If you're running a service business—whether that's a marketing agency, law firm, home services company, coaching practice, or consulting firm—you've probably heard both ClickFunnels and GoHighLevel recommended as the solution to your client acquisition problems.
Both platforms promise to help you capture leads, nurture them, and convert them into paying clients. But they approach that problem very differently, and the right choice depends entirely on what your business actually needs.
We've built systems on both platforms for dozens of service businesses. Here's the honest breakdown of when each makes sense—and which one we recommend for most service-based companies.
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | ClickFunnels | GoHighLevel |
|---|---|---|
| Starting Price | $147/month | $97/month |
| Full-Featured Price | $197/month + integrations | $297/month (all-in-one) |
| Funnel Builder | ✓ Excellent (industry-leading) | ✓ Very Good |
| Built-in CRM | ◐ Basic contacts only | ✓ Full CRM with pipelines |
| Email Marketing | ✓ Included | ✓ Included + more automation |
| SMS Marketing | ✗ Requires integration | ✓ Built-in two-way SMS |
| Phone System | ✗ Not included | ✓ Built-in calling + tracking |
| Appointment Scheduling | ✗ Requires Calendly, etc. | ✓ Built-in calendar |
| Workflow Automation | ◐ Basic | ✓ Advanced visual builder |
| Reputation Management | ✗ Not included | ✓ Review requests built-in |
| White-Label Option | ✗ No | ✓ Full white-label |
| Best For | Info products, courses | Service businesses, agencies |
When ClickFunnels Makes Sense
Let's be fair: ClickFunnels isn't a bad platform. It's actually excellent at what it was designed for.
ClickFunnels is the right choice if:
- You're selling digital products or courses. The checkout experience, order bumps, and upsell flows are polished and conversion-optimized.
- You already have a CRM you love. If you're locked into HubSpot, Salesforce, or another enterprise CRM, ClickFunnels integrates well as a pure funnel-building layer.
- You need advanced affiliate management. ClickFunnels' Backpack feature handles affiliate programs better than GoHighLevel.
- Design polish matters more than features. ClickFunnels templates tend to be more visually refined out of the box.
Russell Brunson built ClickFunnels to sell courses and info products—and it shows. The platform excels at that specific use case.
Why GoHighLevel Wins for Service Businesses
Here's the fundamental difference: ClickFunnels helps you capture leads. GoHighLevel helps you capture leads AND convert them into clients.
For service businesses, the funnel is just the beginning. After someone fills out your form or books a call, you need to:
- Send immediate SMS and email follow-up (speed-to-lead matters)
- Track them through your sales pipeline
- Make calls and log conversations
- Send appointment reminders
- Nurture no-shows back into the pipeline
- Request reviews after the job is done
GoHighLevel does all of this in one platform. ClickFunnels requires integrating separate tools for each function.
The Speed-to-Lead Advantage
Studies show that responding to a lead within 5 minutes makes you 21x more likely to qualify them compared to waiting 30 minutes. Service businesses live and die by response speed.
With GoHighLevel, you can build automations that:
- Send an SMS within seconds of form submission
- Trigger a voicemail drop if they don't answer
- Automatically follow up 3 times before a human ever needs to touch the lead
Building this with ClickFunnels requires connecting Twilio, Zapier, and your CRM—more complexity, more potential failure points, and more monthly fees.
One of our HVAC clients increased their booking rate from 23% to 41% simply by implementing GoHighLevel's instant SMS follow-up. That's a 78% improvement with a single automation.
True All-in-One Simplicity
We've audited tech stacks for dozens of service businesses. The typical ClickFunnels user ends up with:
- ClickFunnels ($147-197/month) – funnels
- ActiveCampaign or Mailchimp ($50-150/month) – email
- Twilio + SMS tool ($50-100/month) – texting
- Calendly or Acuity ($15-45/month) – scheduling
- HubSpot or Pipedrive ($45-100/month) – CRM
- CallRail or similar ($45-95/month) – call tracking
Total: $350-690/month across 5-6 platforms, all requiring integration maintenance.
GoHighLevel: $97-297/month for everything in one place.
The Hidden Cost of ClickFunnels
The sticker price of ClickFunnels looks competitive until you realize what's missing for service businesses.
What ClickFunnels Doesn't Include
- CRM with pipelines
- Two-way SMS
- Phone system
- Appointment booking
- Review management
- Advanced automation
What GoHighLevel Includes
- Full CRM with pipelines
- Unlimited two-way SMS
- Built-in phone system
- Calendar & scheduling
- Reputation management
- Visual automation builder
Beyond the monthly fees, integrating multiple platforms costs time. Every Zapier workflow that breaks at 2am, every sync that fails, every "why didn't this lead get the email?" troubleshooting session—it adds up. Our clients regularly report spending 5-10 hours/month managing integrations they eliminated by switching to GoHighLevel.
What We Recommend
If you're running a service business and you want one platform that handles lead capture through client conversion, GoHighLevel is the clear choice.
The funnel builder is more than capable. The CRM is purpose-built for service businesses. The automation rivals (and often exceeds) what you'd build with Zapier and multiple tools. And the economics make sense—one subscription instead of six.
The only scenario where we'd recommend ClickFunnels for a service business is if you're already deeply embedded in another CRM you can't leave, and you just need a funnel builder. Even then, we'd probably suggest looking at GoHighLevel's funnel builder as a standalone feature.
Frequently Asked Questions
For most service businesses, yes. GoHighLevel includes a full CRM, two-way SMS, phone system, appointment scheduling, and automation in one platform—features that service businesses rely on daily. ClickFunnels excels at funnel building but requires integrating multiple additional tools for client communication and follow-up.
ClickFunnels starts at $147/month for the basic plan and $197/month for the Pro plan. GoHighLevel starts at $97/month for the Starter plan and $297/month for the Unlimited plan. However, to match GoHighLevel's features, ClickFunnels users typically need to add $200-400/month in additional tools (CRM, SMS, scheduling, etc.).
Yes. GoHighLevel includes a full drag-and-drop funnel builder comparable to ClickFunnels. While ClickFunnels' builder has more templates and a slightly more polished interface, GoHighLevel's funnel builder handles everything most service businesses need—landing pages, opt-in funnels, booking funnels, and sales pages.
Yes, GoHighLevel includes a full CRM with pipeline management, contact records, conversation history, tagging, and lead scoring. ClickFunnels has basic contact management but requires integration with external CRMs like HubSpot or Salesforce for robust client relationship management.
Yes. GoHighLevel includes two-way SMS, a built-in phone system with call tracking, voicemail drops, and even ringless voicemail. This is critical for service businesses that need fast lead response times. ClickFunnels does not include these features natively.
GoHighLevel is significantly better for agencies. The $297/month Unlimited plan allows you to create unlimited sub-accounts and white-label the entire platform under your own brand. Many agencies resell GoHighLevel as their own software. ClickFunnels has limited agency features and no white-label option.
That depends on your time and technical comfort. GoHighLevel has a learning curve—proper setup of automations, pipelines, and integrations typically takes 20-40 hours. If you have the time and enjoy building systems, DIY works fine. If you'd rather focus on serving clients, hiring an expert to build your system usually pays for itself within 2-3 months through faster implementation and better configuration.
Ready to Choose?
Whether you want to set up GoHighLevel yourself or have experts build your entire client acquisition system, we can help.
DIY Route
If you've got the time and want to learn the platform yourself, start with a GoHighLevel trial and build it out.
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