Best Monday.com Alternatives: What Actually Works
Monday.com is a solid project management tool, but it's not cheap and it's not for everyone. The confusing bucket pricing (you can only add users in increments of 5), the recent price hikes, and features locked behind higher tiers have plenty of teams looking elsewhere.
If you're here, you're probably frustrated with Monday.com's costs or you've hit a wall with features. Let's cut through the noise and look at what alternatives actually make sense for different situations.
Why People Leave Monday.com
Before diving into alternatives, let's be clear about what pushes teams away:
- Pricing structure: Monday.com's bucket pricing means if you have 6 team members, you're paying for 10 seats. That $9/seat/month Standard plan suddenly costs $120/month minimum for a small team.
- Feature gating: Want time tracking? You need the Pro plan at $19/seat. Gantt charts? Standard plan minimum. Automations are capped at 250/month on Standard.
- Price increases: Monday.com raised prices in early 2024, and existing customers felt the pinch on renewal.
- Complexity for simple needs: If you just need basic task management, Monday.com's extensive customization can feel like overkill.
For a full breakdown of what you'll pay, check out our Monday.com pricing guide or read our Monday.com reviews.
Top Monday.com Alternatives Compared
1. ClickUp – Best Overall Alternative
ClickUp is the closest thing to a direct Monday.com replacement. It offers similar flexibility and customization, but typically at a lower price point.
Pricing:
- Free Forever: Unlimited users, 100MB storage, basic features
- Unlimited: $7/user/month – unlimited storage, Gantt charts, guests
- Business: $12/user/month – time tracking, workload management, advanced automations
- Enterprise: Custom pricing
What's good: ClickUp's free plan is genuinely useful with unlimited users. The $7/month Unlimited plan includes features Monday.com locks behind the $19 Pro tier. You also get per-user pricing instead of bucket pricing, so you only pay for the seats you use.
What sucks: ClickUp's interface can be laggy, especially with larger projects. The sheer number of features creates a steep learning curve. Users regularly complain about bugs and performance issues.
Best for: Teams who want Monday.com's flexibility at a lower price and don't mind occasional jank.
2. Asana – Best for Clean UX
Asana takes a more focused approach than Monday.com. It's built around task management and workflows rather than trying to be everything to everyone.
Pricing:
- Personal (Free): Up to 10 team members, basic features
- Starter: $10.99/user/month – timeline view, workflow builder, unlimited automations
- Advanced: $24.99/user/month – portfolios, goals, workload management
- Enterprise: Custom pricing
What's good: Asana's interface is noticeably cleaner than Monday.com or ClickUp. Task dependencies and workflow automation work smoothly. The timeline view is excellent for project planning.
What sucks: Asana's pricing has its own quirks – they bill in seat bundles for smaller teams (5-seat minimum on Starter). The jump from Starter to Advanced is steep at $24.99/user. No native time tracking without integrations.
Best for: Teams who prioritize ease of use and clean design over maximum customization.
3. Notion – Best for Documentation + Projects
Notion isn't a traditional project management tool – it's a flexible workspace that combines docs, wikis, and databases. But many teams use it to replace dedicated PM tools.
Pricing:
- Free: Unlimited pages, 10 guest invites
- Plus: $10/user/month – unlimited file uploads, 100 guest invites
- Business: $18/user/month – SAML SSO, advanced permissions
- Enterprise: Custom pricing
What's good: Notion excels when you need project tracking integrated with documentation and knowledge management. The flexibility to build custom systems is unmatched. Remote teams love having everything in one place.
What sucks: Building a proper project management setup in Notion takes real work. There are no native Gantt charts, limited automation, and no built-in time tracking. It's not great for complex project dependencies.
Best for: Teams who need docs + projects in one place, especially content teams and startups.
4. Trello – Best for Simple Kanban
Trello is the simplest option on this list. If Monday.com feels like overkill, Trello's card-based system might be refreshing.
Pricing:
- Free: Unlimited cards, 10 boards per workspace
- Standard: $5/user/month – unlimited boards, custom fields
- Premium: $10/user/month – calendar view, timeline, dashboards
- Enterprise: $17.50/user/month
What's good: Trello is dead simple. You can onboard a team in minutes. The free tier is genuinely useful, and even paid plans are cheap.
What sucks: Trello lacks depth. No native Gantt charts, limited reporting, basic automation. It falls apart for complex projects with dependencies.
Best for: Small teams with straightforward workflows who don't need advanced features.
5. Smartsheet – Best for Spreadsheet Lovers
Smartsheet looks like Excel had a baby with project management software. If your team lives in spreadsheets, this might feel natural.
Pricing:
- Pro: $9/user/month – Gantt charts, automations, forms
- Business: $19/user/month – unlimited automations, resource management
- Enterprise: Custom pricing
What's good: Smartsheet's spreadsheet-style interface is familiar for teams migrating from Excel. Strong automation and reporting. Popular with construction, manufacturing, and operations teams.
What sucks: The interface feels dated compared to modern tools. Less intuitive for teams not comfortable with spreadsheets.
Best for: Teams who need data-heavy project tracking and prefer spreadsheet-style interfaces.
6. Wrike – Best for Enterprise
Wrike is enterprise-focused project management with strong automation, reporting, and security features.
Pricing:
- Free: Basic task management, limited users
- Team: $10/user/month – Gantt charts, dashboards
- Business: $24.80/user/month – custom fields, automation, time tracking
- Enterprise: Custom pricing
What's good: Wrike handles complex enterprise workflows well. Strong approval routing, resource allocation, and custom workflows. Good for regulated industries needing audit trails.
What sucks: Expensive at scale. The interface has a learning curve. Overkill for small teams.
Best for: Large organizations with complex approval workflows and compliance requirements.
Quick Comparison Table
| Tool | Starting Price | Free Plan Users | Best Feature | Biggest Weakness |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ClickUp | $7/user/mo | Unlimited | Feature depth at low price | Performance issues |
| Asana | $10.99/user/mo | Up to 10 | Clean interface | Seat bundling, no time tracking |
| Notion | $10/user/mo | Unlimited | Docs + projects combined | Requires setup work |
| Trello | $5/user/mo | Unlimited | Simplicity | Lacks depth |
| Smartsheet | $9/user/mo | Limited | Spreadsheet interface | Dated UX |
| Wrike | $10/user/mo | Limited | Enterprise workflows | Expensive, complex |
| Monday.com | $9/seat/mo (min 3) | 2 | Visual flexibility | Bucket pricing |
Which Alternative Should You Choose?
Choose ClickUp if: You want Monday.com's flexibility without the pricing headaches. You're okay trading some polish for features.
Choose Asana if: User experience matters more than maximum features. Your team values clean design and won't need heavy customization.
Choose Notion if: You need project management + documentation in one tool. Your team is willing to build custom workflows.
Choose Trello if: Simple kanban boards are all you need. You want the fastest possible onboarding.
Choose Smartsheet if: Your team thinks in spreadsheets. You need data-intensive project tracking.
Choose Wrike if: You're an enterprise with complex approval workflows and compliance needs.
Or stick with Monday.com if: You're already invested in the ecosystem, the pricing works for your team size, and you like the visual interface. Sometimes the switching cost isn't worth it.
If you're still evaluating, you can try Monday.com here to compare directly with alternatives.
The Bottom Line
Monday.com isn't bad – it's just not the only option. ClickUp offers similar features at lower prices. Asana trades customization for usability. Notion works if you need docs and projects together. Trello keeps things simple.
The "best" choice depends on what drove you to look for alternatives in the first place. If it's pricing, ClickUp or Trello will save you money. If it's complexity, Asana or Trello will simplify your workflow. If it's missing documentation features, Notion solves that problem.
Don't overthink it. Most of these tools offer free plans or trials. Pick two that seem promising, test them with your team for a week, and you'll know which one fits.
For more comparisons, check out our guides to the best project management software and free project management software.