Productive vs Runn (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Productive grades higher than Runn: 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
Productive grades higher on features and platforms. They get the same grade on value for money, the free plan and ease of use.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Productive
Projects, resourcing and finances for agencies and consultancies
Runn
Resource planning and capacity forecasting for project teams
Which one is for you
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
Pick Runn if
- Fits if you run a team of 20 or more and need to see who is free next month
- Works for agencies and consultancies that sell people's time
Look elsewhere if
- Pricey if you are small: plans start at 20 resource seats
- Watch out: the page does not say whether the $7 and $11 are monthly or annual
- Watch out: timesheets, the API and integrations are Standard only, and resource requests are Advanced
- Skip it if you want a free plan, as there is only a trial
- Not for you if you want a refund on a part-used term, as the FAQ says none is given
How we grade them
| 2.4GPAProductiveFair | 2.0GPARunnFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | 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. | D$7 a seat on Lite and $11 on Standard looks ordinary, but plans start at 20 resource seats, so the floor is $140 a month. The billing period is not shown beside the price. |
| Free plan and trial | 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. | C30-day free trial of Standard with no card needed. No free plan. |
| Features | 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. | CScheduling, tentative projects, capacity charts, skills and financials. Timesheets, the API and integrations need Standard, and resource requests need the custom Advanced plan. |
| Ease of use | 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. | CNo store rating on record. You set up people, skills and projects before the charts mean anything. |
| Platforms and integrations | 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. | BWeb only, with BambooHR, ADP, Asana, Google Sheets and Zapier links and an API on Standard. |
| Best for | agencies that want projects and money in one place | scheduling people across projects |
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: Productive and Runn. How we grade
Price against what you get
Productive starts at $10 a month for each person and scores 3.0 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Runn starts at $7 a month for each person and scores 2.3.
Productive scores higher, and starts $3 a month higher: the question is whether the extra is worth that to you. Of the other project management tools on the chart, 4 score higher than Productive for less, and 19 score higher than Runn 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
- Productive also covers tasks, kanban boards, Gantt & timelines and invoicing.
- Runn also covers dashboards.
At a glance
| Productive | Runn | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free trial | Free trial |
| Starts at | $10 per user / month, billed yearly (3-seat minimum) | $7 per resource seat / month (billing period not shown) |
| Free plan | None | None |
| Free trial | 14-day free trial, no credit card required | 30-day free trial of the Standard plan, no credit card required |
| Web | ||
| macOS | ||
| Windows | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | The Productive Company Inc. | Runn |
| Price read from | productive.io | runn.io |
| Checked | Oct 6, 2026 | Nov 12, 2026 |
Worth knowing
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.
Runn
- Plans start at 20 resource seats.
- The pricing page shows a monthly and annual toggle but does not say which one the displayed $7 and $11 are; the FAQ only says annual billing costs less.
- Resource requests, workstreams, SSO and unlimited custom fields need the custom-priced Advanced plan.
- Cancelling stops further billing, but the FAQ says partly used monthly or annual subscriptions are not refunded.
Key features
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.
Runn
- Scheduling and capacity
- Assignments are scheduled against availability, time off and public holidays, with capacity and utilization charts.
- Tentative projects and scenarios
- Tentative projects and placeholders let a team model upcoming work; saved scenarios are limited to 3 per user on Lite.
- Skills and tags
- People carry skills and tags so staffing can match work to the right person.
- Project financials
- Budgets, rate cards and planned-versus-actual comparisons are included on every plan.
- Timesheets and reporting
- Timesheets start on Standard, along with insight reports; custom private dashboards are Advanced only.
- Integrations and API
- A marketplace lists HR integrations such as ADP Workforce Now and BambooHR, and the Standard plan includes API access.
Plans
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.
Runn
Lite$7
per resource seat / month, billing period not shown on the page
Scheduling, tentative projects, capacity and utilization charts, skills, project financials and 5 custom fields. The FAQ says Lite is arranged through the team, not self-serve.
Standard$11
per resource seat / month, billing period not shown on the page
Adds timesheets, the API and out-of-the-box integrations, a 30-day audit log and utilization insights. Monthly and annual billing are both offered.
AdvancedCustom
Adds workstreams, unlimited custom fields and reports, custom dashboards, SSO (SAML), resource requests and optional implementation support.
Ways to pay less
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.
Runn
- Nonprofit
Non-profit discounts on request
Registered non-profits can ask for a discount through the chat in their Runn account.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Productive or Runn?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Runn is cheaper to start with: $7 a month for each person, against $10 a month for each person for Productive. Productive starts at $10 per user / month, billed yearly (3-seat minimum), and Runn starts at $7 per resource seat / month (billing period not shown).
Which has a free plan, Productive or Runn?
As of Nov 12, 2026, neither Productive nor Runn has a free plan. Both have a free trial.
Which platforms do Productive and Runn 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.