Taskade vs Smartsheet

	Paid	Free
Taskade AI
AI Generator	AI Solution Builder for personalized template generation and formula creation	Generate workflows, projects, mind maps, flowcharts, and more
AI Assistant	AI-powered Help Assistant providing natural language responses and guidance	Your own AI assistant at the tip of your fngers with /assistant
AI Chat	Data Visualization and project/portfolio management with LLMs	AI Chat can interact with your projects and uploaded documents
Custom AI Agents	GenAI capabilities for building and scaling enterprise solutions	Put your own AI workforce to work autonomously in the background
AI Automation	Insights feature for sheet-level insights and data visualizations	Customizable IFTT automation and functionality inside your workspaces
AI Converters	Brandfolder by Smartsheet for content management with AI-driven image editing and captioning	Use AI to convert files between different file types
Design Freedom
The Visual Playground	Develop spreadsheet orientated templates	Develop customizable templates
Own Your Workspace	Customizability is restricted to tables and spreadsheets	Fully customizable workspace and progress tracking
Consistency Is Simplicity	Data is hard to integrate with certain views offered	Adaptable data visualization
Collaboration
Let’s Talk	Comment support	Comment syncing, chat support, live video call support
Going Live	Periodic syncing	Real-time syncing
The Right Tool For The Right Job	A flexible and enhanced spreadsheet software	Remote first design tailored for virtual collaboration
Progress Tracking
Get Back On Track	Manual completion history tracking	Completion history tracking
The Big Picture	No in-built overall view of projects	Bird’s eye view of workspaces, able to monitor progress on a project level
Mindful Simplicity
Keeping It Clean	Tasks are segmented by cells in a spreadsheet	Tasks can be folded and colour-coded
Passing On Your Legacy	Complex and difficult to maintain	Simple and intuitive
Launch Speed
Getting Up To Speed	Spreadsheet automation is hard to master	Intuitive UI, quick onboarding process
Quick On Your Feet	Performance is clunky, long load times	Lightweight, Short load times

What Is Taskade?

Taskade is a flexible productivity and project management tool that was founded by John Xie, Dionis Loire, and Stan Chang in 2017. The Y Combinator-backed startup aims to help remote teams and individuals get work done faster and smarter.

Taskade is where remote teams get work done. With Taskade, you can organize entire projects and easily break them down into tasks, change between multiple project views, automate repetitive workflows, collaborate via built-in video chat with your team, and more, via an all-in-one unified workspace. 

Get a headstart on your projects and find a suitable structure for your notes via Taskade’s versatile collection of templates. Simply choose from a wide variety of templates and add them to your projects to get started instantly!

Taskade is a supercharged productivity app that both individuals and teams can use to collaborate on projects in real time.

Taskade is the best free Smartsheet alternative because Taskade was designed with a remote-first approach, allowing teams to collaborate and get work done together virtually. You can create unlimited tasks and projects even on the free plan, giving you the ability to plan heavier projects as soon as you get started.

With Taskade, you can create tasks and visualize them via multiple project views. You can also add collaborators to your Taskade project to collaborate with people within or even outside of your organization.

Get started instantly for free today.

What is Taskade AI?

Taskade AI incorporates various AI technologies to assist you in getting more work done. Powered by GPT-4 Turbo, you can think of it as your all-in-one productivity sidekick. Here are some advanced AI features that help supercharge your productivity:

AI Agents: AI Agents are specialized tools designed to automate routine activities like research, task management, and content creation. You can now create custom AI Agents and use them in your projects to save time and get more done faster and smarter!

AI Generators: Taskade’s AI Generators lets you generate custom workflows, projects, blocks, mind maps, flowcharts, and more using AI. Simply tell our AI what you need, and automate content creation to help you get work done.

AI Chat: Enhance your workflow effortlessly with Taskade’s AI Chat, ideal for crafting task lists, summarizing texts, brainstorming ideas, and more—all through a simple AI-powered conversation with your projects.

AI Assistant: Taskade’s AI Assistant is built-in to all your projects. Simply hit /assistant inside Taskade to start using AI for your work!

AI Converters: Instantly convert content between different formats in just one click using AI. Save the hassle of manually reformatting your work and use our AI Converters to save hours on tedious conversions. 

Whether it’s through the creation of customized workflows and projects with AI Generators, the automation of routine tasks using AI Agents, or the ease of communication and idea generation with AI Chat, Taskade AI stands out as a versatile and powerful ally in your professional journey. With Taskade AI, you’re not just managing tasks; you’re revolutionizing the way you work.

Check out our full list of AI-powered features to find out how you can use AI to your advantage.

Key Features of Taskade

Besides AI, Taskade is also loaded with advanced features to help boost your productivity. This complements the need for structure and order in both personal and work projects. To facilitate this, Taskade provides a straightforward hierarchy of Workspaces, Folders, and Projects, all of which are accessible in both our free and paid plans.

Here are some other key features that Taskade offers:

• Project Views. Visualize your projects in several different ways. Cycle between the List, Mind Map, Org Chart, and Board views to work the way you want.
  • List View. This is the default view on Taskade. Create new lists on Taskade.
  • Board View. This view lets you work horizontally like a Kanban board. Visualize your workflow and tasks in this full-width view.
  • Mind Map View. This view lets you work in a horizontal tree-structured manner and map out what you have in mind.
  • Action View. Work in table view and stay organized with your task due dates, and more.
  • Org Chart View. Break down larger tasks into smaller ones to help you get things done.
• Zoom In, Zoom Out. Get a bird’s-eye view of the workflow by zooming out on all project views, or zoom in to focus on a specific area.
• Fold/Unfold. Fold (collapse) a parent task/bullet element to hide its subtasks. Indent outline elements with ⌨️ Tab and unfold lists with ⌨️ Shift+Tab.
• Real-time Communication. Chat and video conference with your team while collaborating in real-time on the same page. 
• 500+ Templates. Choose from 500+ templates across 26 categories to improve your productivity and workflows. Customize existing templates or create new ones across your workspaces.
• Multi-Select. Select and format multiple blocks or bulk assign them as tasks to other team members. You can also copy, paste, or indent selected blocks.
• Customize Sub-Tasks. Customize the format of your sub-tasks at individual levels. Choose from headings, numbered lists, shapes, and more.
• Recurring Tasks. Add due dates with start and end times to tasks within your project and set them to repeat daily, weekly, monthly, or even yearly.
• Move Tasks. Move and copy selected tasks to other projects across any workspace. You’ll receive a pop-up notification on completion.
• User Roles & Permissions. Manage collaborators and assign user roles/editing privileges (Owner, Admin, Editor, Checker, Viewer).
• Sort Tasks. Sort sub-tasks/children elements by completed/uncompleted stats or the due date. Task sorting can be accessed from a convenient pop-up menu.
• Search. Search within projects or globally across workspaces and subspaces. Instantly browse and jump between projects anywhere in the Taskade.
• Keyboard Shortcuts. Navigate projects, create content blocks, reorder elements, and complete tasks using a set of handy keyboard shortcuts.
• Team Calendar. Aggregate all tasks and projects in a shared calendar. The Taskade calendar integrates with Google (two-way), Apple, and Outlook. 
• Reorder Tasks. Lists in Taskade aren’t set in stone. Reorder tasks and find them a new home with intuitive drag-and-drop mechanics.
• Project History. See all the changes made by you and other collaborators. Click on the entries to navigate to the edited items within the project.
• Version History. Taskade saves snapshots of your project so that you can restore a previous version of your project with a single click.
• Export and Print. You can export your projects as plain text or markdown files. Attach them to emails, presentations, or for print.
• Cloud File Upload. Share files directly from Google Drive, Dropbox, Instagram, and Box in your projects with our integrations.
• Breakdown Larger Tasks. Organize your thoughts with Taskade’s unlimited hierarchy to break down large projects into tasks.
• Quick Search. Use CMD / CTRL + K to jump between any projects within Taskade web and apps.

View the full list of Taskade’s features and learn more.

Taskade Pricing

Choose your plan with flexibility: Start with a free version and upgrade on your terms. We offer a 30-day money-back guarantee on all plans, ensuring a risk-free experience without the need for a credit card. This comes with free access to our AI features as well. 

Taskade’s premium plans are both feature-rich and affordable. They provide unlimited Taskade AI credits, ensuring you and your team have all the resources you need. Additionally, you’ll benefit from cross-platform real-time syncing and complete access to all Taskade apps, whether on the web, mobile, or desktop.

We also offer special discounts for students, startups, nonprofits, and educational institutions. If you belong to any of these categories and have specific needs or requirements, don’t hesitate to contact us to apply for a discount.

Discover the latest pricing options for Taskade, your first step towards AI-powered efficiency. Tailored for individuals and teams, our plans are designed to boost your productivity needs. Try Taskade today.

What Is Smartsheet?

Smartsheet is a project management and spreadsheet tool that was founded by Brent Frei. Smartsheet’s launch in 2006 wasn’t as successful as Frei had intended it to be as users were finding the feature-heavy product to be difficult to use. After a product overhaul and relaunch, Smartsheet had gained over 1 million users by 2012. In 2019, Smartsheet reported that it had over 4 million users.

Smartsheet’s layout is similar to Airtable, Coda.io, and Basecamp. It can be used as a task and project management tool. On Smartsheet, projects and work are done via sheets. What this means is that you’re able to both manage your work and use spreadsheet functionalities to manage your data.

One of the features that make Smartsheet popular within teams is its collaboration feature. Smartsheet allows users to share their sheets and invite collaborators to get work done together. Additionally, you can also control access levels within Smartsheet so that control edit rights to your project.

Being a cloud-based software also means that you can edit your data on the go across devices via the Smartsheet app.

Features of Smartsheet

The default view on Smartsheet is the grid view which is fully customizable and closely resembles the usual spreadsheet that we’re used to in Microsoft Excel and Google Sheets. On Smartsheet, each project begins as an empty sheet. You can attach files to each cell within your project and store your emails within each row. This helps you keep track of tasks and actionable items that were sent via email.

Additionally, your projects can be linked to each other on Smartsheet. What this means is that updating a piece of data that is tracked across other Spreadsheets will automatically update all of your sheets in real-time. Should your project get too big, you can expand and collapse rows to zoom in on specific tasks or gain a bird’s eye view of the whole project.

Smartsheet also has templates available to give you a headstart on your projects and tasks. Despite it being a spreadsheet application, Smartsheet allows you to change views so that you can visualize your projects easily. Some of Smartsheet’s views include the Grid view, Gantt chart view, and Kanban card view. 

Collaboration is also one of Smartsheet’s strong features. The spreadsheet tool allows you to share your project with other collaborators and even with your clients who may not be on Smartsheet. You’re able to share your workspace or choose from selected projects from within your workspace. To make collaboration easier, Smartsheet has a chat function that allows you to chat with members within the same project to get work done together.

Smartsheet supports integrations with other applications. Integrating with Zapier means that you can choose from hundreds of other applications to help you make Smartsheet your main hub for project management (provided you know which apps to use!). 

What Is Smartsheet Good For?

When used properly, Smartsheet has the potential to be a powerful tool for spreadsheet data management. Here are some positive use-cases for Smartsheet:

• Data management
• Collaboration
• Simple project management
• Spreadsheet database management
• Creating reports
• Automating processes

However, being loaded with features also means that Smartsheet can be a very difficult tool to learn. Check out some of the limitations of Smartsheet in the following section.

What Are Some Limitations of Smartsheet?

Even though Smartsheet was intended to be a simpler alternative to spreadsheets, it simply isn’t the case. Smartsheet is not as intuitive as it should be. It has advanced features that make it a difficult tool to master. Sure, learning to use it can help you get more work done, but it simply isn’t necessary if you’re just looking for a tool to manage your projects. 

Project management can be a complicated process, why make things harder by using an application that’s hard to use?

Smartsheet is also expensive if you’re intending to use it as a project management tool. Check out this list of the best project management tools available at a competitive price so that you can get more work done without having to spend unnecessarily.

Smartsheet Pricing

Smartsheet has three different price points for its product bring the Pro plan, Business plan, and Enterprise plan. Although Smartsheet does not have a free plan, they do offer a 30-day free trial for you to test out the software.

Smartsheet Pro ($7/user per month)

Smartsheet’s Pro plan is perfect for small teams of up to 10 people. Some of its features include:

• Unlimited sheets and reports
• Only 1 sheet per report
• Up to 10 viewers per project
• 250 automations per month

Smartsheet Business ($25/user per month)

This plan is meant for bigger companies. The only prerequisite is to have at least 3 users on this plan for your company.

• Unlimited collaborators
• Unlimited sheets per report
• Unlimited automations

Smartsheet Enterprise (Custom pricing)

If you require enterprise-level features, Smartsheet offers an Enterprise plan to help you collaborate with people within your organization.

• SSO/SAML
• No attachment size limit
• DocuSign integration
• Curated experience based on user role
• Enhanced support

However, if you’re looking for a free tool that can help you manage projects regardless of size, Taskade would be a better alternative for you.

Taskade vs Smartsheet

When comparing Taskade with Smartsheet, it becomes evident that Taskade stands out as a more adaptable and intuitive tool for both individual and team productivity.

Taskade’s simplicity in design and use, combined with its advanced AI-powered features, positions it as not only a task management tool but also a comprehensive productivity enhancer. This contrasts with Smartsheet’s more traditional, spreadsheet-centric approach, while powerful, can be more suited for users seeking extensive project management functionalities and who are comfortable with a spreadsheet-like interface.

Taskade’s AI capabilities, including AI Agents and AI Chat, provide a unique edge in automating routine tasks and fostering more efficient workflow management. These features are not just about managing tasks; they revolutionize the way you work, offering intelligent suggestions and automated task organization. On the other hand, Smartsheet focuses on detailed project management and tracking, which is ideal for those who need to manage complex projects with multiple dependencies and timelines.

Taskade’s user-friendly interface, combined with its versatile templates and real-time collaboration features, make it a compelling choice for teams and individuals who value flexibility, ease of use, and the integration of AI into their daily workflows. This contrasts with Smartsheet, where the learning curve can be steeper, particularly for those not accustomed to spreadsheet-like environments.

Ultimately, the choice between Taskade and Smartsheet depends on your specific needs and preferences. If you prioritize an intuitive, AI-enhanced tool that simplifies task management and boosts productivity through innovative features, Taskade is the go-to choice.