These two tools charge in opposite ways. HighLevel charges a flat price per account: $97, $297 or $497 a month, with unlimited users and contacts. HubSpot charges per seat, per Hub, plus a required one-time onboarding fee on most Professional and Enterprise plans. With a handful of users, HubSpot's Starter tier is cheaper. Once you add seats or move to HubSpot Professional, HighLevel's flat price usually wins on list price. HubSpot, in return, gives you deeper, separately priced Hubs for marketing, sales, service and content.
HighLevel pricing at a glance
| Plan | Monthly | Annual | Includes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starter | $97 | $970 | 3 sub-accounts, unlimited users and contacts |
| Unlimited | $297 | $2,970 | unlimited sub-accounts, phone and email rebilling at cost |
| Pro (SaaS) | $497 | $4,970 | SaaS Mode, rebilling with markup |
There's a 14-day free trial and no free plan. Usage is extra: SMS, calls, email and some AI tools. See HighLevel hidden costs for every rate. Full breakdown: HighLevel pricing.
HubSpot pricing at a glance
These are HubSpot's prices as displayed with its "Pay Annually" billing option selected (the page default on 2026-10-15). Struck-through figures are shown in brackets exactly as HubSpot displays them. We could not capture the "Pay Monthly" prices.
| Hub | Starter | Professional | Enterprise |
|---|---|---|---|
| Marketing | $7/mo/seat ( | $800/mo ( | $3,600/mo, includes 5 core seats; extras start at $75/mo; +$7,000 onboarding |
| Sales | $7/mo/seat ( | $90/mo/seat ( | $150/mo/seat; +$3,500 onboarding |
| Service | $7/mo/seat ( | $90/mo/seat ( | $150/mo/seat; +$3,500 onboarding |
| Content | $7/mo/seat ( | $450/mo ( | $1,500/mo, includes 5 core seats; extras start at $75/mo |
- Free plan: free tools for up to 2 users.
- Starter promotion: the $7 price appears under "Save up to 65% on Starter… New customers only… limited time."
Full breakdown: HubSpot pricing.
The hidden costs on each side
HighLevel:
- Usage fees: $0.00747 per SMS segment plus carrier fees, $0.0166/min outbound calls, $0.675 per 1,000 emails.
- AI Employee add-on: $50 or $97 per sub-account.
- Rebilling: you can't pass usage costs to clients on the $97 plan.
HubSpot:
- Onboarding: one-time required fees of $1,500 to $7,000.
- Seat growth: every new user adds a seat charge.
- Contact limits: Marketing Hub caps marketing contacts at 1,000 (Starter), 2,000 (Professional) and 10,000 (Enterprise). We haven't checked what extra contacts cost.
- Credits: AI features run on HubSpot Credits. Starter includes 500, Professional 3,000 and Enterprise 5,000.
Total cost: 3 scenarios
Assumptions:
- HubSpot "Pay Annually" prices as displayed. The Starter promotion is shown both ways.
- HighLevel annual prices.
- No HighLevel usage fees, no HubSpot extra contacts or credits.
- Year 1 includes HubSpot's required onboarding.
These are illustrations, not quotes.
Scenario 1: a 3-person small business that needs a CRM and basic email marketing.
| Year 1 | Year 2+ | |
|---|---|---|
| HighLevel Starter | $970 | $970 |
| HubSpot Starter at the displayed $7/seat promotion (3 × $7 × 12) | $252 | not shown (new-customer, limited-time offer) |
| HubSpot Starter at the struck-through $20/seat (3 × $20 × 12) | $720 | $720 |
HubSpot is cheaper here either way, if 1,000 marketing contacts is enough for you.
Scenario 2: a 5-person marketing team that needs automation and campaigns.
| Year 1 | Year 2+ | |
|---|---|---|
| HighLevel Starter | $970 | $970 |
| HubSpot Marketing Hub Professional ($800 + 2 extra seats × $45 = $890/mo × 12, plus $3,000 onboarding) | $13,680 | $10,680 |
HighLevel is about $12,700 cheaper in year 1 on list price. HubSpot Professional includes 2,000 marketing contacts; HighLevel has unlimited contacts but charges per email sent.
Scenario 3: a 10-rep sales team.
| Year 1 | Year 2+ | |
|---|---|---|
| HighLevel Starter (unlimited users) | $970 | $970 |
| HubSpot Sales Hub Professional (10 × $90 × 12, plus $1,500 onboarding) | $12,300 | $10,800 |
HighLevel's flat price beats per-seat pricing at 10 seats. Add HighLevel calling usage: 1,000 outbound minutes a month at $0.0166 is about $199 a year.
Try HighLevel free for 14 days →
Which tool fits which buyer?
- Choose HubSpot if you have one or two users and want a free or cheap Starter CRM. It also suits teams that want a mature, separately priced marketing, sales or service Hub, and companies that expect to grow into enterprise reporting and governance and can budget for onboarding.
- Choose HighLevel if you have many users on a fixed budget, or you're an agency managing several client accounts (Unlimited's $297 covers unlimited sub-accounts). It also fits if you want funnels, SMS, booking and reputation tools in one flat-priced platform and can manage usage fees.
- Watch out: HighLevel's low list price can rise with heavy SMS and calling. HubSpot's price can rise with every seat, contact tier and onboarding fee.
FAQ
Is HighLevel cheaper than HubSpot?
At list price, yes, once you need more than a few seats or any HubSpot Professional plan. With 1–3 users on Starter, HubSpot is cheaper.
Does HubSpot charge onboarding fees?
Yes, on most paid tiers. The one-time fees are $3,000 (Marketing Pro), $7,000 (Marketing Enterprise), $1,500 (Sales or Service Pro) and $3,500 (Sales or Service Enterprise). HubSpot's Content Hub page showed no onboarding fee when we checked.
Does HighLevel charge per user?
No. Every plan includes unlimited users and contacts. HighLevel charges for usage (SMS, calls, email) instead.
Does HubSpot have a free plan?
Yes. Free tools for up to 2 users. HighLevel has a 14-day trial but no free plan.
Can agencies use HubSpot like HighLevel's sub-accounts?
HubSpot doesn't sell a per-client sub-account plan on its pricing pages. HighLevel's Unlimited plan is built for that.
Have these prices changed?
We started tracking both on our price increase tracker. Prices were last checked 2026-10-15.