What Are HubSpot's Free CMS Tools?

If you've never heard of the HubSpot CMS, start here first: The HubSpot CMS Hub: Everything You Need to Know. 

Once you've got that down, I know you're going to be super excited about all these free tools.

At the heart of this new launch, HubSpot is offering you the ability to build a secure, efficient website that looks great and performs even better. Plus, unlike any other free CMS on the market today, the HubSpot CMS integrates with the rest of HubSpot's CRM, offering access to all of their other already amazing robust free CRM features.

Build a Secure Website — HubSpot CMS Tools for Website Security

From the ground up, you get access to all the tools you need to build a website securely. That includes:

• HubSpot's premium hosting
• Content delivery network
• Standard SSL Certificate
• Web application Firewall (WAF)
• 99.99% measured uptime
• 24/7 security & threat monitoring
• Custom domains

The HubSpot CMS has a lot of pros and cons (we outlined them all in this HubSpot vs. WordPress CMS blog) but one of its biggest strengths is its security. Unlike other open-source platforms, there are very few security risks to the HubSpot CMS.

Pair that with their exceptional hosting, crazy uptime stats, and serious security and threat monitoring program, and you pretty much get everything you need, out of the box. And did we mention free?

Build a Beautiful Website, Fast — HubSpot CMS Tools for Efficient Web Design That Wows & Performs

We get that security isn't exactly the sexiest selling feature, so here's something for all of our aspiring web designers out there. With HubSpot's newly launched free CMS tools, you also get:

• HubSpot's super easy drag & drop page editor
• Mobile optimization
• Design manager
• Local development tools
• Website themes
• Built-in AMP support for blogs
• Asset marketplace
• Ap marketplace
• 25 website pages
• Blog
• Blog import
• Advanced menus
• Multi-language content creation
• Ability to use a custom domain
• CTAs

If you take a closer look at that list, you'll see that HubSpot's free CMS building tools fall into two major categories:

• Design
• Performance

That's one thing I'm super impressed by with this launch. A lot of free CMS platforms make it easy to build a beautiful website, but very few make it simple to build a website that can perform right out of the box. 

If you missed our case study on WordPress vs. HubSpot, I'd highly recommend checking that out to see exactly what I mean. The Cliffs Notes version? Our traffic skyrocketed once we migrated our site over to the HubSpot CMS. Check out the graph below:

Beyond performance, HubSpot's drag-and-drop editor is very user-friendly, and their ever-growing asset marketplace and library of website themes make it easy to design a website that you're proud of.

But, the free CMS tools do double duty by backing up that beautiful platform with actual performance.

With built-in AMP support, mobile optimization, multi-language content creation, and the NEWLY free CTA tool, your free website will perform just as great as it looks. That's a differentiator you're not going to get from WordPress, Wix, or Squarespace.

Connect Your Website to the Entire HubSpot CRM — HubSpot's CMS Tools that Connect with the CRM

If we've lost you in acronym soup — CRM, CMS, CTA, etc. — check out this blog: What is HubSpot? A Plain English Guide to HubSpot's Software

The third and final category of HubSpot's new free CMS tools is all of the ones that connect with the rest of the HubSpot system. That includes:

• All of HubSpot's free tools, across platforms
• HubSpot's free CRM
• Facebook Messenger integration
• Reporting dashboards
• Email marketing
• Basic chatbots
• Live chat
• Ads management
• Forms
• Landing pages
• Conversations inbox
• Form follow-up emails
• List segmentation

If you're new to customer relationship management tools, let me just say that this is the ideal "digital marketing starter kit".

Seriously, if you're new to digital marketing, there isn't a better, more comprehensive package available, and this is all for free.

Imagine that you're starting your business from scratch. By using HubSpot's free CMS tools, you now have the ability to market to your ideal customer, nurture them as they convert to a lead, manage their sales process, AND ensure that your service team is delivering on what sales promised, all in one free suite of tools.

You can: 

• Build your website
• Manage your website
• Attract new leads
• Convert those leads into contacts
• Email those leads
• Connect with them via social media, live chat, or chatbots
• Convert them into a lead with forms
• Manage their sales process with conversations inbox
• And report on the performance of every single step of the way

All with just one free set of tools. That's kind of amazing.

Of course, this is the free version, so there are some limitations. Let's jump into those next.

What Can't I Do With HubSpot's Free CMS Tools?

Aha, what all the critical thinkers have been waiting for.

"Ah yes, free you say. So what's the catch?"

The catch is, as with the free version of anything, there are some limits to your power. Let's walk through those.

• HubSpot branding. This will appear on all pages, blog posts, and landing pages. 
• 25 website pages. It bears mentioning that this is still a ton of pages, more than the average small business needs. 
• No custom email sending domain. HubSpot's free CMS tools support a custom domain, but not a custom email sending domain. 
• 1 blog, 100 blog posts, 20 authors, and 50 tags. This is still more than most small businesses will need for the first few years of their foray into digital marketing. 
• No live support. Free CMS customers can use HubSpot's Community, KB docs, and Academy to troubleshoot, but you won't have access to email or chat with their support team. 
• No systems pages modification. Pages like your 404 error page will come with a set design you won't be able to modify. 
• No on-page personalization. This is a newer feature for most website builders, but if you'd like to personalize your page content to your leads, the free version of HubSpot's CMS won't include those personalization tokens. 
• No access to HubSpot's URL Redirects tool. HubSpot has a handy redirects tool, but it's not available in the free version. 
• Not eligible for HubSpot migration. In some paid tiers of the HubSpot CMS, a migration to the new platform is covered. The free version is built for customers who are likely building from scratch on the CMS, so that migration isn't available with the free tools.

Who Are HubSpot's Free CMS Tools For?

Now that you know what HubSpot's free CMS tools include, and what they don't, you're probably wondering, "are these free CMS tools for me?"

And we're so glad you asked. Because while this is an amazing offer, it's not for every business.

HubSpot's free CMS tools are best for:

Small business owners who are ready to get started with digital marketing. 

If you're ready to take that first step in building your website, and you're planning to build your website yourself, there is no better free tool package than what HubSpot is offering.

You can:

• Build a beautiful website, fast
• Ensure functionality and security
• Develop an initial marketing strategy and implement it with HubSpot's many free marketing, sales, and service tools. 
• Connect all of those efforts into one platform — HubSpot's free CRM. 

If you're looking for a way to get up and running quickly, then HubSpot's free CMS tools are absolutely for you. 

Larger businesses who want to test out the CMS, or who are planning to build a microsite.

Maybe your company is launching a new product. Maybe you're considering a website migration but aren't sure what to expect from HubSpot's CMS platform.

Either way, HubSpot's free CMS tools give you the access you need to test drive the platform before you buy it.

You can:

• Take a look under the hood
• Evaluate how the drag & drop editor works
• Get a feel for how the system can work for your team
• Start considering how HubSpot's CRM can work as a full-suite solution for your larger business

These free tools offer the perfect opportunity for you to take a closer look at how HubSpot works, and if it's the right fit for your company's larger website. 

Is HubSpot Right For You? 

Well, it's free, so it can't hurt to try, right?

In all seriousness, if you're still wondering whether HubSpot is right for you, a conversation is a great place to start. Our team of HubSpot experts is here to understand what you're looking for, and if the system can get you where you want to go. Give us a shout with any questions — we're here to help!