Backlog vs Planio

Backlog

• Software teams that want issues and Git or SVN repositories together
• Growing teams that prefer a flat fee to per-user pricing
• Teams of up to 10 starting with a single project on the free plan

Planio

• Software teams that want issues, repositories and a wiki in one hosted service
• Organizations already using Redmine that prefer not to host it themselves
• Teams that answer customer email from the same tool as their issues

Backlog

• The Free plan is limited to 10 users, 1 project and 100 MB of storage, and has no subtasks or documents.
• Gantt and burndown charts need Standard; custom fields, cross-project Gantt charts and the AI Assistant need Premium.
• A paid plan cannot be downgraded to Free, and a switch between paid plans takes effect only when the current billing period ends.
• Self-hosting is offered only on Enterprise, and SAML single sign-on, SCIM and audit logs come through the Nulab Pass security add-on.

Planio

• Plans cap both active projects and active users: Silver stops at 3 projects and 5 users, and Platinum at 40 projects and 45 users.
• Planio Storage is a paid add-on below Platinum, and Help Desk is a paid add-on on Silver and Gold.
• The free Bronze plan is limited to 1 project, 2 users and 1 GB, and moving up from it does not include the 30-day trial.
• A custom domain is included only in Enterprise; the FAQ lists it as a paid extra at 15 euros a month on other plans.

Backlog

Issues and subtasks

Tasks, bugs and requests are logged as issues, which can also be created by email. Subtasks start on Starter, and Premium allows three levels of nesting.

Boards, Gantt and burndown charts

A Kanban-style board is on every plan. Gantt and burndown charts start on Standard, where the Gantt view covers 6 months; Premium removes that limit.

Built-in Git and Subversion

Every plan, including Free, has Git and Subversion repositories, so code, bugs and tasks are tracked in the same tool.

Flat pricing per plan

Each plan has one price regardless of headcount. Starter covers 30 users, and Standard, Premium and Enterprise have no user limit.

Backlog AI Assistant

Premium and Enterprise include an AI assistant that organizes tasks, drafts issues and writes summaries, with 2,000 credits a month. Extra credit packs start at $60 a month.

Documents

From Starter, project documents with to-do lists, tables and charts can be edited by several people in real time.

Planio

Issue tracking and workflows

Issues carry configurable fields such as status, priority, assignee and dates, and role-based workflows define which steps each participant may take.

Agile boards, roadmaps and Gantt

Plan sprints on a Kanban-style agile board, or assign issues to milestones and follow them on a roadmap and an automatically generated Gantt chart.

Git and Subversion hosting

The pricing page lists an unlimited number of Git and Subversion repositories for its plans, and GitHub repositories can be mirrored into Planio.

Wiki and discussions

Each project can have its own wiki and forum for recording decisions, and chat messages, updates and comments are kept with the work they refer to.

Help Desk

Emails from customers become issues, with auto-replies, reply templates and a tracking page customers can open without logging in. It is an add-on on Silver and Gold.

Time tracking and mobile apps

Start a timer on an issue and log the time with a comment and activity. Free iOS and Android apps list, filter, create and edit issues.

Backlog

• Free$0

  Up to 10 users, 1 project and 100 MB of storage, with issues, a board, and Git and Subversion repositories.

• Starter$30

  per month flat, billed annually ($35 billed monthly)

  Up to 30 users, 5 projects and 1 GB of storage, adding subtasks, documents and custom statuses.

• Standard$84

  per month flat, billed annually ($100 billed monthly)

  Unlimited users, 100 projects and 30 GB of storage, adding Gantt charts with a 6-month view, burndown charts and IP-based access control.

• Premium$146

  per month flat, billed annually ($175 billed monthly)

  Unlimited users and projects, 100 GB, unlimited and cross-project Gantt charts, custom fields and the AI Assistant with 2,000 credits a month.

• EnterpriseCustom

  Everything in Premium plus SAML single sign-on, SCIM provisioning and audit logs, with the option to install Backlog on your own server.

Planio

• Bronze$0

  1 project, 2 users, 10 customers and 1 GB of storage.

• Silver$25

  per month flat, billed monthly

  3 active projects, 5 active users and 5 GB, with team chat. Planio Storage and Help Desk are add-ons at $7 a month each.

• Gold$59

  per month flat, billed monthly

  7 active projects, 10 active users and 20 GB, with team chat. Planio Storage and Help Desk are add-ons at $15 a month each.

• Diamond$125

  per month flat, billed monthly

  15 active projects, 20 active users and 40 GB, with Help Desk and team chat included. Planio Storage is a $20 a month add-on.

• Platinum$249

  per month flat, billed monthly

  40 active projects, 45 active users and 80 GB, with Planio Storage, Help Desk and team chat included.

• EnterpriseFrom $449

  per month; extra charges may apply

  100 or more projects and users and 100 GB or more, on a separately managed instance with custom branding, a custom domain and Redmine plugins on request.

Backlog

• Annual discount

  Save 17% with annual billing

  Billed annually, Starter is $30 a month against $35, Standard $84 against $100 and Premium $146 against $175. Nulab states the saving as 17%.

Planio

• Other savings

  Free account for open source projects

  Planio's FAQ offers a complimentary account to open source projects that set their projects to public, arranged by emailing the company with details of the project.