Where HubSpot's free CRM stops being free, what the paid step-up really costs, and which alternatives fit which kind of small business.
HubSpot's free CRM is genuinely good, which is exactly why so many small businesses end up stuck on it. The free tier stops at 1,000 contacts and two users, with one deal pipeline and almost no automation, and the next step up is priced per seat with marketing contacts billed on top. This guide sets out what HubSpot really costs once you outgrow free, using its own published figures, then compares the alternatives by situation. All prices are US list prices at the time of writing (October 2026).
HubSpot publishes its limits in its own product and services catalogue, and that document is worth five minutes of your time before you build a business process on the free tier. At the time of writing (October 2026) free accounts get:
For a solo business keeping notes on 200 customers, that is fine and will stay fine for years. The pinch arrives from a predictable direction: a third person joins, or you import an old mailing list and cross 1,000 contacts, or you want a three-step follow-up after an enquiry and discover you can send exactly one email.
Starter Core Seats list at $20 per seat per month, and Marketing Hub Starter also lists at $20 per seat per month with 1,000 marketing contacts included. Above that, HubSpot charges per extra block of 1,000 marketing contacts per month: $50 per 1,000 from 1,001 to 3,000, $45 per 1,000 from 3,001 to 5,000, then $40 per 1,000. Only contacts flagged as marketing count towards the limit, and the default flag on imports is what catches people out, so check that setting before you upload a list.
The heavier sales tooling is not a Starter feature. HubSpot's catalogue lists the Sales Seat as unavailable on Starter: it requires Sales Hub Professional, which starts at $100 per seat per month plus a one-off $1,500 onboarding fee, or Enterprise at $150 per seat per month plus $3,500 onboarding. Marketing Hub Professional starts at $890 per month with three Core Seats and 2,000 marketing contacts.
A worked example keeps it honest. Two people, 2,000 marketing contacts, Starter: two seats at $20 is $40, plus one extra block of 1,000 contacts at $50, so roughly $90 per month. That is not scandalous, and HubSpot remains a well-built product. It is simply no longer free, and annual terms or new-customer promotions can move the figure, so get a written quote in your own currency rather than planning around list prices.
The decision point is this: $90 per month buys you a tidy contact database and simple email. If you want sequences, forecasting and proper automation, you are looking at Professional pricing per seat, and at that level most small businesses should at least compare the field.
Most bad CRM purchases come from comparing the wrong things. There are three different products hiding behind the same three letters.
If you have two salespeople working outbound lists, buy the first kind. If 90% of your enquiries come through your own site and you are mainly losing money to slow follow-up, the second kind removes a whole integration layer and a second subscription. Our guide to your first CRM covers whether you need one at all; this page is about what to use instead of HubSpot once you have decided you do.
Run every shortlisted tool past the same questions, in this order:
Zoho CRM, if you want depth cheaply. Zoho is the most complete per-seat alternative at small-business money. The free edition covers up to three users, and paid US list pricing at the time of writing runs around $14 per user per month for Standard and around $23 for Professional on annual billing. Zoho shows local currency and runs frequent regional promotions, so confirm the figure for your own country. The honest trade-off is interface density and a setup that rewards patience: Zoho can do nearly everything, which is also why it takes a weekend to configure.
Zoho Bigin, if you only want a pipeline. Bigin is Zoho's small-business CRM and the prices are published in US dollars: free for one user and 500 records, Express at $7 per user per month on annual billing ($9 monthly), Premier at $12 ($15 monthly), Bigin 360 at $18 ($21 monthly). For a one to five person team that wants deals, calls and follow-ups and nothing else, this is the lowest-friction paid option on this page.
EngageBay, if you want marketing and CRM in one. The All-in-One suite is billed per user: free for up to 15 team members with 250 contacts, Basic $14.99 per user per month (500 contacts), Growth $64.99 (5,000 contacts) and Pro $119.99 (10,000 contacts), with roughly 8% off yearly and 15% off two-year billing. Note that it is per user, so two people on Growth is about $130 per month. It is the closest like-for-like swap for people who liked HubSpot's shape but not its invoice.
Bitrix24, if you have a team and hate per-seat pricing. Bitrix24 charges per organisation, not per seat: Basic $49 per month on annual billing for five users, Standard $99 for 50 users, Professional $199 for 100 users. Its own pricing FAQ says the free plan allows an unlimited number of users, with telephony and marketplace apps reserved for paid plans. It is sprawling and the learning curve is real, but for a team of six it is dramatically cheaper than anything per-seat.
Pipedrive, if your business is deals. A clean, deals-first CRM with no free tier; its entry plan sits at around $14 per seat per month on annual billing, and several of the useful extras (lead capture, web visitors, documents) are separately priced add-ons. Pipedrive's own site blocks automated checking, so take the figure from your own quote. If your sales process is calls, quotes and follow-ups, it does that better than any bundle.
GoHighLevel, if you run marketing for clients. Starter is $97 per month with three sub-accounts, Unlimited is $297 with unlimited sub-accounts, and Agency Pro is $497, all with unlimited users and contacts, plus a white-label mobile app add-on at $497 per month. For an agency this can replace several tools at once. For a single plumber or clinic it is overkill, and the setup burden is heavier than anything else here. We cover that trade-off in more detail in our GoHighLevel alternatives guide.
Website builders with a CRM attached. Wix includes contact management, a shared inbox and automations alongside the site, which is enough for basic enquiry handling but is not a full sales CRM with scoring and forecasting. Squarespace has no comparable CRM. This category is worth a look mainly when your website is the main source of leads, because it removes the integration and the second bill at the same time.
Entry paid tiers, US list prices, October 2026. Figures move, so treat this as a starting point for your own quotes.
| Tool | Entry paid price | Billed by | Contacts included | Suits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| HubSpot Starter | $20 per seat per month | Seat | 1,000 marketing contacts | Staying in the HubSpot ecosystem |
| HubSpot Sales Hub Professional | From $100 per seat, plus $1,500 one-off onboarding | Seat | Varies by hub | Sales teams needing sequences and forecasting |
| Zoho CRM Standard | About $14 per user per month, annual | User | High record limits | Growing sales teams wanting depth cheaply |
| Zoho Bigin Express | $7 per user per month, annual | User | Record-based limits | One to five people who just want a pipeline |
| EngageBay Basic | $14.99 per user per month | User | 500 (Growth 5,000, Pro 10,000) | Marketing emails plus CRM in one |
| Bitrix24 Basic | $49 per month, annual | Organisation (5 users) | Generous | Teams of five or more avoiding per-seat costs |
| GoHighLevel Starter | $97 per month | Account (unlimited users) | Unlimited | Agencies and marketers serving clients |
| WebNewBiz Growth | $79 per month | Account (3 team members) | 3,000 | Businesses whose leads come from their own site |
One row deserves a caveat. If you already have a website you are happy with and all you need is a CRM, HubSpot Starter at $20 per seat or Zoho Bigin at $7 per user is cheaper than any bundle on this list, and you should take the cheaper option. The bundles only win when you are paying for a site, hosting and a CRM separately.
WebNewBiz is a website builder with the AI CRM in the same account, which puts it in the second category above: the CRM sits next to the thing producing the leads. Website enquiries land in the CRM automatically and store buyers become contacts, so there is nothing to connect.
What the CRM does: reads and scores leads so you know who to call first, deals, tasks and bookings, invoices that chase themselves, and connection to your own email so replies thread normally. It includes an AI funnel builder that drafts a multi-step funnel (landing page, opt-in, thank-you page) from a description of your offer, or starts from one of 26 templates, with opt-ins arriving as contacts. Workflow automations run on triggers such as a form submission, a scheduled date or a birthday.
The pricing, plainly: the CRM starts at Growth, $79 per month, with 3,000 contacts and 3 team members, which also includes the website, hosting, the online store, basic SEO tools, backups and a free domain for a year. Pro is $149 with 10,000 contacts, 5 team members, email campaigns, social media tools and advanced SEO. Ultimate is $199 with unlimited contacts, an AI chatbot and a phone system. Every plan is $1 for the first month. Full details are on the pricing page.
The weaknesses you should weigh before switching:
If you need deep sales forecasting, a large partner ecosystem or enterprise reporting, HubSpot Professional or Zoho Enterprise will serve you better, and it is worth paying for them. The case for a bundle is simpler: one bill, one login, and leads that are already in the CRM when you open it. Our website builder with CRM page sets out how the pieces fit together.
Do it in this order and a migration takes an afternoon rather than a fortnight.
One honest note if you are also moving your website: with WebNewBiz your content and domain move across, but the layout is rebuilt rather than imported, and a site built here cannot be exported as files to another host. Check that against how attached you are to your current design.
Is HubSpot's free CRM really free forever?
Yes, and it stays free as long as you stay inside the limits: 1,000 contacts, two free users, one pipeline per object type, 10 custom properties in total and one automated action per form. Those are HubSpot's own published figures at the time of writing (October 2026). Cross any of them and you get quoted for Starter.
What is the cheapest proper alternative for a small team?
For free, Bitrix24 (its own pricing FAQ says you can add an unlimited number of users on the free plan) or EngageBay's free tier at 250 contacts for up to 15 team members. For paid, Zoho Bigin Express is $7 per user per month on annual billing, and Bitrix24 Basic is $49 per month on annual billing for five users in total rather than per seat.
Do I need a separate CRM if my website builder already includes one?
Usually not. If nearly all your leads arrive through your own forms, bookings or store, a built-in CRM saves you both the integration work and the second subscription. Add a dedicated sales CRM when you have salespeople working outbound lists, several complex pipelines or real forecasting needs.
How much does the WebNewBiz CRM cost, and is it on every plan?
No, it starts at Growth, $79 per month, with 3,000 contacts and 3 team members. Pro is $149 with 10,000 contacts and 5 team members, and Ultimate is $199 with unlimited contacts. Lite ($9) and Starter ($29) have no CRM at all. Every plan is $1 for the first month, and there is no free plan.
Will I lose data when I leave HubSpot?
Export contacts, companies, deals, notes and activities to CSV before you cancel, while you still have full access. Expect to lose the things that do not export cleanly: email threads, workflow history, report configurations and dashboards. Rebuild your pipeline stages in the new tool first, then import.
Is GoHighLevel a sensible HubSpot replacement for a one-person business?
Rarely. It starts at $97 per month and is built for agencies running funnels and campaigns for clients, with a learning curve to match. If you are one person who wants a tidy pipeline, Zoho Bigin, Pipedrive or a CRM attached to your website will be far less work.
Describe your business in plain language and the AI drafts the site, then the CRM collects and scores the enquiries it produces. You can read how the builder works on the website builder page, or see what each plan includes under features. If a standalone CRM is the better fit for you after reading this, take one of the cheaper per-seat options instead; that is the right call more often than vendors admit.
When you want to try it, the first month is $1: start for $1, cancel any time.