Jira alternatives for small teams: 4 tools compared
What to switch to when Jira feels too heavy: Linear, Plane, ClickUp and Tydy compared on free plans, per-user pricing, sprints and moving issues out of Jira. Includes a cost check for a team of 8. As of Nov 3, 2026.
Contents
Why small teams leave Jira
Jira is built for software teams: issues, epics, sprints, backlogs and configurable workflows. That depth is the reason to pick it, and also the reason a small team may want something simpler. The usual triggers:
- The Free plan limit. According to the Jira pricing page, Free covers up to 10 users with 2 GB of storage and 150 automation steps per month. User eleven means a paid plan.
- Setup overhead. Schemes, fields and workflows need someone to own them. A five-person team moving cards across three columns rarely needs that.
- Per-user pricing. Paid Jira plans are priced per user, so the bill grows with every hire.
- Work starts in chat. Clients and teammates send requests in Telegram, and someone retypes them as issues. The tracker lags behind the conversation.
What to check in a Jira alternative
- Process depth. Do you need sprints or cycles, estimates, backlogs and sprint reports out of the box?
- Migration. Is there a Jira importer, what does it carry over (issues, comments, attachments, statuses), and can you run both tools side by side for a while?
- Pricing model. Per user or per workspace, and what the free plan really allows.
- Admin effort. Who will configure statuses, fields and permissions, and how much of that you actually need.
- Where tasks come from. If most work starts in Telegram, how a message becomes a task matters more than the number of views.
Jira alternatives compared
Data from official pricing pages as of Nov 3, 2026. Prices are per month, billed yearly, unless stated otherwise.
| Jira | Linear | Plane | ClickUp | Tydy | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free plan | Up to 10 users, 2 GB | Unlimited members, 2 teams, 250 issues | Up to 12 users | Unlimited members, 60 MB storage | Up to 2 members, 3 projects |
| Paid from | Per user, depends on team size (USD) | $10 per user | $6 per seat | $9 per user | 990 ₽ or 2,990 ₽ per workspace |
| Sprints or cycles | Yes | Cycles | Cycles and modules | Sprint management | No |
| Jira import | — | Importer and Jira Sync | From Jira Cloud, Server and Data Center | Check the help center | No |
| Board view | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Tasks from Telegram chats | No built-in parsing | — | — | — | AI reads work groups and creates tasks |
A dash means the pages we checked don’t mention it. That doesn’t always mean the feature is missing, so confirm with the vendor.
Four Jira alternatives in detail
Jira today: the baseline
Jira has four plans on its pricing page: Free, Standard, Premium and Enterprise. Free is free forever for up to 10 users and includes backlog, list, board, timeline and calendar views, 2 GB of storage, 150 automation steps per month and community support. Standard adds user roles and permissions, 250 GB of storage and more automation. Paid prices are per user and change with team size, so use the calculator on the page for your exact number.
Linear: fast issue tracking for product teams
Linear is built around issues, projects, cycles and initiatives, with triage, an API, webhooks and MCP access on every plan. Linear’s docs describe a Jira importer and Jira Sync, so you can keep Jira up to date while you trial the switch.
On the pricing page, Free is $0 with unlimited members but 2 teams and 250 issues. Basic is $10 per user per month billed yearly (5 teams, unlimited issues). Business is $16 (unlimited teams, private teams and guests, Triage Intelligence, Linear Insights). Enterprise is custom and billed annually.
Plane: open source, cloud or self-hosted
Plane covers work items, cycles and modules, five layouts (list, board, calendar, Gantt and spreadsheet), intake and project pages. You can use the cloud or run it on your own servers. Plane’s own guide says it imports from Jira Cloud, Server and Data Center.
On the pricing page, the cloud Free plan is $0 for up to 12 users. Pro is $6 per seat per month billed annually and adds a workspace wiki, time tracking and dashboards. Business is $13 per seat and adds recurring work items, project templates and workflow control. Enterprise Grid is priced on request.
ClickUp: the all-in-one option
ClickUp is the broadest tool here: tasks, docs, Gantt charts, sprints, time tracking and automations. According to the pricing page, Free Forever is $0 with unlimited free members, 60 MB of storage, kanban boards, calendar view, sprint management and time tracking. Core is $9 per user per month billed yearly ($12 regular price) and adds unlimited storage, unlimited Gantt charts and custom fields. Business is $17 ($25 regular price). We couldn’t verify Jira import on ClickUp’s public pages, so check the help center.
Tydy: when Jira was just a board and work happens in Telegram
To be upfront: Tydy is not a Jira alternative for Scrum teams. It has no sprints, epics or custom workflows, and our comparison page says so. If your process depends on those, stay in Jira or pick Linear or Plane.
Tydy solves a different problem. When requests arrive as messages, screenshots and voice notes in Telegram, Tydy connects to the work group and proposes new tasks or updates to existing ones. Uncertain changes wait for a person in the AI Inbox. Tasks live on a kanban board with your own columns, labels, priorities, assignees and due dates. There is a calendar by due date and an overdue report, and the bot reminds the assignee about due dates in a Telegram DM. Access is set by roles (owner, admin, member, viewer and guest) and private projects.
Pricing is per workspace, not per member: Free 0 ₽ (up to 2 members, 3 projects), Pro 990 ₽ a month (up to 5 members) and Team 2,990 ₽ a month (up to 15 members). Yearly billing saves 17%. Payment is in roubles via YooKassa.
What a team of 8 pays per month
A small team of 8 people, using the lowest listed prices on official pages as of Nov 3, 2026, billed yearly where there is a choice.
| Tool | Plan that fits | Per month for 8 people |
|---|---|---|
| Jira | Free (up to 10 users) | $0; paid plans via the calculator |
| Linear | Free (250 issues, 2 teams) or Basic | $0 or $80 |
| Plane | Free (up to 12 users) or Pro | $0 or $48 |
| ClickUp | Free Forever or Core | $0 or $72 |
| Tydy | Team (Pro is up to 5 members) | 2,990 ₽ per workspace |
The free plans differ in what they cap: Jira caps users, Linear caps issues and teams, ClickUp caps storage. Check which limit your team will hit first.
How to move off Jira
- Map your current process. List statuses, issue types, required fields and roles. Some of them can go.
- Export what you need. Save the projects you want to keep while you still have access.
- Import one project first. Check that assignees, statuses, comments and attachments came through.
- Agree on how tasks enter the new tool. By hand, via a form, from email or from a work chat.
- Pick a cut-over date. From that day, new work goes only into the new tool and Jira becomes the archive.
Which Jira alternative to pick
- Product or engineering team, wants speed. Linear.
- Needs self-hosting or a wiki next to tasks. Plane.
- Wants tasks, docs, Gantt and time tracking in one place. ClickUp.
- Up to 10 people and happy with Jira itself. Stay on Jira Free.
- Work arrives in Telegram and you don’t run sprints. Tydy: tasks come from the conversation and due date reminders arrive in the same Telegram.
If Jira was mostly a board for you, see our guides to Trello alternatives and kanban boards for teams. For the management side, read how to assign tasks to employees, and for chat-driven teams, tasks in Telegram.
Tydy instead of Jira: pros and cons
Pros
- Tasks are created from Telegram conversations, no retyping issues.
- Kanban board, calendar by due date and an overdue report.
- Roles, private projects and an MCP server for AI agents.
- Per-workspace pricing.
Cons
- No sprints, epics or custom workflows.
- No Jira import.
- No Gantt chart, time tracking or wiki.
- The Free plan is for 2 members.
See how it works on the kanban board, due dates and reminders, roles and permissions, integrations and pricing pages. For studios and agencies there is Tydy for agencies.
FAQ
What is the best Jira alternative for a small team?
It depends on your process. For sprints and fast issue tracking, Linear. For self-hosting or a wiki, Plane. For an all-in-one workspace, ClickUp. If work arrives in Telegram and you don’t run sprints, Tydy.
Is there a free Jira alternative?
As of November 3, 2026, Linear (unlimited members, 250 issues), Plane (up to 12 users on the cloud), ClickUp (Free Forever) and Tydy (up to 2 members) all have free plans. Jira itself is free for up to 10 users.
Is Jira free for small teams?
Yes, the Jira Free plan covers up to 10 users with 2 GB of storage and 150 automation steps per month. Beyond 10 users you need a paid plan, priced per user.
Can I import my Jira projects?
Linear documents a Jira importer and Jira Sync, and Plane says it imports from Jira Cloud, Server and Data Center. For other tools, check the help center and test with one project first. Tydy has no Jira import.
Can Tydy replace Jira?
Not for Scrum teams: Tydy has no sprints, epics or custom workflows. It fits teams that need a kanban board and tasks created from Telegram conversations. Free 0 ₽ for up to 2 members, Pro 990 ₽ for up to 5 and Team 2,990 ₽ for up to 15 members per workspace a month.
