A clear, honest comparison of the top UK-ready CRM alternatives to HubSpot – including the all-in-one system most SMEs end up choosing

If you’re a UK business owner who’s tried HubSpot, you already know the story:
it looks great at first, the free tier feels generous… and then the upsells begin.

The moment you want automation, real reporting, proper pipelines, or marketing tools, the price jumps into the hundreds – sometimes thousands – per month.

That’s why UK SMEs regularly ask me:

“What are the best alternatives to HubSpot, and which CRM actually makes sense for a small business?”

Here’s a breakdown of the top HubSpot alternatives, including the pros, cons, pricing and real-world customer insights.

1. HighLevel (via MarketerM8)

The best HubSpot alternative for UK SMEs

For most UK small businesses, the smartest HubSpot replacement is HighLevel, especially when delivered through MarketerM8 – the UK HighLevel experts.

HighLevel replaces HubSpot CRM, HubSpot Marketing Hub and HubSpot Sales Hub with one unified system, one login and one price.

Pros

• Full CRM (contacts, pipelines, tasks, notes)

• Unlimited users (no per-seat fees)

• Advanced automation workflows

• Email + SMS marketing included

• Booking calendars built in

• Funnels & landing pages

• Website builder

• Reputation management

• Social media planner

• Course hosting

• Unified inbox for email, SMS, WhatsApp, webchat

• UK-based support via MarketerM8

Cons

• More powerful than some businesses need

• Requires setup help to use properly

• Not ideal if you only need extremely basic CRM

Pricing (UK)

👉 £97 per month – unlimited users
(Cancel any time)

This alone makes HighLevel far more affordable than HubSpot’s per-seat model.

Customer Review Summary (based on common client feedback)

✔ UK SMEs say HighLevel helps them “replace 6–10 tools at once”
✔ Most report saving £200–£600 per month compared with HubSpot
✔ Teams love having unlimited users for one fixed price
✔ Automation and pipelines rated higher than HubSpot’s Starter/Professional plans

2. Zoho CRM

Best low-cost HubSpot alternative

Zoho is one of the cheapest CRMs on the market and offers a wide set of features for a low monthly price.

Pros

• Extremely affordable

• Strong core CRM functionality

• Flexible customisation

• Good add-on ecosystem

Cons

• Interface feels dated

• Steeper learning curve

• Support can be patchy

• Add-ons can complicate the tech stack

• Marketing tools not as strong as HighLevel or HubSpot

Pricing (UK)

• Standard: £14/month

• Professional: £20/month

• Enterprise: £40/month

Customer Review Summary

✔ "Great value for money"
✔ "Takes time to get used to"
✘ "Not as intuitive as HubSpot"
✘ "Support feels slow at times"

Zoho is great for businesses that want a cheap CRM without advanced automation.

3. Pipedrive

Best HubSpot alternative for simple sales pipelines

Pipedrive is widely used by sales teams who want a simple, clean pipeline tool.
It’s great if your business is sales-heavy and doesn’t require marketing automation.

Pros

• Excellent drag-and-drop pipeline

• Fast and user-friendly

• Good sales-focused tools

• Affordable for solo users

Cons

• Automation is limited

• Marketing tools not included

• Per-seat pricing becomes expensive for teams

• Requires add-ons for a full system

Pricing (UK)

• Advanced: £29 per user/month

• Professional: £49 per user/month

• Power: £59 per user/month

• Ultimate: £79 per user/month (billed annually)

Customer Review Summary

✔ "Simple and clean interface"
✔ "Great for tracking deals"
✘ "Too many paid add-ons"
✘ "Gets expensive as your team grows"

Good for sales-only teams, but not a full HubSpot replacement.

4. Salesforce

Best for large enterprise – too big for most UK SMEs

Salesforce is a global powerhouse, but it’s built for enterprise companies with big budgets and dedicated CRM admin staff.

Pros

• Extremely powerful

• World-class reporting

• Highly customisable

Cons

• Expensive

• Overly complex for SMEs

• Requires technical admin

• Not suitable for small teams

• Long onboarding time

Pricing (UK)

• Essentials: £20 per user/month

• Professional: £60 per user/month

• Enterprise: £120 per user/month

Customer Review Summary

✔ "Incredibly powerful"
✘ "Too complex for small businesses"
✘ "Hidden costs and training needs"

Only suitable for enterprise – not most UK SMEs.

5. Freshsales

Best simple all-rounder for small teams

Freshsales is part of the Freshworks suite. It’s simple, affordable and easy to use.

Pros

• Clean interface

• AI-powered lead scoring

• Good price point

• Decent automation

Cons

• Not as complete as HighLevel

• Marketing tools limited

• Add-ons required for a full stack

• Less flexible than HubSpot in some areas

Pricing (UK)

• Free tier

• Growth: £15 per user/month

• Pro: £39 per user/month

• Enterprise: £69 per user/month

Customer Review Summary

✔ "Good value for money"
✔ "Easy to navigate"
✘ "Limited marketing features"
✘ "Requires Freshworks add-ons"

A solid starter CRM – but not a true HubSpot replacement.

Summary: What’s the best HubSpot alternative for UK SMEs?

After working with UK businesses across coaching, trades, property, marketing, fitness and professional services, the pattern is clear:

👉 HighLevel (via MarketerM8) is the best HubSpot alternative for UK SMEs.

Why?

• Unlimited users for £97/month

• Full CRM + automation + marketing + sales

• Replaces 6–10 tools at once

• UK-based help and setup

• No annual contracts

• Built for small and medium-sized businesses

HubSpot is excellent, but expensive and segmented.
HighLevel gives you the same capabilities, plus more – at a fraction of the price.

Your next steps: three clear options

Now that you understand the best HubSpot alternatives, you have three choices:

1. Book a discovery call with MarketerM8 – the UK HighLevel experts

If you want a guided setup, UK support and a clean migration, book a call.
👉 https://www.marketerm8.com/book-a-call

2. Go directly to HighLevel and learn it yourself

You can subscribe to HighLevel’s £97/month plan and build everything from scratch.
It works – but expect a learning curve.

👉 https://www.gohighlevel.com/?fp_ref=ghl700311

3. Do nothing and stay with disconnected tools

You can continue paying for HubSpot, add-ons and per-user costs.
But this usually leads to higher bills and more admin.

Software should make your business easier, not harder.