Asana vs. ClickUp: Differences, pros and cons in 2024

Asana and ClickUp are two productivity giants in the project management industry. Asana, founded in 2008, has nearly twice the years of experience as ClickUp, which joined the industry in 2017. Today, both offer robust, AI-powered project management software that helps users streamline tasks, communication and goals across a variety of projects and timelines. 

We compared these factors through first-person testing, hours of demonstrations and interviews and by reviewing customer feedback on a variety of platforms. Keep reading to uncover which is best for your team.

Asana vs. ClickUp: Quick overview

The below table offers a side-by-side comparison of Asana and ClickUp. The following discussion dives deeper into each software’s offerings.

Pricing and value

Verdict: ClickUp

But let’s dive deeper into each company’s base plan and what’s included:

Asana pricing and value

Asana is more expensive per month; there’s no way around it. Plus, its plans offer pretty similar features and benefits — although some are noticeably less, such as its more limited number of integrations and lack of 24/7 customer service on its Starter plan. 

But, it does offer free artificial intelligence, which could be a deciding factor for those choosing between the two companies — especially for companies that don’t need all the bells and whistles that ClickUp offers. Adding the AI feature for each ClickUp user makes it more expensive than Asana, at least for the Base plan.

ClickUp pricing and value

ClickUp’s plans are more affordable and more comprehensive than Asana’s. Its premium plan, ClickUp Unlimited, is less per user and offers more features and integrations, plus 24/7 customer support. 

The one big drawback is that ClickUp doesn’t include AI as part of its plans. Instead, users have to pay $5 each per month for access to this tool, which can add up quickly, depending on how many users need access.

Key features

Verdict: ClickUp

Vladimir Terekhov, CEO of Attract Group, a company specializing in software development and business process optimization, said the most important thing to look for in a project management system is how the features align with already-established workflows and communication styles. 

“The right PM system should feel like a natural extension of your work processes, not a hindrance,” Terekhov said. “Your decision-making process should be influenced by how well the system can adapt to the team’s current and future needs, how it improves efficiency and how it aligns with the company’s overall goals.” 

Both Asana and ClickUp offer features that can easily adapt to your needs, although ClickUp offers more flexibility, customizations and integrations. However, some businesses may find all those features overwhelming and opt for Asana’s more simplified approach.

Asana features

• Visualizations: Asana offers a variety of views, including board, calendar, timeline, dashboards and Gantt charts. Its standard view is similar to a Kanban board.
• Reporting: You can create customized dashboards to follow a project, gather insights and create visualization charts. Unlimited reporting is only available with paid plans. 
• AI: Free on all paid plans, Asana’s AI feature helps write goals, create status updates, determine next steps, create workflows, write summaries and responses and onboard individuals.
• Other features: Asana reserves some of its most useful features, like custom fields, templates and milestones for its paid plan. 

ClickUp features

• Visualizations: ClickUp offers a variety of views, including board, calendar, timeline and Gantt charts.
• Reporting: ClickUp offers a few reports named conspicuously for what they highlight: Completed, Worked on, team points, who’s behind, time tracked and time estimated. 
• AI: For $5 per user per month, ClickUp offers AI writing services like creating proposals, project briefs, campaign ideas and summaries.
• Other features: ClickUp offers many of its key features in the free plan, including in-app video recording, real-time chat and sprint management tools.

Software integrations

Verdict: ClickUp 

Both Asana and ClickUp offer an abundance of integrations, although ClickUp’s list is about three times larger. But while shorter in terms of sheer number of integrations, Asana’s offerings don’t miss any key marks when it comes to what project managers and users may be looking for with a system. That being said, the versatility and vastness of ClickUps options are hard to beat.

Asana software integrations

With a list reaching over 370, Asana offers a wide variety of software integrations. From basic options like the Google Suite and Slack to more unique features like Exterro for compliance and WebWork time tracking, Asana aims to be a one-stop shop for all things productivity. 

Asana also offers an app-building tool for those who need a more specific or unique solution. These apps can be published directly to the Asana App Directory for other users to download and implement as well. However, some of its more advanced integrations, like Salesforce, Adobe Creative Cloud, Tableau and Power BI, are only available with the Enterprise plan.

ClickUp software integrations

ClickUp offers over 1,000 integrations, which is a lot when comparing it to Asana, including productivity, compliance, management and marketing tools. Plus, customers can use its public API to build their own integrations and ClickUp apps if one of its over 1,000 options doesn’t fit the bill exactly. 

Customer Support

Verdict: Tie

While ClickUp offers free 24/7 customer service to all customers, Asana’s in-depth resource center may negate some customers’ needs for real-time support. In Terekhov’s opinion, support isn’t something you should gloss over in the comparison process.

“Good customer support and training resources are key differentiators, especially for teams new to online PM systems,” Terekhov said.

Asana Customer Support

Free and starter Asana customers don’t receive access to 24/7 customer support services. It reserves its best customer support services for those in the Enterprise plan, where it also guarantees 99.9% uptime. But, this quick response and uptime is a big benefit that ClickUp customers can’t pay for.

Asana also offers a robust and easily understood resource center with videos, webinars, best practices, customer forums, tutorials, courses and templates.

ClickUp Customer Support

All ClickUp customers have access to 24/7 customer support through live chat, although response times can often be slow. While you can submit a support ticket, it doesn’t have an email or phone number that customers can reach out to in the event of an issue, which seems to be a source of frustration for many users.

It also offers a large database of resources for customers, although we don’t think it’s as comprehensive or easy to navigate as Asana’s. 

User reviews

Verdict: ClickUp

Asana has more than double the reviews of ClickUp across all types of review sites, including Apple and Google app stores, G2, TrustPilot and Capterra. On nearly all sites except the Play Store, ClickUp outranks Asana. But, there are a few key drawbacks that may make Asana the better choice.

Asana user reviews

Asana reviewers say the website and app are intuitive, easy to use, straightforward and efficient. Its features are good enough and its integrations tick most of the boxes users are looking for. 

But, some users find that it doesn’t work well for larger teams. The process gets clunky when trying to handle more comprehensive workflows and integrations, like tech-heavy work, not to mention the costs can scale pretty quickly as a company and its project management needs grow.

ClickUp user reviews

Across all review sites, ClickUp is consistently ranked higher than Asana — although the discrepancies are minor. ClickUp users consistently use words like “powerful” and “transformative” to describe their ascent into the platform. ClickUp’s Sprint feature is commonly called out for its usefulness. 

One big drawback that keeps some users from loving their experience with ClickUp is that it’s often “buggy.” Users guess that because it launches new features and integrations weekly — likely without the proper testing — customers are left to work through too many bugs in their day-to-day use of the app. For a site built around productivity, this can be a big downfall. 

Final verdict

Winner: ClickUp

In nearly every area, ClickUp beats Asana. It’s more affordable, more flexible and offers more integrations. The board is clean and easy to look at, with many different views and ways to use it. 

But the biggest drawback many customers say is that all those amazing features and integrations come with a big learning curve. So if that’s a fear of yours, consider Asana instead.

Who is Asana best for?

Asana is better for smaller teams that want a straightforward, reliable and proven project management system that won’t change over time. If you get frustrated by over-complicated project management apps, stick to this platform instead. There’s a reason why it’s one of the most reviewed and used project management apps available.

Who is ClickUp best for?

For larger teams that want a lot of options and are willing to brave the learning curve, ClickUp offers a robust solution that fits the needs of most types of businesses and professionals. With brand new features and integrations being launched nearly every week, it’s hard to beat the versatility that ClickUp offers — not to mention its low price point.

Asana and ClickUp alternatives

While Asana and ClickUp are two key players in the project management space, there are a few others that routinely come up in the same conversation: Basecamp, Airtable and Confluence.

Basecamp

Basecamp is known for its ability to blend project and people management into one platform. It offers features like daily team announcements, progress charts and file sharing without the complexity of an abundance of complex integrations. At $15 per user per month, it’s a bit more expensive than both Asana and ClickUp, but it offers many customer service options and excellent historical uptime. 

If you’re new to project management and want to work with a company that is easier to get in touch with while not sacrificing usability and features, Basecamp is a good choice.

Airtable

Across most review sites, Airtable is consistently ranked 4.5 stars or above, including a 4.6 out of 5 on G2. It offers custom reports, time tracking, invoices and budgeting on top of its project management features. Some reviews report a tougher learning curve, similar to ClickUp, and find its price a little high (starting at $24 per user per month) compared to other options. 

But for tech-savvy and data-dependent users who want more than just a project management system, Airtable is a good alternative.

Confluence

At just $6.05 per person on its standard plan, Confluence is an affordable alternative to both Asana and ClickUp. As a team workspace rather than just a project management tool, Confluence offers a range of project management and strategic planning templates that make it easy to collaborate and store information.

For businesses that are looking to create a single source of information for their business and still need a space for project planning, Confluence is a unique option to consider. 

Read more: Best ClickUp alternatives.

Frequently asked questions (FAQs)

Which is better, Asana or ClickUp?

Asana and ClickUp are both great options, but ClickUp is our winner. It offers more features and options for a lower price point than Asana does. But not all users want to be bogged down by the learning curve (and inherent bugs) that come with ever-changing and expanding options. In that case, Asana is a better choice.

Does my business need project management software?

Most businesses can benefit from project management software. PM software helps you stay organized, collaborate with your teammates and track deliverables and timelines. 

Both ClickUp and Asana offer free versions that come packed with a variety of benefits. If you’re unsure if it’s right for you, test out a free version or sign up for a free trial to learn more.

Is Asana cheaper than ClickUp?

Asana is more expensive than ClickUp by quite a bit, especially when it comes to business plans. Its base plan is about $4 more than ClickUp’s per user per month, while its business plan is more than double the cost, coming in at $30.49 per month versus ClickUp’s $19.

Do Asana or ClickUp have a free version?

Both Asana and ClickUp offer free versions. ClickUp’s version is a bit more robust in terms of features and support, but both are good entry-level solutions for those just getting started in project management.

Can you export from Asana or ClickUp to Excel?

You can export both Asana or ClickUp data into an Excel CSV file. For Asana, click the drop-down arrow next to the name of your project. Go to Export/Print and choose ‘CSV file.’ This document can then be uploaded to Excel. For ClickUp, click the three dots to the right of your project search bar to open a drop-down menu. Then, export it as a CSV or Excel file.

Do ClickUp or Asana have Gantt charts?

Both ClickUp and Asana offer Gantt chart views of projects. The Gantt chart view is new to Asana as of September 2023 and is only included in the paid version.