Top 6 Linear Alternatives in 2026
Linear is narrow by design. Companies leave when non-engineering teams need to share the tool, or when they want the custom workflows and reporting depth Linear deliberately avoids. The Basic plan costs $10/user/mo, about $100 a month for a team of ten. At that size, 4 of the 6 tools below cost less. Jira ($7.91/user/mo) is built for software teams running sprints, and feels heavy for anyone else. ClickUp ($7/user/mo) packs tasks, docs, whiteboards and time tracking into one app, and can overwhelm a new team. Asana ($10.99/user/mo) gives non-technical teams structured projects, timelines and portfolios, at a higher per-seat price than most.
01Quick Comparison
| Tool | Entry price | Team of 10, per month | Free plan | Value score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jira | $7.91/user/mo | $79 | Yes | 4.5/5 |
| ClickUp | $7/user/mo | $70 | Yes | 4.7/5 |
| Asana | $10.99/user/mo | $110 | Yes | 4.0/5 |
| Monday.com | $9/seat/mo | $90 | Yes | 4.4/5 |
| Notion | $10/member/mo | $100 | Yes | 4.3/5 |
| Trello | $5/user/mo | $50 | Yes | 4.7/5 |
| Linear (current) | $10/user/mo | $100 | Yes | 4.2/5 |
02The Alternatives
Jira
From$7.91/user/moTeam of 10$79Value score4.5/5
Compared with Linear: A team of ten pays about $79 a month, $21 less than on Linear; its free plan allows up to 10 users.
Jira is Atlassian’s issue tracker and the default choice for software teams that work in sprints. Backlogs, scrum and kanban boards, release tracking and configurable workflows are its core, with tight links to code hosts and to Confluence. It can be bent to other kinds of work, but it was designed for engineers and reads that way.
- Best for
- Software teams running agile development and issue tracking
- Pricing
- Standard plan, billed monthly. Free plan: up to 10 users.
- Key features
- Backlogs and sprint planning, Custom issue workflows, Roadmaps and releases
Where it falls short: Configuration is deep enough to need an owner, and non-technical colleagues tend to find it hostile.
ClickUp
From$7/user/moTeam of 10$70Value score4.7/5
Compared with Linear: A team of ten pays about $70 a month, $30 less than on Linear; its free plan allows unlimited users with 60MB of storage.
ClickUp tries to replace every other work app: tasks, docs, whiteboards, goals, chat, time tracking and dashboards live in one workspace. Almost everything is configurable, from custom fields and statuses to the hierarchy of spaces, folders and lists. That breadth is the selling point, and it is also why new teams often need a few weeks to settle in.
- Best for
- Teams that want one platform for projects, docs, and operations
- Pricing
- Unlimited plan, billed annually ($10 billed monthly). Free plan: unlimited users with 60MB of storage.
- Key features
- Tasks, docs, whiteboards, and goals, Multiple project views, Native time tracking
Where it falls short: The number of options makes setup a project of its own, and the interface changes often.
ClickUp plans and pricing ClickUp vs Linear in detail Visit ClickUp
Asana
From$10.99/user/moTeam of 10$110Value score4.0/5
Compared with Linear: A team of ten pays about $110 a month, $10 more than on Linear; its free plan allows up to 2 users.
Asana is a work-management tool built around tasks, projects and the people responsible for them. The same project can be viewed as a list, a board, a timeline or a calendar, and portfolios and goals roll individual projects up for managers. It is polished and structured, which is why marketing and operations teams tend to adopt it without much argument.
- Best for
- Mid-size teams that need structured project workflows
- Pricing
- Starter plan, billed annually ($13.49 billed monthly). Free plan: up to 2 users.
- Key features
- Task and subtask management, Timeline view and dependencies, Workflow automation rules
Where it falls short: It charges per seat for nearly everything that makes it good, and it has never been a comfortable home for software teams that want sprints and issue tracking.
Asana plans and pricing Asana vs Linear in detail Visit Asana
Monday.com
From$9/seat/moTeam of 10$90Value score4.4/5
Compared with Linear: A team of ten pays about $90 a month, $10 less than on Linear; its free plan allows up to 2 seats and 3 boards.
monday.com calls itself a Work OS: colorful, table-like boards that a team shapes into whatever it needs, from project plans to content calendars to simple CRMs. Automations are written as plain-language recipes, and dashboards pull numbers from several boards at once. It is one of the easiest tools here to get non-technical people to use.
- Best for
- Teams that want a visual, customizable work platform
- Pricing
- Basic plan, billed annually ($12 billed monthly), 3-seat minimum. Free plan: up to 2 seats and 3 boards.
- Key features
- Custom boards and workflow views, Automation recipes, Dashboards and reporting
Where it falls short: Seats are sold in blocks with a minimum, and automation and integration allowances depend on the plan, so the real cost climbs faster than the entry price suggests.
Monday.com plans and pricing Linear vs Monday.com in detail Visit Monday.com
Notion
From$10/member/moTeam of 10$100Value score4.3/5
Compared with Linear: A team of ten pays about the same as on Linear ($100 a month); its free plan allows up to 10 external guests.
Notion is a workspace of pages and databases. Notes, wikis and specs sit next to the task lists that reference them, and a project tracker is just a database with board, table, timeline and calendar views. Nothing is prescribed, so a team gets exactly the system it designs.
- Best for
- Teams that combine knowledge management with lightweight project tracking
- Pricing
- Plus plan, billed annually ($12 billed monthly). Free plan: up to 10 external guests.
- Key features
- Docs, databases, and wikis, Project and task databases, Templates and linked views
Where it falls short: It is a toolkit, not a project manager: reporting, dependencies and workload views are thin, and a messy workspace is easy to build.
Notion plans and pricing Linear vs Notion in detail Visit Notion
Trello
From$5/user/moTeam of 10$50Value score4.7/5
Compared with Linear: A team of ten pays about $50 a month, $50 less than on Linear; its free plan allows up to 10 collaborators per Workspace.
Trello is the kanban board most people have already used: lists of cards that move left to right as work progresses. Cards hold checklists, due dates, attachments and comments, and Power-Ups and the built-in Butler automation add what the basic board lacks. It takes minutes to learn, and that is the whole point.
- Best for
- Small teams and individuals that prefer Kanban simplicity
- Pricing
- Standard plan, billed annually ($6 billed monthly). Free plan: up to 10 collaborators per Workspace.
- Key features
- Kanban boards and cards, Checklists and due dates, Power-Ups and Butler automation
Where it falls short: Boards do not scale gracefully. Reporting, dependencies and cross-project views are limited, and complex projects end up needing a different tool.
Trello plans and pricing Linear vs Trello in detail Visit Trello
03FAQ
What is the closest alternative to Linear?
Jira. Jira is Atlassian’s issue tracker and the default choice for software teams that work in sprints. A team of ten pays about $79 a month, $21 less than on Linear; its free plan allows up to 10 users.
What is the cheapest alternative to Linear?
Trello: free plan, then $5/user/mo. Standard plan, billed annually ($6 billed monthly). Free plan: up to 10 collaborators per Workspace.
Which Linear alternatives have a free plan?
Jira, ClickUp, Asana, Monday.com, Notion and Trello. Free plans differ a lot in what they limit, so check the plan tables on each tool’s pricing page.
Is Linear still worth using?
Yes, if you are a software team that values speed and focus over configurability. Its strength is giving engineers and product managers a quick, uncluttered place to plan and ship. The weakness: it is built for software teams, so marketing, operations and client work fit it badly, and its reporting is lighter than Jira’s.
04Bottom Line
If cost is why you are leaving Linear, start with Trello. If you want the least disruption, Jira is the closest in spirit: it is built for software teams running sprints, and feels heavy for anyone else. And if Linear never did enough, ClickUp goes deepest.