What Is Asana?
Asana is one of the best project management software options on the market, with many different views that support traditional project management methodologies and Agile frameworks. The views can be tailored to all team members involved, making it easy to customize Asana to suit the project you’re working on.
The free version, which supports 10 members, has a ton of capabilities to make your life easier. You’ll have unlimited storage, tasks, assignees, due dates and messages, and you can look up records of past projects. The free plan also supports integrations, lists, Kanban boards and calendar views. If you have a small team, the free version can be great for the long term.
Outside of the free plan, Asana offers Gantt charts and workload views, and goals and portfolios. Being able to switch between these views gives more flexibility to your team members and makes sharing data with stakeholders easier.
Additionally, Asana supports various automatic processes and integrations that can make your team more efficient. You can create automated workflows across many platforms, including Slack, Microsoft Teams, Google Drive and others. Overall, Asana is powerful software that will serve many teams well.
Featured Partners
1
monday.com
Yes
From $8 monthly per user
Zoom, LinkedIn, Adobe, Salesforce and more
2
ClickUp
Yes, for unlimited members
$7 per month
Slack, Microsoft Outlook, HubSpot, Salesforce, Timely, Google Drive and more
3
Wrike
Yes
$10 per user per month
Salesforce, Adobe, Miro, Netsuite, QuickBooks, SAP
Asana Key Features
Asana’s features allow businesses to manage projects of all sizes. Here’s a look at some of the features:
Task and Workflow Management Tools
Whether you use the critical path method, Kanban or Scrum, you’ll find the views you need to plan, track and manage project tasks. Asana offers user-friendly Kanban boards with customizable fields, timelines, calendars, lists and colorful Gantt charts that support dependencies.
Asana’s Kanban boards are highly customizable and easy to use.
The tools are easy to use thanks to a drag-and-drop interface, and creating and filtering new views takes seconds. You can leave comments on task cards, upload supporting files and documents, set task priority levels and use AI to create task descriptions. Given that task-tracking tools make up a large portion of project management software, I’m pleased to say that Asana’s task-management offerings won’t leave you wanting more.
Asana’s colorful Gantt charts are easy on the eye and support dependencies.
In addition to task management tools, users will find support for budgeting and time and resource management. Asana also supplies many project templates for numerous industries to help teams get their next project up and running quickly.
Dashboards
Asana’s dashboards are an excellent reporting tool. Although they are not as easy on the eye or quite as customizable as those found on monday.com, users can visualize plenty of project data through burnup and burndown charts, pie charts, bar graphs and donuts.
Asana’s customizable dashboards grant you access to key project performance metrics.
The dashboards also display task information such as the number of tasks completed, tasks off track, and assignees. When you customize the dashboards to your liking, you’ll have critical project information at your fingertips throughout the project life cycle.
Administration and Security Features
One of Asana’s key strengths is how customizable the platform is regarding user roles and permissions. The number of options makes Asana ideal for large organizations with scaled teams. You can select which users can access specific boards, projects and forms, and who can create and view dashboards. You can set private and public teams and assign limited access members. You can also assign roles such as editor, admin, viewer and commenter.
Asana’s security options are also robust and include password strength settings, two-factor authentication, single sign-on support and biometric authentication for mobile apps, to name a few. Getting Asana configured will take time, but you’ll know your data is secure when configured. The only negative is that most of these options are only available in top-tier plans.
Asana AI
Following in the steps of other platforms, such as ClickUp and monday.com, Asana has entered the AI race. Asana’s AI tool can create project summaries for stakeholders, generate project insights, write task descriptions, prioritize resources, identify risks and plan timelines. Additionally, you can use AI to flesh out workflows. The no-code tool is straightforward and can help project managers and team members save time and increase productivity.
You can use AI to create task summaries, build workflows and help with resource planning.
Workflow Automation and Integrations
If you like creating automated workflows, Asana has your back. You’ll find plenty of pre-made rules (automations) that you can implement with just a few clicks. Additionally, Asana offers a dedicated automation workflow builder that allows you to create powerful workflows that can span many platforms.
If you do not want to create custom rules, you can use Asana’s workflow templates.
To support automated workflows and rules, Asana offers one of the largest libraries of native integrations, with over 100 offerings. You’ll find integrations with Google Drive, Google Calendar, Slack, Microsoft Teams, Tableau, Adobe Creative Cloud, Salesforce and Figma, to name a few. Should you not find the integration you need, fear not, as Asana plays nicely with Zapier and Make.
Collaboration Tools
I won’t lie; Asana’s collaboration tools have never quite matched those found in ClickUp and monday.com, and honestly, Asana is still trailing despite adding new features. However, it would be remiss of me not to mention Asana’s basic messaging system and collaborative image-proofing tool. Recently, collaborative notes have been added. While the tools are not as robust as those in competing platforms, they’re serviceable.
The proofing tool lets team members and stakeholders leave actionable feedback on images.
What Sets Asana Apart?
Asana offers many tools you’ll find in the platform’s main rivals: monday.com and ClickUp. That’s no bad thing, as it means the software will appeal to teams working in various industries. You’ll find the usual project and task management tools (Kanban boards, Gantt charts, lists and calendars), support for integrations and automated workflows, and a nifty artificial intelligence tool.
Aside from the sheer number of native integrations available, the main feature that sets Asana apart from the rest of the pack is its administration tools. In this regard, Asana is on par with Wrike, which is one of the most secure platforms around. You can manage team members and set many user permissions to help safeguard your data. These tools make Asana ideal for scaled Agile teams using the Scrum of Scrums or SAFe to manage projects.
Featured Partners
1
monday.com
Yes
From $8 monthly per user
Zoom, LinkedIn, Adobe, Salesforce and more
2
ClickUp
Yes, for unlimited members
$7 per month
Slack, Microsoft Outlook, HubSpot, Salesforce, Timely, Google Drive and more
3
Wrike
Yes
$10 per user per month
Salesforce, Adobe, Miro, Netsuite, QuickBooks, SAP
Asana Pricing
Asana offers five pricing plans: Personal, Starter, Advanced, Enterprise and Enterprise+. The Personal plan is free for 10 members. The Starter plan costs $13.49 per user per month. The Advanced plan jumps to an eye-watering $30.49 per user per month. The Enterprise and Enterprise+ plans require a quote from the sales department.
| Personal | Starter | Advanced | Enterprise | Enterprise+ | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Starting Price | Free for 10 members | $13.49 per user per month, billed monthly (two-member minimum) | $30.49 per user per month, billed monthly (two-member minimum) | Contact for quote | Contact for quote |
| Contract Length | None | Monthly or annual | Monthly or annual | Annual | Annual |
| Projects | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Tasks | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Activity Log | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Storage | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Comments | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Project and Portfolio Views | Overview, list, board and calendar | Overview, list, board, calendar, Gantt and timeline | Overview, list, board, calendar, Gantt, timeline, 100 portfolios and goals | Everything in Advanced plus resource management and unlimited portfolios | Everything in Advanced plus resource management and unlimited portfolios |
| Workflows | Basic | Automated | Advanced | Advanced | Advanced |
| Reporting | Basic | Standard | Advanced | Advanced | Advanced |
Asana is powerful, but you’ll pay through the nose to use it. You’ll see just how expensive it is when you compare it to ClickUp, which offers more collaborative tools than Asana. For example, ClickUp’s Unlimited plan, which is similar to Asana’s $13.49 Starter plan, costs $10 per user per month (billed monthly), and ClickUp’s Business plan costs $19 per user per month (billed monthly), compared to the $30.49 that Asana charges for its Advanced plan.
It’s also worth remembering that Asana does not support single users. Each plan has a two-user minimum. You can save money by signing up for an annual plan. However, this option is out of reach for many SMBs, as the upfront outlay can be significant, depending on the size of your team. Asana also offers discounts to academic groups and nonprofits if they choose the Starter or Advanced plans.
Personal
Asana’s Personal plan is a free option that offers standard features for small teams. With the Personal plan, you can create unlimited tasks, projects and messages, and receive unlimited file storage. You can collaborate with up to 10 team members and choose from a variety of project views, including list, calendar and board view. You can assign projects and due dates, use integrations and the notes tool, and view project briefs and overviews.
Starter
In the Starter plan, you’ll find everything in the Personal plan, plus timelines and Gantt charts, the AI and workflow builder tools, dashboards, forms, task start dates and times, dependencies and 250 monthly rules (automations). Additionally, you can have unlimited free guests, and users can tap into some of Asana’s advanced reporting tools. Starter also unlocks admin and security tools, including Google SSO and the admin console.
The Starter plan is suitable for many smaller teams who don’t need automation, AI or the tightest security.
Advanced
Asana’s Advanced plan builds upon the features of its Starter plan, providing a more advanced suite of tools for larger organizations and more complex projects. In addition to all of the features available in the Starter plan, the Advanced plan includes several additional capabilities such as portfolios that provide a high-level overview of multiple projects and goals that help you set and track progress toward your team’s objectives.
The Advanced plan also includes workload management features that help you distribute tasks effectively across your team members, a custom rules builder that allows you to create more advanced workflows and rules, and forms branching and customization that enables you to tailor forms for your specific needs. The Advanced plan also includes approval and proofing features that allow you to streamline your team’s review processes.
Enterprise and Enterprise+
Asana’s Enterprise and Enterprise+ plans are for organizations or large teams. In the Enterprise plan, you’ll find all the Advanced plan tools plus standardized workflows, resource management tools, advanced user authentication and management features, and custom branding. Enterprise+ then adds more security and compliance features, data access and management controls and the ability to add HIPAA compliance.
Asana vs. Top Alternatives
Here’s a quick look at some of Asana’s top competitors:
| Asana | Jira | ClickUp | monday.com | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rating |   | | | |
| Starting Price | Free; $13.49 per user per month, billed monthly (min. two users) | Free; $8.60 per user per month (based on a team of 100) | Free; $10.00 per user per month (billed monthly) | Free; $12.00 per seat per month, billed annually (min. three users) |
| Software Integrations | Offers over 100 native integrations and Zapier support | Offers over 3,000 integrations with third-party platforms | 46 native integrations plus (also supports Zapier) | 37 native integrations, many third-party integrations and Zapier support |
| Guest/Client Access | Allows guest accounts and client accounts with multiple views | Yes, but only with paid plans | Available in the free plan without permissions, with permissions in paid plans | Standard plan and up |
| Budgeting | Multiple budgeting tools | No budgeting tools | Yes | Yes |
| Collaborative Tools | Image proofing and notes, messaging | No native collaboration tools, but integrates with Confluence | Documents, whiteboards, mind maps, instant messaging, image proofing | Whiteboards, documents, image proofing |
| Learn More | -- | |||
| Read Reviews | -- |
Asana, Jira, ClickUp and monday.com are all good for tracking basic and complex projects. Asana and ClickUp both offer comprehensive free plans. So if you’re looking for cost savings, they’re good choices. All of these platforms are also serviceable for providing guest access and client views, but Jira only offers that with paid plans. Asana’s integrations are particularly expansive, so it can work with many existing systems your business might use.
Asana vs. Jira
Compared to Jira, Asana is much easier to use, especially for those unfamiliar with Scrum terminology. In the corporate world, it’s IT and software teams that typically rely on a product such as Jira to manage tasks. You’re more likely to see many different teams use Asana, thanks to its support for numerous project management methodologies and frameworks and straightforward language.
Asana vs. ClickUp
Asana and ClickUp are similar in terms of their project and task management tools. Where they differ is in the number of real-time collaboration tools. Asana offers basic messaging, image proofing and collaborative notes. In contrast, ClickUp offers collaborative documents, mind maps, whiteboards, image proofing and a robust instant messaging tool for individual and team chats.
Asana vs. monday.com
For larger teams that need to keep track of lots of projects, monday.com is a great alternative to Asana. Both platforms offer myriad project and task-tracking tools, integrations, time tracking, budgeting and resource management features. The biggest difference is that monday.com is slightly easier for new teams to use, thanks to a forgiving interface. Additionally, monday.com offers more affordable plans.
Our Expert Opinion
Asana offers everything required for SMBs to manage simple and complex projects. The intuitive workflow tools make Asana suitable for teams old and new, and the automation builder and integrations make it simple to create automated workflows that span multiple platforms. While there are better platforms for teams requiring real-time collaboration tools, Asana offers just enough collaboration features for remote teams to get by.
There’s nothing complex about Asana, and I have no real complaints about the software. However, the overpriced plans and below-par customer service leave a sour taste in the mouth.
Ease of Use
While I find monday.com the easiest-to-use project management software, Asana is a very close second. The interface is colorful and well-designed, the menus are easy to navigate and the tools are intuitive. Within minutes of firing up Asana, you’ll be on your way to creating projects, especially if you use the included project templates.
All of Asana’s workflow tools are intuitive.
Thanks to the flat learning curve, adding the views you want to use, assigning tasks, adding due dates and custom fields, and creating dependencies and subtasks is straightforward. I appreciate that all the tools feature a user-friendly drag-and-drop mechanic and that sharing files and commenting are also child’s play. Additionally, the graphical interfaces for the workflow builder and the simple integration system make creating workflows a cinch.
The Asana desktop applications for Windows and macOS are identical to the browser version.
Asana offers dedicated Windows and macOS desktop applications, which are identical to the web browser version. There are also iOS and Android applications. The mobile apps are easy to navigate, and you can send messages, create and move tasks, upload files and leave comments. You can also work off-line. However, you’re limited to overview, list, board and calendar views, and you cannot work on collaborative notes, which is a shame.
Asana’s mobile application is suitable for basic task management and messaging but not much else.
The application is as smooth as silk on iOS devices; however, my experience using Asana on an Android tablet was rough. The application constantly stuttered, didn’t always catch screen touches and was slow to load tasks once touched. If you go into the apps knowing you’ll only be able to perform basic task management functions, you’ll be fine. Still, it’s disappointing that the mobile experience is lacking.
The iOS app is silky smooth and pleasant to use.
Value
If you have a small team and need free software, Asana is one of your best options, as the free plan is robust. However, Asana starts to lose its charm when you move into the paid plans. It’s not that Asana is unworthy of support—it’s a very competent platform—it’s just that Asana will hurt your bottom line more than ClickUp’s and monday.com’s comparable plans.
The only reason to pick Asana over monday.com and ClickUp is because of Asana’s advanced user management and security tools. However, keep in mind that the most powerful of these tools are kept for Enterprise and Enterprise+ customers. You can learn more about ClickUp’s, monday.com’s and Asana’s similarities and differences in our Asana vs. ClickUp and monday.com vs. Asana guides.
Customer Service and Support
Should you need help with Asana, you can head to the company’s knowledge base, where you’ll find articles and video guides, or you can visit the Asana forum to post questions and receive help. Regarding actual support, Asana is lacking. Asana does not offer phone or live chat support; there’s only an AI chatbot and a ticketing system.
Enterprise and Enterprise+ customers get 24/7 support and guaranteed two-hour response times unless it’s a U.S., Irish or Australian holiday; everyone else, well, you’ll have to play the waiting game.
I sent several tickets, and on average, it took 24 hours to receive a response. The agents who responded were friendly, and the help was great, but if I’m trying to run a business and need help with a critical problem, 24 hours is too long to wait. In contrast, monday.com offers excellent live chat support, and tickets generally receive a response within a few hours.
Reputation
My research has not uncovered any platform security breaches, which is always positive. Looking at Capterra and G2, I see that Asana has a glowing reputation with many users praising the platform for its user-friendly interface, project templates and task management system. Many user complaints center around the price of the plans, the lack of HIPAA compliance on lower tiers and the mobile applications.
It’s worth noting that Asana’s reputation on Trustpilot is not as rosy. While some users praise the software and the company, many who have left reviews have complained about wrongful charges, over-the-top sales tactics and poor customer support. If you’re still on the fence, I advise taking advantage of Asana’s free 30-day trial to test all the tools and interact with customer support to see if the platform is right for you.
Katherine Haan and Kelly Main contributed to this article.
Featured Partners
1
monday.com
Yes
From $8 monthly per user
Zoom, LinkedIn, Adobe, Salesforce and more
2
ClickUp
Yes, for unlimited members
$7 per month
Slack, Microsoft Outlook, HubSpot, Salesforce, Timely, Google Drive and more
3
Wrike
Yes
$10 per user per month
Salesforce, Adobe, Miro, Netsuite, QuickBooks, SAP
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Is Asana HIPAA compliant?
As of December 2024, Asana is fully compliant with HIPAA. For more details on HIPAA compliance in Asana, you can read the company’s fact sheet on the subject.
Is Asana free?
Asana offers its Personal plan for free, and it comes with a comprehensive list of features. These include unlimited tasks, projects, messages, activity logs and file storage. You’ll also get more than 100 integrations, multiple project views and you can collaborate with up to 10 teammates. Paid plans start at $13.49 per user per month when billed monthly.
Is Asana better than monday.com?
There is no definitive answer as to whether Asana or monday.com is better as it depends on your team’s needs and preferences. However, if we’re simply comparing features that suit a wide variety of businesses, we rated monday.com with 4.9 out of 5 stars, and Asana with 4.6 out of 5 stars across hundreds of data points in our monday.com vs. Asana comparison.
Is Asana difficult to learn?
No, Asana is not difficult to learn. It’s user-friendly and has a drag-and-drop interface. There are also many helpful tutorials and resources available. However, as with any tool, it takes time to learn all the features and how to use them effectively.
