Introducing HubSpot CMS free version

How much does it cost to build a website in HubSpot CMS?

Well, starting this week, you can build and host a website in HubSpot CMS for free, as Hubspot just introduced their free CMS tools.

In a nutshell, now you are able to build a website from beginning to end, add forms and chat to your website, synchronize website leads right into HubSpot CRM and use free marketing tools such as newsletters, landing pages, and reports.

Let’s walk you through what those free tools are, what you can build with them, what are the limitations, and who is best positioned to benefit from this launch. 

Who is this free HubSpot CMS for?

The free HubSpot CMS is perfect for business builders who want to explore how incorporating their website into HubSpot’s CRM Platform can help them grow their business. 

If you’re just launching your startup and need to create your first website and start driving awareness and leads, this can be the right choice for you because:

• You can build a website from scratch, without the help of a web developer. HubSpot CMS offers modules you can drag and drop (so no coding is involved), as well a free theme to get you started faster (similar to WordPress themes).
• Page limit allows you to build a complete website without having to compromise or let anything out. You can build up to 25 pages, and multi-language variations will no longer count against your page limit.
• This is not a free trial but a free forever offer, so you can upgrade when you’re ready (aka when your business grows), not when the offer expires.
• Run your marketing and sales activities from one place, for free. You don’t need to worry about integrating and managing different tools such as emailing, analytics, CRM. Your HubSpot website will integrate with the HubSpot CRM, forms, and chat as well as other free tools (emailing, reports, landing pages, ad management)

What can you do with the free Hubspot CMS?

• Build a website from scratch, without the help of a web developer, thanks to the drag and drop editor. 
• Premium hosting is included out of the box, ensuring your site is always live and saving you the headaches of technical setup (or technical fixes in the future).
• You’ll have a secure website (with Standard SSL Certificate, 24/7 security & threat monitoring)
• If you want to speed up building your website, you can use the free theme HubSpot offers. Or look for a theme in the HubSpot Asset Marketplace (there a lot of great themes in the marketplace, such as our own Solid B2B theme).
• Capture leads with the free forms tool. Those leads will sync right into HubSpot CRM so you’ll be able to quickly and easily follow up.
• Add a chat to your website 
• Build landing pages for campaigns or to test messaging 

What are the features and limitations of the free CMS version?

Features:

• Build up to 25 web pages (multi-language variations will no longer count against your page limit)
• Host website pages, blog posts, and landing pages on a custom (www) domain
• Host 1 blog with up to 100 blog posts (maximum 20 authors and maximum 50 tags)
• Premium Hosting
• Content Delivery Network
• Standard SSL Certificate
• Web application Firewall (WAF)
• 99.99% measured uptime
• 24/7 security & threat monitoring
• Drag & Drop Page Editor
• Multi-language content creation

What are the limitations?

As with any free offer come some limitations too, so let’s see what those are.

• HubSpot branding appears on pages, blog posts, and landing pages
• You won’t be able to connect a custom email sending domain 
• You can’t modify content and layout of system pages (e.g., 404 page)
• You won’t have access to the URL Redirects tool 

While there are a few limitations with HubSpot’s free version CMS, they are not mission-critical. All the core functionalities are there (drag and drop editing, security, hosting, plenty of room to build a full website), and the edge that HubSpot CMS has over other website builders is that you have access to sales and marketing tools in the same place, making your life as a startup easier and hassle-free.

If you’re looking for guidance in choosing the right CMS for your website, let us know. We’re happy to have a chat and point you in the right direction.