HubSpot vs Salesforce, and when we'd tell you to pick Salesforce
We're a HubSpot Platinum Solutions Partner, and we don't sell Salesforce work. We have moved clients off Salesforce. This page shows where each tool wins, including when we'd tell you to stay.
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Where we stand, and the short answer
Push Analytics sets up HubSpot and connects it to the other systems a business runs. That's a bias, so weigh what follows with it in mind.
HubSpot usually wins for growing companies with a handful to a few hundred users. Those teams want marketing, sales and service in one place, without hiring a full-time admin. Salesforce usually wins when you have thousands of users, many business units with different rules, or a team of Salesforce developers already on staff. Most of the growing companies we talk to, B2B or B2C, fall in the first group. Some don't, and we tell them so.
HubSpot and Salesforce side by side
HubSpot
- Team size: a free tier for up to 2 users, then Starter, Professional and Enterprise. View-only seats cost nothing extra
- Admin effort: most changes are point-and-click, so an ops person can own it part time
- ERP: a native NetSuite integration on every plan syncs contacts, companies, deals, sales orders, invoices and products
- Ease of use: simple screens that most reps pick up quickly
- Reporting: built-in dashboards across marketing, sales and service from one database
- Custom data: custom objects need an Enterprise subscription
- Cost drivers: paid seats, a required one-time onboarding fee on Professional and Enterprise, and Data Hub for custom sync mappings
Salesforce
- Team size: editions for small teams up to very large companies
- Admin effort: almost anything can be built, which usually means a dedicated admin or outside developer
- ERP: connects through third-party connectors or an integration platform, with more custom work for complex setups
- Ease of use: depends a lot on how your admin builds the screens
- Reporting: deep reports and dashboards, usually built and kept up by an admin
- Testing: separate test environments for changes on its larger editions
- Cost drivers: per-user pricing, edition upgrades, add-ons and admin time
Which one fits your team size and type of business?
How many different ways you sell matters more than headcount. A 40-person company with one sales process, a service team and a marketing person is a classic HubSpot fit. That could be a manufacturer, a professional services firm or a brand with a wholesale side. A 4,000-person company with five divisions, each with its own approval rules and territories, will push HubSpot to its limits.
Both tools center on sales teams and customer records. If you run an online store with no sales team, read our Klaviyo vs HubSpot page instead. For examples by industry, see how we set up HubSpot for manufacturing, distribution and ecommerce.
How does each one connect to your other systems?
HubSpot's native NetSuite integration is available on all HubSpot plans. It can sync one way or both ways, and it maps HubSpot deals to NetSuite opportunities and HubSpot orders to NetSuite sales orders. If you need custom field mappings, you'll need Data Hub. We cover the details on our NetSuite integration page.
Salesforce has plenty of ERP connectors. Most come from third parties or need an integration platform, and someone has to maintain them. For ERPs without a native connector on either side, the work looks similar. Our guide to connecting HubSpot to an ERP walks through how we decide which system owns each record.
When Salesforce is the better choice
- You have thousands of users across divisions that each need their own rules, layouts and approval chains
- You already have Salesforce developers or admins on staff and a working org they know well
- Your process depends on heavy custom code that HubSpot's tools can't match
- You need separate testing environments for every change, which Salesforce includes on its larger editions
- Your other core systems are already deep in the Salesforce family, and moving would break more than it fixes
- Your Salesforce setup works, people use it, and the only complaint is price. Switching costs time too
What happened when a client left Salesforce?
One client ran its sales on Salesforce, spreadsheets and manual steps. Each sale needed input from several people, custom pricing and a few approvals. The team had no single place to see where each deal stood.
We moved it to HubSpot and tied the sales process to its back-office system, so customers and orders match in both. Salesforce is retired. Reminders, assignment and follow-up that used to be manual now run on their own. Read the full case study.
An earlier attempt to move its data had failed because fields didn't match. If you've already decided to switch, our Salesforce to HubSpot migration page shows how we plan the move, and the migration checklist lists each step.
What drives the total cost of each?
The price per seat is a small part of it. With HubSpot, the big costs are paid seats and the one-time onboarding HubSpot requires on Professional and Enterprise. Custom objects need Enterprise, and custom ERP field mappings need Data Hub.
With Salesforce, the costs are the edition, add-ons and the per-user price. The biggest cost is often the people who run it. Admin and developer time can outweigh the licenses.
Prices and packaging change often, so check current pricing on HubSpot's pricing page and Salesforce's pricing page. Our HubSpot implementation cost guide covers the setup side.
HubSpot vs Salesforce questions
Why would a HubSpot partner ever recommend Salesforce?
A bad fit costs everyone. If a company needs what only Salesforce does well, moving it to HubSpot leads to a stalled project and an unhappy client. We'd rather lose the work than sell the wrong tool.
Can HubSpot and Salesforce run side by side?
Yes. HubSpot's Salesforce integration supports ongoing two-way syncing. It needs a Professional or Enterprise HubSpot subscription and a Salesforce edition that allows the connection. Some companies use it for good, with marketing in HubSpot and sales in Salesforce. Others use it during a gradual switch.
Does Salesforce need a full-time admin?
Not always, but most growing companies end up with one or with a paid outside partner. The more you customize Salesforce, the more someone has to maintain. HubSpot can usually be run part time by an ops or marketing person once it's set up well.
Is HubSpot strong enough for a complex sales process?
For most mid-size companies, yes. Custom objects on Enterprise, quotes, approvals and ERP syncs cover what most growing teams we work with need. Very large companies with many divisions are where it can run short.
Which costs more, HubSpot or Salesforce?
It depends on your seats, your edition and who runs the system. HubSpot adds a one-time onboarding fee on Professional and Enterprise. With Salesforce, the admin who runs it is often the biggest cost. Price a full year for your current team on both vendors' current pricing pages.
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Get a straight answer on your setup
Tell us how your team sells and what your Salesforce org looks like today. If staying put makes more sense, we'll say so.