Year in Review

Project Management Tools Year in Review: 2025

2025 saw free tiers shrink, AI features arrive everywhere, and engineering-focused tools gain ground. Asana cut its free tier from 10 to 2 users. ClickUp remained the feature-density leader. Linear became the engineering default.

14 min readUpdated March 2026

Major Changes in 2025

Asana Free Tier Shrank to 2 Users

Asana Personal (free) dropped from supporting 10 users to 2 users. Starter at $13.49/seat/month became the minimum for teams. A significant change that pushed small teams toward ClickUp Free (unlimited members) or Notion Free.

ClickUp Added AI (Brain)

ClickUp Brain launched as an AI add-on at $7/member/month. AI writing, task summarization, standup generation, and project analysis. Available on all paid tiers as an add-on to the base subscription.

Linear Grew Among Engineering Teams

Linear Standard held at $8/seat with unlimited issues. Plus at $14/seat added roadmaps and SLAs. The keyboard-first UX and GitHub sync made it the top choice for engineering teams moving away from Jira.

Monday.com 3-Seat Minimum Continued

Monday maintained its 3-seat minimum on all paid plans. Basic at $12/seat, Standard at $14/seat, Pro at $27/seat. The minimum purchase means the actual entry cost is $36-$81/month, not the per-seat price.

Notion Added AI and Automations

Notion AI at $10/user/month add-on. Plus ($12/user/mo) unlocked custom automations. The workspace continued evolving from notes tool to all-in-one platform, competing more directly with ClickUp and Asana.

Current Pricing at 10 Users (March 2026)

ToolPlanAnnual (10 users)
TrelloStandard $6/seat$720/yr
LinearStandard $8/seat$960/yr
ClickUpUnlimited $10/seat$1,200/yr
NotionPlus $12/seat$1,440/yr
AsanaStarter $13.49/seat$1,619/yr
MondayStandard $14/seat$1,680/yr

Predictions for 2026

  • AI features will become bundled rather than add-on priced
  • More PM tools will follow Asana in shrinking free tiers
  • Linear will expand beyond engineering into product management
  • ClickUp and Notion will compete more directly as all-in-one platforms
  • Basecamp flat-rate model ($349/mo unlimited) may inspire copycats

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