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CRM Platforms — Enterprise

HubSpot vs Salesforce: Which CRM Should You Choose in 2026?

An easy-to-run, unified CRM vs. a deeply customizable enterprise platform. Here is the real cost and complexity trade-off.

Bill BelcaminoBy Bill Belcamino · Last updated September 12, 2026 · Our methodologyResearched and fact-checked by the HelpCompare team
HubSpot logoFree tier, from $20/seat/mo

HubSpot

VS
Salesforce logoFree Suite (2 users), from $25/user/mo

Salesforce

Run the cost calculator Compare pricing tiers
HubSpot vs SalesforceVerified Sep 12, 2026
Bill Belcamino
Bottom line up frontby Bill Belcamino, founder of HelpCompare
Editorial assessment

Bottom line up front: Is HubSpot or Salesforce the better fit for a growing sales team?

HubSpot fits teams without a dedicated CRM admin, and Salesforce fits sales orgs that will staff one, because its depth comes through customization and often a $25k to $250k+ integrator project.

Salesforce relaunched pricing on September 3, 2026, with Sales Cloud Core at $195/user/mo and Agentforce for Sales an add-on from $125/user/mo below Max, while HubSpot Professional is $90/seat/mo billed annually plus a $1,500 onboarding fee, with AI on usage credits. Whichever you pick, negotiate the renewal before you sign. A year in, your data, workflows and reports live inside the CRM, so the vendor knows leaving costs you more than a price rise, and both vendors have re-priced recently. Ask for a written cap on renewal increases and a locked price for added seats, and budget the admin's time as a real line item next to the licences.

My read of the verified data on this page, checked against vendor sources on September 12, 2026. Disagree or spot an error? Tell Bill

Verified data

HubSpot vs Salesforce: quick facts

At a glanceHubSpotSalesforce
CategoryCRM Platforms — Enterprise
Entry priceFree tier, from $20/seat/moFree Suite (2 users), from $25/user/mo
Free planYes, free CRM for up to 2 users, no card requiredYes, Free Suite, 2 users, no card required

Is HubSpot cheaper than Salesforce?

HubSpot is priced at Free tier, from $20/seat/mo and Salesforce at Free Suite (2 users), from $25/user/mo. See the full breakdown below for what is included at each tier.

Verified data

HubSpot vs Salesforce at a glance

CategoryHubSpotSalesforce
Free planYes, free CRM for up to 2 users, no card requiredYes, Free Suite, 2 users, no card required
Entry paid price$20/seat/mo (Starter, standard price)$25/user/mo (Starter Suite); Sales Cloud Core $195/user/mo
Popular mid tier$90/seat/mo (Professional, annual) + $1,500 onboarding$100/user/mo (Pro Suite, annual); Sales Cloud Advanced $395/user/mo
Top tier$150/seat/mo (Enterprise, annual) + $3,500 onboarding$550/user/mo (Max)
AI includedBreeze AI agents (credit-based usage)Agentforce for Sales included in Max only; add-on from $125/user/mo on Core and Advanced
Marketplace / ecosystem~1,500+ apps~6,000+ apps (AppExchange)
Customization depthModerate, low-codeDeep (Apex/Flow), steeper learning curve
Typical implementation costLower — often self-serve or light partner helpHigher — often $25k–$250k+ via SI partners
G2 rating4.4/5 (~14,284 reviews)4.4/5 (~25,900 reviews)

Verified September 12, 2026Prices recorded from each vendor’s own pricing page. See sources

From our original research

Our B2B SaaS Sticker Shock Index tracks published entry prices across categories — in CRM Platforms, HubSpot Starter lists at $20.00/seat/mo (Zoho CRM is lower, at $14.00/user/mo). But the two vendors price AI very differently: our AI Tax report found HubSpot’s Breeze agents moved from flat inclusion to metered/credit-based pricing in 2025–2026, while Salesforce’s Agentforce for Sales is included only in its $550/user/mo Max edition and is a paid add-on from $125/user/mo on Core and Advanced.

Editorial assessment

How they actually differ

Salesforce just overhauled its entire pricing model. As of September 3, 2026, it replaced its legacy Enterprise/Unlimited/Agentforce 1 editions with three new bundles: Core ($195/user/mo), Advanced ($395/user/mo), and Max ($550/user/mo); each now folding in Slack, Tableau Next analytics and built-in AI that used to be sold separately; Advanced adds enhanced security, and only Max includes the full Agentforce for Sales suite. For smaller teams Salesforce also sells a Free Suite (2 users), a Starter Suite at $25/user/mo and a Pro Suite at $100/user/mo. That’s a meaningfully different (and simpler) pricing story than the Salesforce most buyers remember.

HubSpot’s usage-credit layer

HubSpot has also shifted toward a hybrid model: seats plus a bundled usage-credit allowance (extra credits cost $9 per 1,000). Combined with mandatory one-time onboarding fees ($1,500 at Professional, $3,500 at Enterprise), the real first-year cost is higher than the seat price alone suggests.

Customization vs. simplicity

Salesforce’s Apex/Flow customization layer and ~6,000-app AppExchange give it more raw depth for complex, multi-department sales orgs, but that power comes with real admin overhead and, commonly, a systems-integrator engagement costing anywhere from $25,000 to well over $250,000. HubSpot’s unified marketing/sales/service UX is intentionally simpler to stand up without dedicated technical staff.

Editorial assessment

Pros & cons

HubSpot

Pros

  • Free CRM tier, genuinely usable for very small teams
  • Fast to set up without a dedicated admin or consultant
  • Unified marketing + sales + service tools out of the box
  • Lower typical implementation and total cost of ownership

Cons

  • Steep price jump from Starter ($20) to Professional ($90)/seat
  • Mandatory onboarding fees at Professional and Enterprise
  • New usage-credit layer adds billing unpredictability
  • Customization ceiling lower than Salesforce for complex orgs

Salesforce

Pros

  • Sales Cloud editions bundle Slack, Tableau Next and built-in AI
  • Deep customization layer (Apex/Flow)
  • ~6,000+ app AppExchange ecosystem
  • Built for complex, multi-department enterprise sales orgs

Cons

  • Sales Cloud editions with built-in AI start at $195/user/mo (Core)
  • Steeper admin/consultant learning curve
  • Implementation often requires a paid SI partner ($25k–$250k+)
  • Agentforce for Sales is a paid add-on below Max (from $125/user/mo)
Verified data

Cost calculator: what does your team actually pay?

HubSpot

 
$0/mo

Salesforce

 
$0/mo
 

Illustrative estimate using annual-billing list prices for HubSpot Sales Hub and Salesforce, checked September 17, 2026. Excludes HubSpot onboarding fees ($1,500 Professional, $3,500 Enterprise) and Salesforce add-ons. Always confirm current rates before purchasing.

Choose HubSpot if…

You’re an SMB or mid-market team that wants marketing, sales, and service unified in one easy-to-run platform, without hiring a dedicated CRM admin.

Choose Salesforce if…

You’re a larger, more complex sales organization that needs deep customization and AI bundled in, and you have the admin resources (or SI budget) to implement it well.

Total cost over time

Uses your selections above. Estimate excludes add-ons, overages, and negotiated discounts.

Ready to pick your CRM?

Both platforms offer a free trial or demo. See current pricing directly from the source.

Try HubSpot Free Get Salesforce Pricing
Verified data

HubSpot vs Salesforce: security, offline & remote work

How HubSpot and Salesforce compare on compliance reports, sign-in controls, offline access and the setup details that matter for remote, hybrid and in-office teams. Every value links to the vendor page it came from.

What we checkedHubSpotSalesforce
Security & compliance
SOC 2 reportSOC 2 Type IIsourceSOC 2 reportType not stated by vendorsource
ISO/IEC 27001Not publishedCertifiedsource
Other certificationsSOC 1 Type II, SOC 3, HIPAA attestation, EU Cloud Code of Conduct, TRUSTe Certified PrivacysourceSOC 1, SOC 3, ISO/IEC 27017, ISO/IEC 27018, PCI DSS Level 1, HITRUST CSF, C5, HDS, ENS High, ISMAP, APEC PRP, EU/UK BCR for Processorssource
HIPAA (BAA)BAA availableEnterprisesourceBAA availablesource
GDPR data processing agreementDPA offeredsourceDPA offeredsource
Single sign-on (SAML/OIDC)YesProfessionalsourceYesAll editionssource
SCIM user provisioningYesProfessionalsourceYesAll editionssource
Two-factor authenticationYesEnforcement: Free (optional to require); mandatory on Starter, Professional, EnterprisesourceYesEnforcement: All editionssource
Admin audit logYesStartersourceYesEssentialssource
Data residency choicesUS, EU, Canada, AustraliaStartersourceUS, EU, UK, Canada, Australia, Japan, India, Brazil, Singapore, South Korea, Indonesia, Israel, Switzerland, South Africa, UAEsource
EncryptionAES-256 at rest; TLS 1.2 or 1.3 in transitsourceTLS in transit (2048-bit RSA certificates); AES-256 on replication links between data centerssource
Self-hosting optionNot publishedNot published
Offline access
Offline modePartialCRM records cannot be created, edited, or viewed in the mobile app without a connection; only Mobile Notetaker can record meetings offline and link them to CRM records once back online.sourceWorks offlineThe Salesforce mobile app (iOS/Android) caches recent records for offline viewing and, when admins enable Offline Edit, lets users create, edit and delete records offline; pending changes sync automatically and conflicts are flagged on reconnect.source
Desktop appsBrowser onlysourceNot published
Mobile appsiOS, AndroidsourceiOS, Androidsource
Offline limitsOffline meeting recording (Mobile Notetaker) is available on Sales Hub or Service Hub Professional and EnterpriseSales Hub / Service Hub ProfessionalsourceMobile apps only (not the browser); if users don't customize their cache, it holds up to 30 recent records for their five most recent objectssource
Remote, hybrid & in-office
IP allowlistingYesStartersourceYesAll editions (per-profile ranges on Enterprise and up)source
Device & session controlsYesAll plansAdmin-set inactive session timeout (15 minutes to 3 days); users can review and remotely log out their own sessions on other devices.sourceYesEssentialsAdmin-set session timeout for inactive users; option to lock sessions to the originating IP address (Enterprise and up).source
Editorial assessment

What this means for your team

  • Audit reports: both state a SOC 2 report on their own sites, but not the same kind: HubSpot (Type II) and Salesforce (type not stated). Salesforce also holds ISO/IEC 27001. A Type I report checks controls at a single point in time; a Type II report tests them over months. If your security team requires Type II, confirm it with Salesforce, and ask each vendor for the latest report under NDA.
  • Single sign-on: HubSpot includes it on Professional; Salesforce includes it on All editions. If your team signs in through Okta, Microsoft Entra ID or Google, price the HubSpot plan that includes SSO, not its entry plan; Salesforce includes it on the entry plan.
  • Health data: HubSpot and Salesforce will sign a HIPAA business associate agreement (HubSpot: Enterprise).
  • Working offline: Salesforce lets you keep working without a connection; HubSpot works offline only in part. Details are in the Offline mode row above.
  • Office-only access: HubSpot can restrict sign-ins to approved IP ranges on Starter; Salesforce can restrict sign-ins to approved IP ranges on All editions (per-profile ranges on Enterprise and up). That suits an office network or a company VPN; fully remote teams need a VPN for it to work.
  • Where your data lives: HubSpot lets you choose US, EU, Canada, Australia on Starter; Salesforce lets you choose US, EU, UK, Canada, Australia, Japan, India, Brazil, Singapore, South Korea, Indonesia, Israel, Switzerland, South Africa, UAE. This matters for teams hiring across the EU, UK or Australia.

HubSpot: worth knowing

  • RemoteHubSpot's trusted-IP login restriction also applies to the mobile app, so reps logging in from outside the allowed range on a phone are blocked. source
  • SecurityEach HubSpot account is hosted in one data center (US, EU, Canada or Australia); paid accounts can migrate to another region. source
  • RemoteUsers can see every device, browser and app where they are signed in and log out of lost devices remotely. source

Salesforce: worth knowing

  • SecurityA Salesforce org's hosting region is fixed when the org is first created, chosen by the customer or an account executive from Hyperforce regions including the US, EU, UK, Canada, Australia, Japan and India. source
  • OfficeOn Professional Edition without the Edit Profiles & Page Layouts add-on, office/VPN IP ranges can only be set org-wide rather than per profile. source
  • SecuritySalesforce is enforcing MFA for direct username/password logins from summer 2026, after which the org-wide setting cannot be disabled; SSO logins follow the identity provider's MFA. source
  • OfflineField reps who go offline with an empty cache have no Salesforce data, so the mobile cache should be refreshed after each login. source

Checked September 19, 2026 against each vendor’s own trust center, help docs and app pages. Hover or tap “source” to see the exact wording we relied on. “Not published” means we could not find the vendor saying it on its own site; it doesn’t mean the feature is missing. Plan names are the lowest plan the vendor says includes the feature. Security · Offline · Remote vs office · Download the data

Frequently Asked Questions

What is HubSpot?

HubSpot is an all-in-one CRM platform with marketing, sales, and customer service tools for growing businesses.

What is Salesforce?

Salesforce is an enterprise CRM platform used to manage sales pipelines, customer data, and business workflows across large organizations.

How much does HubSpot cost compared to Salesforce?

HubSpot starts at $20/seat/mo (Starter, standard price), while Salesforce starts at $25/user/mo (Starter Suite), with Sales Cloud Core at $195/user/mo. HubSpot is faster to set up and far cheaper to run for small and mid-market teams, but its Professional/Enterprise tiers add steep per-seat costs plus onboarding fees and a new usage-credit layer.

Does HubSpot or Salesforce have a free plan?

HubSpot’s free plan: Yes — up to 2 users. Salesforce’s free plan: Yes — Free Suite for up to 2 users.

Who should choose HubSpot?

You’re an SMB or mid-market team that wants marketing, sales, and service unified in one easy-to-run platform, without hiring a dedicated CRM admin.

Who should choose Salesforce?

You’re a larger, more complex sales organization that needs deep customization and AI bundled in, and you have the admin resources (or SI budget) to implement it well.

Migration Guides

Already decided? Here’s how to actually switch.

Step-by-step migration guides covering what transfers automatically, what doesn’t, and how to handle the gap, in both directions.

Switching from HubSpot to Salesforce Switching from Salesforce to HubSpot
Editorial assessment

When to Buy — and When to Walk Away

Every “best CRM” listicle tells you why to buy. Here’s the other half: the specific, operational conditions under which HubSpot or Salesforce is the wrong purchase for your team.

HubSpot

Buy HubSpot if:

  • Your team is under 50 employees and needs marketing, sales, and service tools live in one login within a week, not a quarter.
  • You need a free-tier CRM to validate process before committing budget, with a clear self-serve upgrade path as headcount grows.
  • Your GTM motion is inbound-led and you need native landing pages, forms, and email nurture without hiring a RevOps admin.

Do NOT buy HubSpot if:

  • You run a complex, multi-entity sales org with non-linear approval chains, where HubSpot’s workflow engine hits a ceiling that forces expensive Ops Hub add-ons.
  • Your contact/marketing-contact volume is scaling past ~50,000 and you’re price-sensitive, because HubSpot’s marketing-contact tiering compounds cost fast at that range.
  • You require deep, code-level customization of objects and permission structures; Salesforce’s Apex/metadata model goes further than HubSpot’s declarative tools allow.

Salesforce

Buy Salesforce if:

  • You have (or will hire) a dedicated Salesforce admin/RevOps function to own configuration, because the platform’s power is unlocked through customization, not defaults.
  • Your sales org spans multiple business units, currencies, or regions and needs enterprise-grade territory, forecasting, and permission-set control.
  • You already run (or plan to run) a broader Salesforce-ecosystem stack (Service Cloud, Marketing Cloud, industry clouds) and need one data model underneath all of it.

Do NOT buy Salesforce if:

  • Your team is under 20 users with no admin resource, so you’ll spend the first two quarters paying a consultant just to reach parity with HubSpot’s out-of-the-box setup.
  • Your budget can’t absorb per-seat license cost plus implementation and ongoing admin overhead; total cost of ownership routinely runs 2-3x the sticker license price.
  • You need to be sending marketing campaigns and landing pages in week one, and native Salesforce marketing tooling requires substantial setup or a bolted-on Marketing Cloud purchase.

Canonical data for the tools on this page

Every pricing fact, rating, AI billing model and switching guide we hold on each tool, on one page, with the date each figure was last verified.

HubSpotPricing, free plan, AI cost & every comparison›SalesforcePricing, free plan, AI cost & every comparison›
Attio vs HubSpotHead-to-head comparisonActiveCampaign vs HubSpotHead-to-head comparisonGoHighLevel vs HubSpotHead-to-head comparisonHubSpot vs KeapHead-to-head comparisonHubSpot vs KlaviyoHead-to-head comparisonHubSpot vs MailchimpHead-to-head comparison

Sources

Prices on this page were recorded from each vendor’s own pricing page on the date shown at the top of the page. Vendors change pricing often — check the live source before you buy.

Every figure is also in our open dataset (JSON and CSV, CC BY 4.0), with its source page and verification date. See how we research pricing.

Cite this page: HelpCompare, “HubSpot vs Salesforce”, helpcompare.com/hubspot-vs-salesforce/ (updated ).

Source links on this site are checked every month; last check . How sources are checked.

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01 · CompareWhich tool fits your team, side by side.132 comparisons 02 · Price & approveSourced, dated pricing and a one-page brief for sign-off.Decision brief 03 · SwitchWhat moves, what you rebuild, what it costs.264 guides 04 · ShareDownload and cite the data. CC BY 4.0.Open data
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About the author

Bill Belcamino

Founder and author, HelpCompare

Engineer by training, operator by experience, marketer by choice. Bill spent eight and a half years as an engineer at HP, was COO of Auctiva (the number one third-party selling platform on eBay, past 200,000 users) and ran Google’s $70M/year search syndication partnership at Alot.com. Then he spent 13 years building his own web properties with his own money at stake. He has bought, trialled, integrated and cancelled more SaaS tools than he can count, and started HelpCompare because the real cost of switching tools is the part nobody covers.

“I’ve sat on both sides of the table: the agency recommending the tool and the client paying for it.”

Researched and fact-checked by the HelpCompare team. Pricing on this page was last verified on September 12, 2026. No paid sponsorships, no affiliate commissions.

Read Bill’s story How we verify pricingSpot an error? Tell Bill