Salesforce is the enterprise-focused CRM with deeper customization and 47% larger market share, while HubSpot is the more affordable, user-friendly platform designed for mid-market companies and small businesses seeking faster implementation.
HubSpot vs Salesforce — Side-by-side comparison on A Versus B
All-in-one customer platform combining CRM, marketing automation, sales, and service tools.
Cloud-native CRM platform with the largest market share, offering Sales Cloud, Service Cloud, Commerce Cloud, and Einstein AI.
Starting Price. Implementation Time. Customization Depth. Learning Curve. Market Share. Built-in Marketing Automation. Integration Ecosystem
Choose Salesforce if you're an enterprise with complex sales processes, need deep customization, have dedicated IT resources, and can invest in a 3-6 month implementation. Choose HubSpot if you want rapid deployment (2-4 weeks), integrated marketing automation at no extra cost, prefer user-friendly interfaces, and need affordable CRM for teams under 500 users.
HubSpot CRM: 3 users, limited dashboard | Salesforce: Varies by edition
HubSpot CRM: Yes, all plans | Salesforce: N/A
HubSpot CRM: Sales Hub+, Marketing Hub+ tiers | Salesforce: N/A
HubSpot CRM: 6/10 (workflows, fields) | Salesforce: Very High - unlimited custom objects and code
HubSpot CRM: 2-3 weeks | Salesforce: N/A
HubSpot CRM: $800 (with marketing automation) | Salesforce: $1,250+ (sales only, marketing separate)
HubSpot CRM: 3 weeks | Salesforce: 4-6 months
HubSpot CRM: 1,000+ | Salesforce: 2,000+
HubSpot CRM: Moderate (workflows, custom fields, basic logic) | Salesforce: Advanced (Apex code, Flow, extensive APIs)
HubSpot CRM: Unlimited | Salesforce: N/A
HubSpot CRM: 1,500+ | Salesforce: 10,000+
HubSpot CRM: $3,000 (Professional plan) | Salesforce: N/A
HubSpot CRM: Moderate (Visual workflows, limited code) | Salesforce: N/A
HubSpot CRM: Limited (varies by tier) | Salesforce: N/A
HubSpot CRM: Yes (included in all plans) | Salesforce: No (separate $1,250+/month product)
HubSpot CRM: 4/10 (easiest) | Salesforce: N/A
HubSpot CRM: 0.2 million | Salesforce: N/A
HubSpot CRM: $6,000 (with onboarding) | Salesforce: N/A
HubSpot CRM: 4.5/5 (12,400 reviews) | Salesforce: N/A
HubSpot CRM: 150+ pre-built integrations | Salesforce: 2,500+
HubSpot CRM: 9 (CRM, email, forms, landing pages, chat, knowledge base, analytics, sequences, meetings) | Salesforce: N/A
HubSpot CRM: N/A | Salesforce: Enterprise+ (Agentforce)
HubSpot CRM: N/A | Salesforce: Limited (separate product needed)
Monthly Cost (50-person team, full suite)
HubSpot CRM: N/A | Salesforce: $24,000-36,000+
HubSpot CRM: N/A | Salesforce: Advanced (Agentforce + Data Cloud)
HubSpot CRM: N/A | Salesforce: Unlimited
HubSpot CRM: N/A | Salesforce: Limited (basic offline)
HubSpot CRM: N/A | Salesforce: Advanced (Einstein predictive + generative)
HubSpot CRM: N/A | Salesforce: $165 (Sales Cloud Starter)
HubSpot CRM: N/A | Salesforce: 5-7 months
HubSpot CRM: N/A | Salesforce: Third-party connectors
HubSpot CRM: N/A | Salesforce: Based on licenses + storage SKUs
HubSpot CRM: N/A | Salesforce: Good - full-featured but complex
HubSpot CRM: N/A | Salesforce: Advanced - Einstein AI with predictive forecasting
HubSpot CRM: N/A | Salesforce: $25/month (Starter Suite)
HubSpot CRM: N/A | Salesforce: $100/month (Pro Suite)
HubSpot CRM: N/A | Salesforce: 7000+ apps
HubSpot CRM: N/A | Salesforce: 8-16 weeks
HubSpot CRM: N/A | Salesforce: Einstein AI in Pro+ tiers
HubSpot CRM: N/A | Salesforce: iOS, Android, Windows with offline mode
HubSpot CRM: N/A | Salesforce: 12-24 weeks
HubSpot CRM: N/A | Salesforce: 12 months (typical)
HubSpot CRM: N/A | Salesforce: Yes (Einstein)
HubSpot CRM: N/A | Salesforce: $2,167-$4,167
HubSpot CRM: N/A | Salesforce: 6-12 weeks
HubSpot CRM: N/A | Salesforce: Unlimited (enterprise)
HubSpot CRM: N/A | Salesforce: Full (Apex, JavaScript, REST API)
HubSpot CRM: N/A | Salesforce: 30-60 days
HubSpot CRM: N/A | Salesforce: ~9 million
HubSpot CRM: N/A | Salesforce: Advanced (generative AI, revenue intelligence, opportunity insights)
HubSpot CRM: N/A | Salesforce: Annual commitment typically required
Average Enterprise Implementation Cost (500+ users)
HubSpot CRM: N/A | Salesforce: 35+ industry-specific clouds
HubSpot CRM: N/A | Salesforce: Third-party plugins required
HubSpot CRM: N/A | Salesforce: Einstein AI (Professional+ tier)
HubSpot CRM: N/A | Salesforce: 40-50 hours per admin
HubSpot CRM: N/A | Salesforce: 8-12 weeks
HubSpot CRM: N/A | Salesforce: 180+ currencies
HubSpot CRM: N/A | Salesforce: Full feature parity with desktop
HubSpot CRM: N/A | Salesforce: 4.4/5 (15,200+ reviews)
HubSpot CRM: N/A | Salesforce: Apex Code + declarative tools (unlimited)
HubSpot CRM: N/A | Salesforce: 3rd-party AppExchange (6,000+ available)
HubSpot CRM: N/A | Salesforce: Einstein AI with advanced lead scoring, revenue forecasting, and opportunity insights
HubSpot CRM: N/A | Salesforce: 40-60 hours average
HubSpot CRM: N/A | Salesforce: 23,000+ enterprises globally
HubSpot CRM: N/A | Salesforce: 7,500+ apps
HubSpot CRM: N/A | Salesforce: Einstein AI included in higher tiers
HubSpot CRM: N/A | Salesforce: Via connectors (additional setup required)
How to choose between HubSpot CRM and Salesforce
HubSpot vs Salesforce — Structured Comparison Data
Machine-readable comparison dataset for HubSpot vs Salesforce. Contains 118 attribute comparisons, 5 FAQ pairs.
HubSpot vs Salesforce — Attribute Category Vocabulary
Taxonomy of attribute categories used to classify comparison data for HubSpot vs Salesforce.
How much does HubSpot cost compared to Salesforce in 2026?
HubSpot offers a free CRM tier with paid plans starting around $20 per user per month for its Starter plan, scaling to $1,600 per month for Enterprise. Salesforce starts at approximately $25 per user per month for Essentials but quickly scales to $300 or more per user per month for advanced editions. HubSpot generally offers more predictable, bundled pricing, while Salesforce costs can escalate significantly with add-ons, making HubSpot a more budget-friendly option for small to mid-sized businesses.
Is HubSpot better than Salesforce for small businesses?
HubSpot is generally considered better than Salesforce for small businesses due to its intuitive interface, faster onboarding, and lower total cost of ownership. Small teams benefit from HubSpot's all-in-one marketing, sales, and service hub without needing dedicated administrators. Salesforce offers superior customization and scalability but demands greater technical expertise and budget. For businesses with fewer than 50 employees or limited CRM experience, HubSpot typically delivers faster ROI and requires significantly less implementation time and ongoing maintenance.
Which CRM is better for enterprise-level sales teams managing complex pipelines?
Salesforce is widely regarded as the stronger choice for enterprise sales teams managing complex pipelines. Its advanced workflow automation, highly customizable objects, robust territory management, and deep third-party integrations make it ideal for large organizations with intricate sales processes. Salesforce's Einstein AI also provides sophisticated forecasting capabilities. HubSpot has improved its enterprise offerings but still lacks some of the granular pipeline controls and multi-org configurations that large sales organizations require. Enterprises with dedicated CRM administrators typically extract more value from Salesforce.
What are the latest updates to HubSpot and Salesforce in 2026?
In 2026, both platforms have doubled down on AI integration. HubSpot expanded its Breeze AI suite with enhanced predictive lead scoring, AI-generated email sequences, and a more capable AI sales assistant embedded directly into the CRM. Salesforce advanced its Agentforce platform, deploying autonomous AI agents capable of handling customer inquiries and sales tasks with minimal human oversight. Salesforce also improved its Data Cloud integration across all products. Both companies are prioritizing AI-native workflows, making the AI capability gap between them narrower than in previous years.
Can HubSpot replace Salesforce for a company already using Salesforce?
Migrating from Salesforce to HubSpot is feasible but requires careful planning. HubSpot supports data migration tools and offers professional migration services, but complex Salesforce customizations, custom objects, and deeply nested workflows may not transfer seamlessly. Companies with relatively straightforward CRM setups, strong marketing needs, and limited IT resources often find the switch worthwhile. However, enterprises relying on Salesforce's advanced customization, AppExchange ecosystem, or complex integrations may face significant disruption. A thorough audit of current Salesforce usage is strongly recommended before committing to migration.
How to Choose Between HubSpot CRM and Salesforce
Starting Price: HubSpot CRM has $50/month, while Salesforce has $165/month.
Implementation Time: HubSpot CRM has 2-4 weeks, while Salesforce has 3-6 months.
Customization Depth: HubSpot CRM has Moderate, while Salesforce has Highly Advanced.
Learning Curve: HubSpot CRM has Gentle (80% adoption in 30 days), while Salesforce has Steep (45% adoption in 30 days).
Market Share: HubSpot CRM has 9.2%, while Salesforce has 17.5%.
Built-in Marketing Automation: HubSpot CRM has Yes (included), while Salesforce has No (separate purchase).
Integration Ecosystem: HubSpot CRM has 1,000+ native integrations, while Salesforce has 2,000+ AppExchange apps.