Salesforce CPQ (SBQQ)
Legacy Salesforce CPQ (formerly Steelbrick), now end-of-sale and replaced by Salesforce Revenue Cloud for new customers. Still in production at thousands of enterprises, but no new feature development. The situational choice when you already have SBQQ deployed and cannot justify a Revenue Cloud migration yet.
Why it ranks here
- Still in production at thousands of enterprises, so RevOps teams must understand its data model and integration patterns.
- Native Salesforce integration means quote, opportunity, and product data lives in the same system without middleware.
- Declarative pricing rules and approval workflows reduce engineering overhead compared to custom-built quoting systems.
Where it sits
- Salesforce Revenue Cloud is the successor and handles usage-based billing and revenue recognition better; migrate when your renewal comes up.
- Nue and Zuora handle consumption pricing and billing automation better, but require middleware and live outside Salesforce.
- DealHub is faster to implement for mid-market teams and does not carry the SBQQ technical debt or migration risk.
How GTM Systems teams use it
- Deal desk maintains legacy product catalogs, pricing rules, and approval chains in SBQQ; sales reps generate quotes via Salesforce.
- RevOps teams monitor quote cycle time, discount compliance, and contract renewal rates, then plan Revenue Cloud migration timelines.
- Systems architects maintain SBQQ-to-NetSuite or SBQQ-to-Zuora integrations for billing and invoicing, often via Workato or Boomi.
- Finance teams track SBQQ renewal dates and negotiate with Salesforce to delay Revenue Cloud migration until budget allows.
In-depth notes
- Salesforce has announced end-of-sale; new customers cannot buy SBQQ licenses, and existing customers are encouraged to migrate to Revenue Cloud.
- Migration to Revenue Cloud is non-trivial; the data model is different, and automated conversion tools do not exist, so expect a 6-12 month project.
- SBQQ does not handle usage-based pricing or consumption billing; teams must integrate external billing tools (Nue, Zuora, Stripe Billing).
- The platform requires Salesforce admin expertise; teams without dedicated admins will struggle with configuration and maintenance.
- SBQQ contracts are often bundled with Salesforce CRM licenses; check your renewal terms before planning a migration.
Best for
Enterprise teams already running Salesforce CPQ (SBQQ) that cannot justify a Revenue Cloud migration yet but need to maintain existing quoting workflows.
Avoid if
You are a new customer (SBQQ is end-of-sale), need usage-based billing, or want to avoid the Revenue Cloud migration tax.
The rest of CPQ & billing
Salesforce Revenue Cloud Leader Native Salesforce quote-to-cash platform; successor to Salesforce CPQ with usage-based billing and revenue recognition. #2 
Nue Leader Usage and subscription CPQ plus billing; common Salesforce CPQ replacement for consumption-based pricing and automated invoicing. #3 
Zuora Strong Enterprise subscription billing and revenue recognition; strong for complex recurring revenue models and ASC 606 compliance. #6 
Chargebee Situational Mid-market subscription billing with native dunning, tax automation, and payment gateway integrations; faster than Zuora for standard SaaS pricing. #7 
Subskribe Situational Adaptive billing for complex B2B SaaS pricing; handles hybrid subscription plus usage models and mid-term contract changes. #11 
Maxio (formerly SaaSOptics + Chargify) Niche Subscription billing and SaaS financial operations; combines billing automation with revenue recognition and SaaS metrics for finance teams. #12 
Ordway Niche Billing and revenue automation for finance teams; replaces spreadsheet-based revenue recognition and invoicing workflows. #13 Cacheflow Niche No-code quoting and checkout for B2B SaaS; handles self-serve pricing pages and sales-assisted deals without CPQ complexity. #14 Learning guide
Setup
Maintain existing product catalogs, price rules, and approval processes in SBQQ custom objects. Monitor Salesforce announcements for end-of-support timelines and plan Revenue Cloud migration.
First thing to build
Audit current SBQQ configuration (products, bundles, price rules, approval chains) and document custom logic for future Revenue Cloud migration.
What actually matters
- Product catalog and bundle structure in SBQQ custom objects
- Price rules, discount schedules, and approval workflows
- SBQQ-to-billing tool integrations (NetSuite, Zuora, Stripe)
- Migration planning for Revenue Cloud data model conversion
Watch out
SBQQ is end-of-sale with no new features; teams should budget for Revenue Cloud migration before Salesforce ends support and forces an urgent conversion.