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Linear

Linear is a fast, keyboard-driven issue tracker built for engineering teams, offering Free, Basic ($10/user/mo), and Business ($16/user/mo) plans with no setup fees.
Verified: May 4, 2026 Pricing verified May 2026 from Linear pricing page and documentation.
Starting at
Free (unlimited members, 2 teams, 250 issues cap). Basic $10/user/mo (annual). Business $16/user/mo (annual). Enterprise custom. Annual billing required on paid plans. AI agents included on all plans. Monthly billing available at ~15–20% premium.
Free plan (permanent) with unlimited members
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Top Alternative
Jira →

Jira offers deeper customization, a broader integration marketplace, and volume discounts that make it more cost-effective for larger engineering organizations.

Software Specs

  • Free Trial: Free plan (permanent) with unlimited members
  • Learning Curve: easy
What We Like
  • Best-in-class speed and developer experience — keyboard-driven interface used by top startups over Jira's complexity
  • AI agents included on all plans including Free — no upcharge for AI features
  • No setup fees, onboarding costs, or hidden platform charges on paid plans
  • Free plan supports unlimited members — entire team can evaluate with no financial commitment
Considerations
  • Free plan's 250-issue cap blocks new issue creation with no grace period — active teams hit it within weeks
  • Annual billing required — no monthly plan option at published rates for Basic and Business
  • Business plan at $16/user/month is significantly more expensive than Jira Standard at comparable user counts
  • Not designed for non-engineering workflows — portfolio management, resource tracking, and Gantt views are outside its scope
Expert Verdict
Linear is the right issue tracker for engineering teams that value speed and developer experience above all else. The keyboard-driven interface and GitHub-native workflows meaningfully reduce overhead compared to Jira. The 250-issue free limit is an intentional funnel to paid plans — plan to be on Basic within a few weeks of real usage. Teams that need resource management, Gantt views, or cross-functional project portfolios should look at Asana or Monday.com instead.

Linear is a project and issue tracking platform founded in 2019 by former Uber engineers and headquartered in San Francisco. It was built as a direct response to the complexity of Jira — prioritizing speed, a keyboard-driven interface, and opinionated defaults over infinite configurability. Over 25,000 companies now use Linear, including Vercel, Ramp, Retool, and Cash App, making it the preferred issue tracker for a significant portion of the venture-backed startup ecosystem.

Pricing has four tiers. The Free plan allows unlimited members with two teams, 250 non-archived issues, and 10MB file uploads. AI agents are included on all plans at no extra cost. The 250-issue cap is the critical free limit — most active product teams hit it within weeks, with no grace period once it is reached. The Basic plan at $10/user/month (annual billing) removes the issue cap, expands to 5 teams, adds unlimited file uploads, admin roles, and full API access. The Business plan at $16/user/month (annual billing) adds unlimited teams, advanced analytics, AI-powered automation, custom dashboards, and priority support — this is where 45% of Linear’s paying customers operate. Enterprise pricing is custom-quoted, requires SAML SSO, SCIM provisioning, and is the only tier with HIPAA compliance options. Monthly billing is available on paid plans at approximately a 15–20% premium, though exact monthly rates are not published.

All paid plans require annual billing. There are no setup fees, onboarding charges, or platform fees beyond the per-user rate. Mid-year user additions are prorated; removals generate credits applied to future invoices rather than refunds.

Linear’s core competitive advantage is its interface speed and developer experience. The keyboard-shortcut-driven workflow, near-instant load times, and tightly integrated GitHub-native design reduce the overhead of tracking work. It is not designed for project portfolio management, resource tracking, or non-engineering workflows — teams needing those capabilities should evaluate Asana or Jira instead. Jira Standard at 100 users costs roughly $7.50/user/month with significant volume discounts; Linear Business costs $16/user/month at the same scale — a notable premium that most teams accept based on the UX difference.

Ready to get started with Linear?

Frequently Asked Questions

How much does Linear cost?

Linear's Free plan is permanently available with unlimited members, two teams, and a 250-issue cap. The Basic plan costs $10/user/month on annual billing. The Business plan costs $16/user/month annually. Enterprise pricing is custom-quoted. Monthly billing is available at approximately 15–20% more than the annual rate, though exact monthly prices are not published.

What happens when you hit the 250-issue limit on the free plan?

When your workspace reaches 250 non-archived issues, Linear immediately blocks new issue creation with no grace period. You must either archive existing issues to stay under the limit or upgrade to Basic. Most active product teams hit this limit within a few weeks of real use.

Is Linear better than Jira?

Linear is faster, cleaner, and has a significantly better developer experience. Jira has deeper customization, a larger marketplace of integrations and plugins, and volume discounts that make it cheaper per user at scale. Most teams that have tried both describe Linear as faster to use day-to-day; the decision often comes down to organizational complexity and budget.

Does Linear require annual billing?

Paid plans (Basic and Business) require annual billing at the published rates. Monthly billing is available but at approximately 15–20% more per user per month, and the exact monthly pricing is not displayed on the pricing page — you need to proceed to checkout to see the monthly rate.

Does Linear include AI features?

Yes. AI agents are included on all Linear plans, including the free tier, at no extra cost. On the Business plan, AI automation capabilities are expanded. Linear does not charge separately for AI features, which is a meaningful difference from tools that gate AI behind premium upgrades.

Advertiser Disclosure: Pricing verified May 2026 from Linear pricing page and documentation.. We may receive compensation for clicks or purchases on this site.

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