Understanding Schema Concepts
This article explains the core building blocks of a HubSpot CRM schema. Understanding these concepts helps you navigate the schema viewer and write better prompts for the agent.
Properties
Section titled “Properties”A property is a single field on an object — like “Email” on a contact or “Amount” on a deal. Every property has a type that determines what kind of data it stores and a field type that determines how it renders in HubSpot.
Property Types
Section titled “Property Types”| Type | Description |
|---|---|
| string | Text values |
| number | Numeric values (integers or decimals) |
| enumeration | A fixed set of options (dropdowns, checkboxes) |
| date | A calendar date |
| datetime | A date and time |
| bool | True or false |
Property Categories
Section titled “Property Categories”Properties are categorized by who created them:
- User properties — created by you or your team. Fully editable.
- Key properties — important default fields that HubSpot provides (like name, email). Usually editable but cannot be deleted.
- System properties — managed internally by HubSpot. Read-only.
Property Attributes
Section titled “Property Attributes”| Attribute | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Read-only | The property cannot be edited by users or integrations |
| Calculated | HubSpot computes the value automatically (e.g., days since last activity) |
| Unique | Each record must have a distinct value for this property |
| External options | The allowed values are managed outside HubSpot (e.g., synced from another system) |
Property Groups
Section titled “Property Groups”Groups organize related properties together. For example, a “Contact Information” group might contain email, phone, and address fields. Groups help keep property lists manageable and improve the editing experience in HubSpot.
Associations
Section titled “Associations”An association is a link between two objects. For example, contacts are associated with companies, and deals are associated with contacts. Associations come in two categories:
- HubSpot-defined — built-in relationships that HubSpot creates automatically (e.g., contact-to-company)
- User-defined — custom relationships you create to connect objects in ways specific to your business
Association Labels
Section titled “Association Labels”Labels add semantic meaning to associations. While an association simply says “contact is linked to company,” a label describes how — for example, “Primary Contact” or “Billing Contact.”
Labels have a direction: they go from a source object to a target object. The same association can have multiple labels, each describing a different type of relationship.
Pipelines and Stages
Section titled “Pipelines and Stages”A pipeline is an ordered sequence of stages that a record moves through. Deals and tickets are the most common objects with pipelines.
Each stage has:
- A label — the name displayed in HubSpot
- An open or closed status — open stages represent active work; closed stages represent completed or lost outcomes
Stages are ordered sequentially, and records typically progress from the first open stage through to a closed stage.