ClickUp vs Notion: Which is the Best Project Management tool?

If you read a bit online about ClickUp vs Notion you can find some interesting opinions. Some people say that ClickUp is a project workflow tool that can be used for tracking clients and tasks and that Notion is a note-taking app with some clever productivity tools. And that is simply not true.

Both apps have their key strengths and weaknesses that make them unique, but essentially they are two very similar apps with the same main use case: being a project management app.

What is Notion?

Notion is a versatile and customizable workspace that combines several productivity tools into a single platform. It’s a popular choice for individuals, teams, and businesses alike, as it can be used to manage projects, organize tasks, take notes, create wikis, and more.

Notion is a versatile and powerful tool that can be used to improve productivity, manage projects, and organize information. It’s a great option for individuals, teams, and businesses of all sizes.

What is ClickUp?

ClickUp is a cloud-based project management and collaboration platform that offers a wide range of features to help teams manage tasks, organize projects, and communicate effectively. It is known for its ease of use, flexibility, and customization options.

ClickUp is considered as one of the biggest project management tools out there at the moment but there are a lot of alternatives for it out there at the moment which improve some aspects of it.

ClickUp features

• AI Integration: Tailored AI tools for enhanced productivity.
• Variety of Tools: Includes tasks, docs, goals, whiteboards, dashboards, and chat.
• Extensive Platform Features: RapidViews DB, templates, integrations, ClickApps, hierarchy, and automations.
• Resources like ClickUp University, demos, customer stories, and help documents.
• Focuses on improving collaboration, with tools for centralized communications, brainstorming, and collaborative documents.
• Offers no-code automations for streamlining business processes.
• Customizable task templates and fields to suit various workflows
• Offers a variety of views (list, board, gantt, etc.) and integrates with other tools.
• Includes Gantt charts, native time tracking, mind maps, notepad, email integration, and a variety of comparison options with other tools.

Clickup Drawbacks

Steep learning curve

ClickUp has a lot of features, which means there is a lot to learn. This can be a challenge for new users, who may need some time to get acclimated to the platform. The platform’s interface can also be a bit overwhelming, with many options and a lot of information on the screen at once.

Overly customizable

While ClickUp’s customization options are a major selling point, they can also be a drawback. With so many options to choose from, it can be difficult to know where to start. This can lead to users feeling overwhelmed and unable to get the most out of the platform.

Lack of project message board

ClickUp does not have a built-in project message board, which means that users need to use a third-party tool for communication. This can be inconvenient, as it requires users to switch between multiple platforms.

Limited custom exports

The free plan of ClickUp limits custom exports to five per month. This can be a problem for teams that need to export data regularly.

Not HIPAA compliant

The Business and Business Plus plans of ClickUp are not HIPAA compliant. This means that they are not suitable for businesses that handle sensitive patient data. The Enterprise plan is HIPAA compliant, and if you need a BAA agreement, you’ll need to upgrade to the Enterprise plan. Due to the regulatory and legal costs, BAA agreements are only issued for Enterprise users.

ClickUp pricing

Free Version (Best for personal use):

• Cost: Free
• Features: 100MB storage, unlimited tasks and free plan members, two-factor authentication, collaborative docs, whiteboards, everything view, real-time chat, Kanban boards, sprint management, calendar view, basic custom field manager, in-app video recording, 24/7 support.

Unlimited Plan (Best for small teams):

• Cost: $7 per user/month (annually) or $10 per user/month (monthly)
• Additional Features: Everything in Free Forever plus unlimited storage, integrations, dashboards, guest permissions, unlimited Gantt charts, custom fields, column calculations, email in ClickUp, user groups, native time tracking, goals & portfolios, form view, resource management, agile reporting, AI compatibility.

Business Plan (Best for mid-sized teams):

• Cost: $12 per user/month (annually) or $19 per user/month (monthly)
• Additional Features: Everything in Unlimited plus Google SSO, unlimited teams, custom exporting, advanced public sharing, automations, dashboard features, time tracking, granular time estimates, timesheets, workload management, timelines & mind maps, goal folders, AI compatibility.

Enterprise Plan (Best for large teams):

• Cost: Contact Sales for pricing
• Additional Features: Everything in Business plus white labeling, advanced permissions, conditional logic in forms, enterprise API, unlimited custom roles, team sharing for spaces, universal search, default personal views, MSA & HIPAA options, single sign-on (SSO), custom capacity in workload, live onboarding training, customer success manager, managed services, and data residency in US, EU & APAC, AI compatibility.

ClickUp Integrations

ClickUp integrates with over 1,000 tools, including:

• Communication: Slack, Microsoft Teams, Google Hangouts Chat, Discord.
• Development: GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket, Sentry.
• Time Tracking: Toggl, Harvest, Everhour, Clockify, Timely, TMetric, TimeCamp, Time Doctor.
• File Storage: Google Drive, OneDrive, Dropbox, Box.
• Productivity: Google Calendar, Outlook, Figma, Vimeo, YouTube, Loom, Zoom.
• CRM & Marketing: HubSpot, Intercom, Zendesk, Front.
• Others: Twilio, Calendly, Miro, Tableau, Giphy, and more.

Notion Features

• Design and Integration: Beautifully designed, fully integrated for both life and work applications.
• AI Assistant: Features an integrated AI assistant.
• Document Management: Offers simple yet powerful document handling.
• Wikis: Enables centralization of knowledge.
• Project Management: Suitable for teams of any size.
• Calendar: Newly added feature to manage time and work together.
• Template Gallery: Provides various setups to get started.
• Customer Stories: Showcases how teams use Notion.
• Tool Integration: Allows connection of various tools to Notion.
• Educational Resources: Includes a blog, Notion Academy, guides, tutorials, webinars, and API documentation.
• Community Engagement: Features a large community, consultant hiring options, and global meet-ups.
• Versatile Use Cases: Provides templates for various purposes like company wikis, product roadmaps, OKRs, etc.
• Customization and Building Tools: Offers integrations, API documentation, and customization options.

Notion Drawbacks

Mobile App Limitations

While the Notion mobile app offers basic functionality, it lacks some of the features available on the desktop version. This can be inconvenient for users who rely heavily on mobile devices for productivity.

Performance Issues

Notion has been known to experience performance issues, especially when working with large databases or complex workspaces. This can lead to delays and make it difficult to use the platform efficiently.

Limited Integrations

Notion offers a decent range of integrations with other productivity tools, but it doesn’t have as many as some of its competitors. This can limit the ability to connect Notion with existing workflows and third-party services.

Not HIPAA compliant

Notion is not HIPAA compliant, so you should not trust it with sensitive information, but there are some settings you can use to make it HIPAA compliant.

Notion pricing

Free Version:

• Cost: Free
• Features: Unlimited blocks for individuals, limited block trial for teams, collaborative workspace, basic page analytics, 7-day page history, invite 10 guests, integrate with Slack and GitHub, file uploads up to 5MB.

Plus Plan:

• Cost: $8 per user/month (annually) or $10 per user/month (monthly)
• Features: Everything in Free, plus unlimited blocks for teams, unlimited file uploads, 30-day page history, invite 100 guests, enhanced collaboration features.

Business Plan:

• Cost: $15 per user/month (annually) or $18 per user/month (monthly)
• Features: Everything in Plus, plus advanced page analytics, 90-day page history, invite 250 guests, SAML SSO, private teamspaces, bulk PDF export.

Enterprise Plan:

• Cost: Contact Sales for pricing
• Features: Everything in Business, plus advanced security and controls, audit log, customer success manager, workspace analytics, unlimited page history, SCIM user provisioning, and more.

Additional offerings include the Notion AI add-on, available for $8 per member/month (annually) or $10 per member/month (monthly), offering features like Q&A, Autofill, and Writer.

Notion Integrations

Notion offers a wide range of integrations with various tools and platforms, enhancing its versatility for different use cases like:

• Security and Compliance: Notion integrates with platforms like Panther, Splunk, Datadog, and Nightfall AI, providing observable and actionable data for enhanced security and compliance.
• Link Previews: Notion supports link previews for tools like Jira, Slack, GitHub, and Asana, allowing users to view content and status updates without leaving the Notion environment.
• Synced Databases (Beta): This feature enables live data streaming from external tools into Notion databases, offering real-time updates for Jira projects, GitHub pull requests, and Asana tasks.
• Automations: With integrations like Zapier, Make, and Tray.io, Notion allows for the automation of workflows, facilitating efficient data synchronization and action triggers across different apps.
• Limited Integration count: Unfortunately at the time this post is written Notion offers only 80 integrations which is significantly fewer compares to ClickUp.

ClickUp vs Notion comparison

Final thoughts

ClickUp excels at task management. Notion’s task management features are not great. However, I think if you are more into building databases and relational data, then Notion will be a better fit.

Both Clickup and Notion are great project management tools, but I would prefer using Notion. It seems more user-friendly and the user interface overall is more eyes appealing. Overall answering the ClickUp vs Notion debate it just depends on what are your needs they both work great for complex projects and personal projects and ClickUp and Notion pricing is very similar.

Both project management tools have free trials, so I would highly suggest trying them both out and see which one suits your needs. And if both of the tools do not suit you I would suggest reading our other blog post about Top 7 Must-Have No Code Apps for Project Managers.