Most CRM migrations do not lose records. They lose meaning: stage definitions drift, created dates get rewritten, owner history disappears and old automations fire on imported contacts. We audit the source instance first, agree every changed definition in writing, dry run in a sandbox, and stay on through the first real forecasts. Most growth-stage instances take six to ten weeks.
What's Included
| Workstream | What it covers |
|---|---|
| CRM Migration | HubSpot to Salesforce, Salesforce to HubSpot, or any combination. |
| Data Mapping | Field mapping, transformation rules, and validation logic. |
| Data Cleanup | Deduplication, enrichment, standardization, and validation. |
| Integration Rebuild | Reconnect all your tools to the new system properly. |
| User Training | Get your team up to speed on the new platform. |
| Cutover Support | Go-live support to ensure zero disruption. |
What actually breaks in a CRM migration
Almost nobody loses records in a migration any more. The tooling is good enough that contacts, companies and deals arrive on the other side. What goes wrong is subtler and more expensive: the data arrives intact and stops meaning what it meant.
Stage definitions drift
"Qualified" in the old system was set by a routing rule. In the new one a rep sets it by hand. Same label, different bar, and every historical conversion rate you report is now comparing two different things.
Timestamps get rewritten
Created dates become the migration date. Six years of cohort and velocity analysis flattens into one afternoon.
Owner history disappears
Records carry a current owner but lose who held them when. Territory and comp disputes follow about a quarter later.
Dead fields come along for the ride
Custom fields nobody has used since 2021 migrate faithfully, and the new instance is cluttered from day one.
Automations fire on import
Workflows treat migrated records as new, and your customers get a welcome sequence they already received two years ago.
This is why two quotes for an apparently identical migration can differ threefold. One firm is pricing a data transfer. The other has looked inside your instance and is pricing the reconciliation.
We wrote up the failure modes in detail in what survives a Salesforce to HubSpot move and what stops meaning what it meant.
How a migration actually runs
Six to ten weeks for most growth-stage instances. Longer if the source system carries years of accumulated automation, shorter if you are moving a clean startup CRM.
Audit, week 1
We open your instance and inventory what is actually there: objects, custom fields, automations, integrations, and which of them anybody still uses. You get the inventory whether or not you continue with us.
Mapping and decisions, weeks 2 to 3
Field-by-field mapping, and the harder conversation about which definitions change. This is where stage criteria, lifecycle logic and reporting definitions get agreed in writing, before anything moves.
Build and dry run, weeks 3 to 6
The new instance gets built and we migrate into a sandbox first. You reconcile record counts and spot-check your own accounts. Nothing goes live on trust.
Cutover, week 6 to 8
Automations paused, final delta migrated, integrations reconnected, validation run. Scheduled so your team loses a weekend, not a quarter.
Stabilise, weeks 8 to 10
We stay on while the first real pipeline reviews and forecasts run through the new system, because that is when the gaps surface.
What a CRM migration costs
Published 2026 market benchmarks put CRM migration at 10,000 to 75,000 dollars or more, and CRM implementation at 8,000 to 75,000. A focused audit on its own runs 2,500 to 10,000.
The spread is not vendors guessing. It tracks the state of the source instance. Eight years of custom objects, dead automations and duplicate records is an excavation, and no one can price it honestly without looking first. Treat any quote produced without someone opening your CRM as a number that will change later.
Ranges as published in MergeYourData's 2026 RevOps pricing benchmarks. Market-wide figures, not our rate card. For a number specific to your instance, the audit is the fastest route to one. More detail in our guide to what RevOps consulting costs.
What you own when we leave
Worth asking any migration partner, and worth being suspicious of a vague answer. Ours:
- The field mapping and transformation logic, documented, in your possession.
- A written record of every definition that changed, so future reporting discrepancies have an explanation rather than a mystery.
- Admin ownership of your own instance. We work inside your CRM, not a wrapper around it.
- The audit inventory, which stays useful long after the migration.
No proprietary middleware you have to keep paying for, and no dependency engineered in as a retention strategy. If the handover is clean, we would rather you come back for the next project because it went well.
Once the new instance is live, keeping it clean is ongoing work. That is what RevOps as a Service covers.
Frequently asked questions
What types of CRM migrations do you handle?
We handle migrations between major platforms like HubSpot and Salesforce, including bi-directional syncs and consolidation of multiple instances.
Do you clean the data during migration?
Yes, our process includes comprehensive data hygiene: deduplication, enrichment, standardization, and validation rules to ensure your new system starts clean.
Will my team be able to use the new system immediately?
Yes, we include User Training and Cutover Support to ensure your team is fully enabled and there is zero disruption to your sales operations.
How much does a CRM migration cost?
Published 2026 market benchmarks put CRM migration at 10,000 to 75,000 US dollars or more, and a standalone audit at 2,500 to 10,000. The range tracks the state of the source instance rather than the destination platform. Years of custom objects, dead automations and duplicate records cost more to reconcile than the transfer itself, which is why a quote produced without anyone opening your CRM will usually change later.
How long does a CRM migration take?
Six to ten weeks for most growth-stage instances: roughly a week to audit, two weeks to map fields and agree changed definitions, three to four weeks to build and dry run in a sandbox, a scheduled cutover, then a stabilisation period while the first real forecasts run through the new system.
What usually goes wrong in a CRM migration?
Rarely lost records. The expensive failures are semantic. Stage definitions drift so historical conversion rates compare two different bars, created dates get rewritten to the migration date and flatten cohort analysis, owner history disappears and surfaces later as territory disputes, unused custom fields migrate faithfully and clutter the new instance, and automations treat imported records as new and email customers who joined years ago.
What do we own after the migration is finished?
The field mapping and transformation logic, documented. A written record of every definition that changed, so future reporting discrepancies have an explanation. Admin ownership of your own CRM, because we work inside your instance rather than a wrapper around it. And the audit inventory, which stays useful long after the project ends. No proprietary middleware and no engineered dependency.
Ready to Migrate or Clean Your Data?
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