Onboarding
Checked 3 November 2026.
HubSpot onboarding or implementation: which do you need?
Onboarding is done with you: HubSpot is set up with your team, so you learn as it’s built and own it afterwards. Implementation is done for you: we build it, including the bigger pieces such as custom objects and complex migrations. You choose one or the other. With Pineo, guided onboarding starts from £1,300 per Hub and implementation from £1,900. If you’re unsure, the deciding question is usually whether you have someone in-house who will own HubSpot day to day.
Will Andrew
Founder & Lead Consultant
Not sure which you need?
Tell us about your setup and we’ll tell you which route fits.
The short version
Guided onboarding (done with you) | Implementation (done for you) | |
Who does the setup | We build it with your team, live, in working sessions | We build it for you |
Best for | Teams with someone who will own HubSpot | Teams without the time, or with complex needs |
Data migration | Added if you need it, from £550 | Included in scope if you need it |
Integrations | Added if you need them, from £550 | Included in scope |
Custom objects and complex processes | Not covered | Included in scope |
Training | Your team learns as it’s built | Role-based training at handover |
Price with Pineo | From £1,300 per Hub | From £1,900 |
HubSpot editions | Professional and Enterprise | Professional and Enterprise |
All prices exclude VAT and your HubSpot licence.
What onboarding is
Guided onboarding is a fixed-price setup per Hub. We work through the setup with your team over short sessions, so the people who’ll use HubSpot every day see how it’s built and why. A few steps, like connecting your inbox, you complete yourselves using our simple guides.
It covers the essentials: inbox, calendar and meeting links, pipelines and properties built around how you work, email templates, sequences and workflows, users and permissions, starter dashboards, and training recorded for new starters.
It suits you if you have someone who will own HubSpot after go-live, your setup is fairly standard for your Hub, and you’d rather learn the system than hand it over.
What implementation is
Implementation is done for you. We map your processes, agree the design, then build, migrate and test, and show you progress every week. It covers the same essentials as onboarding, plus the bigger pieces where you need them: data migration and cleansing, integrations with your finance or ops systems, custom objects, GDPR and marketing settings, custom reporting and AI agent workflows.
It suits you if nobody on your team has the time to build it, you’re moving from another CRM with data you can’t afford to lose, HubSpot needs to connect to other systems, or your business doesn’t fit a standard setup.
Two examples
A 30-person business buying Sales Hub Professional, with a sales manager who wants to run HubSpot and a simple pipeline. Guided onboarding fits: the sales manager learns it as it’s built and can make changes afterwards. From £1,300.
A business moving sales and service off another CRM, with years of deal history and invoices in Xero. Implementation fits: the migration and integration need to be right first time, and nobody internally has the time to do it. From £1,900, plus migration and the Xero connection, each from £550.
How to decide
Ask yourselves three questions:
Who will own HubSpot after go-live? If there’s a named person with time for it, onboarding gives them the knowledge. If not, implementation gives you a system that works without one.
What are you bringing with you? A tidy spreadsheet can be handled within onboarding. Years of data from another CRM, or connections to other tools, point to implementation.
How standard is your process? One pipeline and a typical sales or service process suits onboarding. Several pipelines, approval steps or custom objects suit implementation.
You pick one route for the whole project. Guided onboarding can still take a data migration or an integration as an add-on. If your answers point to implementation on any of the three, choose implementation: it covers everything onboarding does, built for you.
What about HubSpot’s own onboarding?
If you buy HubSpot Professional or Enterprise, HubSpot requires you to buy onboarding, so every customer starts on the right foot. If an accredited partner like Pineo onboards you instead, HubSpot waives its fee. More in Do you have to pay HubSpot’s onboarding fee?
Our take
The wrong choice is rarely onboarding versus implementation. It’s picking onboarding with nobody to own HubSpot afterwards. Teams that do that end up with a system nobody updates, and they pay later to fix it. Be honest about who will look after HubSpot, and the right option usually becomes obvious.
Frequently asked questions
What’s the difference between HubSpot onboarding and implementation?
Onboarding is done with you: a fixed-price setup per Hub that we work through with your team. Implementation is done for you and covers the bigger pieces: migrations, integrations, custom objects and reporting.
Which is cheaper?
Guided onboarding starts lower, from £1,300 per Hub, against £1,900 for implementation. The right choice depends on what you need rather than the starting price.
Can we mix onboarding and implementation?
No, it’s one or the other. Guided onboarding is done with you; implementation is done for you. With guided onboarding you can still add a data migration or an integration, from £550 each.
How long does each take?
Most single-Hub onboarding projects take a few weeks. Implementation depends on the scope, and we agree a plan with dates in the proposal.
Does onboarding include data migration?
Not as standard. Data migration is added if you need it, from £550.
Sources
Pineo HubSpot Onboarding: https://pineo.com/services/hubspot-onboarding
Pineo HubSpot Implementation: https://pineo.com/services/hubspot-implementation
Answers
