HubSpot Salesforce Integration: Common Challenges and Solutions

Many companies are excited when they learn that HubSpot has a native Salesforce integration. On the surface, it looks like a simple plug-and-play connector: install, click a few buttons, and the two systems magically stay in sync.

The reality is more complicated. While the native integration is powerful, it requires careful planning and maintenance. Without that, you risk sync errors, broken reports, or even API limits that bring your data flow to a halt.

At Easy Tech Partners, we’ve worked on multiple HubSpot ↔ Salesforce integrations, and we want to share what actually happens under the hood – and how to avoid the common pitfalls.

Why companies integrate HubSpot and Salesforce

HubSpot is excellent for marketing automation and nurturing leads. Salesforce is one of the most powerful CRMs for sales and customer management. When integrated correctly:

• Marketing and sales teams get one consistent view of the customer.
• Leads move from campaigns into pipelines without manual work.
• Both systems provide aligned reporting that links campaigns with revenue.

Where the challenges start

It’s not really plug-and-play

Yes, HubSpot provides a native integration. But in practice, you need to decide:

• Which objects should sync? (Contacts, Companies, Deals, Custom Objects)
• Which properties matter? You usually don’t want to sync all fields. Some are internal, others irrelevant for marketing.
• Which direction should the sync go? HubSpot → Salesforce, Salesforce → HubSpot, or two-way?

If these choices aren’t made up front, the “default” setup creates duplicates, overwrites values, or fills HubSpot with junk fields nobody needs.

API limits can block your sync

Salesforce and HubSpot both have API rate limits. If you have a large database, or if someone in Salesforce runs a bulk update (e.g. changing owner on 50,000 records), HubSpot will try to resync everything.

This can cause:

• Sync queues that take hours or even days to clear.
• Delayed data appearing in HubSpot.
• Integration temporarily stopping when limits are exceeded.

For teams relying on real-time lead handoff, this creates frustration – marketing says “we sent the lead”, sales says “we don’t see it yet”.

Custom objects and missing data

More and more companies rely on custom objects (subscriptions, projects, contracts). HubSpot and Salesforce treat custom objects differently. Mapping them requires planning, otherwise you’ll end up with partial data or failed syncs.

In many cases, it’s better to create new objects in HubSpot specifically for the data you want to sync, instead of trying to force Salesforce logic into HubSpot’s structure.

Large data volumes = large problems

If you’re syncing thousands of records daily, you need a strategy for:

• Which data is truly needed in both systems (not everything must sync).
• Error handling when syncs fail mid-process.
• Monitoring to spot when the integration slows down.

We’ve seen cases where a single bulk update in Salesforce re-triggered a sync of hundreds of thousands of records, overwhelming HubSpot’s API for hours.

Best practices for a stable integration

From our experience, these steps save time and headaches:

• Clean your CRM before you start
  Deduplicate and standardize key fields (email, phone, company domain).
• Define the sync strategy
  Decide on direction and scope: what syncs, what doesn’t, and why.
• Use selective field mapping
  Sync only the fields that business teams actually need.
• Document your process
  We use BPMN diagrams to make sure tech and business are aligned on flows.
• Monitor API usage
  Keep an eye on integration logs. If you see repeated sync delays, it’s often a sign you’re hitting limits.

When to get help

The “out of the box” setup might work for small databases. But if you:

• Have tens of thousands of records,
• Use custom objects heavily,
• Or run multiple integrations (e.g. Xero, QuickBooks, GA4),

…then professional help will save you from broken syncs and frustrated teams.

Final thoughts

The HubSpot ↔ Salesforce integration is powerful, but it’s not magic. Treating it as plug-and-play often leads to duplicates, API errors, and reporting inconsistencies. With the right setup – and by respecting API limits, defining sync scope, and creating the right data objects – you can build an integration that works reliably at scale.

At Easy Tech Partners, we specialize in HubSpot integrations that actually work in real business environments.

Contact us if you want to discuss your integration project.