Notion suits teams that want docs, wikis and databases in one place, with projects built inside them. Asana suits teams that live by owners, deadlines and timelines, but its free plan is for one or two people. Both free plans are built for individuals, so judge them on the plan your team will use.
Notion starts with a blank page and lets you turn it into anything: a wiki, a content calendar, a client tracker. Asana starts with a task that has an owner and a due date, and builds projects and timelines around it. I read both companies' plan pages, and the facts below are what Notion and Asana say about themselves.
Free and starter plans compared
| Notion | Asana | |
|---|---|---|
| Free plan | Yes, Free | Yes, Personal (free forever) |
| Who the free plan is for | Individuals organising personal projects and life | One or two people managing personal projects |
| Team limit on free | Blocks limited once 2 or more members join | 2 users |
| File uploads on free | 5 MB per file | 100MB per file, unlimited storage |
| Views on free | Databases with subtasks, dependencies and custom properties | List, board and calendar |
| Timeline or Gantt | Not covered on the plans page I read | Timeline and Gantt from Starter |
| AI | Trial of Notion AI; Notion Agent on Business | Asana AI from Starter |
| Docs and wiki pages | Core of the product, plus basic sites | Not the focus of the plans page |
| Guests | 10 guests on free | Unlimited free guests from Starter |
Notion: the page that becomes your system
Notion's free plan gives an individual a lot: databases with subtasks, dependencies and custom properties, basic forms, basic sites you can publish to the web, Notion Calendar and a trial of Notion AI. The catch is in the small print. Blocks are unlimited for one person, but they're limited once 2 or more members join, and uploads stop at 5 MB per file.
Plus is the plan for small teams. It lifts the block limit, opens up unlimited file uploads and charts, and adds custom forms and sites. Business adds Notion Agent, AI Meeting Notes, single sign-on and private teamspaces.
Asana: the plan that tells everyone what's next
Asana's Personal plan covers 2 users with unlimited tasks and projects, list, board and calendar views, and 100+ free integrations including Slack, Google Drive and Zoom. It's built for clarity: who owns this, when is it due, what's blocking it.
If your team keeps asking who's doing what, that's the gap Asana fills. Every task has one owner, so nothing sits in a shared column waiting for someone to notice it.
Starter is where it becomes a team tool, with no seat limits, Timeline and Gantt views, dashboards, unlimited automations, forms, unlimited free guests and Asana AI.
Where both free plans stop for a team
Here's the part people miss when they compare these two. Asana's free plan is capped at 2 users. Notion's free plan doesn't cap users in the same way, but it limits blocks as soon as a second member joins, which is Notion's way of saying the free plan is for one person. Either way, a team of three or more will be on Notion Plus or Asana Starter within weeks. So compare those plans, not the free ones.
Matching the tool to the work
Pick Notion if most of your work is writing and organising: SOPs, client notes, content plans, a team wiki. It's also a good fit if you want one place for knowledge, as my guide to knowledge base software explains.
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Pick Asana if most of your work is moving tasks between people against deadlines. Small teams often struggle here, and my piece on why project management is hard for small teams covers why.
My advice if you can only run one
Ask your team where they'd look first when they're stuck. If the answer is a document, choose Notion and build tasks inside it. If the answer is a deadline, choose Asana and link out to your docs. Running both is common in bigger companies, but for a small business one tool used well does more than two used half-heartedly.
Do you make workspace or project management software? Tool makers can ask to be considered for a featured place in comparisons like this one.
Frequently asked questions
Is Notion free for teams?
Notion's free plan is for individuals. Blocks are unlimited for one person but limited once 2 or more members join, so teams usually move to Plus.
Is Asana free?
Yes. Asana's Personal plan is free forever for one or two people, with unlimited tasks and projects and list, board and calendar views.
Does Asana have Gantt charts?
Yes. Asana adds Timeline and Gantt views on its Starter plan.
Can Notion replace Asana?
It can for teams that work mainly in docs and databases. Teams that rely on timelines, owners and dashboards may find Asana's Starter plan a closer fit.
