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by Lauren Ryan on January 2025
Custom objects in HubSpot are only available on Enterprise plans. So if you have a Professional plan or below, you won’t see them. However, with HubSpot's new pricing, you can get one license to the Enterprise suite and have custom objects enabled for your account.
An object is a collection of properties for which you can create records. In HubSpot, there are standard objects that you're used to seeing in the sync, like Leads, Contacts, Opportunities, and Deals. There are also custom objects, which are non-standard objects you can create that are uniquely defined for your organization.
In this guide, we will explore use cases for custom objects, how to implement them, and how to sync them in the HubSpot Salesforce integration.
When to Use Custom Objects
One of the first hurdles in using custom objects is figuring out what they can or should be used for. The first question you should ask is, is this something you’re going to use in the future, or is it a one-time use case? Next, consider whether a field on existing records would achieve the same goal. Make sure you can build a strong business case to use custom objects, but don’t be afraid of using them.
The following use cases are good examples of what you could achieve by implementing custom objects:
- A company in the education space wants a way of identifying students in a curriculum; they also want to track which teacher is teaching said curriculum. They could create a custom object called Curriculum and use two association labels (one for students taking the course and one for the teacher).
- Surveys are another helpful case. If you have contacts taking surveys, you can create a custom object for surveys and sync that data either from Salesforce to HubSpot or the other way around.
- A company that uses RFPs could create a custom object to track bids, the same way a real estate investor could use them to track bids made on their properties.
As you see, there’s a range of possibilities when it comes to using custom objects. You want to keep an open mind regarding how to use them.
How to Create Custom Objects in HubSpot
The UX across HubSpot has changed recently, so if you haven’t done it in a while, creating a custom object now looks different. In the past, you had to create them via API, which created a barrier to entry for people of being able to create these. Now, you can do it through a simple point-and-click solution in HubSpot.
To create a custom object, navigate to Custom Objects in HubSpot and click Create Custom Object.*
*If you haven't done this before, it'll say Get Started with Custom Objects.
After you click Create, it’s time to choose a name in the Primary Display Property. In an object, the “name” is the name of the object, like Contact. The Primary Display Property is the Contact’s name. You can choose between a text or a number field as property types. Finally, click Create.
Now you have a custom object that you can create properties for. Like any other object in HubSpot, the properties are managed under Property. As you see, the creation process is simple. However, you want to ensure you use custom objects strategically because they’re limited.
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How to Sync Custom Objects in HubSpot with Salesforce
In February 2024, HubSpot released a new beta program to allow bi-directional syncing of custom objects in the HubSpot Salesforce integration.
Before this release, you could only sync custom objects from Salesforce to HubSpot. There was no sync back to Salesforce, and you couldn't create records from HubSpot to Salesforce.
The first step to sync custom objects in HubSpot and Salesforce is to create the objects in both systems. You must also enroll in the beta program if you haven’t already.
Then, work through the following steps:
First, in HubSpot, go to Settings and find Integrations > Connected Apps under Account Setup. Click Sync Custom Object.
Sync Custom Object will prompt you to get started with the process. Choose the objects you want to sync from the dropdown menus on both apps, select them, and click Next. Once you do this, you will review the settings.
Two settings are customizable:
- When creating Relationships, when one is created in Salesforce, it will be created in HubSpot. When it's created or updated in HubSpot, it will be created or updated in Salesforce.
- When you delete a property in Salesforce, you can choose to delete it in HubSpot or do nothing. And just like with every other object of the integration, if it's deleted in HubSpot, it's not going to be deleted in Salesforce.
Next, it’s time to choose one sync conflict rule for all of the mappings. It’s worth noting that in this case, you’re not able to choose field by field, as you may be used to. Instead, mapping custom objects, you need to choose universally whether you prefer Salesforce or HubSpot. This depends on what you want your source of truth to be. For example, if your custom object is Surveys and you’re collecting data from HubSpot which then syncs to Salesforce, you’d prefer HubSpot. If the data originates from Salesforce, you would choose Prefer Salesforce.
Next, it’s time to choose associations. This setting allows you to choose which associations you want to sync for this object. This custom object sync is scanning Salesforce for what that object is associated with via Salesforce lookup fields and pulling that into HubSpot for you to then say, “Yes, I want the contact association” or, “No, I don't want the account association.” Check the ones you want and click next.
Then, choose the primary mapping. This is the value in the primary display property you set when creating the custom object. To set it up, select the matching property in Salesforce and click Next.
Whenever you change a field mapping in the current integration, you'll choose to sync now or sync gradually. The same is true here.
Once you’ve gone through the process, you can save the settings as pre-configured. You will have the same tab as on other objects, and you can toggle the integration on or off. So once you're ready, turn the sync on. Now once you've created this object, you'll be able to see it along with all of the other objects in HubSpot.
How to Join the Bi-directional Sync Beta
If you haven’t joined the beta HubSpot released in February 2024, you won’t be able to sync custom objects two ways.
To join, go to your HubSpot account. Click on your picture at the top right and go to Product Updates. If you search Salesforce, you'll see every recent update for this integration. Once you are there, click Join the Beta.
Most beta opt-ins allow you to join individually or account-wide, so your whole company can access this feature.
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