How to Migrate from ActiveCampaign to HubSpot

Key Takeaways

• ActiveCampaign to HubSpot migration typically takes 2-4 weeks

• Export contacts, custom fields, and deal data from ActiveCampaign carefully

• Recreate your advanced automations in HubSpot workflows

• Map ActiveCampaign's contact scoring to HubSpot's lead scoring system

• Plan for a transition period where both systems run in parallel

How to Migrate from ActiveCampaign to HubSpot: Complete Step-by-Step Guide

We've already explored migrations from Salesforce to HubSpot and Mailchimp to HubSpot. In this blog, we focus on how to migrate from ActiveCampaign to HubSpot.

ActiveCampaign is powerful—it's a marketing automation platform with strong CRM features, great automation, and solid customer service. But if you're thinking about moving to HubSpot, there's probably a reason: you want a simpler interface, better integration with your other tools, or a more intuitive platform that your whole team actually wants to use.

The good news? Migrating from ActiveCampaign to HubSpot is totally doable. This guide walks you through every step of the process.

Why Companies Migrate from ActiveCampaign to HubSpot

ActiveCampaign does a lot of things well, especially advanced automation. So why switch?

Common reasons include:

• Simpler interface — HubSpot is easier to learn and use day-to-day

• Better integrations — HubSpot plays nicer with popular tools

• All-in-one platform — HubSpot combines CRM, email, landing pages, forms, and analytics

• Better reporting — HubSpot's dashboards are easier to understand

• Lower cost — For many teams, HubSpot is more affordable than ActiveCampaign

• Team collaboration — HubSpot's interface makes it easier for non-technical team members

If any of these sound like your situation, you're a good candidate for the switch.

Step 1: Audit Your ActiveCampaign Account

Start by knowing exactly what you have.

Document:

1. Total contacts — How many records do you have?

2. Custom fields — List every field you've created (beyond the standard ones)

3. Lists and segments — What lists do you have organized?

4. Deals and opportunities — How many active deals? Any custom deal stages?

5. Automations — What automations are currently running? How complex are they?

6. Campaigns and sequences — How many email campaigns are active or scheduled?

7. Contact scoring — Do you use ActiveCampaign's scoring system?

8. Tags and categories — What tags are you using to organize contacts?

9. Custom objects — Have you created any custom objects?

10. Integrations — What other tools are connected to ActiveCampaign?

This audit is your migration blueprint. It shows you the scope of work and what needs to be recreated in HubSpot.

Step 2: Decide What Needs to Transfer

Just like other migrations, you don't need to move everything.

Be selective about:

• Outdated contacts — Contacts you haven't touched in 2+ years

• Archived deals — Closed, lost deals from years ago

• Inactive automations — Sequences or campaigns you're no longer using

• Old custom fields — Fields people stopped using

• Duplicate contacts — Clean these out first

The goal is to migrate your active, valuable data and leave behind the clutter.

Step 3: Create a Data Mapping Strategy

ActiveCampaign and HubSpot have different data structures. You need to think about how each ActiveCampaign field maps to HubSpot.

Create a mapping document:

Pay special attention to:

• Contact scoring — ActiveCampaign's scoring works differently than HubSpot's. You'll need to decide how to handle this.

• Lifecycle stages — ActiveCampaign has its own stages; HubSpot has standard ones. You might need to adjust.

• Lists vs. tags — ActiveCampaign uses lists; HubSpot uses tags. Think about how to convert your list structure.

Step 4: Clean Your ActiveCampaign Data

Before you export, clean up your data.

Do these cleaning tasks:

1. Merge duplicate contacts — Use ActiveCampaign's merge feature

2. Remove test accounts — Delete any test emails you created for testing

3. Remove fake contacts — No "test@test.com" or obviously invalid records

4. Update incomplete records — Fill in missing emails, names, or companies

5. Remove spam and bounced emails — If ActiveCampaign marked them as bad, delete them

6. Archive inactive contacts — Contacts who haven't engaged in 12+ months might be better archived

7. Standardize field formats — Make sure phone numbers, dates, and text all follow consistent formats

8. Remove unneeded tags — Clean up your tag structure before migrating

Clean data means a successful migration. This is worth spending time on.

Step 5: Export Your Contacts from ActiveCampaign

Now let's get your data out.

To export contacts from ActiveCampaign:

1. Go to Contacts → Manage contacts
2. Use filters if you want to export just a segment (active contacts, a specific list, etc.)
3. Select all contacts you want to export
4. Click the Actions dropdown
5. Choose Export contacts
6. Select CSV format
7. Choose which fields to include
8. Download the file

Export in multiple batches if needed: ActiveCampaign sometimes limits exports to 100,000 records at a time. If you have more, export in chunks.

Also note: Export your contact fields/properties list so you know what custom fields you have and can recreate them in HubSpot.

Step 6: Export Your Deals (If Using ActiveCampaign's CRM)

If you're using ActiveCampaign's deal tracking feature, export that separately.

To export deals:

1. Go to Deals section
2. Select the deals you want to migrate
3. Use the export function
4. Save as CSV
5. Document your deal stages and custom fields

You'll need to recreate these deals in HubSpot's deal object with the same stages and custom properties.

Step 7: Document Your Automations

This is where it gets complex. ActiveCampaign automations are powerful, but they might not translate 1-to-1 into HubSpot.

For each active automation, document:

1. What triggers it (a contact joins a list, fills out a form, matches specific criteria)
2. What it does (sends emails, adds tags, creates a task, etc.)
3. How many steps it has (is it simple or complex?)
4. Any conditions (if contact does X, then do Y; otherwise do Z)
5. How often it runs (one-time, recurring, per contact)

Don't try to migrate complex automations directly—usually you'll want to redesign them in HubSpot. But you need this documentation as a reference.

Step 8: Prepare Data for HubSpot Import

Format your ActiveCampaign export so HubSpot can read it.

HubSpot requires:

1. CSV format — Comma-separated values
2. Column headers — First row must be property names
3. Email addresses — Must be unique and valid
4. Standard formatting:

- First Name / Last Name (separate columns)

- Phone: (XXX) XXX-XXXX or +1-XXX-XXX-XXXX

- Dates: YYYY-MM-DD

- Yes/No fields: true/false or yes/no

Some tools can help automate this process, or you can manually clean up in Excel/Sheets.

Step 9: Create Custom Properties in HubSpot

Before you import, create any custom properties that don't already exist in HubSpot.

To create custom properties:

1. Go to Settings → Properties → Contacts
2. Click Create property
3. Name it to match your CSV column header
4. Choose the property type (single-line text, multiple-line text, number, date, dropdown, etc.)
5. Set it as optional (unless required)
6. Click Create

Do this for each custom field from ActiveCampaign that doesn't have a HubSpot equivalent.

 Step 10: Import Contacts into HubSpot

Time for the actual import.

Step-by-step import process:

1. Go to Contacts → Contacts

2. Click the Import button

3. Select Upload file

4. Choose your prepared CSV

5. Click Continue

6. Map your fields:

   - The system will try to auto-match, but verify each one

   - Email is critical—make sure it's mapped correctly

   - Verify that names, custom properties, and tags are mapped right

7. Choose import options:

   - "Create new contacts" — yes

   - "Update existing contacts" — yes (in case you have overlaps)

   - "Update existing property values" — choose based on what you want

8. Review the preview

9. Click Import

The import usually takes a few minutes to an hour depending on volume.

Step 11: Import Your Deals

If you have deals, import them separately.

For deals import:

1. Go to CRM → Deals

2. Click Import

3. Follow the same process as contacts
4. Make sure deal stages match HubSpot's deal pipeline
5. Link deals to the correct contacts (HubSpot handles this via email matching)

Step 12: Verify the Migration

Check that everything came over correctly.

Verification checklist:

• Contact count matches (roughly)

• Spot check 30 random contacts for accuracy

• Custom properties have the correct values

• Tags migrated correctly

• Deals appear with the right contact associations

• No obvious duplicates

• Email addresses are all properly formatted

• Phone numbers look correct

If you find issues, flag them and fix them before moving forward. Bad data in your new system is bad news.

Step 13: Recreate Your Automations in HubSpot

Now that your data is in, rebuild your automations.

Start with the most critical automations:

1. Lead scoring sequences — Emails triggered to move leads through your sales funnel

2. Welcome series — What new contacts see when they join

3. Abandoned actions — Follow-ups for contacts who should have done something but didn't

4. Re-engagement campaigns — Win back inactive contacts

5. Sales alerts — Notify your team when something important happens

HubSpot workflows work similarly to ActiveCampaign automations, but the interface is different. Don't try to recreate everything at once—start with your top 5 automations and build the rest over time.

Step 14: Set Up Lead Scoring

If you were using ActiveCampaign's contact scoring, recreate that in HubSpot.

HubSpot's lead scoring works by:

1. Assigning point values to specific actions (form submission = 10 points, email open = 1 point, etc.)

2. Setting thresholds (contacts with 40+ points get marked as "sales-ready")

3. Automatically scoring new contacts as they take actions

Set up your scoring so it matches the logic you had in ActiveCampaign, or use HubSpot's recommended scoring as a baseline.

Step 15: Establish the Cutover Date

Decide when you're going to fully transition from ActiveCampaign to HubSpot.

Consider running both systems in parallel for 2-4 weeks:

• Keep ActiveCampaign running as a backup

• Route new leads to HubSpot

• Monitor that automations are working

• Let your team get comfortable with HubSpot

• Archive old ActiveCampaign data

• Cancel ActiveCampaign subscription once comfortable

Don't switch off ActiveCampaign immediately. Give yourself (and your team) time to adjust.

Common Migration Challenges

Challenge: Recreating Complex Automations

ActiveCampaign automations can be very complex with lots of branches and conditions. HubSpot workflows are more straightforward. You'll need to simplify some automations or break them into multiple workflows.

Challenge: Contact Scoring Differences

ActiveCampaign's scoring might not map perfectly to HubSpot's system. You'll need to adjust your scoring logic for the new platform.

Challenge: Custom Objects

If you built custom objects in ActiveCampaign, HubSpot might not have equivalents. You'll need to decide whether to create custom objects in HubSpot (requires Professional plan) or convert to properties.

Challenge: Reporting History

Your historical reporting in ActiveCampaign doesn't carry over. You'll start fresh reporting in HubSpot. Keep your ActiveCampaign instance running for historical reference if needed.

Timeline and What to Expect

• Planning and audit: 3-5 days

• Data cleaning and export: 3-5 days

• Property setup in HubSpot: 2-3 days

• Import and validation: 2-3 days

• Automation recreation: 1-2 weeks

• Testing and optimization: 1 week

• Team training and transition: 2-3 weeks

Total timeline: 2-4 weeks

FAQ

Can I migrate all my data at once, or do I need to do it in batches?

You can usually migrate all at once if your data set is under 500,000 contacts. For larger sets, batching is safer. HubSpot can handle large migrations, but breaking it into chunks prevents problems.

What about my ActiveCampaign automations? Do they transfer to HubSpot?

No, automations don't transfer directly. You'll need to recreate them in HubSpot workflows. They work similarly but the interface is different. Start with your most important automations first.

How do I handle contacts who have unsubscribed from ActiveCampaign?

Export them with an unsubscribe tag or property, then mark them as unsubscribed in HubSpot during import. HubSpot will respect their opt-out status.

Can I keep both ActiveCampaign and HubSpot running at the same time?

Yes! Many companies run both in parallel for a few weeks during transition. This gives you a safety net while your team adjusts. Just make sure you're not duplicating work.

What if I have custom objects in ActiveCampaign?

HubSpot has custom objects on Professional plan and above. You can create equivalent custom objects in HubSpot, or convert the data into standard properties if the custom object structure isn't critical.

How do I handle ActiveCampaign's contact scoring in HubSpot?

HubSpot has a different scoring system. You'll need to recreate your scoring logic. The good news is that HubSpot's scoring is simpler and often works better in practice.

Do I need to train my team on HubSpot?

Yes. Set aside 2-3 weeks for training. HubSpot is simpler than ActiveCampaign, so most people pick it up quickly. Use HubSpot Academy for free training.

What happens to my historical data if I turn off ActiveCampaign?

It stays in ActiveCampaign unless you delete the account. Many companies keep a basic ActiveCampaign account running just to reference historical data and reporting.

Ready to Make the Switch?

 

If ActiveCampaign has been your home but you're ready for a simpler, more integrated platform, HubSpot is worth the move. Yes, there's some work involved, but the end result is a unified system that your entire team actually enjoys using.

We've helped dozens of ActiveCampaign users make this transition smoothly. We handle the complex parts—data migration, automation recreation, training—so you can focus on running your business.

Let's talk about migration. Schedule a free 20-minute consultation with one of our HubSpot specialists.  We'll review your current ActiveCampaign setup, show you how HubSpot will be better, and create a migration timeline that fits your business.  

Last Updated: Oct 01, 2024