project management tool · head to head
Taskade vs Wrike
Comparison Summary
Wrike scored 5.8 and Taskade scored 5.3 on our project management tool test script.
Wrike: Wrike is a deep, enterprise-style tool: five user types, real recurrence, dependencies, a Gantt chart and a fast importer for hundreds of tasks. But everyday work takes more effort than in the other apps we tested: no multi-line paste, weekend due dates moved to Monday by default, and an importer that only takes its own Excel template. Its AI got the task count wrong and could not create subtasks, and the free plan is limited to a board and a table.
Taskade: Taskade's free plan does more than you might expect: a pasted Markdown checklist built our phases in one go, repeating tasks and a fast automation worked without paying, and CSV import took seconds. But the Windows app was the heaviest we have tested, froze once, and added itself to startup without asking. Imported dates become plain text, the project's own CSV export dropped every due date, Gantt and dependencies are paid, and the free plan has no AI credits at all.
Editor's Verdict
Choose Wrike if…
Best for: Larger teams that need strict roles, Gantt planning and reporting, and will pay for Business or above.
- Fast import: 200 rows in under a minute and 500 in under 20 seconds, with dates and descriptions
- Five user types, from Admin to view-only Viewer, plus custom roles
- Proper recurrence settings and a working status automation
Choose Taskade if…
Best for: Individuals and pairs who want lists, boards and simple automation for free and are happy in the browser.
- A pasted Markdown checklist becomes phase blocks with tasks in one step
- Repeating tasks and a working automation on the free plan
- The automation fired within about a second
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, Taskade completed 1 and Wrike completed 1.
| Task | Taskade | Wrike |
|---|---|---|
| P1 · Build a project | Partial≈ 15–20 min | Partial≈ 20 min |
| P2 · Views | Partial≈ 4 min | Partial≈ 3 min |
| P3 · Rules | Partial≈ 10 min | Partial≈ 10 min |
| P4 · 200-row import | Partial≈ 2 min | Partial≈ 10 min |
| P5 · Scale | Pass≈ 2 min | Pass≈ 2 min |
| P6 · Permissions | Partial≈ 4 min | Partial≈ 4 min |
| P7 · AI | Fail– | Partial≈ 4 min |
| P8 · Leave | Partial≈ 5 min | Partial≈ 4 min |
Measured on the same PC
| Measurement | Taskade | Wrike |
|---|---|---|
| Installer | 218 MB | 175 MB |
| Admin rights | No | Optional |
| On disk | 597 MB | 403 MB |
| Starts with Windows | Yes | No |
| 40-task project | ≈ 15–20 min | ≈ 20 min |
| Views on the free plan | 3 / 4 | 2 / 4 |
| 200-row import | 200 / 200 | 200 / 200 |
| 500-row import | 500 / 500 | 500 / 500 |
| Cold start | ≈ 15–50 s | ≈ 9 s |
| Memory | 1.3 – 2.4 GB | 1.3 – 1.8 GB |
| Automation rule | ≈ 1 s | ≈ 2–3 s |
| Left after uninstall | ≈ 275 MB | ≈ 112 MB |
Pros and cons
Taskade
+ What works
- A pasted Markdown checklist becomes phase blocks with tasks in one step
- Repeating tasks and a working automation on the free plan
- The automation fired within about a second
- CSV import of 500 rows in about a second, every value kept
- Starter plan from $6 a month for three people
− What falls short
- Added itself to Windows startup without asking, and the entry stays after uninstalling
- Up to 2.4 GB of memory, a slow cold start, and the app froze once until restarted
- The project's CSV export dropped every due date and shuffled the rows
- Imported dates and statuses become plain text, not dates or fields
- Gantt chart and dependencies need a paid plan
- No AI credits on the free plan, and only 10 automation runs a month
Wrike
+ What works
- Fast import: 200 rows in under a minute and 500 in under 20 seconds, with dates and descriptions
- Five user types, from Admin to view-only Viewer, plus custom roles
- Proper recurrence settings and a working status automation
- Instant, complete Excel export of every task, folder and field
- Valid code signature and an optional install without admin rights
− What falls short
- The importer only accepts Wrike's own Excel template: no CSV, and your status names must match
- Pasting a list creates one task, not one per line
- “Working Days Only” is on by default, so weekend due dates silently move to Monday
- Dependencies did not reschedule our tasks; the Gantt chart only showed a conflict
- Copilot miscounted completed tasks and cannot create subtasks
- Free plan: board and table only, no Gantt, no automation, no AI
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.
Taskade
Signed installer
Signed by Taskcade Inc. through Microsoft's signing service.
Starts with Windows
Added a startup entry without asking; it remains after uninstalling.
Firewall prompt
First launch asked to accept network connections; declining did not affect the app.
Share link on by default
A workspace link giving editor access is enabled until you turn it off.
Wrike
Signed installer
The MSI is signed by Wrike, Inc. with a valid certificate.
No background services
The app added no startup entry, services or listening ports.
Detailed roles
Five user types, from Admin to view-only Viewer, plus custom roles and per-item access levels.
EU data centre
Our account ran on Wrike's EU servers (app-eu.wrike.com).
Features & Pricing
| Taskade | Wrike | |
|---|---|---|
| Web | ✓ | ✓ |
| Windows | ✓ | ✓ |
| macOS | ✓ | ✓ |
| Linux | ✓ | — |
| iOS | ✓ | ✓ |
| Android | ✓ | ✓ |
| Free plan | ✓ | ✓ |
| Paid from | $6/mo | $10/mo |
Taskade plans
- Free$0
- Starter$6/mo
- Pro$10/mo
- Business$25/mo
- Max$100/mo
- EnterpriseContact sales
From Taskade's pricing page, checked Oct 31, 2026.
Wrike plans
- Free$0
- Team$10/user/mo
- Business$25/user/mo
- PinnacleContact sales
- ApexContact sales
From Wrike's pricing page, checked Oct 30, 2026.
Who makes them
- Company
- Taskade:Taskcade Inc. (Taskade)
- Wrike:Wrike, Inc.
- Headquarters
- Taskade:San Francisco, California, USA
- Wrike:San Diego, California, USA
- Founded
- Taskade:2017
- Wrike:2006
- Funding
- Taskade:Venture-backed private company; Y Combinator alumnus.
- Wrike:Acquired by Citrix in 2021; part of Cloud Software Group since 2022.
Timelines, official links and sources are in each review: Taskade · Wrike.
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.
Taskade reviewSituational 5.3 Taskade's free plan does more than you might expect: a pasted Markdown checklist built our phases in one go, repeating tasks and a fast automation worked without paying, and CSV import took seconds. But the Windows app was the heaviest we have tested, froze once, and added itself to startup without asking. Imported dates become plain text, the project's own CSV export dropped every due date, Gantt and dependencies are paid, and the free plan has no AI credits at all. Read the full review → Wrike reviewSituational 5.8 Wrike is a deep, enterprise-style tool: five user types, real recurrence, dependencies, a Gantt chart and a fast importer for hundreds of tasks. But everyday work takes more effort than in the other apps we tested: no multi-line paste, weekend due dates moved to Monday by default, and an importer that only takes its own Excel template. Its AI got the task count wrong and could not create subtasks, and the free plan is limited to a board and a table. 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 
