HubSpot Marketing vs. Gravity Forms (Benefits & Prices)

Have a WordPress website?

Are you caught between investing in HubSpot Marketing vs. a WP plugin alternative?

Here’s a quick ‘features and cost comparison’ between HubSpot Marketing vs. a Gravity Forms solution…

1. Web Forms

Hubspot Form Builder offers:
- an intuitive, drag-and-drop experience
- regular range of field types
- typically purposed for lead capture
- some additional features like calculation BUT not within forms (only related to entries)
- a variety of form page positions available out-of-the-box like:
  - embedded, standalone page, pop-up box etc.
- naturally connected to the HubSpot CRM
- multi-step, conditional logic etc. also included
Gravity Forms offers:
- Everything mentioned above with HubSpot Forms, aside from :
  - Positioning options: i.e. you can only embed Gravity Forms, out-of-the-box. They don’t with other positioning methods.
  - However, I have used PopUp Maker plugin over the years in conjunction with Gravity Forms which instantly and painlessly provides this benefit – at ZERO cost. (Over 10K leads generated to date of all projects).
- Gravity Forms have a whole host of advanced form features like:
  - In-form calculation
  - List fields
  - Consent
  - Post Fields
  - Product Fields
  - Standard Calculations
- Plus, with all the official Gravity Forms Add-Ons the possibilities and real business benefits are lightyears ahead of HubSpot Forms offering superior flexibility and ROI potential.
  - 47 Add-Ons from Gravity Wiz inc.
    - Populate Anything
    - Advanced Calculations
    - Nested Forms
    - AND MUCH MUCH MORE.
- As for connecting to the HubSpot CRM, there is a HubSpot Add-on for Gravity Forms which seamlessly blends the benefits of both worlds.

Bottom line: You simply cannot compare the two products from a straight, forms vs. forms standpoint. Gravity Forms is a specialist category champion.

HubSpot Forms by comparison is amateur, but does a job of providing a nascent forms interface for HubSpots classy marketing solution.

2. Live Chat

HubSpot offers LIVE chat with its form solution as standard in the marketing packages.
Gravity Forms doesn’t have LIVE chat in its core offering, but GravityBot is an Add-On that is a 1st Class fix for that failing.
- GravityBot also is fully integrated with HubSpot and a whole list of other 3rd parties.

Bottom line: the GravityBot Add-On fills the gap.

3. Email marketing

HubSpot marketing naturally comes with email marketing plugged in.
Gravity Forms doesn’t fulfil email marketing in its core.
- But as mentioned before Gravity Forms syncs with HubSpot via an official Add-On anyway – so frankly it doesn’t even need to go there.
- Also, if your project doesn’t warrant using a fully-fledge email marketing platform, the folks over at Gravity Wiz have an Add-On called Gravity Forms Email User plugin.
  - It provides the ability to push mass-mails to 500+ recipients at a time
    - Fully customisable with merge tags too
    - Save drafts
    - Previews
    - Conditional logic

Bottom line: Clearly, use the HubSpot marketing solution as Gravity Forms just isn’t about that. However, if lite mail merge is more your thing, then Gravity Forms Email User plugin could be more suited.

4. Automation

HubSpot does email automation sequences naturally.
- It’s focus is a marketing platform, so it makes sense this exists – in abundance.
Gravity Forms recently acquired the GravityFlow Add-On, along with it’s development team.
- GravityFlow is a business process automation powerhouse, used in many cases by users in favour of SaaS 3rd-party solutions like Zapier.
- Trusted by big name organisations in business and not-for-profit, GravityFlow literally makes Gravity Forms stand-up to and in many cases trump SaaS platforms.

Bottom line: automations is a head-to-head face-off with both offerings providing excellent solutions. But Gravity Forms + GravityFlow + its Add-On ecosystem = Clear winner.

5. Support

Both providers offer email and support.

Hubspot offers in-chat support.
That said, the Gravity Forms Community Support Forum is active and responses a generally given within 24 hrs. Plus their forum is manned by in-house developers/support, 3rd-party add-on devs and other users.

Docs are deep on both sides with well-stocked hubs.

Bottom line: you won’t be left unattended. From experience of holding a Gravity Forms license for over 8 years – they’ve never failed to promptly address an issue.

6. Opinion & Summary: Limitations & Advantages

Over the years I’ve learned that leaving your options open often provides future leverage for advantage on web projects.

Being stuck as a user of one platform with high switching-costs can be painful and regrettable.

HubSpot…
- lacks the specialist data capture and processing abilities of Gravity Forms
- naturally has the marketing functionality down pat
Gravity Forms…
- has an uncomparable range of data capture savvy
- can contend where there are gaps with competent Add-ons
- Links seamlessly into HubSpot CRM anyway

8. Costs

HubSpot Marketing Hub Starter package costs $240 annually (*max. 1,000 contacts) inc.
- Forms
- Live chat
- Email marketing
- Notifications
Gravity Forms (Basic license) costs $59 per year *unlimited contacts inc.
- Forms (with incomparably better features)
- Notifications
- GravityWiz provide:
  - Gravity Forms Email User plugin for under 1,000 recipient mass mailing
    - Cost: $59 per year
- GravitBot is the ideal chatbot Add-On for Gravity Forms
  - Integrated with HubSpot CRM
    - Cost: $59 per year
- TOTAL Gravity Forms equivalent = $177 per year

BUT here’s where Gravity Forms becomes the clear winner in my opinion:

Unlimited contacts
Almost limitless extendability via its ecosystem of Add-Ons, offering HUGE ROI potential

Recommendation

So, in short, think of HubSpot as a CRM with a simple form builder.

And Gravity Forms is a category-leading, data capture and processing powerhouse for your WordPress website.

We recommend you:

Use Gravity Forms to capture data.
Integrate it with HubSpot or your favourite CRM
Then, leverage the hundreds of Gravity Forms Add-Ons (official and 3rd party) to create value for your business or project

Over to you…

Are you a Gravity Forms user looking to integrate with HubSpot?

Are you using HubSpot with your WordPress website and want to try Gravity Forms?

We’d be interested to hear from you.