Quick take
HubSpot is a marketing platform that evolved into a CRM. Attio is a CRM built for teams who want flexibility without the marketing overhead. If you need marketing automation integrated with sales, HubSpot is hard to beat. If you need a CRM that adapts to your workflow without paying for features you will not use, Attio makes more sense.
This comparison comes from implementing both platforms for different clients. We are an Attio partner, so take that into account, but we also recommend HubSpot when it is the right fit. The honest answer is that these tools solve different problems.
HubSpot started as an inbound marketing platform and built CRM features to serve that ecosystem. The result is a powerful marketing-sales integration that is genuinely hard to replicate elsewhere. But if you are not doing inbound marketing - if you are a sales-led organization that just needs a CRM - you are paying for and navigating around features you do not need.
Attio started as a CRM for people who were frustrated with traditional CRMs. It prioritizes flexibility and modern UX over feature breadth. The tradeoff is that you get less out of the box, but what you build is exactly what you need.
The fundamental difference
HubSpot thinks in terms of contacts flowing through marketing funnels into sales pipelines. The data model reflects this: Marketing Contacts have different billing, Lifecycle Stages track the journey, and Sales and Marketing Hubs are designed to work together.
Attio thinks in terms of relationships and custom data structures. You define your own objects, your own fields, your own views. There is no prescribed journey - you build the model that matches your business.
This is not a matter of one being better than the other. If your go-to-market is content-driven inbound where marketing qualified leads get handed to sales, HubSpot model is a feature. If your business does not fit that pattern, it is overhead you have to work around.
Where Attio wins
Flexibility without enterprise pricing
Attio lets you create custom objects and fields without paying for enterprise tiers or hiring consultants. Want to track investors, partnerships, and deals as separate but linked entities? Build it yourself in an afternoon. In HubSpot, that level of customization requires Professional or Enterprise plans and often implementation support.
Faster time to productive
We can get a team running on Attio in 1-2 weeks. HubSpot implementations typically take 4-8 weeks for comparable sophistication, and that is with experienced implementers. The difference compounds when you need to make changes - in Attio, you iterate in real time; in HubSpot, you plan sprints.
Predictable costs
HubSpot pricing looks reasonable until you add marketing contacts, extra users, or features that turn out to require higher tiers. Attio pricing is simpler: you pay per seat, and you get the features. No surprise bills when your contact list grows.
Modern UX that people actually use
This sounds superficial but is not. CRM adoption is the biggest predictor of CRM value. Attio feels like a modern tool - fast, clean, intuitive. Teams use it because they want to, not because they have to. HubSpot has gotten better, but it is still a complex platform with a learning curve.
Where HubSpot wins
Marketing-sales integration
If you are doing content marketing, email nurturing, landing pages, and want that to flow seamlessly into your sales pipeline, HubSpot is purpose-built for this. The integration between Marketing Hub and Sales Hub is genuine - not a bolt-on. Attio does not have a marketing hub. You would pair it with a separate email tool, which means integration work.
Ecosystem and marketplace
HubSpot has thousands of integrations and a massive app marketplace. Whatever tool you use, there is probably a HubSpot connector. Attio integrations are growing but cannot match HubSpot breadth.
Training resources and community
HubSpot Academy is genuinely excellent. The certification programs, knowledge base, and community forums mean you can find answers to almost any question. Attio is newer with fewer resources.
Service Hub for support teams
If you need ticketing, knowledge base, and customer service tools integrated with your CRM, HubSpot Service Hub provides this. Attio is primarily a sales and relationship tool.
Choose Attio if...
- ✓You need CRM flexibility without the marketing platform overhead
- ✓Your team values modern, fast software
- ✓You want to customize without paying enterprise prices
- ✓You can integrate marketing tools separately
- ✓Budget predictability matters
Choose HubSpot if...
- —Inbound marketing drives your business
- —You need marketing automation integrated with sales
- —Your team already knows HubSpot
- —You want everything in one platform
- —You need customer service tools too
The migration reality
Migrating from HubSpot to Attio typically takes 2-3 weeks. The main complexity is deciding what data to bring over - HubSpot accumulates a lot of marketing data that may not belong in Attio. We usually export contacts, companies, and deal history, then rebuild views and automations in Attio.
The harder part is often organizational change. Teams get used to HubSpot workflows, and even if those workflows are not ideal, change is disruptive. Budget time for training and adjustment, not just data migration.
What we have seen in practice
Most teams that switch from HubSpot to Attio are sales-led organizations that were overbuying. They signed up for HubSpot because of the brand, used maybe 20% of the features, and were frustrated by the complexity and cost.
The teams that stay on HubSpot after evaluating Attio usually have real marketing operations - content programs, nurture sequences, lead scoring - that depend on HubSpot integration.
There is no wrong answer here. The question is whether the marketing-sales integration is worth the complexity and cost for your specific situation.
Frequently asked questions
No. Attio is a CRM, not a marketing automation platform. If you need email nurturing, landing pages, and marketing automation, you would pair Attio with a dedicated marketing tool like Mailchimp, Customer.io, or similar.
Our typical HubSpot to Attio migration is 2-3 weeks and includes data migration, workspace setup, and team training. The main variable is data complexity and team size.
Usually, yes - especially compared to HubSpot Professional and Enterprise tiers. But the right comparison depends on what HubSpot features you actually use. If you need Marketing Hub and Sales Hub together, the cost difference narrows.
HubSpot free CRM is genuinely free and works for simple use cases. If that is enough for you, it is hard to argue with free. The comparison shifts when you need customization, automation, or marketing features that require paid tiers.
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