project management tool · head to head
Asana vs Smartsheet
Comparison Summary
Asana scored 6.7 and Smartsheet scored 6.0 on our project management tool test script.
Asana: Asana is the smoother tool to work in: pasting builds tasks, the CSV import understood all our columns and finished 200 rows in about 10 seconds, its AI was accurate, and the export keeps dependencies. But a new account runs on a 14-day trial, and much of what impressed us, from Gantt charts and rules to custom fields and the AI, is paid. The free plan is for two people and has list, board and calendar views.
Smartsheet: Smartsheet is a spreadsheet that runs projects: pasting or importing our data was the easiest of any app we have tested, dependencies rescheduled tasks properly, and its AI was the only one to get everything right and create subtasks on request. But there is no free plan, recurring tasks are missing, the interface switches between a new and a classic look, and the Windows app we tested is being retired in January 2027.
Editor's Verdict
Choose Asana if…
Best for: Teams ready to pay for Starter or Advanced who want a polished, fast-to-learn project tool with strong import and export.
- The CSV import recognised all seven of our columns with no manual mapping; 200 rows took about 10 seconds
- Pasting a multi-line list creates one task per line, and dates can be typed
- Rules can be built by describing them in a chat; ours fired within about 20 seconds
Choose Smartsheet if…
Best for: Teams who already think in spreadsheets and want Gantt charts, dependencies and automation on top, and are happy to pay and use it in the browser.
- Paste a spreadsheet and the project is built: 40 rows with phases, dates and priorities in one go
- CSV import mapped all 7 columns itself; 200 of 200 rows came back identical in the export
- Dependencies reschedule tasks automatically and skip weekends
Head to Head
Task by task
The same prompts, pasted word for word into each app on a clean Windows 11 PC. On the 8 tasks both apps were graded on, Asana completed 5 and Smartsheet completed 4.
| Task | Asana | Smartsheet |
|---|---|---|
| P1 · Build a project | Partial≈ 9 min | Pass≈ 5 min |
| P2 · Views | Pass≈ 2 min | Partial≈ 6 min |
| P3 · Rules | Pass≈ 6 min | Partial≈ 12 min |
| P4 · 200-row import | Partial≈ 4 min | Pass≈ 2 min |
| P5 · Scale | Pass≈ 1.5 min import | Pass≈ 2 min |
| P6 · Permissions | Pass≈ 10 min | Partial≈ 3 min |
| P7 · AI | Pass≈ 20–30 s each | Pass≈ 4 min |
| P8 · Leave | Partial≈ 6 min | Partial≈ 4 min |
Measured on the same PC
| Measurement | Asana | Smartsheet |
|---|---|---|
| On disk | 1.1 GB | 379 MB |
| Admin rights | Not needed | No |
| Starts with Windows | No | No |
| 40-task project | ≈ 9 min | ≈ 5 min |
| Cold start | ≈ 14 s | ≈ 14 s |
| Memory | 1.4 – 1.8 GB | 1.1 – 1.6 GB |
| Left after uninstall | ≈ 245 MB | ≈ 87 MB |
Pros and cons
Asana
+ What works
- The CSV import recognised all seven of our columns with no manual mapping; 200 rows took about 10 seconds
- Pasting a multi-line list creates one task per line, and dates can be typed
- Rules can be built by describing them in a chat; ours fired within about 20 seconds
- Recurring tasks and rules did not get in each other's way
- Dash, the AI chat, got our project summary and the overdue question right
- The project CSV export includes subtasks and dependencies
- Removing a member took effect on their next page load and offers a handover of their tasks
- No admin rights, no startup entry and no services
− What falls short
- New accounts start a 14-day trial, so you see paid features first; there is no button to end it early
- The free plan is for 2 users, with list, board and calendar only; Gantt, Timeline, rules, custom fields and AI need Starter
- No priority field on the free plan: priorities are a custom field, which is a paid feature
- The import keeps “Done” as a label, does not mark those tasks complete and does not split “qa;legal” tags
- Heavy: about 14 seconds to a usable window and 1.4–1.8 GB of private memory, with a working set up to 3.2 GB
- Dash created subtasks without asking first, and an AI field suggestion kept coming back after we dismissed it
- Closing the window leaves Asana running; the uninstall leaves about 245 MB
- Marketing emails are pre-ticked at sign-up
Smartsheet
+ What works
- Paste a spreadsheet and the project is built: 40 rows with phases, dates and priorities in one go
- CSV import mapped all 7 columns itself; 200 of 200 rows came back identical in the export
- Dependencies reschedule tasks automatically and skip weekends
- Smart Assist got the summary and overdue answer right, and created subtasks after asking
- Per-user install with no admin rights; uninstall removes almost everything
− What falls short
- The Windows desktop app is being retired on or after January 6, 2027
- No free plan: Pro starts at $9 per member a month, billed yearly
- No recurring tasks; workflows can remind you but not create a task
- Two interfaces: Calendar, Gantt and settings open in the older classic view, which needs saving by hand
- Gantt needs a second date column, and Ctrl+V did not paste in the new table view
- No CSV export; Excel, Google Sheets or PDF, one sheet at a time
Privacy and security
What we saw on our own test PC. Each review also lists what the vendor states about data handling, training and certifications.
Asana
No startup entry
The installer added no startup entry, services, scheduled tasks or listening ports. The app does keep running after you close its window.
Marketing emails pre-ticked
Sign-up ticks “Get feature updates and tips via email” by default, and the industry question notes that Asana may contact you about its products.
Organization-wide by default
New projects are open to everyone in the organization as Editors until you make them private.
Left after uninstalling
A 236 MB profile folder with the signed-in session and a 10 MB updater.
Smartsheet
Signed installer
The installer is signed by Smartsheet Inc with a valid certificate.
No background services
The app added no startup entry, services or listening ports.
Clear sharing roles
Admin, two kinds of Editor, Commenter and Viewer, per sheet or per workspace.
EU data region
Sign-up offered a European Union data region (app.smartsheet.eu), which our account used.
Features & Pricing
| Asana | Smartsheet | |
|---|---|---|
| Web | ✓ | ✓ |
| Windows | ✓ | ✓ |
| macOS | ✓ | ✓ |
| Linux | — | — |
| iOS | ✓ | ✓ |
| Android | ✓ | ✓ |
| Free plan | ✓ | — |
| Paid from | $10.99/mo | $9/mo |
Asana plans
- Personal$0
- Starter$10.99/user/mo
- Advanced$24.99/user/mo
- EnterpriseCustom
From Asana's pricing page, checked Oct 29, 2026.
Smartsheet plans
- Pro$9/member/mo
- Business$19/member/mo
- EnterpriseContact sales
- Advanced Work ManagementContact sales
From Smartsheet's pricing page, checked Oct 30, 2026.
Cost for your team
- Smartsheet$540per year
- Asana$659per year
Cheapest paid plan × seats × 12, at list price. Annual discounts and volume deals not included. Asana also has a free plan.
Who makes them
- Company
- Asana:Asana, Inc.
- Smartsheet:Smartsheet Inc.
- Headquarters
- Asana:San Francisco, California, USA
- Smartsheet:Bellevue, Washington, USA
- Founded
- Asana:2008
- Smartsheet:2005
- Funding
- Asana:Public company, listed on the New York Stock Exchange (ASAN) through a direct listing in September 2020.
- Smartsheet:Listed on the NYSE in 2018; taken private by Blackstone and Vista Equity Partners in 2025.
Timelines, official links and sources are in each review: Asana · Smartsheet.
Read the full reviews
This page compares the two side by side. Each full review has the complete test log, every screenshot, the scoring notes, pricing, security and company details.
Asana reviewSituational 6.7 Asana is the smoother tool to work in: pasting builds tasks, the CSV import understood all our columns and finished 200 rows in about 10 seconds, its AI was accurate, and the export keeps dependencies. But a new account runs on a 14-day trial, and much of what impressed us, from Gantt charts and rules to custom fields and the AI, is paid. The free plan is for two people and has list, board and calendar views. Read the full review → Smartsheet reviewSituational 6.0 Smartsheet is a spreadsheet that runs projects: pasting or importing our data was the easiest of any app we have tested, dependencies rescheduled tasks properly, and its AI was the only one to get everything right and create subtasks on request. But there is no free plan, recurring tasks are missing, the interface switches between a new and a classic look, and the Windows app we tested is being retired in January 2027. Read the full review → Project Management Alternatives
ClickUp Recommended Small teams that want lists, boards, Gantt charts, automations and AI in one free workspace and do not mind a busy, heavy app 7.4 Read reviewReview 
Notion Situational Individuals and small teams who want tasks living next to their docs and wiki, and who are happy to build their own setup 6.9 Read reviewReview 
Airtable Situational Teams who want a flexible database behind their projects, with automations and reliable CSV in and out 6.8 Read reviewReview 
