HubSpot CRM vs Salesforce Sales Cloud

Updated October 2026 · AppBreakup editorial

HubSpot CRM

A free CRM that grows into HubSpot's paid sales, marketing and service hubs.

Free plan + paid

Visit HubSpot CRM HubSpot CRM profile

Salesforce Sales Cloud

The enterprise sales CRM most large companies standardise on, with a huge app and partner ecosystem.

Paid

Visit Salesforce Sales Cloud Salesforce Sales Cloud profile

The short answer

Pick HubSpot if you are a small or mid-sized company that wants sales and marketing on one easy-to-run system, starting free. Pick Salesforce Sales Cloud if you are a larger sales organisation with complex processes and an admin or partner to configure it. The biggest difference is depth against ease: Salesforce can model almost anything, while HubSpot is far quicker to set up and use.

HubSpot CRM or Salesforce Sales Cloud: our take

HubSpot CRM is the shared contact and deal database under HubSpot's sales, marketing and service products. Everything sits on one record, so marketing emails, website visits, support tickets and sales calls appear on the same timeline. Salesforce Sales Cloud is built for managing leads, accounts, opportunities and forecasts at scale, with custom objects, approval flows, territories, detailed permissions and multi-currency forecasting. Its AppExchange marketplace and large pool of consultants and trained admins mean most odd requirements already have a known answer; HubSpot's marketplace is also large, with more than 2,000 apps.

Pricing models differ from the first day. HubSpot has a free tier with no time limit and no credit card required, covering contacts, deals, tasks, email tracking, meeting links and basic reporting; paid Sales, Marketing and Service Hub editions add automation and forecasting. Its Starter editions are cheap, but the jump to Professional is large, and many automation features sit in the higher tiers. Salesforce has no free plan, only a 30-day trial. Its Starter Suite costs $25 per user/month and the Pro Suite $100 per user/month, with higher editions climbing steeply and AI through Agentforce for Sales from $125/user/month.

The day-to-day experience reflects their goals. HubSpot can be set up without a consultant, but its data modelling is less flexible than Salesforce's. Salesforce usually needs a dedicated admin or partner to set up and maintain well, and its interface feels dense for small teams. Both run in the browser with iOS and Android apps.

For small and mid-sized businesses, especially those that want marketing and sales in one system, HubSpot is usually the faster win. For companies with complex sales structures, territories and forecasting, or that expect to grow into them, Salesforce is the tool they are less likely to outgrow.

Choose HubSpot CRM if…

Small and mid-sized teams that want sales and marketing data in one easy CRM
You want a free option (Salesforce Sales Cloud is paid only)
You need Browser extension, which Salesforce Sales Cloud doesn't list
Free tier with no time limit covers the basics well
Sales, marketing and service activity on one contact timeline

Choose Salesforce Sales Cloud if…

Larger sales organisations that need deep customisation and an admin to run it
Models almost any sales process with custom objects and flows
Largest ecosystem of integrations, consultants and trained admins

What is HubSpot CRM?

HubSpot CRM is the shared contact and deal database underneath HubSpot's sales, marketing and customer service products. The free tier is genuinely usable: contacts, companies, deals, tasks, email tracking, meeting links and basic reporting, with no time limit. Teams then add paid Sales Hub, Marketing Hub or Service Hub editions when they need sequences, automation, forecasting or more seats with advanced permissions. Its main strength is that everything sits on one record, so marketing emails, website visits, support tickets and sales calls show up in the same timeline, and setup is far easier than with enterprise CRMs. The catch is the pricing ladder: Starter editions are cheap, but Professional and Enterprise tiers cost much more and some features only appear there, so the bill can jump when you outgrow the basics. It runs in the browser with iOS and Android apps and a large marketplace of integrations. It suits small and mid-sized companies that want sales and marketing in one system.

What is Salesforce Sales Cloud?

Sales Cloud is Salesforce's core CRM for managing leads, accounts, opportunities and forecasts. It is the default choice for many large and mid-sized sales organisations because almost anything can be modelled: custom objects, approval flows, territories, complex permission rules and multi-currency forecasting. The AppExchange marketplace and a large pool of consultants and admins mean most integrations and odd requirements already have a known answer. The trade-off is weight. Setting it up well usually needs a dedicated admin or a partner, the interface has accumulated years of features, and the bill grows quickly once you add editions, AI features and add-ons. Pricing is per user per month across several suites, starting with a small-business Starter Suite and climbing steeply for Enterprise and Unlimited editions; there is no free plan, only a trial. It runs in the browser with iOS and Android apps. Small teams with simple pipelines are often better served by lighter tools, but companies that expect to grow into complex processes rarely outgrow it.

Side by side

Attribute	HubSpot CRM	Salesforce Sales Cloud
Pricing	Free plan + paid	Paid
Open source	No	No
Self-hostable	No	No
Platforms	Web, iOS, Android, Browser extension	Web, iOS, Android
Best for	Small and mid-sized teams that want sales and marketing data in one easy CRM	Larger sales organisations that need deep customisation and an admin to run it
Status	Active	Active