Podio vs Smartsheet

Podio

• Teams that want to build their own CRM or project tracker without code
• Agencies and firms that bring clients into shared workspaces
• Groups of up to 5 people trying it on the Free plan

Smartsheet

• Teams that are comfortable working in spreadsheets
• Project offices that need Gantt charts, reports and dashboards
• Enterprises standardizing portfolio reporting across many projects

Podio

• The Free plan allows up to 5 users and 100 items across the whole organization.
• Automated workflows need a paid plan: simple workflows on Plus and advanced automation on Premium.
• Gantt charts and time tracking are not listed as built-in features; Podio points to community-built extensions for them.
• More API and automation capacity are paid add-ons, from $23 and $39 a month on annual billing, and listed prices exclude taxes.

Smartsheet

• There is no free plan; a paid plan is needed once the 30-day trial ends.
• Pro is limited to 10 Members and is only available to new customers; Business requires at least 3 Members.
• Pro is capped at 250 automations a month and 20 GB of storage.
• The API is offered from the Business plan, and SAML single sign-on needs Enterprise.

Podio

Custom apps and workspaces

A no-code drag-and-drop builder sets the fields and structure of each app, and relationship fields link items across apps. Apps and workspaces are unlimited on every plan.

Table, kanban and calendar views

Items can be shown as a table, a kanban board, a calendar or badges, with personalized dashboards and pre-built templates to start from.

Workflow automation

Simple when/then workflows come with Plus. Premium adds advanced automation with 25,000 actions a month, email integrations, PDF generation and date and time triggers.

Tasks and collaboration

Tasks, comments, mentions, file sharing and integrated chat sit next to the data, with user activity and revision history kept for each item.

Client access

Clients, freelancers and other outside parties can be invited free with limited permissions. Paid plans allow unlimited client users and add a light user role.

Webforms and API

Webforms capture submissions from outside the organization on every plan. The API allows 1,000 calls an hour, and paid add-ons raise that limit.

Smartsheet

Sheets with multiple views

Work is stored in spreadsheet-like sheets that can be switched between grid, Gantt, card and calendar views. Timeline view starts on the Business plan.

Reports and dashboards

Reports pull together and filter rows from sheets, and dashboards summarize the results for stakeholders.

Forms

Forms gather structured input such as requests, field reports and feedback. Forms are unlimited on the Pro plan and above.

Automated workflows

Workflows can be built from templates or from scratch for tasks such as reminders. Pro allows 250 automations a month; Business and above are unlimited.

Resource management

Shows who is assigned to what, so managers can even out workloads and plan for upcoming demand. Workload tracking is listed from the Business plan.

AI tools

Smart Assist and Smart Columns help with formulas and data analysis, and Business adds connections to external AI tools through MCP.

Podio

• Free$0

  Up to 5 users. Task management, unlimited apps and workspaces and webforms, limited to 100 items across the organization.

• Plus$11.20

  per user / month, billed annually ($14 billed monthly)

  Unlimited items and client users, user management, a light user role, read-only access and simple workflows.

• Premium$19.20

  per user / month, billed annually ($24 billed monthly)

  Adds advanced workflow automation with 25,000 actions a month, email integrations, PDF generation, and ShareFile and e-signature integration.

Smartsheet

• Pro$9

  per Member / month, billed yearly ($12 billed monthly)

  1 to 10 Members with unlimited free Contributors. Gantt, table, board and calendar views, 250 automations a month and 20 GB of storage.

• Business$19

  per Member / month, billed yearly ($24 billed monthly)

  3 or more Members. Adds timeline view, workload tracking, unlimited automations, proofing, admin controls and 1 TB of storage.

• EnterpriseCustom

  10 or more Members. Adds SAML single sign-on, portfolios, scenario planning, directory integrations and unlimited attachment storage.

• Advanced Work ManagementCustom

  Everything in Enterprise, plus Control Center, Dynamic View, Data Shuttle, DataMesh, connectors and premium support.

Podio

• Annual discount

  20% less on annual billing

  Plus is $11.20 per user / month billed annually against $14 billed monthly, and Premium is $19.20 against $24, a 20% difference.

Smartsheet

• Annual discount

  Lower per-Member price with yearly billing

  Pro is $9 per Member / month billed yearly against $12 monthly (25% less), and Business is $19 against $24 (about 21% less).