HubSpot Alternatives for Small Business: Prices Compared

By Jody Rourke · Published October 22, 2026 · Last updated October 22, 2026 · Prices checked October 19, 2026

How we checked this: Compared from official docs and pricing pages as of 2026-10-19 (HubSpot catalog View-Only seats and Zoho trial re-read 2026-10-22). We haven't tested these tools hands-on.

If you want a free CRM for a small team, try Zoho CRM: its free edition covers up to 3 users (your team's logins) [5]. If you want a paid sales pipeline at a low seat price, Pipedrive Lite is US$14 per seat a month, billed annually, as of Oct. 19, 2026 [4]. If email automation is the main job, look at ActiveCampaign.

Staying on HubSpot's free CRM is also an option, and we cover when that makes sense below. For more tool categories, see our guide to the best AI tools for small business.

Best HubSpot alternatives for small business (quick list)

How we picked: tools with official pricing or plan pages we could read on 2026-10-19, listed in no particular order. We didn't rank them.

• Zoho CRM: free for up to 3 users, no credit card [5]; Standard is $14 per user a month billed annually, or $20 per user a month billed monthly [5].
• Pipedrive: no free plan on its pricing page, but a free 14-day trial with no credit card [4]. Lite is US$14 per seat a month billed annually, or US$24 per seat a month billed monthly [4].
• ActiveCampaign: email automation with CRM features; plans run from Starter (1 user) to Enterprise (5 users) [6]. At 1,000 contacts, Starter is $15/month and Pro (3 users) $79/month, billed annually [6].
• Zoho Bigin Express: Zoho's simpler CRM, at $7 per user a month billed annually or $9 per user a month billed monthly [5].

Prices as of 2026-10-19 (vendor pricing pages), in USD. Prices and plan limits change. Check the vendor's pricing page before you buy.

Why owners leave HubSpot: paid seats add up

HubSpot's free CRM costs nothing. HubSpot says it's "100% free with no expiration date" and needs no credit card [1]. The cost shows up when you need paid features for several people.

• HubSpot's catalog lists these seat list prices but doesn't say whether they're billed monthly or annually (as of 2026-10-19): a Starter Core Seat at $20/month per seat, a Professional Core Seat at $50/month per seat and an Enterprise Core Seat at $75/month per seat [2].
• Full Sales Hub Professional needs a Sales Seat. HubSpot's pricing page says Professional "starts at $90/mo/seat" on an annual commitment; the $100/mo/seat list is what Pay Monthly shows, still on an annual commitment; plus the required one-time $1,500 flat Professional Onboarding fee (as of Oct. 19, 2026) [2][8]. Sales Hub Enterprise is $150/month per seat, list price; HubSpot's catalog doesn't say whether this is billed monthly or annually (as of Oct. 19, 2026) [2].
• If you subscribe to Marketing Hub, you're charged for marketing contacts; there's no charge for contacts in the free contacts database [2].

The catalog seat prices above are list prices from HubSpot's legal catalog [2]. Limited-time promotional prices aren't included, so the cost table below uses the $20/month per seat Starter list price, but HubSpot's catalog doesn't say whether this is billed monthly or annually (as of Oct. 19, 2026) [2].

One thing that doesn't cost extra: HubSpot's catalog lists View-Only seats, for people who only need to look, at no additional cost on Starter, Professional and Enterprise [2].

Pipedrive

Pipedrive is a sales pipeline CRM priced per seat. Per seat per month, as of 2026-10-19 [4]:

Pipedrive says annual billing saves up to 42% and lists 500+ integrations [4]. Its prices exclude VAT [4]. Add-ons such as LeadBooster and Campaigns can be added to any plan [4]. Pipedrive's pricing page lists them at "starting from" prices but doesn't state their unit or whether they're billed monthly or annually (as of Oct. 19, 2026), so we leave those prices out.

Not for: you, if you want a free plan you can keep. Pipedrive's pricing page offers a 14-day trial, not a free plan [4]. Budget extra if you'd need add-ons: Pipedrive lists them as additional tools with their own "starting from" prices [4].

Zoho CRM

Zoho CRM has a free edition for up to 3 users, with no credit card required [5]. Free limits include up to 10 custom email templates, 10 free data exports and 5,000 API calls per day [5].

Paid Zoho CRM editions, per user per month in USD [5]:

Zoho says QuickBooks integration is an Enterprise-edition feature in Zoho CRM, and Bigin Express also lists QuickBooks integration [5]. Local taxes are charged on top of listed prices [5]. Zoho CRM Plus "Starts at $20/user/month" on Zoho's pricing page, list price, but Zoho doesn't say whether this is billed monthly or annually (as of Oct. 19, 2026) [5]. Check the plan details before you compare it.

Not for: teams of 4 or more who want to stay free, because the free edition supports up to 3 users [5]. It's also not the cheap pick if you need the QuickBooks sync in Zoho CRM itself, because that's on Enterprise ($40 per user a month billed annually, as of Oct. 19, 2026) [5]. Zoho's paid editions come with a 15-day free trial [9].

ActiveCampaign (if email automation is the main need)

ActiveCampaign's plans are Starter (1 user, 5 actions per automation), Plus (1 user), Pro (3 users) and Enterprise (5 users), and its pricing cards say "Billed annually" [6]. It offers a free 14-day trial [6]. ActiveCampaign's pricing page also advertises "results in 30 days or your money back" [6]. Read its terms before you count on that.

Email plan prices per month, billed annually, in USD [6]:

ActiveCampaign's prices go up with your contact count, and each plan includes a set number of users [6]. Our tip: price it at the list size you expect next year, not today.

Not for: a team that needs more than one person in the tool on a budget, because Starter and Plus include 1 user [6]. If a sales pipeline is your main need, compare Pipedrive and Zoho CRM first. Compare email tools in our Mailchimp alternatives list.

Worked cost example: 1, 3 and 5 users (as of 2026-10-19)

This uses only the list prices above [2][4][5], in USD per month. Math: price per seat or user x number of users (for example, Pipedrive Lite at US$24 per seat per month, billed monthly: 3 x US$24 = $72 and 5 x US$24 = $120).

What the math shows: for 3 users, Zoho CRM Free costs $0. The Zoho and Pipedrive paid entry plans for 3 users run from $42 a month (Zoho Standard or Pipedrive Lite, billed annually) to $72 a month (Pipedrive Lite, billed monthly) [4][5]; ActiveCampaign Pro, the email-first option, is $79 a month at 1,000 contacts, billed annually [6]. HubSpot Starter Core Seats for 3 users come to $60 a month at the list rate, basis not stated [2]. At 5 users, Zoho Standard or Pipedrive Lite billed annually costs $70 a month, against $100 a month (Zoho Standard, billed monthly) to $120 a month (Pipedrive Lite, billed monthly) [4][5]. HubSpot Starter Core Seats for 5 users come to $100 a month at the list rate, basis not stated [2]. ActiveCampaign's prices depend on plan and contact count, so its row assumes 1,000 contacts [6]. The table leaves out taxes, add-ons and HubSpot Credits beyond the 500 a month included with Starter [2]. If you'd move up to HubSpot Sales Hub Professional instead, add its required one-time $1,500 flat onboarding fee (as of Oct. 19, 2026) to the first year [8].

Should you stay on HubSpot Free?

Stay if the free CRM does what you need today. HubSpot says it's free with no expiration date [1], and HubSpot says it connects to over 2,000 apps through third-party and HubSpot-built integrations [1]. HubSpot's pricing page says its free tools are "Free for up to 2 users" [7]. The HubSpot pages we read don't state a contact limit for the free CRM.

Not for: teams that need paid sales features for several people, because paid features are sold per seat [2], and Sales Hub Professional is $90/mo/seat on an annual commitment; the $100/mo/seat list is what Pay Monthly shows, still on an annual commitment; plus the required one-time $1,500 flat onboarding fee (as of Oct. 19, 2026) [2][8]. The free CRM also isn't for teams of 3 or more, because it's free for up to 2 users [7]. If that's you, the cost table above is your comparison. For a closer look at the two most-compared tools, read HubSpot vs Pipedrive.

How to export your contacts from HubSpot

HubSpot lets users on all products and plans export records such as contacts and deals, and you choose the file format [3]. Download links to export files expire after 30 days [3].

Our tip: export before you cancel anything, and save the file somewhere you control. Then import it into the new tool's trial and check a few records by hand.

What to do next

List the people who need to edit records, not just view them, and price that number of seats in the table above. Then start one free trial. For CRMs built around trade jobs, read best CRM for contractors, or browse the best AI tools for small business.

Prices checked October 19, 2026. Prices and plans change; confirm on each vendor's site.

Last updated: October 22, 2026