You may think that because we sell HubSpot, we would be very anti-Dynamics.

Whilst there is certainly a bias there, we’ve worked with enough businesses to understand that they’re often used for different purposes within a business. HubSpot might be used by marketing, sales development or customer-facing teams, while Dynamics may sit at the centre of sales operations, finance, customer records or reporting.

The added layer of complexity comes as HubSpot and Dynamics are configured differently. They handle users, lookup fields, account structures, pipelines and product data in different ways. That does not mean the integration is unworkable. It means the integration needs to be designed properly.

This means that for accurate customer data and metrics to be shared among systems, an integration between the two is required.

In this article, we have asked our in-house experts to share their process for integrating the two and how we approach this integration for our clients - step-by-step.

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Then get in touch with our team to help solve this complex integration between HubSpot and Dynamics.

The Starting Point for a Dynamics and HubSpot Integration

Before you even start to look at fields, sync rules or integration tools, you should start by understanding how the business actually works.

For a successful integration, the two systems need to join up the processes that sit across marketing, sales, operations, finance and customer management. If those processes are not clearly defined first internally, the integration can quickly become a data-syncing exercise without really solving the crux of the problem.

The first step is to map where each process begins, where it ends, and which teams are involved at each stage.

For example, a new enquiry may be captured in HubSpot through a website form, nurtured by marketing, qualified by a sales development team, then handed over to a sales team working in Dynamics. In another scenario, a sales opportunity might be created directly in Dynamics, but marketing still needs visibility of the account, contact, deal stage and product interest in HubSpot.

These hand-off points matter.

They determine which records need to be created, which fields need to be updated, and which system should own each part of the customer journey.

At this stage, we would usually ask questions such as:

Where are leads created?
Which system is used for qualification?
When does a lead become an opportunity?
Which teams work in HubSpot, and which work in Dynamics?
Where is customer data mastered?
Where are sales activities, tasks and meetings recorded?
Which data does marketing need for segmentation, nurture and reporting?
Which data does sales need to progress opportunities?
Which data does operations or finance need once a deal is won?

Undertaking this process also prevents a common mistake: syncing too much data simply because it is available.

In most businesses, HubSpot and Dynamics play different roles. HubSpot is often perceived as the tool for marketing, lead capture, sales engagement, automation and customer visibility. Dynamics is often used for more complex sales processes, account management, finance-linked activity, contract approval or reporting.

The goal is not always to make both systems identical.

In fact, trying to mirror everything can create more complexity than value. A better approach is to define what each platform should do, then design the integration around those responsibilities.

That means deciding which system is the source of truth for each object or field.

For example, HubSpot may own campaign source, marketing consent, lifecycle stage and lead activity, while Dynamics may own account status, opportunity progression, contract details or product ownership. Some data may need to sync both ways, while other data should only move in one direction to protect accuracy.

Ascertaining this early in the process of integrating the two, it makes the data sync a lot easier down the line.

The 7 Key Areas to Consider When Integrating Dynamics and HubSpot

Once the business process is clear, we can move into the detailed integration design. This is where the real work begins.

Our team highlighted seven areas where the native integration is likely to work well, where configuration is needed, and where a workaround or more bespoke approach may be required.

1. User Names, Ownership and System Fields

Record ownership is one of the first areas we would review.

In both HubSpot and Dynamics, ownership fields are important for routing, reporting, task assignment, sales accountability and visibility. However, system fields such as “created by”, “modified by” and “owner” do not always behave in the same way across both platforms.

Our approach would be to make sure users are set up consistently in both systems, using the same email address wherever possible. This gives the integration the best chance of matching users correctly and assigning records to the right person.

We would also look at how user access is managed more broadly.

In many organisations, this will mean connecting user management to a central identity provider, so joiners, movers and leavers are controlled centrally rather than managed manually in each platform.

This matters because if a user exists in Dynamics but not in HubSpot, or vice versa, records may sync without a clear owner. That can cause issues with sales follow-up, reporting, task assignment and pipeline management.

2. Lookup Fields and Reference Data

Lookup fields are one of the most common challenges in a HubSpot and Dynamics integration.

Dynamics often uses lookup fields to reference related tables, such as business unit, country, product category, sector or account type. HubSpot works differently, using properties, associations and custom objects.

This means a lookup field in Dynamics may not always sync neatly into a standard HubSpot property.

For the lookup fields that are needed, we would decide whether HubSpot needs the full relationship or simply the displayed value.

For example, if HubSpot users only need to filter companies by country or sector, a simple property may be enough. But if the lookup table itself needs to be preserved, reported on or associated with multiple records, we may create a custom object in HubSpot to mirror that structure.

In some cases, the best solution is to sync the lookup as an association, then use calculated or copied properties to surface the value directly on the company, contact or deal record. That makes the data easier to use in lists, workflows, views and reports.

3. Business Units and Team-Specific Data

Many businesses using both HubSpot and Dynamics have multiple divisions, brands, regions or sales teams. Each team may need its own view of the customer, but the business still needs a joined-up view overall.

This is where business unit design becomes important.

We would begin by separating shared data from team-specific data. Shared data might include company name, website, core contact details and overall customer status. Business-unit-specific data might include local owner, pipeline, lifecycle stage, product interest, campaign engagement or service relationship.

HubSpot can support this through a combination of Business Units, teams, permissions, pipelines, property groups and segmentation. Dynamics may manage a similar concept through owning business units, account ownership or team-based permissions.

The integration design needs to bridge those structures carefully.

For example, one company might be a customer for one division, a prospect for another, and completely unknown to a third. If the integration only allows one lifecycle stage or one owner to represent that entire relationship, teams will quickly lose context.

To avoid this, we would define which business unit fields need to sync from Dynamics, which should be calculated in HubSpot, and which should remain HubSpot-only.

We would also decide how permissions should work, so users can access the data they need without cluttering their CRM view with irrelevant information.

4. Account Hierarchies

Account hierarchy is another area where the two often differ and produces challenges when integrating Dynamics and HubSpot.

Dynamics is commonly used to manage complex account structures, including parent companies, subsidiaries, sites, divisions, departments or billing entities. HubSpot can support company-to-company relationships, but marketing and sales teams often need a simpler, more usable view.

Our first question would be: how much of the hierarchy does HubSpot actually need?

In some cases, HubSpot users only need to see the parent company and the trading entity they are dealing with. They may not need every operational, finance or legal layer that exists in Dynamics.

Once that has been agreed, we would map the relevant levels of the Dynamics account hierarchy into HubSpot using company-to-company associations. These associations can be labelled clearly, so users understand whether a company is a parent, child, site, division or related business.

We would also define sync filters to prevent unnecessary hierarchy levels from being pushed into HubSpot. This is important because overloading HubSpot with too many account records can make the system harder to use and reduce adoption.

5. Virtual, Calculated and System-Generated Fields

Some fields in Dynamics are not simple stored values. They may be calculated fields, virtual fields or system-generated values that display useful information to users but are not always available to sync directly.

This can create confusion during integration planning. A field may be visible in Dynamics, but that does not necessarily mean it can be mapped directly into HubSpot.

We would start by identifying any calculated, virtual or system-generated fields that HubSpot users need. Then we would trace each one back to its underlying source data.

In some cases, the integration may be able to sync the root field that sits behind the displayed value. In others, the logic may need to be recreated in HubSpot using workflows, calculated properties or reporting logic.

For example, if Dynamics displays a status label based on an underlying status code, we may need to sync the code and then translate it into a user-friendly value in HubSpot.

Alternatively, if HubSpot only needs the status for reporting or segmentation, we may create a simplified version that serves the business purpose without replicating the entire Dynamics logic.

6. Pipeline Stages and Sales Process Mapping

HubSpot and Dynamics can both manage sales pipelines, but they are often used in different ways.

HubSpot may have multiple team-specific pipelines with detailed stage gates, while Dynamics may use a more standardised process for opportunity management, forecasting or approval.

We would begin by mapping every pipeline and stage in both systems. This includes understanding what each stage means, which team owns it, what data is required at that stage, and what should happen when a deal moves forward.

From there, we would define how the stages should map between HubSpot and Dynamics. Sometimes this will be a direct one-to-one mapping. More often, a more detailed HubSpot pipeline may need to map into a broader Dynamics stage.

For example, HubSpot might have separate stages for discovery, proposal preparation, quote sent and negotiation, while Dynamics may only need to see these as part of a broader “in progress” or “open opportunity” stage.

In that case, we would preserve the detail in HubSpot for the team using it day to day, while passing the appropriate simplified status into Dynamics.

This needs careful thought because pipeline mapping affects reporting, forecasting, attribution, handovers and automation. If stages are mapped badly, both systems may appear to be integrated, but neither will give a reliable view of the sales process.

7. Customer Products and Opportunity Products

The final area we would review is product and service data.

This is often where the integration starts to deliver real commercial value. If HubSpot can see which products or services a customer has bought, marketing and sales teams can build better cross-sell, upsell, renewal and retention activity.

Dynamics may store this information in product tables, customer product records, opportunity products, order lines or other related objects. HubSpot may not have an identical structure out of the box, so we would decide how that data needs to be represented.

In many cases, Dynamics would remain the source of truth for purchased products or contracted services. HubSpot would then receive the relevant product information for segmentation, reporting and customer visibility.

Where standard HubSpot objects are not enough, we may create custom objects to mirror the relevant product or service tables from Dynamics. These could then be associated with companies, contacts or deals, depending on the sales model.

For example, customer products might be associated with company records, showing what that account has already bought. Opportunity products might be associated with deals, showing what is being discussed or proposed as part of an active sales opportunity.

This creates a much richer CRM experience in HubSpot. Marketing can segment customers by product ownership. Sales can spot expansion opportunities. Leadership can see which products are driving pipeline and revenue. Customer-facing teams can understand the relationship more quickly.

Integrating Dynamics and HubSpot Properly

In summary, a HubSpot and Dynamics integration should not be treated as a simple technical exercise.

Yes, the end result is data moving between two platforms. But the success of that integration depends on the thinking that happens before anything is switched on. You need to understand where each system fits in the business, which teams use which platform, what data each team actually needs, and where the source of truth should sit.

That is why our approach starts with the business process first. Which is why, if you need help planning or fixing a HubSpot and Dynamics integration, speak to our team and we’ll help you work through the complexity.