Linear vs Trello
Linear and Trello are both project management tools. Linear is aimed at developers and small businesses, while Trello is aimed at small businesses and freelancers. Trello costs less, from $6/mo versus $10/mo for Linear. Both have a free plan.
| Pricing | Freemium · $10 | Freemium · $6 |
| Starting price | $10/mo | $6/mo |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Built for | Developers, Small businesses | Small businesses, Freelancers |
| Platforms | web, macos, windows, ios, android | web, ios, android, macos, windows |
| Country | US · 2019 | US · 2011 |
| Rating | — | — |
Choose Linear if
Product and engineering teams from 3 to a few hundred people who ship continuously and want speed over configurability.
- Fastest issue tracker in day-to-day use; keyboard-first design
- Opinionated structure keeps teams consistent without configuration
- Excellent GitHub, Slack and Sentry integrations
Look elsewhere if: Organizations that need bespoke workflows, custom issue hierarchies, or a single tool for marketing, HR and engineering.
Choose Trello if
Individuals and small teams that want a visual board without process overhead.
- Simplest onboarding of any project tool
- Free plan is enough for small teams and personal use
- Flexible: works for editorial calendars, hiring, home projects
Look elsewhere if: Teams needing cross-project reporting, dependencies or capacity planning.
Linear vs Trello pricing
Linear
- Free$0Unlimited members, 2 teams, 250 issues
- Basic$10/user/moBilled yearly; 5 teams, unlimited issues and uploads, admin roles
- Business$16/user/moBilled yearly; unlimited teams, private teams, Insights, Asks
- EnterpriseCustomAnnual only; SAML, SCIM, advanced security
Trello
- Free$0Up to 10 collaborators per Workspace
- Standard$6/user/mo$5/mo billed annually; unlimited boards, 1,000 command runs
- Premium$12.50/user/mo$10/mo billed annually; AI, views, admin controls
- Enterprise$17.50/user/moBilled annually ($210/user/yr); org-wide controls
Linear · Key features
- Cycles (sprints) with automatic rollover and capacity view
- Projects and initiatives with milestones, updates and roadmap views
- Triage inbox for bugs and requests from Slack, Intercom, Zendesk and Sentry
- GitHub/GitLab automation: branch naming, PR links and auto-close on merge
- Insights dashboards for velocity, scope change and cycle time
- Local-first sync engine; the app works offline and feels instant
Cons
- Limited customization compared with Jira (no custom issue types)
- Reporting is improving but still lighter than enterprise tools
- Not designed for non-engineering departments
Trello · Key features
- Kanban boards with drag-and-drop cards, labels and checklists
- Butler automation: rules, buttons and scheduled commands
- Power-Ups for calendar, voting, Slack, Google Drive and more
- Premium views: timeline, table, calendar, dashboard, map
- Templates for common workflows
- Mobile and desktop apps with offline support
Cons
- Weak for dependencies, reporting and resource planning
- Card detail view feels dated
- Scales poorly past a handful of boards
Linear vs Trello: FAQ
Which is cheaper, Linear or Trello?
Trello starts at $6/mo and Linear at $10/mo. Both prices are checked on the vendors' own pricing pages.
Do Linear and Trello have a free plan?
Yes, both Linear and Trello have a free plan; paid plans add more usage and features.