Unveiling Zoho CRM's New User Interface - The NextGen UI

Unveiling Zoho CRM's New User Interface - The NextGen UI


Hello Everyone,

Last Wednesday, May 14th,2025, we announced the public release of Zoho CRM For Everyone, our most significant update yet. This release brings a modernized CRM experience with a redesigned user interface, new capabilities for cross-functional collaboration, and greater flexibility for users across your organization.
Read our PR announcement, our forum announcement, and the blog post to know more about this release. 

To help you get the most out of these updates, we’ll be publishing a series of announcements that walk you through the major enhancements now available to all Zoho CRM users.

We’re kicking off this series by spotlighting one of the most noticeable changes — the new and improved user interface, Zoho CRM's Nextgen UI.

What’s New in the NextGen UI? 

  1. A reorganized menu option
  2. The sidebar
  3. Teamspaces
  4. Additional Module Views
  5. Interactions Tab
  6. Enhanced Themes and
  7. Night Mode
Watch this video to get an idea of how your CRM could look!



Let's dive into each of these features in detail : 

Reorganization of menu options from the top band to the left-hand side vertical sidebar. 

Previously, Zoho CRM housed the menu bar on the top where most of the navigation took place, as shown below.


Now, We moved the top bar to the left with a vertical sidebar that is expandable as shown below. This not only declutters the top space but also makes it easier to access your modules and features with minimal clicks.

The Sidebar  

The new sidebar is now an extremely functional piece of the UI with contextual shortcuts for quick settings, neat folders for better organization of modules, and more. Learn more.

The top portion of the Sidebar houses icons to view and work with Modules, Reports, Dashboards, Requests, Marketplace, and Global Search.


The bottom portion of the sidebar now contains intuitive utility icons such as Quick create record, Mail magnet, Calendar, and more. (originally located on the top right corner of the UI).


Expanding the sidebar opens up quick-controls contextual to what you've chosen to work on. This is collapsible in order to allow you to maximize your right-hand side work area.


Contextual Shortcuts through the sidebar 

You have contextual shortcuts to Setup options from here, like creating new modules or folders. While the backend Setup is still intact, these options from the sidebar options offer a quick shortcut.

Create Modules 

You can create either org modules or team modules from the sidebar. This option makes it easy for users to quickly create their own modules and
configure processes instead of navigating to the setup menu every time.

Create folders 

You can create modules or folders right from this location without having to navigate to the backend Setup.  Folders are a great way to organize or group modules in different categories. Say you are part of the Sales teamspace and you have certain sales activities  that you need to perform to touch base with customers like creating tasks, scheduling calls or meetings. So you can group Tasks, Meetings, Calls into a "Sales Activities" folder for easy access and a clutter free side bar. Learn more.

You can also directly create layouts, webforms, wizards, canvas pages, etc from the sidebar.

Organized Teamspaces for Focused Work 

Tab Groups have been transformed into what we now call Teamspaces. If your CRM is used by multiple teams, organizing and managing their work and data can quickly become complex.

We offer a solution by giving each team a dedicated, folder-like space where all their related modules are grouped together. This setup ensures clear separation between teams, making collaboration more focused, and preventing the risk of teams crossing over or accessing modules that are not meant for them.

Hence, Teamspaces are dedicated workspaces for each department or function to organize their work. Whether you're in sales, support, or marketing, Teamspaces help reduce noise and keep your workspace relevant to your role. Learn more.

You have the option to create teamspaces from the bottom of the sidebar or from the Setup menu. The org admin would generally be the one who creates teamspaces, assigns users as teamspace admins and adds users to a teamspace.
Note : Users with the Manage teamspace permission enabled will be able to create and manage teamspaces in an org.
Teamspace Admin
​A teamspace admin is generally the head of a department or a team. For example, a Sales Director could be assigned as the Sales Teamspace's Admin. Once a user becomes a teamspace admin, they can add or remove users, allow reports and dashboards to be created for modules within a teamspace.

Note :  If a user is a Teamspace admin but does not have the "Manage Teamspace" permission enabled, they can only manage the specific Teamspace they’ve been assigned to as an admin. They won't be able to create new Teamspaces or manage any others.
Notes

Features offered as part of this enhanced UI 

  • Additional Module Views have been added to provide you with more flexibility, better insights, and improve productivity when working with module data. Thee view added are :
     --> Chart View : Get a visual representation of your module data with this View
     --> Grid View : Convert your module data into a spreadsheet-like interface where you can edit and manage records directly without having to open each record individually.
    --> Timeline View : Look at how your module is created by viewing data plotted over a specific period of time.
    --> Split View : Split your module data based on picklist fields /users or criteria to segment them for further inferences.
  • Interaction tab : This feature displays a timeline of a customer's journey and their engagements across different channels within your CRM.
NotesWe will post individual announcements for each of the above features in the upcoming days.

Themes

The new UI introduces a refreshed theming experience with 13 vibrant colour options to personalize your workspace. These themes go beyond just cosmetic changes: the selected theme isn't limited to the sidebar; it flows throughout the product interface.

Once you choose a theme, the colour is consistently applied across key areas of the CRM, including buttons, tabs, menus, and other interactive elements. This cohesive design enhances visual clarity and gives your team a more engaging, unified experience tailored to their preferences.

If you want to match your brand colours or give your CRM tool a refreshed appearance, the new themes bring both customization and character to your work environment.

Dark-Mode 

With the new UI, we’re excited to bring Dark Mode to your CRM experience. This feature was designed with both comfort and usability in mind.
Dark Mode offers a visually soothing alternative to the standard light interface, reducing eye strain during long hours of work, especially in low-light environments. It's not just a cosmetic change; it’s about enhancing usability and making your workspace more comfortable.

Once enabled, Dark Mode is applied consistently across the entire product, including the new UI elements like the left sidebar, buttons, forms, and interaction panels. Whether you're viewing records, managing tasks, or collaborating within Teamspaces, the darker interface ensures clarity without compromising on aesthetics or function.

This addition is part of our effort to make Zoho CRM more adaptable to user preferences and modern work styles. You can switch to Dark Mode at any time from your profile settings and choose what works best for you. Learn more.

What can you choose in this implementation?

Day : Prefer a brighter interface? Day Mode offers a clean, crisp, and classic appearance of your CRM, making it not just functional but also visually pleasing. 

Night : Enjoy a sleek, modern look with reduced eye strain, especially in low-light environments. Darker UI minimizes glare and helps reduce fatigue, making it easier to work for longer periods.

Auto : Let the system decide! Auto Mode automatically switches between dark and light themes based on your device settings.


We invite you to explore these exciting updates and see how productivity increases in your CRM journey. Stay tuned for our upcoming announcements where we’ll dive deeper into each feature, helping you make the most of everything the NextGen UI has to offer. 

Regards,
Serena Woolridge




    • Recent Topics

    • Stock count by bin location

      Is there a configuration to make a stock count by bin or area and not by product. these is useful to manage count by area Regards

    • Standalone custom function not generating logs

      Why dont't standalone custom functions generate logs when the're called from another function? I have some functions (workflow, buttons and blueprint) that have common parts, so I put that part in a standalone function which is called from the others.

    • Automated log-out/session end

      I'm concerned about security of our data. Is it possible to set an automatic time-out for user sessions on Zoho CRM, after a certain period of inactivity or when the session reaches a certain duration (12 hours perhaps)? 

    • Add "Reset MFA" Option for Zoho Creator Client Portal Users

      Hello Zoho Creator Team, We hope you are doing well. We would like to request an important enhancement related to Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) for client portal users in Zoho Creator. Currently, Creator allows us to enforce MFA for portal users,

    • Support Bots and Automations in External Channels

      Hello Zoho Cliq Team, How are you? We actively use Zoho Cliq for collaboration, including with our external developers. For this purpose, external channels are a key tool since they work seamlessly within the same interface as all of our other channels

    • Urgent Security Feature Request – Add MFA to Zoho Projects Client Portal Hello Zoho Projects Team,

      Hello Zoho Projects Team, We hope you are doing well. We would like to submit an urgent security enhancement request regarding the Zoho Projects Client Portal. At this time, as far as we are aware, there is no Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) available

    • Creator HTML page refresh

      Hi, I have added around 5 different html snippets in single creator page. I understand, I can refresh the entire page from page script using Navigational URLs https://help.zoho.com/portal/en/kb/creator/developer-guide/others/url-patterns/articles/navigational-urls

    • Zoho Desk - Custom Module Related List Columns on Tickets

      I have a custom module in Zoho Desk called Asana Tasks, each task has a lookup to a Ticket. On the Ticket I want to see the columns of the Asana Tasks in the related list . Is there a way to do this? Right now it just has the name of the record and I

    • Google Analytics import data inaccurate (as of October 11, 2025)

      We have Zoho Analytics connected to GA4 to import daily event data. This has been running without issue for a couple of years. However, a month ago we started noticing discrepancies. All data until October 10 lines up perfectly - October 11 onward is

    • What is your opinion of the new UI?

      Hi Everyone, I would like to see what everyone thinks of the new Zoho One Dashboard. I don't get it, but perhaps I'm missing something. What are your thoughts?

    • What are the OAuth scopes needed to access the Zoho MCP server?

      I think I'm authenticating with the MCP server endpoint successfully using a bearer token but I can't successfully initialize an MCP session. I'm using the official MCP Python sdk (https://github.com/modelcontextprotocol/python-sdk). I get as far as here

    • Support Uploading YouTube Videos Longer Than 60 Minutes

      Hi Zoho Social Team, How are you? We would like to request support for uploading YouTube videos longer than 60 minutes directly through Zoho Social. Your support team informed us that Zoho Social currently cannot upload videos over 60 minutes due to “API

    • Account blocked for IMAP use

      Hello, My email client (Evolution) can't sync mail anymore. It gives the error: "Your account is temporarily blocked for IMAP use. This may happen if you exceed the maximum number of simultaneous IMAP connections allowed. Kindly try again after some time."

    • Is SMTP included in the free plan?

      My client has a Zoho Mail Free 14 day trial that ends tomorrow. She has set up a domain email address with SMTP on a third party app and is wondering if it will continue working once her plan downgrades to the free forever plan. Thanks

    • Zoho mail issue.

      I have verified my domain ohhoexpress.online by adding necessary TXT and MX records. But when I am sending email to any external email id, it is showing as zohomail.com. Also while I am sending mail to internal mail id, it is saying user not found whereas

    • My email is blocked from sending

      I get this message when I try to send any message .. > Unable to send message, Reason 554 5.1.8 Email Outgoing Blocked We have urgent emails to send and the issue continues to persist from yesterday. Please help us with this issue as soon as possibl

    • [WEBINAR] Smooth year-end closure with Zoho Books (KENYA)

      Hello there, This webinar is for all Kenyan businesses looking to wrap up their financial year smoothly! Join our free session to learn how Zoho Books can simplify your year-end process. What to expect from this webinar: - All the latest updates in Zoho

    • cannot recieve or send emails

      we are not recieving or cannot send emails.Shows sysytem error

    • Zoho Sites - contact us form

      I have added a contact us form to my website. I wanted to change the layout so I deleted the section of Contact Us form. When I again try to add the section of Contact Us form, it shows error that "This form already exists on this page."  I am unable

    • Setting checkbox value on template in Sign from Creator

      Good day, Please help me understand how do I set a tick from a checkbox in Creator into a checkbox on a Sign template. Below is the only values on the Sign template and the code from Creator, "field_boolean_data": {}, "field_date_data": {}, "field_radio_data":

    • Zoho Forms - Improve the CRM integration field to query data from more than one module

      Hi Forms team, Something I get stuck on regularly is pre-populating a form with data when that data is spread across 2 or 3 modules. For example Contacts, Accounts and Deals. I don't want to duplicate the information in CRM so I end up writing a function

    • Ask the Experts 25: Experience the full spectrum of Zoho Desk’s autumn and spring releases for 2025

      Hello Everyone, We’re on the 25th episode of our ATE series! It's a true milestone in our live community interactions! It’s been an amazing journey since we started in October 2018. Zoho Desk has come a long way, evolving with the support of a wonderful

    • switching from POP3 to IMAPI do I need to change settings in Web email?

      hi so I am using Outlook with My Zoho mail, also have Verizon email /AOL. they no longer support POP3 and said imapi is much better, so I want to switch my ZoHo to imapai. I googled and it said i need to change it in my account....i looked at my account

    • What functionality is new in the Z025 Spaces UI dashboard compared to the previous Zoho One dashboard?

      My company is interested in creating a revamped dashboard this coming year, and are trying to weigh different platform options. The new Spaces UI is said to be a more "feature-rich" dashboard experience than the previous. Could a developer please explain

    • Collections Management: #5 Convenience on Offer, using Self-Checkout

      "Is this the right page? Oh, now, it wants my address again. Why am I being redirected?" These were the exact thoughts running through Karan's mind as he tried to subscribe to an application he genuinely liked. He clicked "Buy Now", expecting a quick

    • Uploading a signed template from Sign to Creator

      Good day, Please help me on how to load a signed document back into Creator after the process has been completed in Sign. Below is the code that I am trying, pdfFile = response.toFile("SignedDocument_4901354000000372029.pdf"); info pdfFile; // Attach

    • Tip #50- A Closer Look at the Unattended Access Dashboard- 'Insider Insights'

      Having complete visibility and quick access to everything you need certainly makes managing multiple remote devices a lot easier, and that is precisely what the Unattended Access Dashboard in Zoho Assist is designed to offer. Once you go to the Unattended

    • Zoho CRM Portal User Timeline History Unavailable

      Hi Support Team, We have noticed a feature limitation in the Zoho CRM portal. We created a portal for our vendors to edit records directly, but when vendors make updates, the Modified Time and Date fields are not being updated. Additionally, these updates

    • New in Smart Prompt: Record Assistant for contextual assistance, and support for new AI models

      Smart Prompt helps teams stay informed and move faster by providing relevant suggestions where work happens in CRM. With this update, Smart Prompt becomes more adaptable to your organization’s AI preferences. You can now choose which Large Language Model

    • Almost all Flows are being queued

      A few days ago I saw one of my Flows status was Queued. This was the first time this had ever happened. Now, almost every Flow that triggers is Queued for at least a few minutes. If I re-trigger the Flow (which causes separate problems) they sometimes

    • Zoho Map integration tasks have changed - you need to "Locate all instances of Zoho Map integration tasks in your Deluge scripts by searching for the v1 marker... before 16 January 2026"

      Details of an issue specific to Zoho CRM + Deluge Functions (originally posted in this forum) can be found here: https://help.zoho.com/portal/en/community/topic/zoho-map-integration-tasks-have-changed-you-need-to-locate-all-instances-of-zoho-map-integration-tasks-in-your-deluge-scripts-by-searching-for-the-v1-marker

    • How to update custom multi-user field in Zoho Projects?

      I'm trying to update custom multi-user fields in Zoho Projects via a Deluge function in CRM. The code I have so far is below. It works for updating standard project fields and single-line custom fields, but it does not work to update multi-user fields.

    • Tip of the Week #75– Manage your social media messages from a single shared inbox.

      Are you tired of jumping between apps or browser tabs to reply to your business's Facebook and Instagram DMs? Handling customer messages on social media might seem simple, but switching between multiple platforms can easily lead to lost messages, duplicate

    • Zoho Map integration tasks have changed - you need to "Locate all instances of Zoho Map integration tasks in your Deluge scripts by searching for the v1 marker... before 16 January 2026"

      The Zoho Map deluge integration task has been changed (as at 21 October 2025) to provide a more structured, JSON-like response. This change affects all three Zoho Map integration tasks (Geocode, Reverse Geocode, and Distance Between). More details can

    • Using files from Zoho CRM in Gemini/ChatGPT/Claude

      Hi all, I’ve got subscriptions to Gemini and a few other AI tools which I use for tasks like data enrichment, email composition, etc. In our workflow, we often receive various documents from clients — such as process workflows, BRDs/requirement documents

    • Zoho Analytics & Zoho Creator - Modified Time value

      I'm trying to use the Zoho Creator system field 'modified time' in Zoho Analytics, but it's consistently showing 12 hours 'out' In Zoho Creator In Zoho Analytics Is this a constant difference that I just need to correct with a timezone change - or is

    • Zoho CRM - Option to create Follow-Up Task

      When completing a Zoho CRM Task, it would be very helpful if there was an option to "Complete and Create Follow-Up Task" in the pop-up which appears. It could clone the task you are closing and then show it on the screen in edit mode, all the user would

    • Portal For Different Apps

      I found some older threads on this but didn't see anything very recent. I'm new to Zoho One so forgive me if my terminology is off a bit. I was hoping set up a single point of entry into Zoho One. So, many of the apps could be found in one single place

    • Calls undetected

      Zoho Voice records indicate my last call ended at 6:00 PM. All incoming and outgoing calls occurred between 6:00 PM and 7:00 PM.

    • Send Zoho Forms Link using Zoho CRM Email Templates

      I have set up Zoho Forms and CRM integration to pre-populate data from Zoho CRM to Zoho Forms. The setup is working fine. I have also created an email template in the Zoho CRM deals module to send Zoho forms links. So when I send an email using that template

    • Next Page