Brevo vs HubSpot Free: What We Found in Hands-On Tests

Last verified: 2026-09-02 JST

Short answer

Brevo gave us direct evidence for a broader contact-to-campaign-draft workflow: a synthetic contact, dedicated list, one-recipient audience, saved subject, rich-text content, and saved design. Preview & Test then encountered a phone-verification prompt on the account we tested.

HubSpot answered a narrower CRM question. We created one synthetic contact, searched for it, read the record back, and verified the expected fields. We did not test a HubSpot form, campaign, or automation.

This is not a universal winner. It is a comparison of two different evidence slices. Choose the result that matches the immediate workflow you need, and treat everything else as untested.

What we actually tested

Brevo: contact, list, and campaign draft

Oravenda used synthetic values only and created Oravenda Sprint68 Test with [email protected]. The contact was visible in Brevo CRM with the expected fields.

We created Oravenda Sprint68 Controlled Test, added the synthetic contact, and confirmed list membership. A regular draft named Oravenda Sprint68 Controlled Draft used Oravenda / [email protected] as sender. The dedicated list was selected and Brevo displayed 1 recipient.

The subject Oravenda Brevo Controlled Test, rich-text body, and design were saved. No campaign was sent or scheduled. At Preview & Test, Brevo displayed “One last step to secure your account” and requested phone verification. No number or SMS code was entered.

See the full Brevo hands-on guide for the account-specific limitation: PREVIEW = BLOCKED_BY_PHONE_VERIFICATION, with delivery, deliverability, and automation NOT_TESTED.

HubSpot: CRM contact creation and readback

In a separate synthetic test, Oravenda created a HubSpot contact with first name Oravenda, last name Sprint66 Test, email [email protected], company Oravenda Test, and a controlled-test value.

The record was visible in HubSpot CRM. We searched for it and read it back; the expected first name, last name, email, company, and controlled-test value were present. That is the central HubSpot observation: in our controlled test, HubSpot created and retained the expected contact fields.

The HubSpot hands-on guide records the limits. HubSpot Forms, marketing email, sales-pipeline automation, advanced workflows, integrations, scale, and paid features were not tested.

Why this comparison is asymmetric

Brevo was taken further into list organization and campaign-draft creation. HubSpot stopped after basic CRM creation and readback. A checkmark table that treats one product's untested email path as a failure would be misleading.

TEST_COMPARABILITY = PARTIAL. The comparison asks which observed workflow is closer to a reader's immediate task; it does not compare deliverability, automation reliability, form behavior, or paid-plan value.

Evidence matrix

NOT_TESTED means there is no result to compare, not that the product failed. The matrix's detailed evidence is available in the Oravenda methodology.

Contact creation and persistence

Both tests produced a common observation: a synthetic contact could be created and found again in the tested Free account state. Brevo then organized its contact into a dedicated list. HubSpot's record was searched and read back with expected fields.

Neither test measured bulk imports, duplicate handling at scale, multi-user permissions, retention over time, or synchronization with another database. The evidence supports a basic record workflow only.

Contact organization and campaign drafting

Brevo provides the only direct evidence here for a list-and-draft sequence. The audience list, one-recipient count, subject, content, and design persisted. HubSpot was not taken through an equivalent audience or campaign workflow, so its accurate label is NOT_TESTED, not “failed.”

Preview, verification, and sending

On the Brevo account we tested, Preview & Test was gated by phone verification. We stopped without completing it, so no preview rendered successfully and no message was sent. This is account-specific; we do not claim every Brevo user sees the same prompt.

HubSpot's equivalent path was not tested. Both EMAIL_SENDING and DELIVERABILITY are NOT_TESTED. There is no inbox-placement winner.

Official free-plan information

Official product facts are separate from hands-on observations. Repository evidence records Brevo Free as USD 0/month with no time limit, no card requirement, 300 daily sends, up to 100,000 contacts, one user seat, and automation up to 2,000 contacts. HubSpot Free CRM is recorded as USD 0, no card requirement, up to two users, up to 1,000 contacts, and no expiration. These changeable facts were sourced from official vendor pages; check current pricing before relying on them.

Which workflow may suit which reader?

If your immediate need is a named audience and saved campaign draft, Brevo's tested path is more directly relevant. The phone-verification gate means the next preview/send step remains unresolved.

If your immediate need is a searchable contact record with a few expected properties, HubSpot's tested path directly covers that narrower job. It does not answer whether a form, pipeline, campaign, or connector will work.

A spreadsheet may still be enough for one person and a small stable list. Neither platform should be adopted merely because its label says Free; the added structure should solve a real repeatable problem.

When neither conclusion is justified

This comparison cannot select a winner for inbox placement, spam behavior, high-volume sending, automation reliability, form submission, integrations, enterprise permissions, or paid-plan value. It also cannot establish universal ease of use or reliability.

No marketing message was sent in either test. A reader who needs an untested path should run a separate controlled experiment with synthetic data and an observable output.

Final evidence-based takeaway

Brevo and HubSpot both produced a persisted synthetic contact in their tested Free account states. Brevo was tested further into a list-and-campaign-draft workflow and encountered a phone-verification gate. HubSpot was tested for CRM contact creation and readback only.

The honest answer to “Should I start with Brevo or HubSpot for free?” is conditional: choose the evidence that matches your immediate workflow. There is no overall winner, no deliverability conclusion, and no affiliate relationship behind either product.