HubSpot agency or freelancer: which is really right for you?
You searched for a HubSpot agency. That’s a good sign. It means you take your CRM seriously and want help from someone who knows what they’re doing. Before you make a decision, it’s worth taking an honest look at both options. From someone who knows how both sides work.
What a HubSpot setup looks like when it’s done right.
- Meaningful, fully automated reporting. With numbers you can trust.
- Leads are cleanly attributed to the right marketing campaign.
- Sales knows the marketing message. Marketing gets feedback on lead quality.
- Recurring customer questions don’t have to be answered from scratch every time.
- Complete clarity in your sales pipeline.
What you get from a HubSpot agency
HubSpot agencies offer structure, a well-practiced team and, on paper, scalability. Your first call is often with a seasoned consultant or the founder. The proposal sounds custom and the presentation looks professional.
For large enterprise projects with several parallel workstreams, that can make sense. But agencies carry overhead: sales, account management, junior staff who are still being onboarded. Somebody pays for all of that.
The 4 differences nobody mentions upfront
The person who sells isn’t the person who delivers.
The sales call is with a seasoned consultant or the founder. For the actual work, you often get a project manager who was onboarded six months ago. That’s not the exception. It’s the agency model.
You can’t reach the founder anymore.
The person whose expertise won you over stepped out of day-to-day work long ago. They’re building the company, not your HubSpot.
Standard packages, no matter what was promised.
Agencies work with templates and playbooks. That’s efficient for them. But then your CRM structure, your sales pipeline and your automation follow the agency standard, not the way your business actually runs.
You pay for overhead, not expertise.
An agency day rate of €1,200 doesn’t mean €1,200 worth of expertise goes into your project. You’re paying for office rent, sales salaries and the next pitch deck.
What you get from a HubSpot freelancer
You work directly with the person who builds your project, from the first requirements analysis to go-live. Nobody hands your project off to a junior in the background, and you don’t get a standard package. I build HubSpot setups for B2B companies of various sizes, along with automation and structured sales pipelines. What I propose is what I deliver.
| Criterion | Agency | Freelancer (Lorenz RvS) |
|---|---|---|
| Point of contact | often changes between sales, project management and delivery | one person from the intro call until after go-live |
| Who does the work | often junior staff | the same person who advises you |
| Approach | templates and playbooks | a plan built around your process |
| Price | overhead built into the day rate | typically 30 to 50% lower |
| HubSpot licenses | often a HubSpot partner with a revenue share | not a partner, no share of license revenue |
| A good fit for | large projects with parallel workstreams and fixed SLAs | B2B companies with 5 to 100 employees |
HubSpot partner agencies profit from your upgrade
Many HubSpot agencies are partner agencies in HubSpot’s Solutions Partner Program. According to HubSpot, partners receive 20% of the license revenue from the customers they bring in, for up to three years depending on their tier. Under the current model, this also applies to upgrades and add-ons.1
That doesn’t make an agency untrustworthy. But it does explain why recommendations so often land on the next plan up.
I’m deliberately not a HubSpot partner and I don’t sell licenses. I only recommend an upgrade when it pays off for you. Often you can do more with the plan you already have, for example through the HubSpot API.
1 Source: HubSpot, commissions in the Solutions Partner Program (hubspot.com/deal-based-commissions), as of October 2026.
When does an agency still make sense?
There are situations where an agency is the right choice:
- when your project needs several implementation phases running in parallel,
- when you need a dedicated team with fixed SLAs and support you can escalate,
- or when internal compliance rules require a master services agreement with an incorporated company.
For most B2B companies with up to 500 employees, none of that applies. An experienced freelancer brings senior expertise and shorter decision paths. The price is lower too, because no overhead is built in.
A client’s experience after switching from an agency
Before working with Lorenz, we worked with an agency and weren’t happy with the result. Lorenz helped us finally get real clarity back into our HubSpot reporting, and above all built the processes so that our sales reps hardly have to log anything by hand anymore.
Translated from German
Roman Lee ÖzevinManaging Director, LeeFinance Real Estate GmbH 
Hi, I’m Lorenz.
I’ve worked with HubSpot every day for more than 6 years.
Before going independent, I helped two companies grow from around 15 to more than 60 employees within a few years, with annual revenue in the eight figures. In my last role I was responsible for all automation, the sales processes, the AI strategy, tracking, reporting and a lot more.
Today I help small and mid-sized businesses get similar results.
Frequently asked questions: HubSpot agency or freelancer
How much does a HubSpot freelancer cost compared to an agency?
A HubSpot freelancer is typically 30 to 50 percent less expensive than an agency. That’s not because the quality is lower. It’s because no agency overhead is priced in, such as a sales team, account management or office rent. You pay directly for the expertise.
Can a freelancer handle larger HubSpot projects?
Yes. Most HubSpot implementations at mid-sized companies, meaning CRM setup, automation and onboarding, are carried out by a single specialist. Agencies rarely run that work in parallel. There, too, the hands-on work usually sits with one person. The difference: with a freelancer, you know exactly who that is.
What’s the difference between a HubSpot partner agency and a freelancer?
HubSpot partners are agencies or other service providers in HubSpot’s partner program. They get access to partner programs and direct support from HubSpot. A freelancer can be a HubSpot partner too, so these aren’t opposing categories. I deliberately decided against the partner program, so my recommendations stay independent of HubSpot’s plans.
How long does a typical HubSpot project with a freelancer take?
A structured HubSpot onboarding takes 2 to 8 weeks: 2 to 4 weeks when it’s focused, up to 8 weeks with data migration and multiple hubs. A CRM setup with custom workflows usually takes 3 to 6 weeks. Both depend on complexity and on how quickly decisions get made on your side. There are no delays from handoffs like you get at an agency.
What should I look for when choosing a HubSpot freelancer?
What matters: proven hands-on experience with HubSpot, reference projects from your industry or with a similar tech stack, a clear onboarding plan, and knowing upfront who will actually do the work.
More on HubSpot
- HubSpot implementationCRM setup, data migration, pipeline
- HubSpot onboardinggetting your team started
- HubSpot consultingaudit, clean up, build on
- Automation & AIworkflows beyond HubSpot
- HubSpot APIwhat HubSpot can’t do on its own
- What does HubSpot cost?pricing, required onboarding, saving
- Why a HubSpot freelancer?work with the person who builds it
More revenue from the right HubSpot setup.
I set up your HubSpot so it delivers its full potential in your business. Whether you’re just getting started or have been using HubSpot for years. In a free 30-minute intro call, we look at your situation together.
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