Comparisons › Agency CRM and automation platforms
Agency CRM platforms compared: GoHighLevel vs Systeme.io vs a free CRM (2026 pricing)
You run an agency or you're about to. You need one system for client pipelines, bookings, email and SMS, and you'd like to bill clients for it. Here's what that costs on the plan you'll actually end up on, and which of these three you should not buy.
Disclosure: We earn a commission if you subscribe through links marked "affiliate link" on this page. It doesn't change our ranking or verdicts; here's how we test.
Prices on this page were checked on the vendor pricing pages on 2026-09-12. Hands-on test notes and screenshots are being added product by product; until a section carries the tested tag it's marked documentation-based and describes the vendor's published plans and limits. We label drafts rather than fake tests.
Buy this if you have 3+ clients
GoHighLevel — US$297 a month, unlimited client sub-accounts, and you can resell it under your own name. Nothing else on this page does that.
See plans (vendor site)Buy this if it's just you
Systeme.io — Free to start, US$17 for the real version. Funnels, email and a course in one login. No sub-accounts, so it stops being right the day you sign client two.
See plans (vendor site)Don't pay anyone yet if...
HubSpot (free CRM) — You only need a contact list and a deal board. HubSpot's free CRM is better at that than either paid tool. We're not paid for saying so.
See plans (vendor site)Side by side
| Product | Plan you'd actually need | USD/month | AUD/month | Key limits | Trial | Transaction fees | Main drawback |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GoHighLevel documentation-based | Unlimited | US$297/mo | ≈A$450 | unlimited sub-accounts, unlimited contacts and users, no SaaS mode | 14-day free trial | None on the plan. SMS, email sending and AI usage are metered on top; client card payments go through Stripe or the built-in processor at their rates | Dense. Plan a weekend to set it up properly |
| Systeme.io documentation-based | Startup | US$17/mo | ≈A$26 | 5,000 contacts, unlimited funnels, 5 courses | Free plan, no card | 0% transaction fees on every plan | No sub-accounts until the top plan |
| HubSpot (free CRM) documentation-based | Free tools | Free | Free | contacts, deals, tasks, basic email and forms; paid Starter tiers per hub | Free tier, no trial needed | None on the free tier | Paid tiers escalate quickly once you need automation |
USD prices from each vendor's pricing page, checked 2026-09-12; monthly billing shown, annual billing is cheaper on most. AUD is indicative at 0.66 USD per AUD. Australian businesses may be charged GST at checkout.
GoHighLevel documentation-based
Here's the maths that makes GoHighLevel worth its price. One Unlimited plan is US$297 a month. Put ten clients in it as sub-accounts and you're paying US$29.70 per client for a CRM, email, SMS, booking calendar, funnels and automations. Buy those separately for each client and you'd be well past that per head. Charge each client US$97 for "your" system and the platform pays for itself three times over. That's the business model every agency on this platform is running, and the Agency Pro plan formalises it with SaaS mode: your brand, your pricing, automatic rebilling.
Now the bit the vendor's pricing page won't lead with. The subscription isn't the whole bill. SMS, email sending and the AI features are metered through the built-in provider, and client card payments run through Stripe or the built-in processor at those providers' rates. Budget the plan plus usage, not the plan. Starter's three sub-accounts are the minimum sensible use; if you're at one client, you're paying for infrastructure you don't have clients for yet.
It's also busy. The interface assumes you'll invest time, and the first weekend is spent configuring rather than selling. If that's not you, Systeme.io below is calmer and a fraction of the price. If it is you, and you have the clients, this is the only tool on the page built for what you're doing.
Best for
- agencies with three or more clients today
- anyone who wants to charge clients for software they don't have to build
- replacing a CRM, an email tool, an SMS tool, a booking tool and a funnel builder with one invoice
Not for
- one client and a maybe
- people who want a quiet, minimal interface
- anyone expecting US$297 to be the whole bill
Drawbacks
- Dense. Plan a weekend to set it up properly
- Messaging usage is billed on top of the subscription
- Support is inconsistent outside US hours
Plans (USD, checked 2026-09-12)
- Starter: US$97/mo (≈A$147) — 3 sub-accounts, unlimited contacts and users, no SaaS mode
- Unlimited: US$297/mo (≈A$450) — unlimited sub-accounts, unlimited contacts and users, no SaaS mode
- Agency Pro: US$497/mo (≈A$753) — everything in Unlimited plus SaaS mode: resell under your brand, your pricing, automatic rebilling
Systeme.io documentation-based
Systeme.io is the tool we'd tell a friend to start on if they're one person with one offer. The free plan is a real product, not a 14-day trial with a countdown: 2,000 contacts, three funnels, a course, a blog, unlimited email sends, no card. The Startup plan at US$17 lifts the caps enough that most solo operators never need the next tier. And there are no transaction fees on any plan, which starts to matter the first month you sell something through it.
It is not an agency platform and it doesn't pretend to be. Sub-accounts only appear on the US$97 Unlimited plan, there's no white-label, and the "CRM" is a contact list with tags. Fine for you. Not fine for managing five clients' pipelines.
So the comparison with GoHighLevel isn't really a comparison. If you have clients, GoHighLevel. If you have an offer and an audience of one, this, for free, today.
Best for
- a solo consultant or coach
- a first funnel and list without a monthly bill
- anyone who wants zero transaction fees
Not for
- multiple clients (sub-accounts only on the US$97 plan)
- white-label resale
- a sales team running a pipeline
Drawbacks
- No sub-accounts until the top plan
- Templates look like the price
- Fewer integrations than the big platforms
Plans (USD, checked 2026-09-12)
- Free: Free (Free) — 2,000 contacts, 3 funnels, 1 course, 1 blog, unlimited emails
- Startup: US$17/mo (≈A$26) — 5,000 contacts, unlimited funnels, 5 courses
- Webinar: US$47/mo (≈A$71) — 10,000 contacts, unlimited everything, automated webinars
- Unlimited: US$97/mo (≈A$147) — unlimited contacts, all features, sub-accounts, free migration
HubSpot (free CRM) documentation-based
HubSpot is here because a lot of people searching for an "agency CRM" need a CRM, not an agency platform. The free tools cover contacts, deals, tasks, basic email and forms, and the interface is the most polished of the three by a distance. We're not a HubSpot affiliate; it's on the page so you're not choosing only between the two that pay us.
The catch arrives the day you need multi-step automation, SMS or anything white-label. That's where the free tier ends and the paid hubs begin, priced per seat per hub. At that point the all-in-one platforms above become the cheaper option, not the expensive one.
Best for
- a polished free CRM with no resale plans
- teams already using HubSpot marketing tools
Not for
- client sub-accounts or white-label
- SMS-heavy automation
- anyone who'll grow into the paid hubs, which get expensive fast
Drawbacks
- Paid tiers escalate quickly once you need automation
- No agency resale model
Plans (USD, checked 2026-09-12)
- Free tools: Free (Free) — contacts, deals, tasks, basic email and forms; paid Starter tiers per hub
Questions people ask
Do I need GoHighLevel with one or two clients?
Not yet. The platform earns its cost when you clone one setup across several clients. At one or two, use something simpler and write down what you'll need at five; you'll know when it's time.
Is there a free all-in-one CRM for agencies?
No. Systeme.io's free plan and HubSpot's free CRM are real products for one business. Sub-accounts and white-label, the two things that make a platform an agency platform, are paid everywhere.
What does white-label actually get me?
Your clients see your brand, your domain and your price, not the vendor's. On GoHighLevel that's Agency Pro's SaaS mode; lower plans give you client sub-accounts but the vendor's branding still shows in places. Systeme.io and HubSpot's free tools don't do it.
Are these prices in Australian dollars?
No, all three bill in US dollars. The AUD column is a conversion at the rate under the table, refreshed daily. If you're GST-registered, give the vendor your ABN at checkout so you're treated as a business.
How were these tested?
Same fictional agency on each platform: one pipeline with four stages, a booking calendar, one automation (form → tag → three emails) and a white-label check. Sections still marked documentation-based describe the vendor's published plans and get replaced as each test finishes. Prices are re-checked by a script every day.
How we tested and how we're paid
Same fictional agency on every platform: pipeline, calendar, one automation, white-label check, on an account we pay for or trial ourselves. Screenshots are ours. Prices come straight from the vendor pricing pages; the check date is on the table. Links marked "affiliate link" pay us a commission. HubSpot pays us nothing and is here anyway.