Hubspot vs Brevo vs ActiveCampaign vs Zoho CRM

How We Tested

1. Hubspot Test — We tested contact and deal management, tasks, email creation, forms, segments, reports, and CRM workflows. We also recorded usability issues and limitations encountered during testing.

2. Brevo Test — We explored contact management and the email campaign builder, including personalization and recipient selection. We recorded the workflow and usability.

3. ActiveCampaign Test — We tested contact management, email marketing, tasks, automation, and a newsletter signup form. We submitted a test contact through the form and checked how list subscription and tagging worked inside the CRM.

4. Zoho CRM Test — We tested contacts, accounts, deals, tasks and reminders, tags, individual email, campaigns, automation, reports, dashboards, and webforms. We also created a test campaign and sent an individual email successfully, while noting the form preview and other usability limitations we encountered.

Testing note: Our findings reflect the features and workflows available during our September 2026 tests. Free-plan, trial, verification, and account restrictions limited some features, so not every workflow could be completed in every platform.

We tested HubSpot, Brevo, ActiveCampaign, and Zoho CRM through hands-on tasks designed around everyday small-business needs. We explored contact management, email marketing, campaigns, tasks, forms, automation, and CRM workflows, while recording usability, limitations, and features restricted by free plans or trials.

Marketing & CRM tools at a Glance

Brevo

Contact management: We created contacts, organized customer information, and linked contacts to deals.

Deals & tasks: We created a deal, linked it to a contact, and added follow-up tasks with due dates.

Email & forms: We built a personalized marketing email and created a form. Sending the marketing email could not be completed because phone verification was required.

Segments & reporting: We created a contact segment and explored HubSpot’s reporting and dashboard tools.

Main limitation: Phone verification prevented us from completing the marketing email send during our test.

HubSpot

Contact management: We created contacts, organized customer information, and linked contacts to deals.

Deals & tasks: We created a deal, linked it to a contact, and added follow-up tasks with due dates.

Email & forms: We built a personalized marketing email and created a form. Sending the marketing email could not be completed because phone verification was required.

Segments & reporting: We created a contact segment and explored HubSpot’s reporting and dashboard tools.

Main limitation: Phone verification prevented us from completing the marketing email send during our test.

Zoho CRM

Contact management: We created and managed contacts and explored how customer information is organized.

Email marketing: We worked with ActiveCampaign’s email marketing tools and campaign workflow.

Forms: We created and tested a newsletter signup form connected to our contact list.

Automation & tagging: We tested form actions, list subscription, and automatic contact tagging.

Main limitation: Some of the more advanced functionality depends on the selected plan, making the platform more complex than a basic CRM/email tool.

ActiveCampaign

CRM management: We tested contacts, accounts, deals, tags, and customer records.

Tasks & follow-ups: We created tasks with due dates, priorities, and email reminders.

Email & campaigns: We created a campaign, added a contact, and successfully sent an individual test email.

Automation & reporting: We explored workflow automation, reports, dashboards, and webforms.

Main limitation: The interface has many menus and settings, making some workflows less straightforward to navigate during our testing.

Plans & Pricing

We tested HubSpot, Brevo, ActiveCampaign, and Zoho CRM using the free plans, trials, or account access available to us. Features, limits, and pricing vary by plan and may change over time or by region. Check each tool’s current plans before choosing.

HubSpot

Brevo

ActiveCampaign

Zoho CRM

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Which Marketing & CRM Tool Fits Your Needs?

Choosing a marketing and CRM tool depends on how you manage customers, campaigns, follow-ups, and automation. We tested HubSpot, Brevo, ActiveCampaign, and Zoho CRM through everyday small-business tasks. Use our findings below to see which type of workflow each platform is designed to support.

Consider HubSpot if you want

A platform centered on email marketing and customer communication, with contact management and campaign tools.

Best for: Small businesses focused mainly on managing contacts and running email campaigns.

Consider Brevo if you want

A CRM with contacts, accounts, deals, tasks, campaigns, automation, reporting, and other sales-management features in one system.

Best for: Small businesses that want a more traditional CRM structure with detailed sales and customer-management tools.

Consider ActiveCampaign if you want

A CRM that brings contacts, deals, tasks, forms, email marketing, and reporting together in one platform.

Best for: Small businesses that want sales and marketing tools connected within the same CRM.

Consider Zoho CRM if you want

A platform that combines email marketing, contact management, forms, tagging, and automation for more structured customer journeys.

Best for: Small businesses that want to build automated marketing workflows around their contacts.

Our Marketing & CRM Findings

We compared HubSpot, Brevo, ActiveCampaign, and Zoho CRM through hands-on small-business tasks. We examined contact management, email marketing, campaigns, forms, tasks, automation, reporting, and overall usability. Our testing showed that the four platforms approach marketing and customer management differently, with different strengths, workflows, and limitations.

Our takeaway: The right marketing and CRM platform depends on how your business manages customers, campaigns, follow-ups, and automation. Use our hands-on findings to identify the workflow and features that fit your needs.