Asana vs Basecamp: Features, Pricing and Reviews Compared
- Starting price
- $10.99/user/mo · free plan
- Ease of use
- 8.8
- Functionality
- 8.7
- Value for money
- 7.6
- Customer support
- 8.0
Best for
- Marketing, operations and product teams juggling dozens of projects with shared people
- Managers who need portfolio and goal roll-ups, not just a task list
- Teams that want a polished mobile and desktop experience
- Starting price
- $29/mo · free plan
- Ease of use
- 7.2
- Functionality
- 7.5
- Value for money
- 7.4
- Customer support
- 7.4
Best for
- Freelancers and small teams running a few client projects
- Agencies that share project work with clients
- Nonprofits and schools seeking discounts
Our verdict
Asana comes out ahead at 83/100 versus Basecamp at 74. Flexible views of the same work: list, board, timeline, calendar. Asana is the better fit for cross-functional teams that need clear ownership. Basecamp makes more sense if you need a free plan covers one personal project with up to three users and 1 GB of storage.
On Asana: Asana is the project tool we recommend for teams that run many concurrent projects and need to see how they roll up into goals and portfolios. Task management is fast and keyboard-friendly, views are flexible, and the automation builder is approachable. The weakness is cost: the useful views live on Starter, the planning features live on Advanced, and per-user pricing adds up for large teams who could get by on monday.com or ClickUp.
Features comparison
The 8 project management capabilities we check on every product, ordered by importance to buyers.
| Feature | Importance | Asana | Basecamp |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kanban boards | 88% | Included | Not included |
| Mobile app | 71% | Included | Included |
| Automations | 67% | Included | Included |
| Gantt charts | 64% | Included | Not included |
| Time tracking | 59% | Included | Included |
| Guest access | 55% | Included | Included |
| Docs & wikis | 48% | Not included | Included |
| API access | 33% | Included | Included |
What stands out in each
Tasks, subtasks and views
Every task has an assignee, due date, custom fields and subtasks, and the same project can be viewed as a list, board, timeline, calendar or Gantt chart. The interface is quick and the keyboard shortcuts make bulk editing fast.
Workflow builder and rules
Starter includes a visual builder for intake-to-done workflows with triggers and actions (assign, move section, set field, notify Slack). Automation counts are capped per month by plan.
Goals, portfolios and workload
Advanced adds portfolios that roll projects up with status, owner and progress, goals linked to the work that drives them, and a workload view that shows who is over capacity. This is the layer that justifies Asana over cheaper tools.
Reporting
Project dashboards with charts of tasks by status, assignee and custom field; Advanced extends to cross-project reporting. Exports to Tableau and Power BI exist for deeper analysis.
BasecampProject page hub
Every project has its own page where you add the tools you need, including to-dos, message boards, chat, a calendar, and card tables. Clients and AI agents can be invited to the same page. Everything stays in one place for the whole project.
Message boards for discussions
Announcements and discussions are posted as threads, with every reply attached beneath them. The vendor positions message boards as a replacement for email on project topics. New team members can read the history and catch up quickly.
To-dos with subtasks
You can create one list or many, assign items, set due dates, attach files, and add subtasks. Recurring tasks and reminders are included. The whole team can see the status of each item.
Hill Charts for progress
Hill Charts show whether work is still in the uncertain early stage or moving toward completion. They help a manager spot stuck items without a status meeting. The view is designed for a quick read on where a project stands.
Pricing comparison
Asana starts at $10.99/user/mo with a free plan (30-day trial); Basecamp starts at $29/mo with a free plan (Free trial). Plans are shown as the vendors publish them; the BSR Value subscore reflects what you get for the money.
Personal
Up to 10 users. Tasks, lists, boards and calendar.
- Up to 10 teammates
- Unlimited tasks and projects
- List, board and calendar views
- Basic integrations
Starter
Timeline, Gantt, workflow builder, dashboards and 250 automations a month.
- Timeline and Gantt views
- Workflow builder
- Project dashboards
- Custom fields and forms
Advanced
Goals, portfolios, workload, approvals and 25,000 automations.
- Goals and portfolios
- Workload management
- Time tracking
- Approvals and proofing
Enterprise
SAML, admin controls, audit logs and data residency.
- SAML SSO and SCIM
- Admin console
- Audit log API
- Data residency
Paid plans are billed per user with a minimum of two seats, and seats come in bundles at some sizes. The free Personal plan caps collaborators at ten. Monthly billing costs about 20% more than annual. Asana AI features are included on paid plans but some advanced AI capabilities are limited by tier.
Value for money: 7.6/10 · Monthly, Annual, Minimum 2 seats · Vendor pricing page ↗
BasecampFree
Suits individuals who want to try Basecamp on one personal project.
- 1 project
- 1 GB storage space
- 3 users max
- Project templates, multiple tools per project, and time tracking
Freelancer
Suits freelancers and small groups running a handful of concurrent projects.
- Up to 3 active projects
- 10 GB storage space
- Up to 5 users, no per-user fees
- 24/7/365 support
Pro
Suits growing teams that need more projects, more people, and multiple tools per project.
- Up to 8 active projects
- 25 GB storage space
- Up to 10 users, no per-user fees
- Multiple message boards, chat rooms, and card tables in a single project
Pro Plus
Suits teams that need more active projects and built-in time tracking.
- Up to 12 active projects
- 100 GB storage space
- Up to 15 users, no per-user fees
- Time tracking for hours spent on projects
Business packages can be tried free for 30 days, and you choose a package when the trial ends or simply leave. Pro Unlimited is billed annually at $199 per month, or $329 per month if billed monthly; annual billing is also available by check, ACH, or wire. Additional storage for Pro Unlimited costs $50 per month for 1 TB.
Value for money: 7.4/10
Integrations comparison
6 integrations in common · 14 only in Asana · 74 only in Basecamp. Logos link to our review when we cover the tool.
Both connect to
Only Basecamp74Which one is best for my use case?
Who each product is built for, who should look elsewhere, and the jobs it gets bought for, from our editorial review and the vendor's own customer profile.
Ideal for
- Marketing, operations and product teams juggling dozens of projects with shared people
- Managers who need portfolio and goal roll-ups, not just a task list
- Teams that want a polished mobile and desktop experience
Not for
- Very small teams who need Gantt or timeline views; the free plan lacks them
- Budget-conscious teams that need Advanced features (workload, time tracking) at scale
- Teams that want a database-style tool with heavy customisation (consider monday.com or Notion)
Common use cases
Sells to: Small businesses, Mid-size companies, Enterprises, Nonprofits. Common industries: Marketing and creative, SaaS and technology, Operations, Education, Healthcare, Financial services.
BasecampIdeal for
- Freelancers and small teams running a few client projects
- Agencies that share project work with clients
- Nonprofits and schools seeking discounts
Not for
- Teams that need time tracking on Freelancer or lower
- Organizations running many concurrent projects on a small budget
Common use cases
Sells to: Freelancers, Small businesses, Mid size businesses, Enterprises.
Support, training and setup
How you get help, how you learn the product, and how fast you can be running.
- Support score
- 8.0/10Leads
- Ease of use
- 8.8/10Leads
- Support channels
- Email and chat (paid plans)
- Help center
- Community forum
- Priority support (Enterprise)
- Training
- Asana Academy
- Documentation
- Live webinars
- Customer success (Enterprise)
- Deployment
- Cloud / SaaS
- iOS app
- Android app
- Mac app
- Windows app
- Typical setup
- Same day
- Languages
- English, Spanish, French, German, Portuguese, Japanese +7
Basecamp- Support score
- 7.4/10
- Ease of use
- 7.2/10
- Support channels
- Email/Help Desk
- FAQs/Forum
- Knowledge Base
- 24/7 (Live rep)
- Chat
- Training
- Live Online
- Webinars
- Documentation
- Videos
- Deployment
- Web
- Typical setup
- Not published
- Languages
- Not published
Security and reliability
Certifications and controls as published by each vendor. We list them; we don't audit them.
- Security
- SOC 2 Type II
- ISO 27001
- GDPR
- HIPAA (Enterprise)
- SSO (SAML)
- Two-factor authentication
- Data residency (Enterprise)
- Public API
- Yes
- Mobile apps
- iOS · Android
- Company
- San Francisco, CA · 1,800+ employees · founded 2008
Basecamp- Security
- Client mode controls what outside collaborators can see, project by project
- Enhanced admin controls over access and permissions on Pro Unlimited
- Role-based permissions
- Public API
- Yes
- Mobile apps
- None published
- Company
- Not published
Pros and cons
Our editors' pros and cons for each product. No user reviews have been published for these products yet.
Pros
- Flexible views of the same work: list, board, timeline, calendar
- Clear task ownership and dependency tracking
- Large integration library and a mature API
Cons
- Free plan caps collaborators and lacks timeline view
- Pricing climbs quickly for larger teams
- No built-in wiki or long-form documents
BasecampPros
- A free plan covers one personal project with up to three users and 1 GB of storage.
- Paid plans charge flat monthly rates by package with no per-user fees, and Pro Unlimited removes limits on projects and people.
- Every package includes message boards, to-dos, card tables, chat, scheduling, and file storage.
- The business packages include a 30-day free trial with unlimited use and no obligation to choose a package afterward.
- Developers get an API, a command-line interface, and connectors for AI tools such as Claude and ChatGPT.
Cons
- The Freelancer plan caps accounts at three active projects and does not include multiple tools per project or templates.
- Time tracking requires the Pro Plus package or higher.
- Pro Unlimited costs $329 per month if billed monthly, compared with $199 per month on annual billing.
- Downgrades are allowed only when current usage fits the smaller package, and moving from a paid plan back to free is not permitted.
Full side-by-side table
Asana leads in 9 of 10 rows where they differ. Green marks the leader in each row.
Basecamp 74Leads 1 of 10 rows · Best for freelancers and small teams that want simple project management with flat monthly pricing.| Feature | Asana Best for cross-functional teams that need clear ownership | Basecamp Best for freelancers and small teams that want simple project management with flat monthly pricing. |
|---|---|---|
| Scores | ||
| BSR score | 83 | 74 |
| Ease | 8.8 | 7.2 |
| Features | 8.7 | 7.5 |
| Value | 7.6 | 7.4 |
| Support | 8.0 | 7.4 |
| Pricing | ||
| Starting price | $10.99/user/mo | $29/mo |
| Free plan | Included | Included |
| Free trial | 30-day trial | Free trial |
| Features | ||
| Features included | 7 / 8 | 6 / 8 |
| Kanban boards | Included | Not included |
| Gantt charts | Included | Not included |
| Time tracking | Included | Included |
| Guest access | Included | Included |
| Automations | Included | Included |
| Docs & wikis | Not included | Included |
| API access | Included | Included |
| Mobile app | Included | Included |
| Details | ||
| Biggest strength | Flexible views of the same work: list, board, timeline, calendar | A free plan covers one personal project with up to three users and 1 GB of storage. |
| Biggest weakness | Free plan caps collaborators and lacks timeline view | The Freelancer plan caps accounts at three active projects and does not include multiple tools per project or templates. |
| Platforms | Web, iOS, Android, Windows, Mac | Web |
| Best fit | 2–5,000 users | Freelancers, Small businesses, Mid size businesses, Enterprises |
Not a match?
Other project management software we list, ranked by BSR score.
Asana vs Basecamp: FAQs
Is Asana better than Basecamp?
Asana scores 83/100 against Basecamp's 74, a 9-point lead. Flexible views of the same work: list, board, timeline, calendar. Basecamp is the better pick if a free plan covers one personal project with up to three users and 1 GB of storage matters more to you.
Which is cheaper, Asana or Basecamp?
Asana has the lowest starting price at $10.99/user/mo and offers a free plan. Basecamp starts at $29/mo. Per-user pricing, annual discounts and add-ons change the real total, so price out your actual seat count.
Which has more features?
Asana covers 7 of the 8 project management features we track, including Kanban boards, Gantt charts which Basecamp lacks.
Do Asana and Basecamp integrate with the same tools?
Both connect to Slack, Jira, GitHub, Dropbox, Zapier and 1 more. Only Asana lists Microsoft Teams, Google Workspace, Microsoft 365; Only Basecamp lists Hubstaff, Jotform, OmniFocus.
How this comparison was made
Each product was scored on the same four subscores (Ease, Features, Value, Support) from the vendor's published pricing and documentation, our editorial review, then combined into a 100-point BSR score. Hands-on tested: Asana. Feature checks use one list per category; plans, integrations, support and security come from what each vendor publishes and are refreshed when listings change. Green marks the leader in a row. Sponsored placements are labeled elsewhere on the site and never touch a comparison. Full methodology →