currently shipping more aggressively (velocity 7.5 vs 0.0), with 1 editorial sparks in the last 30 days against 0. For your specific use case, the alternatives sections above list other CRM products to evaluate alongside.
What are the best alternatives to Monica?
Top Monica alternatives in CRM are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "Monica alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/monica for the full list with editorial commentary on each.
What are the best alternatives to Dubsado?
Top Dubsado alternatives in CRM are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "Dubsado alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/dubsado for the full list with editorial commentary on each.