Monday.com vs Asana: Which Project Management Tool Should You Actually Pick?
You're comparing Monday.com and Asana, which means you've already narrowed down the project management tool search to two solid options. Good. Both are legitimate platforms used by millions of teams. But they're different enough that picking the wrong one will cost you time, money, and probably a few frustrated employees.
I've dug through both platforms extensively. Here's the honest breakdown—what each tool does well, where they fall short, and which one makes sense for your specific situation.
Quick Verdict: Who Wins?
If you need heavy customization, visual dashboards, and your team learns by doing—go with Monday.com. It's more flexible and the interface is less cluttered.
If you need deeper task hierarchies, better free plan features, and unlimited automations without watching a counter—Asana is your pick.
Neither is objectively "better." But one will be better for you. Keep reading to figure out which.
Monday.com vs Asana: Pricing Breakdown
Let's get the money conversation out of the way first. Both tools use per-user pricing with tiered plans, but the structures differ in ways that matter.
Monday.com Pricing
| Plan | Price (per user/month, billed annually) | Key Features |
|---|---|---|
| Free | $0 | Up to 2 users, 3 boards, limited views |
| Basic | $9 | Unlimited boards, 5GB storage, no automations |
| Standard | $12 | Timeline/Gantt views, 250 automations/month |
| Pro | $19 | Time tracking, 25,000 automations/month, private boards |
| Enterprise | Custom | 250,000 automations/month, advanced security |
The catch: Monday.com requires a minimum of 3 seats on paid plans, and you can only add users in increments of 5 after that. So if you have 6 people, you're paying for 10 seats. This bucket pricing can inflate costs quickly for growing teams.
For a deeper dive into Monday's pricing structure, check out our Monday.com pricing breakdown.
Asana Pricing
| Plan | Price (per user/month, billed annually) | Key Features |
|---|---|---|
| Personal (Free) | $0 | Up to 10 users, unlimited tasks, basic views |
| Starter | $10.99 | Timeline, Gantt, workflow builder, 500 users max |
| Advanced | $24.99 | Portfolios, goals, workload management, advanced reporting |
| Enterprise | Custom | SAML, custom branding, advanced admin controls |
The catch: Asana also uses bundle pricing for smaller teams—you buy in bundles of 5 seats for teams up to 30 users. And while the entry-level paid plan is cheaper than Monday.com's, the Advanced plan at $24.99/user is notably more expensive than Monday's Pro plan at $19/user.
Which Is Cheaper?
At the entry level, Monday.com's Standard plan ($12/user) is slightly more expensive than Asana's Starter ($10.99/user). But flip to the mid-tier plans, and Monday.com's Pro ($19/user) is almost $6 cheaper per month than Asana's Advanced ($24.99/user).
If you're a very small team on a tight budget, Asana's free plan supporting up to 10 users crushes Monday.com's 2-user free limit.
Feature Comparison: Where Each Tool Shines
Task Management
Asana wins here. It lets you create task hierarchies up to five levels deep—tasks, subtasks, sub-subtasks, and so on. Dependencies and recurring tasks are built in at all plan levels, including free. This granularity is excellent for complex projects where you need to track every detail.
Monday.com keeps things simpler. You create boards with items (tasks) grouped into sections. It's faster to set up and easier to understand at a glance, but you won't get the same depth of task structure. If your projects have simple, linear workflows, this isn't a problem. If you're managing complex deliverables with lots of dependencies, you'll feel the limitation.
Views and Visualization
Both platforms offer similar views: list, Kanban board, calendar, timeline/Gantt. Neither includes Gantt charts on their free plans.
Monday.com edges ahead on visual customization. Color coding, flexible column types, and customizable templates let teams design workflows that look and feel unique. The interface is colorful and highly visual, which some teams love.
Asana takes a cleaner, more minimalist approach. Less visual noise, more focus on the tasks themselves. Some prefer this; others find it boring.
Automations
Here's where things get interesting. Asana offers unlimited automations on all paid plans. Set up as many workflow rules as you want without watching a counter.
Monday.com caps automations on every plan except Enterprise:
- Basic: No automations
- Standard: 250/month
- Pro: 25,000/month
- Enterprise: 250,000/month
If your team relies heavily on automation to eliminate repetitive work, Asana's unlimited approach is more generous. Monday.com's limits are reasonable for most teams, but they're something to consider if you're an automation power user.
Reporting and Dashboards
Monday.com has better reporting tools. You can design custom reports using 50+ drag-and-drop widgets, pulling data from multiple boards into unified dashboards. Real-time updates make these dashboards useful as project command centers.
Asana's reporting is more straightforward—individual dashboards per project with basic chart types. It works for simple reporting needs but lacks Monday's customization depth.
Integrations
Asana integrates with over 500 apps, slightly more than Monday.com's 200+ integrations. Both connect with the essentials: Slack, Microsoft Teams, Google Workspace, Salesforce, HubSpot.
One notable difference: Asana doesn't charge extra for API calls or integrations. Monday.com counts integration actions against your monthly automation limits on Standard and Pro plans.
Goal Tracking
Asana has built-in goal tracking that lets you connect individual tasks to company-wide objectives. You can create company goals, team goals, and personal goals, then track progress as work gets completed.
Monday.com doesn't have native goal tracking. You can work around this with groups and dashboards, but it's not the same. If OKRs and strategic alignment matter to your organization, Asana handles this better out of the box.
User Experience: Which Is Easier to Use?
Both platforms are designed to be user-friendly, but they approach it differently.
Monday.com has a cleaner, less cluttered interface that makes starting projects simple. Create a board, add items, organize into groups—done. New users often find it more intuitive, and the visual style keeps things engaging.
Asana emphasizes structure over flash. The interface is clean but more functional. There's a steeper learning curve for advanced features, but once you understand the task hierarchy system, it's powerful.
If your team includes people who aren't tech-savvy, Monday.com's visual approach typically wins. If your team can handle a bit more complexity, Asana rewards you with better task organization.
Free Plan Showdown
This one isn't close. Asana's free Personal plan supports up to 10 users with unlimited tasks, basic views, and even some integrations. It's genuinely usable for small teams.
Monday.com's free plan limits you to 2 users and 3 boards. That's barely enough for personal use, let alone a team. If budget is your primary concern and you have a small team, Asana's free tier is significantly more generous.
Customer Support
Monday.com offers 24/7 support for Enterprise users, with phone, email, and chat options. All customers get access to a knowledge base, community forum, and video tutorials.
Asana doesn't offer phone support at any tier. You're limited to email and chat, plus the Asana Academy and help documentation. For teams that prefer talking to a human when things break, this is a notable gap.
Who Should Choose Monday.com?
Monday.com is the better choice if:
- You want a visually engaging interface that's easy to customize
- Your projects have simple, linear workflows
- You need advanced reporting and dashboard capabilities
- You work with non-technical team members who need a gentle learning curve
- You want phone support (at Enterprise level)
- Mid-tier pricing matters—Pro at $19/user beats Asana's Advanced at $24.99
We've also written a full Monday.com review if you want more details on the platform.
Who Should Choose Asana?
Asana is the better choice if:
- You manage complex projects with deep task hierarchies and dependencies
- You want unlimited automations without tracking usage
- Goal tracking and OKR alignment matter to your organization
- You have a small team and need a legitimate free plan (up to 10 users)
- You need more integrations (500+ vs 200+)
- You're managing creative agencies, tech startups, or teams that need granular task control
What About Alternatives?
If neither Monday.com nor Asana feels right, there are other options worth considering. Check out our guides on best project management software and free project management tools for more choices.
For teams that need something simpler, Trello offers straightforward Kanban boards. For software development specifically, Jira is purpose-built for agile workflows. And ClickUp is worth a look if you want feature density at a lower price point.
The Bottom Line
Monday.com and Asana are both legitimate, capable project management platforms. The "better" choice depends entirely on how you work.
Pick Monday.com if you value visual customization, simpler setup, powerful dashboards, and mid-tier value. Start your free trial here.
Pick Asana if you need deep task hierarchies, unlimited automations, goal tracking, or a free plan that actually works for small teams.
Both offer free trials. The honest recommendation? Try both for a week with a real project. The tool that feels natural after seven days is probably the one that'll stick.