ClickUp alternative
The ClickUp alternative with flat pricing and billing built in.
Rate-based billing and cost from approved time, at one flat price, with less to configure.
Quick answer
58 wordsIf you like that ClickUp tracks time but you want rate-based billing and a flat price, switch to Airtask. ClickUp tracks time natively with a billable flag, but has no native hourly or cost rates, and timesheet approvals sit on its higher plans. Airtask turns logged time into cost from five billing models, with approvals in the base plan, flat per workspace. Airtask turns logged time into cost from real rates, in the base plan, at one flat price.
The short version
Four reasons teams go looking for a ClickUp alternative.
Cost climbs with every hire.
ClickUp is priced per user, about $7 on Unlimited and $12 on Business. Every new seat, contractors included, adds to the bill.
Time, but no rate-based billing.
ClickUp tracks time and marks it billable, but it has no native hourly or cost rates. What a project cost and what to invoice still live in a spreadsheet or an add-on.
Approvals are a higher-tier feature.
Native timesheet approvals sit on ClickUp's Business Plus and Enterprise plans, so a small team pays up to get a sign-off flow.
A lot of tool to configure.
ClickUp does almost everything, which means almost everything is a setting. Smaller teams carry that configuration weight to get to a working board.
Head to head
Where each platform is stronger.
Four places teams feel the difference, every day.
01Billing and cost from hours
Airtask wins02Time that turns into cost
Airtask wins03Timesheet approvals in the base plan
Airtask wins04Flat pricing, not per seat
Airtask winsComparison
ClickUp vs Airtask.
What changes when logged time turns straight into cost.
Task structure
- ClickUp
- Spaces, folders, lists, tasks
- Airtask
- Projects, tasks, child tasks
Time tracking
- ClickUp
- Native, with a billable flag
- Airtask
- Native, reconciled with timesheets and cost
Billing and rates
- ClickUp
- Billable flag; no native hourly or cost rates
- Airtask
- Non-billable, time-based, fixed, mixed, inherited, with per-member rates
Cost from approved time
- ClickUp
- Not native
- Airtask
- Calculated from approved timesheet time
Timesheet approvals
- ClickUp
- On Business Plus and Enterprise
- Airtask
- In the base plan
Breadth
- ClickUp
- Docs, whiteboards, many views, lots to configure
- Airtask
- Focused on task, time and billing
Sprints
- ClickUp
- Sprint Automations on Business and above
- Airtask
- Scrum and Kanban, sprints, backlog, in the base plan
Docs / notebook
- ClickUp
- ClickUp Docs
- Airtask
- Project Notebook, linked to tasks
Pricing
- ClickUp
- Per user, every month
- Airtask
- Flat per workspace, the whole team in
Pricing
Flat per workspace. Not per head.
ClickUp charges per user. Airtask charges for the workspace, and turns time into cost without an add-on.
200 people on ClickUp Business is about $2,400 a month, and billing still needs rates it does not have natively. On Airtask Plus it's $49.
* ClickUp list prices checked October 2026 (annual billing); ClickUp tracks time but has no native hourly or cost rates, and timesheet approvals are on Business Plus and above.
Same tasks. Hours that turn into cost.
Projects, tasks and child tasks cover the work the way Spaces, Lists and tasks do in ClickUp. The difference is underneath: logged time reconciles with approved timesheets and turns into project cost from real billing rates, with nothing to bolt on.
Do I lose the time tracking I have in ClickUp?
No. Airtask tracks time natively too. What it adds is rate-based billing and project cost from approved time, which ClickUp does not do natively.
What powers the reports?
Logged time and approved timesheet hours, turned into cost from billing rates. The number in the report is the number the team worked, priced.
What do I gain over ClickUp?
Rate-based billing and project cost that ClickUp has no native answer for, timesheet approvals in the base plan instead of Business Plus, one flat price instead of per seat, and far less to configure.
The platform
Three things Airtask does that ClickUp leaves to a higher plan or an add-on.
Billing from real rates, not a flag.
Pick a billing model per project: non-billable, time-based, fixed, mixed or inherited. Override the rate per team member. Project cost calculates from approved time, with no third-party billing app.
- ClickUpA billable flag on time entries, but no native hourly or cost rates.
- AirtaskFive billing models, a per-member rate override, cost from approved time.
Time that already knows what it costs.
ClickUp tracks time, and so does Airtask. The difference is that every hour reconciles with an approved timesheet and turns into cost, in the base plan, not a Business Plus feature.
- ClickUpNative time tracking, but approvals sit on Business Plus and cost needs rates it lacks.
- AirtaskTimer, approved timesheets and cost from rates, reconciled, in the base plan.
Four views and flat pricing, less to configure.
Build filters visually with Where, Field, Condition and Value. Switch views without the sprawl: List, Board, Calendar and Notebook, at one flat price per workspace instead of per seat.
- ClickUpClickUp has many views and features, configured and paid for per seat.
- AirtaskList, Board, Calendar and a Notebook, focused, flat per workspace.
Who switches
Who actually needs to switch.
Teams that bill clients by the hour.
ClickUp marks time billable but cannot price it. Airtask's billing models and cost from approved time close that gap without an add-on.
Teams watching the per-seat bill.
Flat per workspace means the price is the same whether 20 or 200 people log in, contractors included.
Teams tired of configuring everything.
If ClickUp's depth has become setup overhead, focused defaults get you to a working board faster.
Migration
From ClickUp export to your first project.
Set up your workspace.
Create projects and invite your team. No admin approval needed to start.
Recreate your task structure.
Spaces, folders, lists and tasks map to projects, tasks and child tasks.
Turn on billing rates.
Set a billing model per project, add member rates, and your logged time becomes cost from day one.
Fast for the default view. Full team and billing configuration takes one to two days.
Ready to see what your tasks actually cost?
Put time, tasks and billing on one board, at one flat price.
Book a demoFAQs
The questions teams evaluating ClickUp alternatives actually ask.
Does ClickUp have native time tracking?
Yes, with a billable flag. What it lacks is native hourly or cost rates, and timesheet approvals sit on Business Plus and above. Airtask turns logged time into cost from billing rates in the base plan.
Does Airtask include billing and cost tracking?
Yes. Five billing models, per-member rates and project cost from approved time are in the base product. ClickUp marks time billable but has no native rates.
Is Airtask simpler than ClickUp?
It is more focused. Airtask covers task, time and billing with clean defaults, where ClickUp is a broad all-in-one with far more to configure.
How does Airtask pricing compare to ClickUp?
ClickUp charges per user, around $12 per user per month on Business. Airtask is flat per workspace: Plus is $49 a month for up to 200 people.
Why do teams switch from ClickUp to Airtask?
To turn logged time into cost from real billing rates, get timesheet approvals in the base plan, and pay one flat price instead of per seat, with far less to configure.