Monica is a beloved open-source personal CRM, but everything in it is manual: you log every call, note, and reminder yourself. Orbit lightens that. Its one AI assistant, Hiro, drafts check-ins, sorts tasks, and writes follow-ups on your say-so, and the free plan needs no credit card. Below is what you trade away, including self-hosting, and how to move.
Monica is an open-source personal CRM with a devoted following, and it earned it. You can self-host it, own every byte, and log the small human details that make relationships real. The philosophy is the feature.
The cost of that philosophy is labor. Monica records what you type and only what you type. Every call, every note, every reminder is manual, so the CRM is only as current as your discipline. Add self-hosting upkeep, updates, backups, and a server bill, and plenty of people quietly stop logging.
A Monica alternative search usually means: I still want a CRM that feels personal, but I want the software to help with the maintenance.
Orbit keeps the personal-CRM spirit and adds one AI assistant, Hiro, to handle the busywork. Everything Hiro produces is a suggestion you approve, edit, or dismiss, so you stay the editor.
The open-source deal itself. Monica's code is public, you can run it on your own server, and your data never has to leave hardware you control. Orbit is a hosted product. The meeting recorder transcribes on your device, but the CRM itself is not self-hosted and the code is not open.
Monica also goes deeper on life details, the journal-style record of family, gifts, and personal moments. If self-hosting and total data control are your first requirement, keep Monica. Pick Orbit if your contacts now include clients and the manual upkeep is what broke.
Keep the personal CRM idea. Drop the manual data entry.
No. Monica is open source and can be self-hosted, while Orbit is a hosted product with a free plan. Orbit does keep some things local: the meeting recorder on Pro transcribes on your device, so audio never leaves your machine. The CRM itself is hosted and the code is not open.
Export your contacts from Monica as a CSV file, then import it into Orbit. Personal details can be carried into notes and custom fields, and tags recreate your groupings. The move usually fits in an afternoon.
Yes. Orbit has one AI assistant, Hiro, that does the maintenance work: it triages your tasks, pulls to-dos out of your messages, and drafts check-ins and follow-ups. Every result lands as a suggestion you approve, edit, or dismiss, so you review changes instead of doing all the typing.
Orbit's free CRM plan costs nothing and needs no credit card. AI is included with free monthly credits, and you can top up with a credit pack if you need more. That replaces the server bill and the maintenance hours that self-hosting usually carries.
Partly. Orbit stores personal details through notes, tags, and custom fields, which all appear on each contact's timeline. It does not have Monica's journal-style life-logging features, so dedicated records for things like gifts are something you would model yourself with custom fields.
Free to start, no credit card. Import your people and let Hiro handle the busywork.
Free forever plan. No credit card. No spam.