The home team had to fight back for their point but they were full value for it and might have had more with better finishing.
It was one-way traffic in the first half as Hartlepool tore into the Swansea attack and they might have had more than one goal at half time.
It came on 24 minutes when Mark Tinkler took a free-kick short and skipper Richie Humphreys blasted his first goal of the season from 25 yards.
Keeper Willy Gueret got his fingers to the ball but there was too much power in the shot and he couldn't stop it.
The Swans were looking anything but their best and it was no suprise, considering a host of first-team players were all unavailable through injury and suspension.
The list grew even longer in the first half, when the in-form Paul Connor was stretchered off, leaving Lee Thorpe to fill the void up front - a player that has hardly featured so far this campaign.
With Thomas Butler causing them problems galore, Swansea hardly had chance to attack themselves and they were almost two down on the stroke of half time when Tinkler's low shot from outside the area was only inches wide.
There was still time for a Swansea chance, but after opening up the home defence for the first time, Lee Trundle scooped his shot high over the bar.
But Trundle was in better form after the break, scoring twice in five minutes to turn the game upside down.
On 55 minutes he was in the right place at the right time to head in from 10 yards after the home defence failed to clear their lines.
And five minutes later he won a penalty after being brought down in the box by home defender Neill Collins.
Collins took it himself, only to see keeper Dimi Konstantopoulos make a brilliant one-handed diving save, but Trundle was sharper than anybody else and he tucked the rebound in from a narrow angle on the right.
It looked like being hard work for Hartlepool as Trundle got Swansea on the front foot, but the home team deservedly equalised on 75 minutes when young Michael Maidens crossed for Tony Sweeney to head in.
The home team spent the rest of the game camped in the Swansea half, but they couldn't find the breakthrough they needed in front of goal and Swansea held on for a draw.