What is the best Linear alternative for a small startup?

Shortcut and Height are the closest in speed and scope. If the team already uses Jira or Asana for other work, staying in that tool is usually cheaper than running a second tracker.

Should I use Linear or Jira?

Linear is better for a small product team that wants speed and a clear opinion. Jira is better when you need custom workflows, formal permissions, compliance or deep reporting across many teams.

Do I need a separate tracker for design and marketing?

Not always, but product and non-product work have different shapes. Many teams keep engineering in Linear and run campaigns in Asana or ClickUp, with a small shared intake form between them.

All alternatives

Project tracking / Alternatives

Linear alternatives

Linear is the fast issue tracker most startups copy. These alternatives trade speed for enterprise process, cross-team plans or open-source ownership.

Linear made issue tracking feel fast again and set the visual language for modern product teams. The alternatives below are stronger in specific directions: Jira and Smartsheet for formal process, Asana and ClickUp for cross-functional work, Plane for self-hosting, and Shortcut for a simple weekly shipping cadence.

6 alternativesReviewed October 2026Best for product and engineering teams

Reviewed by Rebupl editorialLast updated 7 November 2026How we review

Short answer: If you use Linear for issues, cycles and product delivery, start with Jira, Asana, ClickUp. Each one is listed because it fits a specific part of that job — check the price note and audience before you switch.

The list

Best Linear alternatives

Ordered by fit for issues, cycles and product delivery, not by payment. Prices are a snapshot from the last review.

Jira

Free + paid

The default enterprise issue tracker.

Jira's workflows, permissions and reporting fit large teams and compliance-heavy delivery. For a five-person startup it is usually more configuration than the work deserves.

Issue trackingEngineering orgs with formal delivery processesenterpriseagileissues

Free up to 10 users; paid from around $8/user/mo.

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Asana

Free + paid

Project plans and workflows for the whole company.

Asana is stronger than Linear when marketing, ops and product need one shared plan. Engineering-specific velocity reporting is weaker, so many teams run both.

Work managementCross-functional teams running campaigns and projectsprojectsmarketingworkflow

Free plan; paid from around $10.99/user/mo.

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ClickUp

Free + paid

Docs, tasks, goals and chat in one sprawling workspace.

ClickUp replaces a stack of project tools with one product at a low per-seat price. The breadth is the point and the risk: configuration can become a project of its own.

Work managementTeams consolidating many tools into one workspaceall-in-onetasksdocs

Free plan; Unlimited around $7/user/mo.

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Height

Free + paid

An autonomous project tracker with strong keyboard flow.

Height automates some of the busywork around triage, status and updates. It is fast and opinionated; teams that need deep custom workflows may run out of rope.

Issue trackingProduct teams that want less manual triageautomationtasksproduct

Free plan; paid plans available.

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Plane

Free + paid

Open-source project tracking with cycles and modules.

Plane covers the Linear-shaped workflow — cycles, modules, issues — with a self-hosted option. The polish is close, and the open-source route avoids per-seat pricing.

Issue trackingEngineering teams that want an open alternativeopen sourceissuescycles

Free self-hosted; cloud paid plans available.

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Shortcut

Free + paid

A fast, opinionated tracker for software teams.

Shortcut keeps stories, epics and iterations simple and fast. It lacks Linear's ecosystem, but the workflow is clear and the free tier is usable for a small team.

Issue trackingProduct and engineering teams that ship weeklystoriesagileissues

Free up to 10 users; paid from around $8.50/user/mo.

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How we picked them

Reviewed 7 November 2026. The list is built from the following sources. A product cannot buy a position.

Each platform's public pricing and submission pages, checked on the review date.
Rebupl's own pricing, FAQ and launch rules for the platform side of a comparison.
The reviewed Where to Launch directory, which records pricing, audience and link policy.

Full method: editorial policy · Markdown: linear.md

FAQ

Linear alternatives FAQ

3 answers

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