Choose Linear if your team ships software and you want speed with almost no setup. Choose ClickUp if your work is client services, or if you need tasks, docs and time tracking in one place and are willing to configure it.
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These two answer the same question, where does the work live, with opposite philosophies. One decides for you; the other lets you decide everything.
Which is right depends less on features than on whether your team enjoys configuring software, and on whether the work you track is software at all.
At a glance
| Criterion |  Linear |  ClickUp |
|---|---|---|
| Used mainly for | Issue tracking, sprint planning | Project and task management, team docs and goals |
| Entry price | $12.00/mo · Basic | $12.00/mo · Core |
| Free plan | ✓Yes | ✓Yes |
| Free trial | Not stated | ✕No |
| Works on | Web, macOS, Windows, iOS, Android | Web, macOS, Windows, Linux, iOS, Android, Apple Watch, Browser extension |
| Documented integrations | GitHub, GitLab, Slack, Figma, Zapier | Slack, HubSpot, Google Drive, GitHub, Zoom |
| Setup | Easy: 30 min | Moderate: 1-2 hr |
| Main limitation | Built around software delivery, so client-services work fits awkwardly | The pricing page displays 60MB storage on Free Forever, while a separate official upgrade article references a 100MB threshold; verify the current enforced limit before relying on it |
| Our evidence level | Vendor documented | Vendor documented |
| Try it | Try Linear ↗ | Try ClickUp ↗Partner link |
Every cell comes from the tool's record, built from its official documentation and pricing page. The integrations listed are the ones the vendor documents, not tested by us.
Where Linear pulls ahead
Speed and refusal. It is noticeably faster to operate than general work-management tools, and its opinionated defaults mean there is very little to decide before it is useful. For a small product team, that is the difference between a tool adopted in an afternoon and one that needs a rollout.
Where ClickUp pulls ahead
Scope. Tasks, documents, time tracking and reporting sit in one workspace, which matters when the alternative is three subscriptions that do not talk to each other. Its free tier is unusually generous, and for an agency tracking billable client work, the time tracking alone can decide it.
The cost of configurability
ClickUp's breadth creates more choices than a small team usually wants to make, and a workspace configured badly is worse than a simpler tool. Linear avoids that by refusing to be general, which is exactly why client-services work fits it awkwardly, and why it carries no time tracking or invoicing at all. Neither is a flaw; they are the same decision seen from two sides.
Pricing side by side
Linear Basic · in dollars
ClickUp Core · in dollars
Each tool's paid entry plan multiplied by the number of seats, free plan and tax excluded. One currency for all: the bars share a scale and compare directly. Prices read on the official pages (26.10.2026 to 03.11.2026).
| Tool | Verified price | Billing condition | Free | Checked | Link |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Linear | $12.00/mo · Basic | $12 per user/month billed monthly; $10 per user/month billed annually | Yes | 26.10.2026 | Visit ↗ |
| ClickUp | $12.00/mo · Core | $9 per user/month billed yearly; $12 per user/month billed monthly | Yes | 03.11.2026 | Visit ↗Partner link |
Frequently asked questions
Can Linear work for non-software projects?
It can hold them, but it is built around software delivery (cycles, issues, branch linking) and client-services work fits awkwardly. If most of what you track is not code, the fit fights you rather than helping.
Which is cheaper for a small team?
Compare the entry plans on the cards above, and read the billing condition: both quote a lower per-user rate that assumes annual billing, so a monthly commitment costs more than the headline suggests.
Does either replace time tracking software?
ClickUp includes time tracking at its paid entry tier. Linear has none, so a team that bills by the hour needs a second tool alongside it.
Recently at these tools
Linear: Loops (Linear's automated agents) can be triggered from Slack and GitHub, saved as templates for the workspace, and set to different reasoning levels. Source ↗
Linear: Linear Diffs shows stacked pull requests, groups related ones in Reviews and previews the affected pull requests before a GitHub stack is merged. Source ↗
ClickUp: Release 4.09: automations can create lists from templates, personal time off now feeds planning and workload, and parent task dates sync from their subtasks. Source ↗
Read on each vendor's official changelog, not tested by us.