Sales CRM · Comparison
HubSpot Sales Hub vs Pipedrive vs Salesforce Sales Cloud vs Zoho CRM
4 products compared side by side: what you pay for with each one first, then the five access facts, entry prices, recorded plan limits and the bottom line of each review. The evidence note under the table says how each product was checked.
Side by side
| Metric | HubSpot Sales Hub | Pipedrive | Salesforce Sales Cloud | Zoho CRM |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| What you're paying for | Worth the priceA free CRM with deals and inbox logging that grows into paid Sales Hub seats, on one platform with HubSpot’s marketing and service tools. | Easy to adoptA visual sales pipeline with unlimited pipelines, SAML SSO and the API on every plan, and email sync, automations and sequences from $39 a seat. | Saves engineering timeA sales CRM you can shape to your process, with custom objects, quotes and forecasting from Pro Suite, and editions to grow into. | Worth the priceA full sales CRM at $14 a user: pipelines, workflows, cadences, forecasting and custom modules on Standard, with SOC 2, ISO 27001 and a HIPAA path. |
| Overall score | 6.8 | 6.7 | 5.7 | 9.1Best |
| Free option | Free plan | 14-day free trial | Free plan | Free plan |
| Card to start | No card needed | No card needed | No card needed | No card needed |
| Getting access | Self-serve | Self-serve | Self-serve | Self-serve |
| Starter priceCheapest paid plan | $20/seat/mo | $14/seat/mo | $25/user/mo | $14/user/mo |
| Pricing model | Per seat | Per seat | Per seat | Per seat |
| Pricing page | Public prices | Public prices | Public prices | Public prices |
| Billing unit | Per seat per month; HubSpot Credits for AI and agents | Per seat per month; add-ons per company | Per user per month; Agentforce usage in Flex Credits | Per user per month |
| Free option | Free CRM for up to 2 users, no card; 14-day trial on the Sales Hub page | No free plan; 14-day trial, no card | Free Suite for 2 users; 30-day trial of paid editions, no card | Free edition for 3 users; 15-day trial, no card |
| Reference scenario (5 users, annual) | $100/mo on Starter at list ($20 × 5), computed; $35/mo at the new-customer offer | $195/mo on Growth ($39 × 5), computed | $500/mo on Pro Suite ($100 × 5), computed | $70/mo on Standard ($14 × 5), computed |
| Month-to-month price | $20 per seat on Starter at list ($10 offer); $100 on Professional, annual commitment | $49 per seat on Growth ($24 / $49 / $79 / $99) | Starter Suite only ($25); Pro Suite and up are billed annually | $20 per user on Standard ($20 / $35 / $50 / $65) |
| Sequences | From Professional ($90, plus $1,500 onboarding) | From Growth: 5 sequences per company (25 on Premium) | Sales Engagement add-on, $50 per user/mo billed annually, through sales | Cadences from Standard: 20 per module |
| Forecasting and custom objects | Forecasting from Professional; custom objects on Enterprise | Forecast view from Growth; no custom objects listed | From Pro Suite ($100); 50 custom objects | Forecasting and 10 custom modules on Standard |
| SOC 2 / ISO 27001 | Own SOC 2 Type 2; ISO 27001 credited to hosting providers | SOC 2 Type 2 and ISO/IEC 27001:2022 (Trust Center) | SOC 2 reports and ISO/IEC 27001:2022 for Sales Cloud; Starter and ProSuite excluded from both | SOC 2 Type 2 and ISO/IEC 27001 (Zoho compliance page) |
| HIPAA BAA | Enterprise, accepted in account settings | Not offered; terms say the services are not designed for HIPAA | Signed with Salesforce through your account representative | HIPAA settings from Standard; BAA template from Zoho legal |
| EU data hosting | Germany data center, assigned by sign-up location, every plan | EU sign-ups hosted in the EU (Frankfurt, Dublin) | Hyperforce regions in the EU; EU Operating Zone is a paid offering | EU data center when signing up from an EU country |
| SSO | SAML from Professional | SAML on every plan | SAML federated authentication in all editions (Help) | SAML through Zoho Directory, reached from CRM setup |
| API | Every plan, Free included | Every plan; 60,000 API tokens per seat a day on Growth | $25 per user/mo add-on on Pro Suite; included from Core | Every edition; up to 100,000 credits a day on Standard |
| Data export | Export each object; weekly CRM backups from Starter | Export all data for each item type, XLSX or CSV | Full CSV export: every 29 days on Pro Suite, weekly from Core | Module exports; 2 free full data backups a month on Standard |
| Bottom line | From its public pages, HubSpot Sales Hub is the easiest start here: a free CRM, then Starter at a $20 list price with pipelines, automations and calling. Sequences, forecasting and SSO need Professional and its onboarding fee, and a few HubSpot pages disagree on details. | From its public pages, Pipedrive is a straightforward pipeline CRM with SSO and the API on every plan and sales automation on Growth at $39 a seat. It has no custom objects or HIPAA path, and two pages disagree on which plan has the audit log. | From its public pages, Sales Cloud gives a small team custom objects, quotes and forecasting from Pro Suite and a long ladder of editions. The API, sequences and the dialer cost extra below Core, Pro Suite is annual only, and the Suites sit outside its SOC and ISO scope. | From its public pages, Zoho CRM puts the most on its entry plan: pipelines, workflows, cadences, forecasting, custom modules, audit logs and HIPAA settings for $14 a user, with SOC 2 and ISO 27001. Quotes start on Professional, and one older comparison page needs updating. |
Evidence: HubSpot Sales Hub: facts checked 2026-10-16 from its public sign-up and pricing pages, no completed hands-on run; Pipedrive: facts checked 2026-10-16 from its public sign-up and pricing pages, no completed hands-on run; Salesforce Sales Cloud: facts checked 2026-10-16 from its public sign-up and pricing pages, no completed hands-on run; Zoho CRM: facts checked 2026-10-16 from its public sign-up and pricing pages, no completed hands-on run. Prices in USD as listed, excluding tax. "–" means not recorded.
When to pick each
In the words of each review, with the date its facts were checked.
From our HubSpot Sales Hub review
Checked Oct 16, 2026- Pick HubSpot Sales Hub when
- You want a free plan with inbox logging, a lower 5-user cost ($100 a month on Starter at list) and the API on every plan.
- Pick Salesforce Sales Cloud when
- You want custom objects, quotes and forecasting on a plan bought online, and SSO in every edition.
From our HubSpot Sales Hub review
Checked Oct 16, 2026- Pick HubSpot Sales Hub when
- You want a free plan, built-in calling minutes and a lower 5-user entry cost.
- Pick Pipedrive when
- You want sequences, forecasting and SAML SSO without a $1,500 onboarding fee, from $39 a seat on Growth.
From our HubSpot Sales Hub review
Checked Oct 16, 2026- Pick HubSpot Sales Hub when
- You want 15 pipelines and HubSpot’s marketing and service tools on the same records.
- Pick Zoho CRM when
- You want cadences, forecasting, custom modules and a HIPAA path on a $14 plan.
From our Pipedrive review
Checked Oct 16, 2026- Pick Pipedrive when
- You want sequences, forecasting and SAML SSO without a $1,500 onboarding fee.
- Pick HubSpot Sales Hub when
- You want a free plan for 2 users and a lower 5-user cost ($100 a month on Starter at list, computed).
From our Pipedrive review
Checked Oct 16, 2026- Pick Pipedrive when
- You want SAML SSO set up in the CRM itself and a pipeline-first app with limits listed per plan.
- Pick Zoho CRM when
- You need custom modules, a HIPAA path or a lower 5-user cost ($70 a month on Standard, annual).
From our Salesforce Sales Cloud review
Checked Oct 16, 2026- Pick Salesforce Sales Cloud when
- You want custom objects, quotes and forecasting on a plan bought online, and SSO and an audit trail in every edition.
- Pick HubSpot Sales Hub when
- You want a free plan with inbox logging and a lower 5-user cost ($100 a month on Starter at list price, computed).
From our Salesforce Sales Cloud review
Checked Oct 16, 2026- Pick Salesforce Sales Cloud when
- You need custom objects and quotes without an add-on, and a full CSV export of the org.
- Pick Pipedrive when
- You want monthly billing, and sequences, forecasting and automations at $39 per seat ($195 a month for 5, annual).
From our Salesforce Sales Cloud review
Checked Oct 16, 2026- Pick Salesforce Sales Cloud when
- You expect to grow into larger editions with Agentforce credits, Premier Success and the API included.
- Pick Zoho CRM when
- You want cadences, forecasting and custom modules for $70 a month for 5 users on Standard (annual, computed).
From our Zoho CRM review
Checked Oct 16, 2026- Pick Zoho CRM when
- You want cadences, forecasting, custom modules and a HIPAA path on a $14 plan.
- Pick HubSpot Sales Hub when
- You want 15 pipelines, the API from the free plan and HubSpot’s marketing tools on the same records.
From our Zoho CRM review
Checked Oct 16, 2026- Pick Zoho CRM when
- You need custom modules, a HIPAA path or a lower 5-user cost ($70 a month on Standard, annual).
- Pick Pipedrive when
- You want unlimited pipelines and SAML SSO set up in the CRM itself on every plan.
From our Zoho CRM review
Checked Oct 16, 2026- Pick Zoho CRM when
- You want forecasting, custom modules and month-to-month billing at a fraction of the Pro Suite price.
- Pick Salesforce Sales Cloud when
- You want quotes on the same plan as custom objects and expect to grow into larger Salesforce editions.
Entry price
Baseline: each product's cheapest paid plan, per month. Included usage differs, so read the line under each price.
- HubSpot Sales HubLowest priceStarter$20/seat/moList price; new customers pay $7 a seat on annual terms or $10 month to month for a limited time
- Up to 15 pipelines
- Record and pipeline automations
- 500 calling minutes and 500 HubSpot Credits a month
- Login and security activity log
- PipedriveLite$14/seat/moBilled annually; $24 month to month
- Unlimited customizable pipelines
- Products catalog and data import and export
- SAML SSO and API access
- No automations or two-way email sync
- Salesforce Sales CloudStarter Suite$25/user/moBilled monthly or annually; 30-day trial for up to 10 users
- Automatic email and calendar sync (Activity Capture)
- Campaign management and marketing analytics
- No custom objects
- No Flow Builder on the pricing page
- Zoho CRMStandard$14/user/moBilled annually; $20 month to month
- Up to 5 pipelines, email integration and workflows
- Cadences and sales forecasting
- 10 custom modules and built-in calling
- Audit logs, HIPAA settings, 2 data backups a month
Prices as listed on each pricing page, in USD per month, excluding tax. Observed: HubSpot Sales Hub 2026-10-16, Pipedrive 2026-10-16, Salesforce Sales Cloud 2026-10-16, Zoho CRM 2026-10-16.
Which one fits
- If you need to start today without a sales call
- Zoho CRMSelf-serve sign-up, no card needed; the highest score of the 4 self-serve products here (9.1/10).
- If you want to try it without entering a card
- Zoho CRMFree plan, no card needed, and the highest score of the 3 that skip the card (9.1/10).
- Highest overall score
- Zoho CRM9.1/10 (Excellent). The review shows the score breakdown and the run behind it.
Picked by fixed rules from the table above, not by hand. How we score