Jira vs Linear — Pricing, Plans, and Verified Costs (2026)
Jira starts at $8.15/mo. Linear starts at $12/mo. Jira is $3.8499999999999996/mo cheaper on the entry tier than Linear.
The dominant engineering project management platform from Atlassian, publicly traded (TEAM), ~$50B market cap. Distinctive for its deep customization (workflows, custom fields, JQL query language) that scales to enterprise engineering orgs but overwhelms small teams. Priced free (up to 10 users) then $8.15/user/mo (Standard) up to $16/user/mo (Premium). Real cost bloat comes from add-ons in the Atlassian Marketplace and Data Center licenses (which just got 15-20% price hikes from Appfire).
Engineering-first issue tracker positioned as the modern alternative to Jira for small-to-mid engineering teams. Distinctive for its opinionated speed (keyboard-first, obsessively fast) and clean design that engineers actually like. Popular with venture-backed startups and design-conscious engineering orgs. Priced $8-$16/user/mo. Series B in 2024. Not a direct Jira replacement at enterprise scale (weaker admin controls) but eating Jira's mid-market share aggressively.
All plans compared
| Tier role | Plan | Jira monthly | Jira annual | Linear monthly | Linear annual |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free / starter | Free | Free | Free | Free | Free |
| Entry paid | Standard / Basic | $8.15 | $7.91 | $12 | $10 |
| Pro / power | Premium / — | $15.25 | $14.54 | — | — |
| Teams | — / Business | — | — | $20 | $16 |
| Enterprise | Enterprise | Custom | Custom | Custom | Custom |
Tier names differ across vendors. Rows are aligned by tier role, not name. Full tier structures on each tool's page.
What each is best for
Jira is worth it if… engineering teams (10+ developers) that need structured sprint planning, backlogs, and release management — particularly if your org runs Scrum/SAFe/Kanban and you're already in the Atlassian stack (Confluence, Bitbucket). Free covers up to 10 users; Standard adds project roles; Premium adds Advanced Roadmaps and 24/7 support; Enterprise adds data residency.
Linear is worth it if… engineering teams (5-100 developers) that want fast, opinionated issue tracking + sprint planning — the anti-Jira for teams that value speed and design polish over configurability. Free covers small teams; Basic adds more features; Business adds advanced permissions and admin.
Bottom line: Similar positioning, closer to a preference call than a strategic one.
Choose Jira over Linear if…
Choose Jira if…
- You want fixed-price predictability (per seat, from $8.15/mo).
- You match the profile Jira is built for: engineering teams (10+ developers) that need structured sprint planning, backlogs, and release management — particularly if your org runs Scrum/SAFe/Kanban and you're already in the Atlassian stack (Confluence, Bitbucket).
- You need a general-purpose project management option rather than a vertical-specific one.
Choose Linear if…
- You want fixed-price predictability (per seat, from $12/mo).
- You match the profile Linear is built for: engineering teams (5-100 developers) that want fast, opinionated issue tracking + sprint planning — the anti-Jira for teams that value speed and design polish over configurability.
- You need a general-purpose project management option rather than a vertical-specific one.
At a glance
| Jira | Linear | |
|---|---|---|
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Entry price | $8.15/mo | $12/mo |
| Enterprise available | Yes | Yes |
| Pricing model | Per Seat | Per Seat |
| Last verified | September 14, 2026 | September 14, 2026 |
| Full pricing | View full pricing | View full pricing |
Pricing last verified September 14, 2026. Tracked daily.