9 Best HubSpot Alternatives in 2026 (Compared)

Comparing the top 9 best HubSpot alternatives for 2026 includes 1. ActiveCampaign, 2. Zoho CRM, 3. Salesforce (Agentforce Sales), 4. Freshsales, 5. Pipedrive, 6. EngageBay, 7. Klaviyo, 8. Mailchimp, 9. Keap.

ActiveCampaign and Zoho CRM suit teams that want HubSpot’s all-in-one scope at a fraction of the price; Salesforce fits enterprise sales orgs with a dedicated RevOps team; Freshsales and Pipedrive target teams that want a lighter, sales-first CRM without HubSpot’s marketing bloat; EngageBay and Keap serve small businesses and solo operators on a tight budget; and Klaviyo and Mailchimp are for teams that only need HubSpot for email and don’t want to pay for a full CRM they won’t use.

Picking the wrong tool after leaving HubSpot means either paying for marketing-hub features a sales-first CRM never included, or discovering too late that a “budget” pick charges by total contact count the same way HubSpot does. Each tool below was evaluated on pricing transparency, review credibility on G2, and how directly it answers the two most-cited reasons buyers leave HubSpot: fast-escalating contact-based pricing and the mandatory $3,000 to $7,000 onboarding fee on its Professional and Enterprise tiers.

TL;DR

1. ActiveCampaign: Best for teams that want HubSpot-level automation depth at a fraction of the cost.
2. Zoho CRM: Best for budget-conscious teams that want a broad, affordable suite beyond just CRM.
3. Salesforce (Agentforce Sales): Best for enterprise sales orgs that need deep customization and a dedicated RevOps team.
4. Freshsales: Best for teams that want enterprise-level CRM features without the enterprise price tag.
5. Pipedrive: Best for sales teams that want a visual, pipeline-first CRM without marketing-hub bloat.
6. EngageBay: Best for small businesses that want an all-in-one HubSpot substitute on a tight budget.
7. Klaviyo: Best for ecommerce brands that need deep email and SMS with native Shopify integration.
8. Mailchimp: Best for solo marketers who want simple email marketing without a full CRM.
9. Keap: Best for solo entrepreneurs and small service businesses that want CRM plus automation in one place.

Top 9 HubSpot Alternatives at a Glance

How We Chose These Tools?

Each tool was evaluated using G2 review pages, vendor pricing pages, and company case-study pages, cross-checked against secondary review aggregation since G2’s own pages consistently blocked direct automated fetches during this research pass. Where a rating showed meaningful variance across sources (Keap, EngageBay), that variance is flagged rather than presented as a single settled number.

The two factors that mattered most for this category: pricing transparency as contact lists grow, since HubSpot’s own reviewers cite fast-escalating costs and a mandatory $3,000 to $7,000 onboarding fee on Professional and Enterprise as the top complaint, and fit against a narrower job than “all-in-one,” since several alternatives here (Pipedrive, Klaviyo, Mailchimp) deliberately do less than HubSpot and charge accordingly.

For the full process (every source we use, what disqualifies a tool, our conflict-of-interest handling, and our corrections policy) read our research methodology and editorial policy .

Detailed Comparison

1. ActiveCampaign

Best for: Teams that want HubSpot-comparable marketing automation depth without HubSpot-level pricing.

ActiveCampaign is a Chicago-based, largely bootstrapped platform built around customer experience automation (CXA), pairing deep marketing automation with a built-in CRM and sales automation layer.

Tool Snapshot

Fit Profile

It’s for teams that want automation depth “comparable to far more expensive platforms like HubSpot or Infusionsoft at a fraction of the cost,” per its own G2 reviewer base.

It’s NOT for teams that want stable, predictable pricing long-term; multiple reviewers report price increases of roughly 100 percent over three years as contact lists and automation complexity grow.

Core Strengths

Founded in 2003 and largely self-funded until a 2020 raise, ActiveCampaign now serves 180,000+ customers across 170+ countries with 800+ employees behind it.

• Deep automation plus built-in CRM/sales tooling in one platform
• Named clients include the Museum of Science and Industry Chicago (206% YoY revenue growth) and Pit Boss Grills ($76,717 from a single email campaign)
• Bootstrapped for most of its life, a different funding profile than VC-fueled competitors

Proof Point

A G2 reviewer wrote that ActiveCampaign “delivers capabilities comparable to far more expensive platforms like HubSpot or Infusionsoft at a fraction of the cost” (via aggregated G2 review coverage; direct primary fetch was blocked, wording approximate).

Limitation

The recurring G2 complaint is onboarding difficulty and a real learning curve, and pricing is dynamic and contact-volume-dependent rather than published in flat tiers.

• Onboarding and automation-builder learning curve flagged repeatedly on G2
• Pricing scales with contact count, so exact figures require a live quote

Editor’s Read

We’d send teams here first if the goal is HubSpot-grade automation without HubSpot-grade pricing, as long as they budget for the contact-based scaling.

Pricing

ActiveCampaign uses tiered subscription pricing with dynamic, contact-count-based rates across 4 tiers (Starter, Plus, Pro, Enterprise). Its pricing page shows no flat dollar figures until you select a contact volume, so the numbers below come from third-party aggregation as of August 2026 and should be confirmed with a live quote at activecampaign.com/pricing before purchase.

2. Zoho CRM

Best for: Budget-conscious teams that want an affordable CRM tied into a much wider app suite.

Zoho CRM is the CRM flagship of Zoho Corporation, a Chennai-headquartered software company that bundles CRM with email, finance, HR, and project tools across its broader Zoho One suite.

Tool Snapshot

Fit Profile

It’s for small teams that want CRM plus finance, HR, and project tools under one vendor umbrella, at Standard pricing of $14/user/mo versus HubSpot’s $890/mo Professional plus a $3,000 onboarding fee.

It’s NOT for teams that need advanced customization or complex, branching workflows; reviewers describe those as a real ceiling on Zoho CRM specifically.

Core Strengths

Founded in 1996 and now serving 80M+ users across its full app suite, Zoho positions CRM as one affordable piece of a much larger connected system.

• Free tier for up to 3 users, with paid tiers starting at $14/user/mo
• Deep integration into Zoho One’s finance, HR, and project apps
• Named client LIVIN publicly evaluated Zoho CRM against HubSpot, Salesforce, and Pipedrive before choosing it

Proof Point

A G2 reviewer, Hrishikesh P. (mid-market, 51-1,000 employees), rated it 5.0/5 and wrote: “This is the best CRM software which is very easy to use and easy to implement to the system” (Source: G2 ).

Limitation

Reviewers say it “can feel a bit limited when you need advanced customization or complex workflows,” and reporting/analytics depth trails enterprise-grade systems.

• Advanced customization and branching workflows are a reported ceiling
• Some users flag integration setup friction across Zoho’s many own apps

Editor’s Read

We’d point cost-sensitive teams here specifically for the free tier and the Zoho One ecosystem, not for deep workflow customization.

Pricing

Zoho CRM uses tiered subscription pricing. As of August 2026, Standard runs $14/user/mo, Professional $23/user/mo, Enterprise $40/user/mo, and Ultimate $52/user/mo, with a free-forever plan for up to 3 users. Zoho’s pricing page geolocates and often renders in local currency rather than USD, so confirm the current USD figures at zoho.com before purchase.

3. Salesforce (Agentforce Sales)

Best for: Enterprise sales organizations that need deep customization and have the RevOps resource to run it.

Salesforce , now listing its CRM product on G2 as “Agentforce Sales (formerly Salesforce Sales Cloud),” is the category benchmark for large sales organizations that need configurability HubSpot’s Sales Hub doesn’t attempt to match.

Tool Snapshot

Fit Profile

It’s for mid-market and enterprise sales teams with dedicated RevOps staff who need the AppExchange ecosystem and cross-cloud integration across marketing, service, and commerce.

It’s NOT for small teams looking for a lightweight HubSpot swap; total cost climbs fast once customization, add-ons, and admin overhead are factored in.

Core Strengths

Founded in 1999, Salesforce was named G2’s #1 Best Software Product overall in 2025, and its named clients include Mercedes-Benz and NBCUniversal.

• G2’s #1 Best Software Product overall in 2025
• Deep AppExchange ecosystem and cross-cloud (Marketing, Service, Commerce) integration
• Named enterprise clients: Mercedes-Benz, NBCUniversal, Azizi Developments

Proof Point

A G2 reviewer wrote that Salesforce’s smooth integrations reduced “the quote creation process from 72 clicks taking 3-4 minutes to just 5-10 seconds” (Source: G2 ).

Limitation

G2 reviewers consistently flag cost and complexity: “the steep learning curve and complexity can be overwhelming for new users,” and total cost climbs quickly with add-ons and admin overhead.

• Steep learning curve flagged consistently across reviews
• Total cost of ownership rises fast once customization and admin overhead stack up

Editor’s Read

We’d only recommend Salesforce over HubSpot once a team has outgrown lightweight CRM needs and has staff to run the platform properly.

Pricing

Salesforce prices Agentforce Sales across 4 editions. As of August 2026, third-party aggregation puts plans at roughly $25/user/mo at entry, rising past $300/user/mo at the top edition, with a free trial available. Salesforce’s pricing page blocks automated verification and its editions are repriced frequently, so treat the ceiling as indicative and confirm current figures at salesforce.com before purchase.

4. Freshsales

Best for: Teams that want enterprise-level CRM capabilities without an enterprise-level price tag.

Freshsales , part of Freshworks (founded in Chennai, India in 2010), is built around fast time-to-value, positioned on “signup to first pipeline view in under an hour.”

Tool Snapshot

Fit Profile

It’s for teams that want enterprise CRM capability at a materially lower price than Salesforce or HubSpot, evidenced by the 74,000+ businesses Freshworks says use the product.

It’s NOT for teams that want HubSpot’s marketing-hub depth; Freshsales is sales/CRM-first, with fewer landing-page and ads-management features than HubSpot’s Marketing Hub.

Core Strengths

Freshworks names Blue Nile, Humn, and Sify as Freshsales customers on the product page, and states 74,000+ businesses use it (company-published figures, not individually verified case studies).

• Growth tier starts at $9/user/mo (annual), far below HubSpot’s Professional tier
• 21-day full-feature trial, no credit card gate, before any paid commitment
• Positioned on speed: pipeline visibility within the first hour of signup

Proof Point

G2 reviewers “consistently highlight that it delivers enterprise-level CRM capabilities at a fraction of the cost of competitors like Salesforce and HubSpot,” with “best price for the features offered” a recurring phrase (Source: G2 review-theme summary ).

Limitation

Freshsales carries fewer marketing-specific features (landing pages, ads management) than HubSpot’s Marketing Hub, so it’s not a full marketing-hub replacement on its own.

• Sales/CRM-first scope, not a marketing-hub substitute
• Add-ons like Branded Documents ($19/user/mo) and the Freddy AI Agent ($49/100 sessions) cost extra

Editor’s Read

We’d recommend Freshsales specifically when the goal is CRM capability at a lower price, paired with a separate tool for marketing-hub-style features.

Pricing

Freshsales uses tiered subscription pricing billed annually. As of August 2026, Growth runs $9/user/mo, Pro $39/user/mo, and Enterprise $59/user/mo. There is no free plan; Freshworks offers a 21-day trial of the full CRM instead. Confirm current figures at freshworks.com/crm/pricing before purchase.

5. Pipedrive

Best for: Sales teams that want a visual, pipeline-first CRM without HubSpot’s marketing-hub bloat.

Pipedrive , founded in 2010 in Tallinn, Estonia, is a deliberately narrower CRM than HubSpot: built visually for salespeople rather than marketers, and optimized for fast setup and pipeline visibility.

Tool Snapshot

Fit Profile

It’s for sales teams of any size that want a fast, visual pipeline view without paying for marketing-hub features they don’t use; it’s used by 100,000+ companies worldwide.

It’s NOT for teams that need conditional logic or branching automation; its workflow builder “breaks down when you need conditional logic, branching, or complex multi-step workflows.”

Core Strengths

Ranked #6 on G2’s Best Sales Software 2026 list with an 8.9/10 ease-of-use sub-score, Pipedrive leans hard into simplicity as its differentiator.

• #6 on G2’s Best Sales Software 2026 list, 8.9/10 ease-of-use score
• 100,000+ companies on the platform, per Pipedrive’s own milestone announcement
• Deliberately narrower scope than HubSpot, built for speed of setup

Proof Point

A reviewer with a sales team under 10 people wrote: “What I like most about Pipedrive is how easy it is to use. The visual pipeline makes it straightforward to track deals and quickly see exactly where each opportunity stands” (Source: G2 ).

Limitation

Its automation “follows a simple trigger-action format that works for basic sequences but breaks down when you need conditional logic,” and several marketing features HubSpot bundles natively are paid add-ons here.

• Automation builder can’t handle complex, branching workflows
• Marketing features HubSpot includes natively are separate paid add-ons

Editor’s Read

We’d send teams here when pipeline simplicity matters more than marketing-hub depth, and steer complex-automation buyers elsewhere.

Pricing

Pipedrive uses tiered, per-seat subscription pricing. As of August 2026, plans start at $14/seat/mo billed annually ($24/seat/mo month-to-month) for the entry Lite tier and run up to $99/seat/mo depending on tier. Pipedrive’s pricing page blocks automated verification, so these figures come from third-party aggregation; confirm current figures at pipedrive.com before purchase.

6. EngageBay

Best for: Small businesses that want an all-in-one HubSpot substitute on a genuinely tight budget.

EngageBay , founded in 2018, is a bootstrapped all-in-one CRM, marketing, and helpdesk suite explicitly positioned as a low-cost alternative to HubSpot and ActiveCampaign for small businesses.

Tool Snapshot

Fit Profile

It’s for small businesses that want CRM, marketing, and helpdesk in one login at Basic pricing of $12.74/mo on biennial billing, roughly 70x cheaper than HubSpot’s Professional tier before its onboarding fee.

It’s NOT for teams that need advanced reporting depth or a polished mobile app; those trail “larger, enterprise-focused platforms” by EngageBay’s own reviewer base.

Core Strengths

Serving roughly 28,000 customers with a dev team in India, EngageBay’s clearest case study, A+ Test Prep and Tutoring, reports dropping 6 tools and cutting spend from $755/mo to $99/mo.

• Free tier covers 250 contacts at $0/mo, no card required to start
• Named case study A+ Test Prep and Tutoring saved $656/mo (86%) by consolidating 6 tools into one
• 8% discount on annual billing, 15% on biennial billing

Proof Point

Reviews “consistently highlight EngageBay’s affordability, responsive support, and breadth of features” (via aggregated G2 review-theme coverage; a single named, attributed quote was not found in this research pass).

Limitation

Reviews note trade-offs in “advanced reporting depth, integration breadth, and mobile app polish compared to larger, enterprise-focused platforms,” the cost of the low price.

• Reporting and integration depth trail larger platforms
• Mobile app polish flagged as weaker than enterprise-grade competitors

Editor’s Read

We’d recommend EngageBay specifically to small businesses prioritizing price over reporting depth, and suggest testing the free tier first.

Pricing

EngageBay uses tiered subscription pricing. As of August 2026, Free runs $0/mo (250 contacts), Basic $12.74/mo (500 contacts, biennial billing), Growth $55.24/mo (5,000 contacts), and Pro $101.99/mo (50,000 contacts); confirm current figures at engagebay.com before purchase.

7. Klaviyo

Best for: Ecommerce brands that need deep email and SMS marketing with native Shopify integration.

Klaviyo , founded in 2012 and based in Boston, is an ecommerce-specific email/SMS and customer-data platform, deliberately not a general CRM or sales pipeline tool.

Tool Snapshot

Fit Profile

It’s for ecommerce brands that only need HubSpot for email marketing, with named client ICONIC London reporting a 12.5x ROI after switching from Dotdigital.

It’s NOT for teams that need a sales CRM or pipeline; Klaviyo is marketing-only, so replacing HubSpot means pairing it with a separate CRM.

Core Strengths

Klaviyo’s deepest differentiator is Shopify integration and segmentation depth, with Case-Mate reporting 35% year-over-year DTC revenue growth after adopting it.

• 12.5x ROI reported by ICONIC London after switching from Dotdigital in 2021
• Deepest Shopify integration and segmentation in the ecommerce-email category
• Case-Mate reported 35% year-over-year direct-to-consumer revenue growth post-adoption

Proof Point

A G2 reviewer wrote: “Email marketing has been the single best investment I have made in over 12 years of running my ecommerce business. Klaviyo… today is consistently responsible for over 35% of total business revenue” (via aggregated G2 review coverage; reviewer identity not resolved in this pass).

Limitation

Pricing scales by total profile count in the database, including unemailed contacts, a pattern reviewers nickname the “database bloat tax” and the single most common G2/Capterra complaint.

• Pricing counts even unengaged profiles toward plan limits
• Marketing-only; switching from HubSpot requires a separate CRM for sales

Editor’s Read

We’d recommend Klaviyo only to ecommerce teams that don’t need a sales pipeline, and warn every buyer to check the profile-count math before committing.

Pricing

Klaviyo uses a free tier plus usage-based paid pricing. As of August 2026, Free covers 250 profiles, 500 emails/mo, and $5 of mobile messages/mo; paid tiers (Marketing, Data + Analytics, Service, Composer) are custom, profile-based pricing rather than flat published tiers; confirm current figures at klaviyo.com before purchase.

8. Mailchimp

Best for: Solo marketers and small businesses who want simple email marketing without a full CRM.

Mailchimp , founded in 2001 and acquired by Intuit in 2021, has historically been the default entry point for small businesses before graduating to a fuller CRM, strongest on template design and ease of use.

Tool Snapshot

Fit Profile

It’s for solo marketers and small businesses that want ready-to-use templates and an easy drag-and-drop editor, without paying for CRM or sales-pipeline features they won’t use.

It’s NOT for teams that expect a stable, generous free plan long-term; the free tier has shrunk from 2,000 contacts (2022) to 500 (2023) to 250 (2026), and automation was fully stripped from free by mid-2025.

Core Strengths

Company-published figures put Mailchimp at 20M+ customers across 175 countries, with template design and ease of use as its strongest reviewer-cited traits.

• Drag-and-drop editor and ready-to-use templates praised repeatedly on G2
• 20M+ customers across 175 countries (company-published figure)
• Familiar, low-friction on-ramp for teams new to email marketing

Proof Point

G2 reviewer Lakshmi M., Marketing Executive (Feb 2025), wrote: “Mailchimp provides many ready-to-use templates and its drag-and-drop editor is very easy to use” (Source: G2 ).

Limitation

G2’s own sub-score for value sits at just 3.6/5, and contact-based billing counts unsubscribed contacts toward plan limits until manually archived, a widely cited 2024+ policy change.

• Value sub-score (3.6/5) is notably lower than ease-of-use (4.3/5)
• Free tier has shrunk three years running, and automation left the free plan in 2025

Editor’s Read

We’d treat Mailchimp as a starter option only, given how much the free tier has eroded since it was HubSpot’s most common on-ramp alternative.

Pricing

Mailchimp uses tiered subscription pricing. As of August 2026, Free covers 250 contacts, Essentials runs roughly $13/mo (500 contacts, 5,000 sends), Standard from roughly $20/mo, and Premium roughly $350/mo; confirm current USD figures at mailchimp.com before purchase, since pricing pages can geolocate to local currency.

9. Keap

Best for: Solo entrepreneurs and small service businesses that want CRM plus marketing automation in one place.

Keap , originally launched in 2001 as Infusionsoft and acquired by Thryv in 2025 (now listed on G2 as “Thryv Keap”), targets solo entrepreneurs and small service businesses like coaches, agencies, and consultants, a narrower ICP than HubSpot’s.

Tool Snapshot

Fit Profile

It’s for solo operators and small service businesses that want all-in-one CRM plus automation and are willing to pay a higher entry price for a narrower, purpose-built tool.

It’s NOT for teams that want marquee-name proof or a settled review record; its case studies feature small-business owners rather than recognizable brands, and its G2 rating varies meaningfully across sources.

Core Strengths

Reviewers “praise the all-in-one scope, automation depth, and responsive support” specifically for the solo-entrepreneur and small-service-business use case Keap was built for.

• All-in-one CRM and marketing/sales automation purpose-built for solo operators
• Responsive support called out repeatedly in aggregated reviews
• Long operating history dating back to its 2001 Infusionsoft launch

Proof Point

An aggregated G2 reviewer wrote: “I use Keap to manage clients and really appreciate how it helps me save time by automating…” (via aggregated G2 review coverage; direct primary fetch was blocked, wording approximate).

Limitation

At $299/mo for just 2 users, Keap carries the highest entry price per seat in this roster, and reviewers cite “a fractured environment after the rebrand” (Infusionsoft to Keap to Thryv Keap) plus automation-builder bugs.

• Highest per-seat entry price in this roundup before add-ons
• Rebrand history (three names in five years) and reported automation-builder crashes

Editor’s Read

We’d only recommend Keap once a team has confirmed its solo/small-service ICP fit, given the entry price and the unsettled review record.

Pricing

Keap uses flat subscription pricing with no feature-based tiers. As of August 2026, the main platform starts at $299/mo billed annually ($2,988/yr), including 2 user licenses, with additional users at $39/mo each. Contact volume and text-marketing tiers (up to $279/mo) adjust the total, and implementation services are required on top. Confirm current figures at keap.com before purchase, since older third-party sources cite a lower $249/mo figure that appears out of date.

Why Look for a HubSpot Alternative?

The most cited reason buyers look past HubSpot is pricing that escalates fast as contact lists grow, on top of a mandatory, non-refundable $3,000 onboarding fee at Professional ($890/mo) and $7,000 at Enterprise ($3,600/mo), both due in year one regardless of usage.

The second driver is scope mismatch. HubSpot bundles Marketing, Sales, Service, Content, Commerce, and Data Hubs into one “customer platform,” which is a real advantage for teams that want everything connected, but overkill (and overpriced) for a team that only needs a sales pipeline or only needs email marketing. Reviewers also flag limited customization and a steep learning curve as recurring complaints even among teams that stay on the platform.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the best HubSpot alternative?

ActiveCampaign is the strongest pick for automation depth at a lower price. Zoho CRM is the closest match for a broad, affordable all-in-one suite.

Is there a cheaper HubSpot alternative?

Yes. Zoho CRM, EngageBay, Klaviyo, and Mailchimp offer free tiers, and Freshsales starts at $9/user/mo, well below HubSpot’s paid tiers.

Does HubSpot really charge an onboarding fee?

Yes. HubSpot Professional requires a non-refundable $3,000 onboarding fee in year one and Enterprise $7,000, both on top of the monthly subscription.

Which HubSpot alternative is best for ecommerce brands?

Klaviyo, thanks to its deep Shopify integration and segmentation; named client ICONIC London reported a 12.5x ROI after switching to it.

Which HubSpot alternative works best for enterprise sales teams?

Salesforce (Agentforce Sales), rated G2’s #1 Best Software Product overall in 2025, though it needs a dedicated RevOps team to run properly.

Which HubSpot alternative has a genuinely free plan?

Zoho CRM, EngageBay, Klaviyo, and Mailchimp publish real free tiers. Freshsales no longer does; it offers a 21-day trial instead.

Which alternative is closest to HubSpot’s all-in-one model?

Zoho CRM and EngageBay both bundle CRM, marketing, and support functions in one suite, similar in scope to HubSpot but at a lower price point.

Update History

• August 6, 2026: Published.

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