Nutcache vs Productive (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Productive grades higher than Nutcache: 2.4 against 2.0 out of 4.0.
Checked Oct 6, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 · graded Oct 10, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 by ToolGPA
Nutcache grades higher on value for money. Productive grades higher on features and platforms. They get the same grade on the free plan and ease of use.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Nutcache
Project management with time tracking, budgets and invoicing
Productive
Projects, resourcing and finances for agencies and consultancies
Which one is for you
Pick Nutcache if
- Fits if you bill clients by the hour and want time and invoices next to the tasks
- Works for a one or two person shop that can stay inside 10 projects
Look elsewhere if
- Tight if you are staying free: 2 users, 10 projects and 100 MB of storage
- Pricey if you want Gantt charts and budgeting, which need Pro at $15.95 a user
- Not for you if you need approvals or workload views, which start on Enterprise at $25.95
- Skip it if you want phone apps, since the pages list none
Pick Productive if
- Fits if you're an agency or consultancy of 3 or more people that bills clients by project
- Works for teams that bring clients into projects, since client seats are free
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you want a free plan, because there's only a 14-day trial
- Not for you if you're one or two people, since every plan needs at least 3 seats
- Pricey if you need Xero or QuickBooks sync, rate cards or approvals, which start on Professional at $25 a user
- Watch out: HubSpot, webhooks and enforced SSO or 2FA need Ultimate, which has no public price
- Watch out: the AI Notetaker for calls is a paid add-on, and there's no Linux app
How we grade them
| 2.0GPANutcacheFair | 2.4GPAProductiveFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CPro is $15.95 a user a month on yearly billing, above the $12.50 where the dearer quarter of project tools starts. The pricing page shows Canadian dollars by default. | DEssential is $10 a user a month billed yearly, $12 monthly, already the dear edge of this category, and the pieces an agency actually bills with, invoicing syncs, rate cards, time and expense approvals, sit on Professional at $25, three times the category's middle. Three seats minimum, no free plan. |
| Free plan and trial | CFree for 2 users, 10 projects, 10 clients, 200 invoices and 100 MB of storage. A team of three is already over it. | CNo free plan at all. There's a 14-day trial with no card needed, and after that you're paying for at least 3 seats. Client seats are free, which softens it if you work with a lot of them. |
| Features | CTasks, time, expenses and invoices in one place. Gantt charts and real-time budgeting need Pro and approvals and workload views need Enterprise. | BSeven layouts including board, timeline, Gantt and workload, every logged hour tied to a project budget so revenue, cost and margin come out per project, plus resource planning, invoicing, a sales CRM and an AI Assistant. Invoicing syncs and approvals need Professional. |
| Ease of use | CNo store rating on record. A web app where you build your own projects, clients and invoice setup. | CNo store rating on record. It's hosted, so nothing to install, and logging time is a click. But this is budgets, bookings, rate cards and approvals in one place: someone has to set all that up, and it's a bigger job than a task board. |
| Platforms and integrations | CWeb only. The pages list no native mobile apps, and the interface comes in four languages. | AWeb, Mac, Windows, iPhone and Android, with only Linux missing. It connects to Jira, Slack, Xero, QuickBooks, Google Calendar, Outlook and Zapier, the API is in from Essential, and an MCP server opens your data to Claude or ChatGPT. |
| Best for | small teams that bill clients for project time | agencies that want projects and money in one place |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Nutcache and Productive. How we grade
Price against what you get
Nutcache starts at $15.95 a month for each person and scores 2.0 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Productive starts at $10 a month for each person and scores 3.0.
Productive scores higher and starts $5.95 a month lower. Of the other project management tools on the chart, 75 score higher than Nutcache for less, and 4 score higher than Productive for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- Nutcache also covers expense tracking.
- Productive also covers kanban boards and reports.
At a glance
| Nutcache | Productive | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free trial |
| Starts at | $15.95 per user / month, billed yearly ($17.95 billed monthly) | $10 per user / month, billed yearly (3-seat minimum) |
| Free plan | 2 users, unlimited guests, 10 clients, 10 projects, 200 invoices and 100 MB of storage. | None |
| Free trial | None listed | 14-day free trial, no credit card required |
| Web | ||
| macOS | ||
| Windows | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | Nutcache | The Productive Company Inc. |
| Price read from | nutcache.com | productive.io |
| Checked | Nov 12, 2026 | Oct 6, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Nutcache
- The Free plan stops at 2 users, 10 projects and 100 MB of storage.
- Gantt charts, real-time budgeting and unlimited invoicing need the Pro plan; approvals and workload views need Enterprise.
- The pricing page shows Canadian dollars by default; the US dollar prices are behind a currency switch.
- The interface comes in English, French, Brazilian Portuguese and Spanish, and the pages list no native mobile apps.
Productive
- There is no free plan, and every plan requires at least 3 seats.
- HRIS and invoicing integrations start on Professional; the HubSpot integration, webhooks and enforced SSO or 2FA need Ultimate, which has no public price.
- The apps page lists desktop apps for Mac and Windows and mobile apps for iPhone and Android, but no Linux app.
- The AI Notetaker that joins calls is listed as an add-on rather than part of a plan.
Key features
Nutcache
- Project and task management
- Several project views show progress, deadlines and assignments, and the paid plans add Gantt charts and real-time project budgeting.
- Time tracking
- Team members log time against tasks and projects, and the paid plans add advanced tracking and time reports.
- Expenses and invoicing
- Project expenses are recorded and invoices are generated from tracked time, with progressive invoices on the paid plans.
- Approvals and workload
- The Enterprise plan adds time and expense approvals, workload management, leave and holiday management and custom budget alerts.
- AI credits
- Every plan includes AI capability credits, with the refill period not stated on the page: 25 on Free, 100 on Pro and 500 on Enterprise.
Productive
- Seven project layouts
- Tasks can be shown as a list, table, board, calendar, timeline, Gantt chart or workload view, and customized views can be shared with teammates.
- Budgets tied to tracked time
- Each logged hour is linked to a project budget, so revenue, cost and margin are reported per project as the work is done.
- Resource planning
- Plan bookings by person or by project, with tentative and repeating bookings, placeholders, and each person's availability after time off.
- Time tracking
- Log hours with a timer or by hand on web, desktop or mobile. Entries attach to tasks and can be submitted for approval; the Mac app adds a menu bar timer.
- Invoicing and accounting sync
- Invoices can be pushed to Xero, QuickBooks Online, Exact, e-conomic, Fortnox or Twinfield with payments synced back. These integrations start on Professional.
- AI Assistant, agents and MCP server
- An AI Assistant that drafts and summarizes work is included from Essential. Custom agents and connectors are listed under Ultimate, and an MCP server opens the data to Claude or ChatGPT.
Plans
Nutcache
Free forever$0
2 users, unlimited guests, 10 projects, 10 clients, 200 estimates, 200 invoices, 50 expenses, 500 time entries and 25 AI credits.
Pro$15.95
per user / month, billed annually ($17.95 billed monthly)
Unlimited regular projects, Gantt charts, real-time budgeting, advanced time tracking, unlimited invoicing, 1 GB storage. Seats beyond 9 come in blocks of 5.
Enterprise$25.95
per user / month, billed annually ($27.95 billed monthly)
Adds approvals, workload and team management, custom security profiles, priority support and 10 GB storage. Seats beyond 9 come in blocks of 5.
CorporateCustom
Discounted pricing for large businesses, schools and non-profit organizations, quoted through the contact page.
Productive
Essential$10
per user / month, billed yearly ($12 billed monthly)
Budgeting, resource planning, projects and tasks, docs, time tracking, expenses, reporting, API access and the AI Assistant, with 5 account-level custom fields.
Professional$25
per user / month, billed yearly ($29 billed monthly)
Adds HRIS and invoicing integrations, recurring budgets, rate cards, time and expense approvals, advanced reports and 15 account-level custom fields.
UltimateCustom
Adds revenue forecasting, Scenario Builder, multiple subsidiaries, the HubSpot integration, webhooks, agents and enforced SSO or 2FA.
Ways to pay less
Nutcache
No public discounts listed.
Productive
- Annual discount
Save up to 17% with yearly billing
Essential is $10 per user / month billed yearly against $12 billed monthly, and Professional is $25 against $29. The pricing page labels the yearly option as saving up to 17%.
- Nonprofit
50% off for nonprofits and charities
The pricing FAQ says nonprofits and charities get 50% off all subscriptions and asks them to contact the company.
- Education
Free accounts for teachers and students
The pricing FAQ says Productive gives free accounts to teachers and students; details are available on request.
- Other savings
Volume discount from 50 users
Companies with 50 or more users are eligible for a volume discount on the Professional and Ultimate plans, according to the pricing FAQ.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Nutcache or Productive?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Productive is cheaper to start with: $10 a month for each person, against $15.95 a month for each person for Nutcache. Nutcache starts at $15.95 per user / month, billed yearly ($17.95 billed monthly), and Productive starts at $10 per user / month, billed yearly (3-seat minimum).
Which has a free plan, Nutcache or Productive?
As of Nov 12, 2026, only Nutcache has a free plan. Productive does not, though it has a free trial.
Which platforms do Nutcache and Productive run on?
As of Nov 12, 2026, only Productive lists macOS, Windows, iOS and Android apps. Both list a web app. A platform missing from a listing is one its maker's pages did not mention.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.