How Hubspots New Formula Fields Help Small Businesses Track Cost Per Lead (CPL) Across All Marketing Channels

HubSpot just rolled out a game-changing beta feature for the Custom Report Builder—Formula Fields. If you’ve ever tried to pull a Cost per Lead (CPL) report across multiple marketing channels, you know the struggle: bouncing between spreadsheets, manually calculating totals, and trying to keep up with ever-changing marketing costs.

Now, with Formula Fields, small businesses can finally calculate CPL directly in HubSpot—without the headaches. This means real-time tracking of lead costs across all campaigns, allowing you to make faster, smarter marketing decisions without wasting hours wrangling data.

Let’s break down how it works, why it matters, and how you can use it to fine-tune your marketing strategy.

What Is the Formula Fields Beta in HubSpot’s Custom Report Builder?

The Formula Fields feature allows you to create custom calculations within reports, giving you more flexibility to analyze performance metrics inside HubSpot.

With this beta, you can now:

✅ Perform row-level calculations (like dividing total ad spend by leads generated)

✅ Create custom formulas to track marketing KPIs

✅ Analyze CPL across multiple sources in a single report

Instead of exporting data to Excel or Google Sheets, you can now build dynamic reports right in HubSpot that automatically update as new leads and expenses come in.

For businesses that rely on data to drive growth—especially those trying to maximize marketing budgets—this feature is a huge win.

How to Use Formula Fields to Calculate Cost Per Lead (CPL) in HubSpot

Cost per Lead (CPL) is one of the most important marketing metrics for small businesses. It tells you how much you’re spending to acquire each lead, helping you figure out which channels are actually worth the investment.

Here’s how to set up a CPL report using Formula Fields in HubSpot:

1️⃣ Open the Custom Report Builder

• Navigate to Reports > Custom Report Builder

• Select Contacts as your primary data source

• Add additional sources like Marketing Campaigns and Ad Spend

2️⃣ Create a Formula Field for CPL

• Click "Create field" in the Custom Report Builder

• Name your field "Cost Per Lead"

• Use the following formula:

• Choose the appropriate fields for total spend and leads generated

3️⃣ Filter & Segment by Marketing Channel

• Apply filters to break down CPL by campaign, ad platform, or traffic source

• Compare CPL across Google Ads, Facebook, LinkedIn, organic, and email campaigns

• Use visualization tools like bar charts or trend lines to track performance over time

4️⃣ Automate & Optimize

• Set up alerts to notify your team if CPL goes above a certain threshold

• Use insights from your report to shift budget to high-performing channels

• Test different campaigns and track real-time CPL changes

🚀 Pro Tip: If you’re running paid ads, this report helps you quickly spot underperforming campaigns and cut wasted spend before it burns through your budget.

Why This Feature Matters for Small Businesses

Before this beta, tracking Cost per Lead across multiple channels in HubSpot was a manual process. Businesses had to:

❌ Export campaign data from HubSpot

❌ Match it with ad spend from platforms like Google Ads & Facebook

❌ Calculate CPL in a spreadsheet

❌ Rinse and repeat every time they needed an update

Now, Formula Fields automate the entire process, giving real-time CPL insights that update instantly when new data flows in.

Here’s Why This Changes the Game:

✅ Saves Time – No more pulling reports manually—HubSpot does the math for you

✅ Improves Accuracy – Say goodbye to copy-paste errors in Excel

✅ Optimizes Budget Allocation – Quickly see which channels deliver the best ROI

✅ Helps Scale Marketing Efforts – Track CPL at a granular level and double down on what works

For businesses running lean sales and marketing teams, Formula Fields make data-driven decision-making faster and easier than ever.

The Bigger Picture: HubSpot vs. Salesforce for SMBs

This beta feature is another example of why HubSpot is closing the gap on Salesforce for small and mid-sized businesses.

While Salesforce has had complex reporting capabilities for years, they’re often too difficult (or too expensive) for smaller teams to use effectively.

HubSpot, on the other hand, continues to roll out powerful, easy-to-use features that SMBs can implement without a dedicated admin team.

With Formula Fields, HubSpot is making it easier than ever for small businesses to track the KPIs that actually drive growth—without needing a full-time data analyst.

Final Thoughts: Why You Should Start Using Formula Fields Today

If you’re running paid ads, email campaigns, or content marketing, tracking Cost per Lead is essential to making smart budget decisions.

With Formula Fields in HubSpot’s Custom Report Builder, you can:

✅ Calculate CPL automatically without spreadsheets

✅ Compare CPL across all marketing channels in one report

✅ Quickly shift budget to high-performing campaigns

🚀 Want to set up CPL tracking in HubSpot but need help getting started? Huntscape Operations Partners specializes in helping businesses maximize HubSpot’s newest features to drive revenue growth.

📩 Book a Consultation with Huntscape Operations Partners