The short answer
- For 10 people on Salesforce Pro who use contacts, one pipeline and tasks, Bigin Express is modeled to save $10,260 in year one. the math
- The Replace with AI path, one pipeline with CSV import and export, roles and a weekly digest, is modeled to save $7,320, if someone on the team owns it. the math
- Twenty is an open-core CRM you can self-host; the catalog doesn't price it yet, so check its license and your server cost. the math
- Stay if you use CPQ, territories, complex forecast rules or a large set of integrations. recipe
Who should switch, and who shouldn't
Switch if
- Your team uses contacts, companies, deals, tasks and a simple pipeline report, and not much else. recipe
- You pay per-user suite prices for a pipeline a lighter CRM covers: the gap grows with every seat (see the table below). salesforce.com
- You've checked that an export keeps your relationships intact: contacts to companies, deals to contacts. recipe
What Salesforce and HubSpot cost today
List prices from each vendor's pricing page, as stored in the Stackcut catalog. Each price links its source.
| Plan | Billed monthly | Billed yearly (per month) | What you get |
|---|---|---|---|
| Salesforce Starter Suite | not shown | $25/user/mo | |
| Salesforce Pro Suite | not shown | $100/user/mo | |
| Salesforce Core | not shown | $195/user/mo | |
| HubSpot Sales Hub Starter | $20/user/mo | $7/user/mo | |
| HubSpot Sales Hub Professional | $100/user/mo | $90/user/mo |
- HubSpot's Professional price doesn't include a required one-time onboarding fee of $1,500. hubspot.com
The alternatives, ranked
4 ways out, ranked by modeled saving in the first year after setup and upkeep (2 priced). Modeled, not measured: each figure links the math on the recipe page.
- Bigin and the build path are modeled for 10 users against Salesforce Pro Suite at $100/user/mo billed yearly. recipe
What a CRM costs at 1, 5 and 20 users
Every option here is priced per user. Prices billed yearly, so they compare like for like; monthly billing costs more where offered.
| Option | List price | 1 user | 5 users | 20 users |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Salesforce Starter Suite today | $25/user/mobilled yearly | $25 | $125 | $500 |
| Salesforce Pro Suite today | $100/user/mobilled yearly | $100 | $500 | $2,000 |
| HubSpot Sales Hub Starter today | $7/user/mobilled yearly | $7 | $35 | $140 |
| HubSpot Sales Hub Professional todayplus a one-time onboarding fee | $90/user/mobilled yearly | $90 | $450 | $1,800 |
| Pipedrive Lite | $14/user/mobilled yearly | $14 | $70 | $280 |
| Bigin Express | $7/user/mobilled yearly | $7 | $35 | $140 |
| Bigin Premier | $12/user/mobilled yearly | $12 | $60 | $240 |
| Twenty Pro (cloud)confirm billing cadence at checkout | $9/user/mobilling not stated | $9 | $45 | $180 |
| Twenty (self-hosted) | $0 licenseopen-core; check the license | $0+ your server | $0+ your server | $0+ your server |
How to leave Salesforce and HubSpot
Export first, then cancel. Every step links the vendor's own help page, checked on the date shown.
- Before you ask to cancel, read the renewal and notice terms in your order form: a contract you signed overrides help-center pages. help.salesforce.com
How to leave Salesforce
Export first
- All your data: Setup → Data Export → Export Now or Schedule Export (ZIP of CSV files). Weekly exports need Enterprise, Performance or Unlimited; other editions export monthly. The ZIP files are deleted 48 hours after the email, not counting weekends. help.salesforce.com
Cancel
- Export your data first (see export).
- For a paid subscription, contact Salesforce's Customer Service Billing Department: its help page offers no self-serve cancel.
How to leave HubSpot
Export first
- Contacts, companies, deals and other records: CRM → the object → Export at the top right of the list view (CSV, XLSX, XLS). The download link arrives by email and expires after 30 days; very large exports arrive as several files in a ZIP. knowledge.hubspot.com
Cancel
- Export your records first (see export).
- Account name → Account & Billing → Subscriptions → Cancel auto-renewal.
- Takes effect
- On your renewal date, not right away. Mid-contract downgrades aren't permitted.
- Notice
- For a downgrade, contact HubSpot at least 5 business days before the renewal date. A notice of non-renewal goes to the billing admin.
- After you cancel
- The account moves to HubSpot's free tools. You can delete it once no subscription has an active commitment.
Not covered by the paths above, per the recipe: CPQ, Territories, Complex forecast rules, Large integration estates, Enterprise security parity. If you rely on one of these, keep the incumbent or check the path closely.
Open-source and forkable options
- Twenty: License: Open-core; inspect current LICENSE and enterprise directory before distribution. Repository: https://github.com/twentyhq/twenty
Open source means no license fee, not free to run: the server, backups and upgrades are yours. Read the license before you fork or resell; several of these are open-core or source-available.
Replace with AI, or hand it to an agent skill
Replace with AI Replace with AI: bespoke pipeline: 10 users; one pipeline, CSV import/export, roles and weekly digest. First year: saves $7,320 (modeled, not measured).
- The spec builds or configures one pipeline, a CSV migration, access controls and a weekly digest, and says to prefer a ready-made CRM before building from scratch. recipe
FAQ
How do I get my data out of Salesforce?
Setup → Data Export → Export Now or Schedule Export gives a ZIP of CSV files. Weekly exports need Enterprise, Performance or Unlimited; other editions export monthly, and the files are deleted 48 hours after the email. help.salesforce.com
How do I cancel Salesforce?
Salesforce's help page lists no self-serve cancel for paid subscriptions: you contact its Customer Service Billing Department. help.salesforce.com
When does a HubSpot cancellation take effect?
On your renewal date, not right away. Mid-contract downgrades aren't permitted, and a downgrade needs contact at least 5 business days before renewal. knowledge.hubspot.com
Do I lose my HubSpot contacts if I cancel?
Cancelling moves the account to HubSpot's free tools rather than deleting it. Export your records anyway: the download link expires after 30 days. knowledge.hubspot.com
Keep reading
Check your own stack
Get your free stack audit
Stackcut finds every software subscription in your inbox and shows what to cancel, what to pay per use, and what AI can replace, with a spec and a cost for each. Your stack audit is free and takes about 2 minutes.
Or ask your agent
Connect the Stackcut MCP server (https://stackcut.io/mcp, no API key) and ask: “We're 10 people on Salesforce Pro and use contacts, one pipeline and tasks. What should we do?”
find_alternatives({"vendor": "Salesforce", "seats": 10,
"features_used": ["Contacts", "Deals", "Tasks"]})