If you’re a small- to medium-sized business, chances are you’ve looked into CRM, Customer Relationship Management, programs to improve and streamline customer interactions. HubSpot’s free plan is satisfactory for small businesses that don’t need anything but the bare necessities (email marketing, meeting scheduling, etc.). However, once you start looking at the paid plans for more advanced services, which are still important for growing businesses (sales and marketing automation, email templates, contact management, Stripe integration, etc.), then things start to get pricey. Some small businesses may not be able to justify the price jump to $45 – $90 per month for just the Starter package, let alone $450 per month for the Professional package. It’s just not financially feasible. Which is why I’ve compiled this list of affordable HubSpot alternatives for you to take your business to the next level without breaking the bank.
All-in-One HubSpot Alternative
Mission Suite
Mission Suite offers, in one system, all the CRM and automation tools (email marketing, sales management, automated email triggers, and inbound marketing) you need. You won’t need to manage and pay for multiple platforms to get your work done. Instead, you’ll find that using CRM software couldn’t be easier or more streamlined. Mission Suite’s pricing model is done a bit differently than other CRMs.
Instead of charging per user, they base price on the size of the database needed. This tends to make Mission Suite significantly less expensive than other CRM platforms and scalable to any size your business becomes. Their smallest database, which allows for 150 contacts and unlimited users, starts at $30 a month.
To get yourself up and running, you just need the Core Setup for $200, which includes contact groups, automated follow up systems, email templates, and much more. However, if you need more hands-on support, the Basic Setup for $400 has everything that the Core Setup has and your system will be customized to your needs and wants. In addition to having all the tools you need, Mission Suite also includes all training and support in the cost of your account.
You don’t have to settle for community forums or an online knowledge base. With Mission Suite, you can schedule a Zoom training session to get your questions answered by a live support professional whenever you need it. There is a somewhat expensive initial cost, but the low monthly subscription makes it worth it, especially considering that whatever your needs or desires are for your business, Mission Suite will help get you there.
EngageBay
EngageBay gives you the option to use their CRM & Sales Bay and Marketing Platform separately with the Service Bay free for both, or you can choose the All-in-One Platform for slightly more per month. EngageBay’s free plan doesn’t allow for as many contacts or emails as HubSpot, but their prices are affordable, especially for how many services they offer. Their midrange plan, the Growth plan, covers all your marketing and automation needs, but lacks analytics.
EngageBay’s most expensive plan, the Pro plan, is great for businesses looking for more analytical reports and quality customer support. They have a free plan available to check out the interface and try before you buy. EngageBay also has a free migration service that makes changing CRM programs even easier. This makes EngageBay a great HubSpot alternative and an amazing service to use if you’re already using HubSpot.
Ontraport
Ontraport is good for businesses that want to start an affiliate partner program. It has software built-in to allow for an affiliate partner program and Ecommerce abilities. It’s not the cheapest option, but compared to HubSpot, it’s affordable at $79 a month for Basic. What makes Ontraport great is that it gives you everything in one centralized, easy-to-use platform. They have guides, blogs, templates, and podcasts to help you level up your business. They also have many sales, marketing, and support tools that make it worth the higher price and still a viable HubSpot alternative.
Best Budget HubSpot Alternative
Drip
Drip is great for Ecommerce businesses. Automation is the name of Drip’s game. You can build the automation system you want and their prices start as low as $19 a month. They have hundreds of featured integrations and Ecommerce integrations with Shopify, WooCommerce, Magento, Big Commerce, and Custom Store. Drip also has their own blog and training that contains tons of valuable information to help you further your Ecommerce business.
What I like most about Drip is their scalable pricing. You choose how much you need. If you know how many people are on your email list, then just choose the plan that allows for a few thousand more. They have Email and Email+SMS plans, which differ only slightly in price, so I’d suggest the Email+SMS plan to have the option of SMS, but it’s not necessary. The Email plan for 501 – 2,000 contacts is $29 a month, and they let you try it for free for 14-days.
Pipedrive
Pipedrive is great for those on a tight budget. It has a good number of features for a decent price, and all price options allow for a 14-day free trial without inputting any credit card information. Start with the Enterprise option to see what features you need. You’ll be able to whittle it down to a plan at the price you can afford with the features you absolutely need. However, unlike HubSpot, Pipedrive doesn’t have a free plan, just a trial period.
Their interface is clean and easy-to-use, and they have their own affiliate partner program. If you start using their program and love it, you can become an affiliate partner and make commission from referrals. To be approved easily, it’s best if you have a blog, YouTube channel, or audience/network of some kind. Using this partnership can be a great way to subsidize the subscription cost.
Freshsales
Freshsales provides quality systems and tools for a low price. Their system and reports focus on leads, which will make the sales team happy, but the marketing team may see much to be desired. Freshsales’ interface is clean and easy to read, and their pricing is simple. You can try out their free plan first and upgrade as needed to a Grow, Pro, and Enterprise plan. Each price tier has its own visualization and customization tools, such as the Visual Sales Pipeline, AI-powered Predictive Contact Scoring, and custom reports and dashboards. Freshsales is great for small businesses, but you might find it to be lacking as your business grows. Still, it’s another viable HubSpot alternative.
Zoho CRM
Zoho CRM is another great alternative to HubSpot. It’s modern and easy to navigate. Their Ultimate package is only $52 a month, and it includes all of their tools and services. They have up to 25 different views for contacts, leads, etc. and let you try it for 30 days. The rest of their packages do not include the trial, just the Ultimate package. Their Enterprise package is the most popular, but I would get the Ultimate to see what you need, then downgrade if necessary.
Best HubSpot Alternative for Small Businesses
ActiveCampaign
ActiveCampaign is great for any kind of small business whether it’s B2C, B2B, or Ecommerce. Their systems and services are extensive, making their prices competitive, but still not cheap since you need the Pro plan to do more than the bare minimum, which costs $49 a month. Moreover, they only allow for annual billing, which can make mid-year upgrades annoying if you found that you needed it. If paying for your CRM program annually is not an issue, I’m sure you’ll find that ActiveCampaign has pretty much anything you’ll need.
Keap
Keap is quite similar to HubSpot in most ways, except in price. Where they stand out is in their appointment scheduling software, which allows leads to schedule appointments directly into your calendar. Keap’s cheapest plan is $40, but they often have sales, so keep an eye out for discounted plans. Their Pro plan is currently $80 a month for all the automation and analytics you’d need for 500 contacts and 1 user. It’s a strong contender against HubSpot and a bit cheaper in price.
Arctic PinPoint
Arctic PinPoint is a decent choice for quality, but the price is steeper compared to other CRMs on this list. Their cheapest Lite package has all the marketing automation basics for $59 a month. The price jumps from $59 to $219 for the Starter package, but the Professional plan seems to be the best value. You do, however, get a 30-day free trial for all plans. For $249 a month, you’ll have everything from the Lite and Starter packages, which includes things like lead scoring, lead source analytics, and multi-channel drips, plus dynamic email campaigns, custom reports, Facebook leads ad integration, and progressive profiling, making Arctic PinPoint best for established small businesses that want growth.
Sendinblue
Sendinblue is great if you want simplicity. If you really only need marketing automation, web tracking, and built-in CRM, the free and lite packages are your best choices for HubSpot alternatives. However, I’d say that their Premium package, which starts at $65 and only allows for 3 users (Mission Suite allows for an unlimited number of users), doesn’t quite measure up to the other plans and packages other companies offer. Nonetheless, if you try their free plan and find you love the interface and customer support, then maybe the higher price point will be well worth it to you.
Best HubSpot Alternative for Larger Businesses
GetResponse
GetResponse is great for businesses that engage with their customers through webinars and Ecommerce because of their Autofunnel feature that does all the sales heavy-lifting for you. Their prices are reasonable and scalable for your business’ growth, which makes them a great choice for budding businesses. They also have pricing for mid & large companies with their MAX options.
GetResponse allows you to create your own funnel of landing pages, emails, and even payment processing through gateways like Stripe and Square. GetResponse would be perfect for startups since the entire price plan is scalable and upgradable to allow for necessary growth, and their prices decrease the further you pay in advance. They also have a free option that has the basics for you to see if you like their interface and set-up.
Groove
Groove provides mostly sales acceleration, intelligence, and management platforms for your business. Their product is easy-to-use, easy-to-setup and affordable. They’re geared more toward medium- to large-businesses, but they are a great option to consider if you foresee significant growth in your business. Their product is also highly configurable and integrated with nearly every digital tool and social media site. However, it might not be affordable to small businesses and startups, so maybe not the best HubSpot Alternative, but a great tool nonetheless.
Ruler Analytics
Ruler Analytics is best for improving the customer’s journey. If your business is struggling to track conversions, then Ruler Analytics will help to close that gap. Instead of focusing on lead generation, it takes revenue data you put into your CRM and sends it to the analytics tool. It doesn’t offer any marketing automation or CRM tools, rather it links with tools that you probably have already. So it’s not exactly a HubSpot alternative, but it is a great tool. With that being said, it also doesn’t really belong on this list, since it’s not cheap. However, it is a nice addition for businesses looking to improve sales.
Conclusion
HubSpot has great CRM software, but its pricing and tools aren’t for everybody. There are a number of better and/or more affordable CRMs to choose from. There are also a number of softwares and tools that are more expensive. However, they may be worth the price for your business’ needs. If it’s important to you to try before you buy, focus your energy on the CRMs with free trials. A company’s free plan still may not be enough to figure out whether you really like it. If you need an all-in-one system, try Mission Suite, EngageBay, and Ontraport. If you need a cheap system, try Drip, Pipedrive, Freshsales, and Zoho CRM. If you have a larger business, try GetResponse, Groove, and Ruler Analytics.
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