TEST AND REVIEW CLICKUP 2026: THE ALL-IN-ONE PROJECT MANAGEMENT PLATFORM THAT REPLACES EVERYTHING
ClickUp is a project management and productivity platform that aims to replace all your work tools. Thanks to its task management system, collaborative docs, native time tracking, integrated chat, and AI-powered Brain assistant, this tool positions itself as the ultimate all-in-one workspace. With over 15 customizable views (Kanban, Gantt, Calendar, Timeline), native automations, and dashboards, ClickUp targets teams looking to centralize their entire workflow in a single interface.
In this comprehensive test, we analyze in depth ClickUp’s interface, pricing structure, learning curve, and real performance in production. We tested the platform on several client projects (startups, SMBs, agencies) to evaluate its ease of use, value for money, feature depth, support quality, and integration capabilities. Discover our detailed review to determine if ClickUp is the right solution for your team or if alternatives like Monday or Notion might better suit your workflow.
OUR REVIEW OF CLICKUP IN SUMMARY
Review by our Expert – Romain Cochard CEO of Hack’celeration
Overall rating
ClickUp positions itself as a seriously ambitious all-in-one platform for project management. We particularly appreciate the incredible feature depth and aggressive pricing that makes it accessible even for small teams. It’s a tool we recommend without hesitation for teams ready to invest time in configuration and who want to consolidate 5-10 separate tools into one workspace. However, be warned: the learning curve is real, and interface complexity can overwhelm beginners.
Ease of use
ClickUp is powerful but not beginner-friendly. We onboarded 3 clients and each time the first week was overwhelming: too many options, nested menus, settings everywhere. The interface offers 15+ views, custom fields, dependencies, automations—which is fantastic once you master it, but intimidating at first. We trained a marketing team for 2 hours just on basics. However, once the initial hurdle is passed, navigation becomes natural. Their templates help, but expect a 2-3 week adoption period for full team productivity.
Value for money
Pricing is ClickUp’s killer advantage. The Free Forever plan offers unlimited tasks, 100MB storage, and most core features—enough for small teams to test seriously. Unlimited at $10/user/month brings unlimited storage, integrations, and advanced features. Business at $19/user/month adds Google SSO and unlimited dashboards. Compared to Monday.com ($12-24/seat) or Asana ($10-25/seat) with fewer features, ClickUp is objectively cheaper. We calculated: migrating a 10-person team from Asana + Notion + Slack saved our client $180/month. Enterprise pricing is custom but scales well.
Features and depth
ClickUp is feature-loaded to an almost absurd degree. The platform includes native task management, Docs (collaborative documentation), Chat (team messaging), Brain (AI assistant), time tracking, Gantt charts, dashboards with custom widgets, goal tracking, Forms, Whiteboards, and more. We tested Reporting, Projects, Docs, Brain, and Chat modules—all work seamlessly together. Unique strengths: custom fields let you structure tasks exactly how you want, dependencies and automations are powerful, and 15+ views (List, Board, Calendar, Timeline, Workload, Gantt) cover every workflow. Only limitation: some advanced features feel experimental and lack polish.
Customer support and assistance
ClickUp offers 24/7 support even on the free plan, which is rare. We contacted support 4 times during testing: twice via live chat (average response under 10 minutes), once by email (answered in 6 hours), once for a technical bug (escalated and resolved in 2 days). Their documentation is extensive with video tutorials, ClickUp University courses, and community forums. The knowledge base covers most questions, though finding specific settings can require digging. Premium plans get priority support and dedicated success managers. Main complaint: no phone support, even on Enterprise.
Available integrations
ClickUp connects with over 1,000 tools natively for free, which is exceptional. We tested integrations with Google Workspace, Slack, Salesforce, GitHub, Zoom, Figma, and Zapier—all connected in under 5 minutes via their Start Integrating interface. Popular apps like Google Drive, Dropbox, and Microsoft Teams sync bidirectionally. API access is available on all paid plans for custom integrations. Native integrations are stable and well-maintained. Only downside: some integrations (like advanced CRM syncs) require Business plan or higher, and occasional sync delays with third-party tools.
Test ClickUp – Our Review on Ease of use
We tested ClickUp in real conditions across 3 different client teams: a 5-person startup, a 15-person marketing agency, and a 30-person SaaS company. Onboarding was consistently the biggest challenge. The platform’s flexibility is its strength and weakness—so many configuration options that new users feel lost.
First impression: the interface is busy. Sidebar with workspaces, spaces, folders, lists, tasks. Top bar with views, filters, sorting. Right panel with task details, subtasks, checklists, custom fields. We counted 8 different navigation levels. Our startup client took 3 days just to understand the hierarchy. The marketing agency required a 2-hour training session covering basics: creating tasks, assigning priorities, switching views, using templates. Without training, adoption stalled.
However, once teams push through the initial 2-3 weeks, productivity dramatically improves. The learning curve is steep but finite. We noticed users naturally discover features progressively—first tasks and lists, then Board view, then automations, then custom dashboards. ClickUp’s templates help (100+ pre-built for different use cases), though they require adaptation. Search functionality is excellent, finding tasks across workspaces instantly.
Verdict: ClickUp is NOT for teams wanting plug-and-play simplicity. If you need something operational in 24 hours, choose Trello or Asana. But if you’re willing to invest time learning, ClickUp’s power becomes addictive. We recommend dedicating 1 week for setup and 2 weeks for team adoption before evaluating effectiveness.
➕ Pros / ➖ Cons
✅ Powerful search (finds tasks instantly across workspaces)
✅ 100+ templates included (accelerate setup for common workflows)
✅ Keyboard shortcuts (speed up navigation once learned)
✅ Customizable interface (hide unused features to reduce clutter)
❌ Overwhelming for beginners (too many options at once)
❌ Steep learning curve (2-3 weeks for full productivity)
❌ Requires training (plan 2+ hours for team onboarding)
Test ClickUp : Our Review on Value for money
We analyzed ClickUp’s pricing against competitors and it’s objectively one of the best deals in project management. The Free Forever plan is genuinely usable—not a 14-day trial, but a permanent tier. We ran a 7-person team on Free for 2 months: unlimited tasks, core features, 24/7 support. Only limitation was 100MB storage, which filled quickly with file attachments. But for task-focused teams, Free is production-ready.
Paid plans start at $10/user/month for Unlimited, which unlocks unlimited storage, integrations with 1,000+ tools, and advanced features like Goals, Portfolios, and custom fields. We upgraded a client from Free to Unlimited—cost went from $0 to $100/month for 10 users. Compare that to Monday.com ($120-240/month for 10 users) or Asana ($109-249/month) and ClickUp is 30-50% cheaper with more features. Business at $19/user/month adds Google SSO, unlimited dashboards, advanced automations, and timeline view—essential for larger teams. Enterprise pricing is quoted (we’ve seen $500-2000/month for 50+ users) but includes white labeling, dedicated support, and advanced permissions.
Real ROI calculation: a 15-person agency we advise was paying $12/seat for Asana, $8/seat for Notion, $7/seat for Harvest (time tracking), and $6/seat for Slack. Total: $33/user/month, $495 total. We consolidated everything into ClickUp Business at $19/seat = $285/month. Savings: $210/month, $2,520/year. Plus eliminated tool-switching friction. Break-even on training time investment was under 2 months.
Verdict: unbeatable value if you actually use the all-in-one capabilities. Paying $10-19/user for task management + docs + time tracking + chat + dashboards is absurdly cheap. Just don’t pay for features you won’t use—if you only need basic Kanban boards, Trello is simpler and comparable.
➕ Pros / ➖ Cons
✅ Free plan is production-ready (unlimited tasks, core features, 24/7 support)
✅ Cheapest all-in-one option (30-50% cheaper than Monday or Asana)
✅ 100% money-back guarantee (risk-free testing for 30 days)
✅ 30% annual discount (pay yearly and save significantly)
❌ Free storage limited (100MB fills quickly with attachments)
❌ Per-user pricing adds up (10+ team gets expensive fast)
❌ Enterprise pricing opaque (requires sales call for quotes)
Test ClickUp – Our Review on Features and depth
ClickUp’s feature set is borderline overwhelming in the best way. We tested the 5 main modules: Reporting (custom dashboards with widgets), Projects (task management with 15+ views), Docs (collaborative documentation), Brain (AI assistant), and Chat (team messaging). Each module is production-grade, not a half-baked add-on. This is rare—most competitors excel at one thing and bolt on weak secondary features.
Projects module is the core. We created tasks with custom fields (text, numbers, dropdowns, dates), set dependencies between tasks, configured automations (e.g., “when status = Done, notify assignee and move to archive”), and switched between List, Board, Calendar, Gantt, Timeline, Workload, Table, Map, Activity, and Mind Map views. Each view is genuinely useful for different workflows—we used Board for sprints, Gantt for timelines, Workload for capacity planning. Time tracking is native: start/stop timers directly in tasks, generate time reports by user or project. We tracked 200+ hours across 3 projects—accurate to the second.
Docs rivals Notion for collaborative writing. Real-time co-editing, nested pages, task embedding, templates. We migrated a client’s entire knowledge base from Notion to ClickUp Docs—took 6 hours but consolidated everything in one tool. Brain is ClickUp’s AI assistant: summarizes tasks, answers questions about projects, generates content. We tested it 20+ times—useful but not groundbreaking, comparable to ChatGPT integration. Chat replaced Slack for one team: channels, threads, DMs, file sharing. However, Chat feels secondary—fewer features than dedicated tools, and notifications can get noisy.
Unique strengths: custom fields and automations unlock infinite workflow possibilities. We built a content calendar with custom fields for SEO keywords, target URLs, and word counts—fully automated status updates using workflow automation techniques. Dashboards with custom widgets visualize everything: sprint velocity, task completion rates, time logged per project, team workload. We configured 8 dashboards for different stakeholders—execs saw high-level metrics, project managers saw granular task data.
Verdict: ClickUp’s depth is unmatched if you need an all-in-one workspace. For teams juggling tasks + docs + time + chat, it genuinely replaces 5+ separate tools. However, feature creep is real—80% of teams probably use 40% of features. Focus on mastering core modules before exploring advanced capabilities.
➕ Pros / ➖ Cons
✅ 15+ task views (covers every workflow: Kanban, Gantt, Calendar, Timeline, Workload)
✅ Native time tracking (accurate to the second, built into tasks)
✅ Powerful automations (if-then logic reduces manual work)
✅ Custom fields are limitless (structure tasks exactly how you need)
❌ Chat module feels basic (lacks advanced features of dedicated tools)
❌ Feature overload (most teams use less than half the capabilities)
❌ Some features lack polish (experimental tools feel unfinished)
Test ClickUp : Our Review on Customer support and assistance
We contacted ClickUp support 4 times during our 6-month testing period across different scenarios. First contact: live chat for a question about custom field configuration. Response came in under 10 minutes with a detailed answer and video link. Second contact: email about automation logic. Responded in 6 hours with step-by-step setup instructions. Third contact: reported a bug where Gantt view wasn’t loading. Escalated to technical team, resolved in 2 days with follow-up confirmation. Fourth contact: pre-sales question about Enterprise features. Sales rep scheduled a demo within 24 hours.
Support quality is consistently good across channels. Live chat is fastest (available 24/7 even on Free plan), though complex technical issues get escalated to email. Email support typically responds within 12-24 hours. We never waited more than 48 hours for resolution. Their support team clearly has product expertise—no generic “have you tried restarting?” responses. They provide specific solutions, relevant documentation links, and sometimes video walkthroughs.
Documentation is extensive. ClickUp University offers free courses on everything from basics to advanced automations. We completed 3 courses (total 8 hours)—well-produced with real examples. The Help Center has 500+ articles covering most questions. Community forums are active with 100k+ members—peer support is strong. However, finding specific answers requires patience because documentation mirrors the product’s complexity. Searching for “how to set up recurring tasks” returns 15 articles with slightly different contexts.
Premium support on Business and Enterprise plans includes priority escalation and dedicated Customer Success Managers. We worked with a CSM on an Enterprise trial—monthly check-ins, custom training sessions, direct Slack access. Valuable for teams with 50+ users managing complex workflows. Main limitation: no phone support on any plan, which some enterprises require for critical issues.
Verdict: support quality is above average for the price point. 24/7 live chat on Free Forever is generous. Documentation depth matches feature depth—comprehensive but sometimes overwhelming. If you need hand-holding during onboarding, budget time for ClickUp University courses or consider hiring a consultant for faster ramp-up.
➕ Pros / ➖ Cons
✅ 24/7 support on Free plan (rare in SaaS, even for paid tiers)
✅ Fast live chat response (under 10 minutes in our tests)
✅ Extensive documentation (ClickUp University courses are excellent)
✅ Active community (100k+ members providing peer support)
❌ No phone support (even on Enterprise plans)
❌ Documentation can overwhelm (too many articles for simple questions)
❌ Complex issues take 24-48h (escalations slow down resolution)
Test ClickUp – Our Review on Available integrations
ClickUp’s integration ecosystem is one of its strongest competitive advantages. The platform connects with over 1,000+ tools natively, and crucially, all integrations are free even on the Free Forever plan. We tested this extensively: connected Google Workspace, Slack, GitHub, Figma, Zoom, Salesforce, and Zapier in under 5 minutes each via the Start Integrating interface. Setup is straightforward: click the integration, authenticate with OAuth, map permissions, done.
Native integrations we tested worked reliably. Google Drive: attach files directly in tasks, auto-sync updates. Slack: send task notifications to channels, create tasks from Slack messages. GitHub: link commits to tasks, auto-update status when PRs merge. Figma: embed designs in tasks for design review workflows. Zoom: schedule meetings directly from tasks, auto-create recordings in ClickUp. Bidirectional sync works well—changes in ClickUp reflect in connected tools and vice versa. We tracked 50+ GitHub issues auto-syncing to ClickUp tasks over 3 months—zero sync failures.
Popular apps like Google Calendar, Microsoft Teams, Salesforce, HubSpot, Dropbox, OneDrive, Harvest, Toggl, and Everhour all have official integrations. We migrated a sales team from Monday.com to ClickUp and connected their HubSpot CRM—deals automatically created tasks for follow-ups. API access is available on all paid plans for custom integrations. The API is well-documented (REST-based, comprehensive endpoints) and we built a custom integration with a proprietary client tool in 2 days.
Zapier integration opens 5,000+ additional tools. We created Zaps for workflows like “new Typeform submission → create ClickUp task” and “completed ClickUp task → update Google Sheet.” However, some advanced integrations require Business plan or higher. For example, advanced Salesforce field mapping and custom CRM syncs are Business-tier features. We also experienced occasional sync delays with third-party tools—Zapier automations sometimes triggered 2-5 minutes late, which matters for time-sensitive workflows.
Verdict: integration depth rivals or exceeds competitors. Monday.com and Asana have similar integration counts but often charge extra or limit to paid plans. ClickUp’s “all integrations free” policy is genuinely generous. If your workflow relies on connecting multiple tools, ClickUp handles it without friction.
➕ Pros / ➖ Cons
✅ 1,000+ free integrations (even on Free Forever plan)
✅ Major apps covered (Google, Slack, Salesforce, GitHub, Microsoft, etc.)
✅ Bidirectional sync works (changes reflect in both directions reliably)
✅ API access on paid plans (REST-based, well-documented for custom builds)
❌ Advanced integrations require Business+ (e.g., complex CRM field mapping)
❌ Occasional sync delays (Zapier automations can lag 2-5 minutes)
❌ Some integrations lack polish (edge cases or niche tools feel less maintained)
FAQ – EVERYTHING ABOUT CLICKUP
Is ClickUp really free?
Yes, ClickUp offers a Free Forever plan with no credit card required and no time limit. This plan includes unlimited tasks, 100MB storage, 100+ automation uses per month, 24/7 support, and access to core features like multiple views (List, Board, Calendar), collaborative Docs, and integrations with 1,000+ tools. It's genuinely production-ready for small teams (up to 5-7 people). However, if you exceed 100MB storage, need unlimited automations, advanced reporting, Goals, or Timeline view, you'll need to upgrade to Unlimited at $10/user/month. We ran a 7-person client team on Free for 2 months before storage limits forced an upgrade.
How much does ClickUp cost per month?
ClickUp pricing starts with a Free Forever plan (100MB storage, unlimited tasks). Paid plans begin at $10/user/month for Unlimited (billed annually at $7/user/month), which unlocks unlimited storage, integrations, Goals, and advanced features. The Business plan costs $19/user/month ($12/user/month annually) and adds Google SSO, unlimited dashboards, advanced automations, and Timeline view. Enterprise is custom-priced—we've seen quotes ranging from $500-2,000/month for 50-100 users depending on requirements. ClickUp offers a 30% discount on annual billing and a 100% money-back guarantee for 30 days. For a 10-person team, expect $100-190/month depending on plan.
ClickUp vs Asana: when to choose ClickUp?
Choose ClickUp if you want an all-in-one workspace that consolidates tasks, docs, time tracking, chat, and dashboards in one tool. ClickUp is more feature-rich (15+ views, native time tracking, advanced automations) and cheaper ($10-19/user/month vs Asana's $10-25/user/month). However, ClickUp has a steeper learning curve—expect 2-3 weeks for team adoption. Choose Asana if you prioritize simplicity and faster onboarding. Asana's interface is cleaner, more intuitive, and teams get productive in 2-3 days. Asana excels at pure task management but lacks native docs, chat, and time tracking. We recommend ClickUp for teams consolidating multiple tools, Asana for teams wanting plug-and-play task management.
Does ClickUp slow down with large workspaces?
Yes, ClickUp can experience performance issues in very large workspaces. We tested this with a 30-person team managing 5,000+ tasks across 50+ projects. Load times for complex dashboards increased to 3-5 seconds, and switching between large Gantt views occasionally lagged. However, for most teams (under 2,000 active tasks), performance is solid. ClickUp's desktop app runs faster than the web version for large datasets. To optimize performance, we recommend archiving completed tasks regularly, limiting dashboard widget complexity, and using filtered views instead of loading entire workspaces. ClickUp's team has been actively improving performance—we noticed speed improvements after updates in late 2025.
Can you use ClickUp for personal productivity?
Yes, ClickUp works well for personal productivity, though it's arguably overkill for simple to-do lists. The Free Forever plan is perfect for solo users: unlimited tasks, multiple views (Kanban, Calendar, List), time tracking, and recurring tasks. We use ClickUp personally for content planning, project tracking, and habit tracking with custom fields. The Calendar view replaces Google Calendar for task-based scheduling, and the mobile app (iOS/Android) syncs instantly. However, setup requires initial time investment—expect 2-3 hours to configure workspaces and learn the interface. If you just need basic task lists, Todoist or Things are simpler. Choose ClickUp if you want advanced features like dependencies, time tracking, or custom dashboards for personal projects.
What's the best free alternative to ClickUp?
The best free alternative depends on your primary need. For pure task management, Trello's free plan offers unlimited boards and Kanban views (simpler but less powerful). For docs + databases, Notion's free plan includes unlimited pages and blocks for small teams (better for knowledge management, weaker for task tracking). For basic project management, Asana's free plan supports up to 15 users with List and Board views (cleaner interface, fewer features). For open-source, Taiga offers agile project management with Kanban and Scrum (self-hosted, steeper technical setup). Our take: ClickUp's Free Forever plan is the most feature-complete free option if you can handle the learning curve. Notion is best for docs-heavy teams, Trello for visual simplicity.
How long does it take to migrate to ClickUp?
Migration time depends on data volume and complexity. For a basic migration (100-500 tasks from Trello or Asana), expect 1-2 days: import CSV files, configure views, train team. We migrated a 15-person agency from Asana in 3 days: exported 800 tasks, imported to ClickUp, recreated custom fields, rebuilt dashboards, ran training sessions. For complex migrations (thousands of tasks, custom integrations, multiple tools), budget 1-2 weeks. ClickUp offers import tools for Asana, Trello, Monday, Jira, and CSV. The technical import is fast (1-2 hours), but team training and workflow reconfiguration take longer. Plan for 2-3 weeks of parallel running (old + new tools) to ensure smooth transition.
Is ClickUp GDPR compliant?
Yes, ClickUp is fully GDPR compliant. The company is certified under EU-U.S. and Swiss-U.S. Privacy Shield Frameworks, maintains SOC 2 Type II compliance, and processes data according to GDPR requirements. ClickUp's data centers are located in the U.S., but they provide Data Processing Agreements (DPAs) for EU customers on Business and Enterprise plans. We reviewed their privacy policy and security documentation—they implement encryption at rest and in transit (AES-256, TLS 1.2+), offer user data export and deletion, and provide granular permission controls. However, free and Unlimited plans don't include DPAs—you need Business ($19/user/month) or higher for contractual GDPR guarantees. For EU-based teams handling sensitive data, request the DPA during onboarding.
Can ClickUp replace Notion?
It depends on how you use Notion. If Notion is primarily for task management and lightweight documentation, yes, ClickUp can replace it. ClickUp Docs offers similar features: nested pages, real-time collaboration, task embedding, and templates. We migrated a client's entire knowledge base from Notion to ClickUp Docs in 6 hours. However, if you heavily use Notion's databases with complex relations, formulas, and filtered views for non-task purposes (like content calendars, CRM, or personal wikis), Notion's database flexibility is superior. ClickUp's custom fields are powerful but less intuitive for database-style use cases. Our recommendation: use ClickUp if tasks are your primary workflow with docs as a secondary feature. Stick with Notion if docs, databases, and knowledge management are central to your workflow.
How many ClickUp users can a team have on the Free plan?
ClickUp's Free Forever plan supports unlimited users, which is rare for free tiers. We tested this with a 10-person client team—all members had full access to workspaces, tasks, and core features. However, the 100MB storage limit becomes the real constraint with larger teams. With 10 users attaching files to tasks, we hit 100MB in 6 weeks. Each user uploading even small documents (screenshots, PDFs) quickly fills storage. Other free plan limits: 100 automation uses per month (can deplete fast with active automations) and limited dashboard capabilities. For teams larger than 5-7 active users, we recommend budgeting for Unlimited ($10/user/month) to avoid storage constraints. The free plan's unlimited users are best for small teams or larger teams with minimal file storage needs.