Agile breaks down when your “system of record” is not where the work happens. Engineers ship from GitHub. Product and project leads plan in a board. Leadership asks for status. If those three views drift, your team pays the tax: duplicate updates, more meetings, and constant context switching.
A practical buyer’s guide should do more than list tools. It should help you pick one that fits how you deliver, then set it up so it stays accurate with minimal admin work. This matters for engineering managers and technical leads who want predictable delivery, and for project managers who want visibility without turning agile into paperwork.
In this guide you will get a comparison table (tool, pricing, strengths, limits, best fit), plus a quick setup playbook for each option. You will also get a pilot plan that lets you test a new tool without derailing your current sprint.
Agile project management software comparison table
Quick comparison (10 tools)
| Tool | Pricing (published starting point) | Strengths | Limits | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| HighFly | $0 (Solo), $10+ per user/mo | Lightweight, automation-first, GitHub-first workflows | Newer platform, smaller marketplace than legacy suites | Dev-heavy agile teams minimizing context switching |
| Jira Software | $8.15/user/month | Mature Scrum tooling, workflows, reporting | Admin overhead, slower setup for small teams | Scrum teams at scale and regulated orgs |
| ClickUp | $7/user/month | Flexible views, docs, automations | Easy to over-configure and create noise | Cross-functional agile plus ops in one workspace |
| monday.com | $9/seat/month | Dashboards, templates, approachable UX | Tiered features can force upgrades | Hybrid teams needing simple visibility |
| Asana | $10.99/user/month | Dependencies, multiple views, portfolio fit | Agile rigor depends on conventions | PM-led teams running agile with stakeholders |
| Trello | $5/user/month | Fast adoption, simple boards | Reporting and scale limits | Small agile teams that want minimal process |
| Linear | $10/user/month | Speed, keyboard-first workflow, cycles | Less suited for non-technical ops workflows | Product engineering teams that value speed |
| Wrike | $10/user/month | Formal workflows, approvals, reporting | More process overhead to keep clean | Agile teams that need structured approvals |
| Smartsheet | $12.99/user/month | Spreadsheet-native planning and rollups | Can recreate spreadsheet chaos at scale | PMOs bridging agile delivery and reporting |
| GitHub Issues + Projects | Included with GitHub | Native dev workflow, zero migration | Limited sprint rituals and executive reporting | GitHub-first teams with lightweight needs |
Pricing changes. Numbers reflect published starting points referenced across existing HighFly blog comparisons as of early February 2026. Confirm current plans on vendor pricing pages before purchasing.
How to shortlist the best tool for agile project management
Shortlisting works when you test the exact workflow that creates friction today. For most teams, that friction is not “planning”. It is keeping work, code, and status in sync without extra meetings.
- If you ship from GitHub: pick a tool that links issues to PRs and automates state changes. Start with git integration for project management tools.
- If your board is always “almost accurate”: prioritize automations, then enforce WIP limits. The simplest playbook is in why track work in progress.
- If leadership wants predictable answers: ensure the tool can show blocked work, cycle time, and what is likely to ship next. See project status tracking examples for agile teams.
30-minute pilot checklist (works for any tool)
- Pick one active team and one sprint or Kanban lane.
- Import only the current sprint and the top 20 backlog items.
- Define a small workflow: Backlog, Ready, In progress, In review, Done.
- Add one automation that removes manual updates (example: PR merged moves the work to Done).
- After 7 days, measure: cycle time, WIP, and time spent on status reporting.
# Example: branch naming that keeps work linked to code git checkout -b feature/HF-123-fix-session-refresh # Optional: reference the work item in commits so tools can auto-link git commit -m "fix(auth): refresh session token (HF-123)"
Tool deep dives
Below you will find setup guidance, workflow examples, pricing context, and migration tips for each tool in the comparison table.
HighFly
Setup time
10 to 30 minutes for a pilot. Connect GitHub, create one board, and import the current sprint or a single Kanban lane. HighFly is lightweight by default, so you do not need a week of workflow configuration before the board becomes useful.
Workflow example
Run standup from one place. Engineers link work to PRs, and the board reflects real delivery signals. That means fewer “what is the status” pings and less manual movement of cards. If context switching is your main pain, pair this with the habits in context switching and developer productivity.
Pricing and limits
Solo is $0. Paid plans start at $10 per user per month (or $8 yearly) and scale to $15 per user per month (or $12 yearly). The main tradeoff is ecosystem depth compared to long-running enterprise suites. If you need a huge marketplace of add-ons, Jira tends to win.
Migration tip
Do not migrate the entire backlog. Migrate the current sprint and the next sprint candidate list, then re-import older items only when they become relevant.
Jira Software
Setup time
1 to 3 days for a clean setup, longer if you are standardizing across multiple teams. Jira shines when you invest in workflows, permissions, and reporting, but that setup cost is real.
Workflow example
A classic Scrum setup: backlog refinement in one view, sprint planning with story points, and burndown charts during the sprint. It works well when you need consistent rituals across teams and a shared taxonomy for epics, components, and releases.
Pricing and limits
Published starting price referenced in HighFly blog comparisons is $8.15 per user per month. Jira’s real cost is usually admin time plus add-ons. Many teams add extra apps to fill gaps, which compounds the per-seat spend.
Migration tip
If Jira is your current tool and it feels heavy, start by simplifying the workflow. Remove statuses and required fields before you migrate. Otherwise you carry the same complexity into the next tool.
ClickUp
Setup time
30 to 90 minutes for a working space, then ongoing tuning. ClickUp can model almost any workflow, which is helpful for hybrid teams but easy to overdo.
Workflow example
Use Lists for backlog intake, a Board for delivery, and Docs for specs. The teams that succeed keep views limited and agree on a single status model. Without that, you end up with three “truths” inside the same workspace.
Pricing and limits
Published starting price referenced in HighFly blog comparisons is $7 per user per month. Watch for feature tiers that gate automations or advanced reporting, depending on how you plan to run sprints.
Migration tip
Migrate your workflow, not your mess. Create one space with one backlog and one board, then move teams in gradually. Resist the urge to recreate every old custom field.
monday.com
Setup time
30 to 60 minutes to get a board running with templates. monday.com is easy for mixed audiences, which helps when engineering managers need non-technical stakeholders to stay in the same system.
Workflow example
Use a sprint board for the engineering team and a higher-level roadmap board for stakeholders. The key is to keep the roadmap board derived from delivery work. If someone manually updates it, it will drift.
Pricing and limits
Published starting price referenced in HighFly blog comparisons is $9 per seat per month. The main limitation is tiering. Some automation and dashboard features require higher plans, so validate the plan you actually need before rolling out.
Migration tip
If you are coming from Jira, keep the first monday.com workflow simple. Use story points only if you already use them. Do not recreate complex Jira workflows on day one.
Asana
Setup time
1 to 2 hours for an initial team setup. Asana is strong when you have cross-functional dependencies and you want a clear view of ownership without a heavy agile admin layer.
Workflow example
Many teams run “Scrum-like” sprints using sections or custom fields, combined with timelines for release coordination. This works best when you keep the workflow readable and measure flow with a small set of metrics.
Pricing and limits
Published starting price referenced in HighFly blog comparisons is $10.99 per user per month. Asana is less about deep sprint mechanics and more about clean task ownership and dependency management.
Migration tip
If you are migrating from a board-first tool, train people on dependencies and handoffs. That is where Asana tends to pay off. If you keep treating it like a Kanban board, you will miss the benefit.
Trello
Setup time
Minutes. Trello is one of the fastest ways to stand up a Kanban board for a small agile team, especially when you do not need detailed reporting.
Workflow example
A simple flow works: Backlog, Ready, Doing, Review, Done. Teams that succeed add a WIP limit and keep card content consistent. If you want a deeper playbook, start with tracking work in progress.
Pricing and limits
Published starting price referenced in HighFly blog comparisons is $5 per user per month. The limitation is scale: sprint mechanics, portfolio rollups, and executive reporting usually require add-ons or a separate layer.
Migration tip
If Trello is your current tool, export boards and archive noise first. Then migrate only active cards. Historical cards create clutter and slow adoption.
Linear
Setup time
30 to 60 minutes for a team moving fast. Linear’s default workflow is opinionated and designed to stay quick, which is why product engineering teams often adopt it quickly.
Workflow example
Plan in cycles, triage issues daily, and link PRs so merged work closes issues. The main benefit is speed. The tradeoff is that non-technical stakeholders may still want a separate reporting view.
Pricing and limits
Published starting price referenced in HighFly blog comparisons is $10 per user per month. Linear has a strong product-engineering fit, but it is not designed as a general work OS for every department.
Migration tip
If you are migrating from Jira, migrate epics and active issues first, then map status transitions to a smaller workflow. Linear works best with fewer states and cleaner issue hygiene.
Wrike
Setup time
1 to 2 days for a useful workflow when approvals and formal steps matter. Wrike tends to fit teams that need more structure than a simple board, but still want an agile cadence.
Workflow example
Use a sprint board for delivery and an approval step for stakeholder review. This can work well for teams shipping software plus collateral, where “done” includes documentation and approvals.
Pricing and limits
Published starting price referenced in HighFly blog comparisons is $10 per user per month. The tradeoff is that more structure also means more ongoing upkeep. If nobody owns the workflow, it will drift.
Migration tip
Standardize what “approval” means before moving tools. If approval is buried in comments today, it will stay buried after migration unless you make it an explicit step.
Smartsheet
Setup time
1 to 2 days if you are building rollups and dashboards. Smartsheet fits organizations that want spreadsheet-like control, plus reporting that upper management can rely on.
Workflow example
Run a grid for planning, then use a board view for daily execution. PMOs often use this to bridge agile teams with portfolio reporting, especially when multiple teams share dependencies and milestones.
Pricing and limits
Published starting price referenced in HighFly blog comparisons is $12.99 per user per month. The risk is recreating the same problems as a spreadsheet: inconsistent fields, manual status updates, and multiple “sources of truth”.
Migration tip
Lock down templates early. If every team invents their own columns, you lose the benefit of rollups. Treat your fields like a shared data model, not a personal spreadsheet.
GitHub Issues + Projects
Setup time
Minutes if you are already on GitHub. This is the lowest friction option for teams that want to keep work close to code and avoid yet another system.
Workflow example
Use Issues as the backlog and a Project board as your Kanban view. PRs can reference and close issues, which keeps work and code linked. Where teams struggle is sprint rituals and reporting that non-technical stakeholders can consume.
Pricing and limits
Included with GitHub. The limitation is scope. If you need sprint planning, velocity, or deeper automation beyond GitHub’s native capabilities, you may want a dedicated agile layer.
Migration tip
If you are leaving Jira and do not want to migrate everything, start here. Move the current sprint into GitHub Issues, then add a lightweight layer only if you actually hit reporting limits.