HubSpot vs Salesforce
HubSpot and Salesforce are both CRM tools. HubSpot is aimed at small businesses and enterprise, while Salesforce is aimed at enterprise. HubSpot costs less, from $20/mo versus $25/mo for Salesforce. Both have a free plan.
CRM platform with free core and paid hubs
The enterprise CRM standard
| Pricing | Freemium · $20 | Freemium · $25 |
| Starting price | $20/mo | $25/mo |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | — | 30 days |
| Built for | Small businesses, Enterprise, Agencies | Enterprise |
| Platforms | web, ios, android | web, ios, android |
| Country | US · 2006 | US · 1999 |
| Rating | — | — |
Choose HubSpot if
Growing SMBs and mid-market companies with marketing, sales and support teams that want one system and have budget for Professional tiers.
- One database across marketing, sales and support
- Free tier is complete enough for very small businesses
- Excellent documentation, academy and partner ecosystem
Look elsewhere if: Bootstrapped startups with large email lists (Brevo or Kit are cheaper) or sales-only teams (Pipedrive and Close are leaner).
Choose Salesforce if
Mid-market and enterprise companies with dedicated CRM administration and complex processes.
- Unmatched customization and ecosystem
- Scales to the largest sales organizations
- Rich AI roadmap with Agentforce
Look elsewhere if: Startups and SMBs; HubSpot, Pipedrive or Attio will be faster and cheaper.
HubSpot vs Salesforce pricing
HubSpot
- Free tools$02 users, 1,000 total contacts, basic CRM, HubSpot branding
- Starter Customer Platform$20/seat/moNew-customer promo $10/mo monthly or $7/mo annual
- Professional (per hub)$890/moMarketing Hub Pro, 3 seats; $3,000 onboarding fee
- Enterprise (per hub)$3,600/moMarketing Hub Enterprise, 5 seats; $7,000 onboarding fee
Salesforce
- Free Suite$0Listed in Sales Cloud edition comparison
- Starter Suite$25/user/moBilled monthly or annually; sales, service, marketing
- Pro Suite$100/user/moBilled annually; quoting, forecasting, customization
- Core$195/user/moBilled annually; Momentum, Slack Business+, Tableau Next
- Advanced$395/user/moBilled annually; enhanced security, more AI
HubSpot · Key features
- Free CRM with contacts, companies, deals and tasks for up to 2 users
- Marketing Hub: email, automation workflows, landing pages, ads, SEO tools
- Sales Hub: sequences, meeting scheduler, quotes, call tracking, forecasting
- Service Hub: ticketing, knowledge base, customer portal, surveys
- Breeze AI agents for content, prospecting and customer service
- 1,500+ app marketplace integrations and a mature API
Cons
- Professional and Enterprise pricing is steep, plus onboarding fees
- Marketing contact tiers punish large lists
- Feature gating pushes you to upgrade for basics like A/B tests
Salesforce · Key features
- Fully customizable objects, fields, layouts and flows
- Forecasting, territories, quoting and CPQ
- Einstein AI scoring, Agentforce agents, Data Cloud
- AppExchange marketplace and MuleSoft integration
- Sandboxes, APIs and developer platform (Apex, LWC)
- Reports and dashboards with Tableau integration
Cons
- Expensive licenses and add-ons
- Requires admin resources or partners
- User experience can be cluttered
HubSpot vs Salesforce: FAQ
Which is cheaper, HubSpot or Salesforce?
HubSpot starts at $20/mo and Salesforce at $25/mo. Both prices are checked on the vendors' own pricing pages.
Do HubSpot and Salesforce have a free plan?
Yes, both HubSpot and Salesforce have a free plan; paid plans add more usage and features.
Which is better for small businesses, HubSpot or Salesforce?
HubSpot lists small businesses as a core audience, while Salesforce is aimed more at enterprise.