Plaky vs Plane:
free team size, private boards and project workflows
Compare Plaky and Plane for hosted free access, user and guest limits, private work areas, activity history and paid workflow tools.
Start with the workload.
Price the retained plan.
Plaky suits a team starting with shared task boards and broad free participation. Plane combines work items, cycles and project documentation, but its hosted Free tier has a 12-seat boundary. Start with the actual participants, privacy requirements and records the team needs to retain, then test the package that continues after evaluation.
Seven differences that change the shortlist
| Buying question | Plaky | Plane |
|---|---|---|
| Work organisation | Boards, items and custom fields | Work items, cycles, modules and project pages |
| Hosted free people | Unlimited users | Up to 12 seats, including guests and pending invitations |
| Structured work | Free boards have six fields | Work items and project documentation; verify required field configuration |
| Private work requirement | Private boards and views require Pro or Enterprise | Demonstrate the intended project access in the retained package |
| History and reporting | Free activity history is seven days | Check required activity history and report retention in the selected edition |
| Paid workflow step | Pro lists 1,000 monthly automation actions | Pro adds time tracking; recurring work items and intake are Business |
| Trial and self-hosting | Free hosted package; paid features have separate scope | Opening Business trial is separate from retained Free; self-hosted editions also exist |
Four worked buying briefs
These are hypothetical scenarios with explicit assumptions. They do not establish equal capabilities, measured usability or a negotiated price.
| Buying brief | Plaky | Plane |
|---|---|---|
| Fifteen colleagues need a shared board | Unlimited Free users do not impose a 15-person ceiling. | Fifteen people exceed the 12-seat hosted Free cap. |
| Eight staff, four guests and two invitations | Check the actual roles and board visibility; Free has no user-count cap. | Fourteen seats exceed Free because guests and pending invitations count. |
| A client project must stay private | Private boards and views require Pro or Enterprise. | Demonstrate the exact private-project and guest permissions in the intended plan. |
| The team needs recurring work and time records | Confirm the automation and time-recording workflow rather than assuming a task board includes it. | Time tracking starts in Pro; recurring work items are Business. |
Fifteen colleagues need a shared board
Does hosted Free fit the whole team?
Plaky: Unlimited Free users do not impose a 15-person ceiling.
Plane: Fifteen people exceed the 12-seat hosted Free cap.
The required workflow still needs to fit; people capacity does not establish feature fit.
Eight staff, four guests and two invitations
Which participants count?
Plaky: Check the actual roles and board visibility; Free has no user-count cap.
Plane: Fourteen seats exceed Free because guests and pending invitations count.
Count invitations before rollout, not just active employees.
A client project must stay private
What needs a paid edition or demonstration?
Plaky: Private boards and views require Pro or Enterprise.
Plane: Demonstrate the exact private-project and guest permissions in the intended plan.
A workspace-wide board and a client-isolated area are different privacy requirements.
The team needs recurring work and time records
Which retained plan should be tested?
Plaky: Confirm the automation and time-recording workflow rather than assuming a task board includes it.
Plane: Time tracking starts in Pro; recurring work items are Business.
End or downgrade the trial before accepting the ongoing package.
Count every participant and the intended access
Write a role list that includes staff, occasional clients, reviewers and people still waiting to accept invitations. Match each role to the product’s seat definition. A workspace that appears to have eight employees can still exceed a free seat cap once other participants are included.
Next describe which records each role may see. Use a synthetic client and a second project to check isolation. For Plaky, price private boards explicitly. For Plane, verify the intended project and guest permissions on the retained plan instead of assuming the opening trial defines free access.
Keep the required history with the workflow
Choose a real management question: who changed the delivery date last month, which tasks repeat and how much effort was recorded? Establish the retention and reporting needed to answer it. A seven-day activity window cannot answer every longer-term audit question.
During an authorised evaluation, create a change, find its history, record effort and configure one recurring item. Then recheck the continuing edition. Keep the actual paid tier, participant count and automation usage in the purchase brief so a working trial does not hide the retained subscription boundary.
Questions before you choose
Can Plane Free support fifteen team members?
No. Its hosted Free tier permits up to 12 seats, including guests and pending invitations. A fifteen-person workspace needs a different arrangement.
Are private boards included in Plaky Free?
No. Plaky places private boards and views in paid Pro or Enterprise.
Is Plane’s opening Business trial the same as its free package?
No. New cloud workspaces receive a temporary Business trial; the retained Free tier has its own seat and feature limits.
Keep the assumptions with the figures
Use the date, billing cycle, units and limits with each example. Check current account terms before purchasing. Unverified prices and model costs stay unpriced.
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Use these examples when discussing the shortlist with your team.