The Backlog Insider’s Guide
Everything we know about Backlog in one document: what it costs, its grades, getting a refund, getting help and what else to look at. Read it here, or keep a copy.
Backlog
The Insider’s Guide
Issue tracking and project management with built-in Git and SVN
Every plan, grade, refund rule and rival among project management tools, read from Backlog’s own pages.
Made by Nulab, Inc. · checked Oct 6, 2026 · toolgpa.com
Contents
- 01WelcomeWhat it is, who it suits, its grades and the ten things to know first
- 02What it costsEvery plan, the free plan, ways to pay less and how prices have moved
- 03What it doesIts main features, where it runs, what it works with and who makes it
- 04Where it standsIts grades against its category, and whether to keep it or make your own
- 05The alternativesThe tools it is most often weighed against, side by side
- 06Quick answersThe questions people ask about it, each answered in a line or two
- 07About ToolGPAWho made this guide, what else is on the site, and how to cite it
ToolGPA put this guide together from Backlog’s own pages, its app-store listings and our grades. Every fact in it is on Backlog’s page too, where it is kept up to date. Checked Oct 6, 2026.
Part 01 · Overview
Welcome
What it is, who it suits, its grades and the ten things to know first
2.4
GPA, above 20 of the 79 other project management tools we grade
Backlog is Nulab's project management tool, combining issue tracking, Kanban boards and Gantt charts with built-in Git and Subversion repositories. Plans are priced as a flat monthly fee rather than per user, and the Standard and Premium plans allow unlimited users. A free plan covers 10 users and one project, and the Enterprise plan can be installed on a private server.
To get you started, here are 9 things to know about Backlog, taken from its own pages and our grades.
No App Store rating on record, and setting up projects, statuses and repositories is work before anything moves.
- 1
Best for software teams wanting issues and Git together
Backlog is Nulab's tracker for software teams, with issues, Kanban boards and Gantt charts next to built-in Git and Subversion repositories, on a flat monthly fee rather than per user.
- 2
Paid plans start at $30 a month
As its pricing page puts it: $30 / month flat for up to 30 users, billed annually.
- 3
There is a free plan
Up to 10 users, 1 project and 100 MB of storage, with issues, a Kanban-style board, and Git and Subversion repositories.
- 4
It runs on 3 platforms
Web, iOS and Android.
- 5
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.
- 6
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.
- 7
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.
- 8
A 2.4 GPA, above 20 of 79
That is against the other project management tools we grade, on value, the free plan, features, ease of use and platforms.
- 9
Keep it
The plain part of Backlog you could make: issue tracking, tasks, kanban boards, Gantt & timelines and documents. What surrounds it you could not. The 4 things listed below take a company, not a weekend.
Backlog at a glance
- Pricing
- Free plan, from $30 / month flat for up to 30 users, billed annually
- Free plan
- Yes
- Free trial
- 30-day free trial of any paid plan, no credit card required
- Runs on
- Web, iOS, Android
- Made by
- Nulab, Inc., since 2005
- Category
- Project Management
- Our grade
- 2.4 GPA, fair
The report card
Best for software teams wanting issues and Git together
Backlog is Nulab's tracker for software teams, with issues, Kanban boards and Gantt charts next to built-in Git and Subversion repositories, on a flat monthly fee rather than per user. One person still pays the full $30 a month, Gantt charts wait for Standard at $84 billed annually, custom fields and AI need Premium at $146, and once you pay you can't drop back to Free.
| Subject | Grade | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | C | Starter is $30 a month however many of you there are, up to 30, billed annually: about $6 a head for a team of five, which sits between this category's cheapest quarter of $5.10 and its dearer quarter of $10. One person pays the whole $30. Gantt charts wait for Standard at $84 a month, and the AI features for Premium. |
| Free plan and trial | C | Free covers up to 10 users with issues, a Kanban-style board and Git and Subversion repositories, then the caps: 1 project, 100 MB of storage, no subtasks and no documents. And once you've paid you can't drop back to Free. |
| Features | B | Covers the software team's job: issues you can raise by email, subtasks, a Kanban-style board, shared documents, and Git and Subversion repositories built in, which nothing else in this category offers. Gantt and burndown charts wait for Standard, custom fields and the AI Assistant for Premium. |
| Ease of use | C | No App Store rating on record, and setting up projects, statuses and repositories is work before anything moves. The flat price means no seat counting, and the 30-day trial of any paid plan needs no credit card. |
| Platforms and integrations | B | Web, iPhone and Android, with no desktop app, which is what keeps it off the top mark. It hooks into Slack, Microsoft Teams, Google Chat, Jenkins, Google Drive, Dropbox, OneDrive and Nulab's own Cacoo, and Enterprise can be installed on your own server. |
An A is worth 4 points, a B 3, a C 2, a D 1 and an F nothing. The GPA is the average of the five.
Who Backlog is for
- Fits if you're a software team that wants issues and Git or SVN repositories in one tool
- Works for growing teams that would rather pay a flat fee than a price per user
Who it is not for
- Pricey if there are only two or three of you, since the lowest paid plan is a flat $30 a month billed annually
- Tight if you're staying free, with 1 project, 100 MB of storage, 10 users and no subtasks or documents
- Not for you if you want Gantt charts on the lowest plan, as they start on Standard at $84 a month
- Watch out: a paid plan can't go back to Free, and a switch between paid plans waits for the billing period to end
- Pricey if you need SSO, SCIM or audit logs, which come through the Nulab Pass add-on, or self-hosting, which is Enterprise only
Good to know
Good for
- 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
Worth knowing
- 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.
Part 02 · Pricing
What it costs
Every plan, the free plan, ways to pay less and how prices have moved
$30
A month to start. There is a free plan too
Backlog has a free plan. Paid plans start at $30 / month flat for up to 30 users, billed annually.
And once you've paid you can't drop back to Free.
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.
Enterprise
Custom
Everything in Premium plus SAML single sign-on, SCIM provisioning and audit logs, with the option to install Backlog on your own server.
The free plan
Up to 10 users, 1 project and 100 MB of storage, with issues, a Kanban-style board, and Git and Subversion repositories.
Trying it first
30-day free trial of any paid plan, no credit card required
Read from nulab.com on Oct 6, 2026.
Ways to pay less
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%.
Stated on nulab.com
Part 03 · Features
What it does
Its main features, where it runs, what it works with and who makes it
3
Places it runs: Web, iOS and Android
Issue tracking and project management with built-in Git and SVN. Here is what it does, as its own site describes it, and what it covers: self-hostable, AI features, tasks, kanban boards, Gantt & timelines, issue tracking, documents.
Gantt and burndown charts wait for Standard, custom fields and the AI Assistant for Premium.
- 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.
Where it runs
- Web
- iOS
- Android
What it works with
- Cacoo
- Slack
- Microsoft Teams
- Google Chat
- Jenkins
- Google Drive
- Dropbox
- Microsoft OneDrive
Backlog is made by Nulab, Inc., and has been around since 2005.
Part 04 · Standing
Where it stands
Its grades against its category, and whether to keep it or make your own
20/79
Other project management tools it is graded above
Backlog's GPA of 2.4 is higher than 20 of the 79 other project management tools we grade, and level with 21.
It stands best on features (B, above 27 of 79) and worst on ease of use (C, above 2).
Its paid plans start at $30 a month, against a middle price of $8 for the category: 70 of the 74 others that charge start lower.
On features, ease of use and platforms it scores 2.7 out of 4. 29 tools score higher and cost less.
Each grade against the category
Every bar is all 80 project management tools we grade, cut by the letter each got. Backlog’s own letter is outlined.
- CValue for moneyAbove 16 of 79
- CFree plan and trialAbove 4 of 79
- BFeaturesAbove 27 of 79
- CEase of useAbove 2 of 79
- BPlatforms and integrationsAbove 6 of 79
Price against what you get
Each dot is one of 78 project management tools. Further left costs less; higher up scores better on features, ease of use and platforms. Backlog is the marked dot.
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
Keep it, or make your own?
Whether this is something you could build for yourself with an AI app builder, and what you would give up.
Keep it
The plain part of Backlog you could make: issue tracking, tasks, kanban boards, Gantt & timelines and documents. What surrounds it you could not. The 4 things listed below take a company, not a weekend.
That makes this kind of software worth paying for, not this one in particular: 38 of the 79 other project management tools grade higher. It costs $360 a year.
What you could make
- Issue tracking, tasks, kanban boards, Gantt & timelines and documents: an app builder makes these well.
What you could not
- A real app for iOS and Android. Something home-made would be a web page.
- It plugs into other products, Cacoo, Slack and Microsoft Teams among them.
- AI features, unless you pay a model provider for each request yourself.
- The depth: we grade its features B, which means it covers the whole job.
What this rests on. Backlog’s listing: what it does, where it runs, what it plugs into and what it costs. It is a judgement about the kind of software this is. We have not built a replacement for it, and making your own means looking after it too. How we decide, and every tool’s verdict.
Part 05 · Alternatives
The alternatives
The tools it is most often weighed against, side by side
Jira, GitHub Issues, Redmine, YouTrack and Shortcut
The 5 tools Backlog is most often weighed against, with where each one differs from it.
- 3.2GPA
Jira
Free plan · from $9.70/mo
Issue and project tracking for software and business teams.
- Backlog is self-hostable, according to its own site.
- Backlog also covers documents.
- Jira also covers workflow automation.
- 3.4GPA
GitHub Issues
Free plan · from $4/mo
Issue tracking and project planning built into GitHub.
- Backlog is self-hostable, according to its own site.
- Backlog also covers tasks and documents.
- GitHub Issues also covers Markdown and workflow automation.
- 3.0GPA
Redmine
Free
Free, self-hosted issue tracker and project management web app.
- Only Backlog lists iOS and Android apps.
- Redmine is open source, according to its own site.
- Backlog also covers tasks, kanban boards and documents.
- 3.2GPA
YouTrack
Free plan · from $4.50/mo
Issue tracker and project management tool from JetBrains.
- Backlog also covers tasks and documents.
- YouTrack also covers wiki, workflow automation and time tracking.
- 2.6GPA
Shortcut
Free plan · from $8.50/mo
Issue tracking, sprints and roadmaps for software teams.
- Only Backlog lists iOS and Android apps.
- Backlog is self-hostable, according to its own site.
- Backlog also covers tasks and documents.
Part 06 · Questions
Quick answers
The questions people ask about it, each answered in a line or two
15
Questions, each answered in a line or two
The short version of everything above, for when you only need the answer. Each one is told in full in its part of the guide.
Is Backlog free?
Backlog has a free plan. Up to 10 users, 1 project and 100 MB of storage, with issues, a Kanban-style board, and Git and Subversion repositories.
How much does Backlog cost?
Backlog lists 5 plans. Free: $0.
What platforms does Backlog work on?
Backlog is available on Web, iOS and Android.
Does Backlog offer any discounts?
Backlog publicly lists the following: Save 17% with annual billing.
Does Backlog have a Windows app?
No Windows app was listed when its pages were read on Oct 6, 2026. Backlog is listed for Web, iOS and Android.
Does Backlog have a macOS app?
No macOS app was listed when its pages were read on Oct 6, 2026. Backlog is listed for Web, iOS and Android.
Is Backlog open source?
Backlog is not described as open source on its own site, as read on Oct 6, 2026.
Can Backlog be self-hosted?
Yes. Backlog's own site says it can be run on a server of your own.
What does Backlog integrate with?
Backlog's listing names Cacoo, Slack, Microsoft Teams, Google Chat, Jenkins, Google Drive, Dropbox and Microsoft OneDrive.
Does Backlog have a free trial?
Yes. 30-day free trial of any paid plan, no credit card required.
Who makes Backlog?
Backlog is made by Nulab, Inc. It dates from 2005.
What are the alternatives to Backlog?
The closest alternatives to Backlog in our directory are Jira, GitHub Issues, Redmine, YouTrack and Shortcut.
How does Backlog compare with other project management tools?
Backlog's GPA of 2.4 is higher than 20 of the 79 other project management tools we grade, and level with 21.
Is Backlog good value for money?
ToolGPA grades Backlog C for value for money. Its paid plans start at $30 a month, against a middle price of $8 for the category: 70 of the 74 others that charge start lower.
Could I make my own version of Backlog?
The plain part of Backlog you could make: issue tracking, tasks, kanban boards, Gantt & timelines and documents.
Where this guide comes from
The prices, plans, platforms and features were read from Backlog’s own pages on Oct 6, 2026, and the grades were given on Oct 10, 2026. Graded from this listing, whose facts were read from Nulab's own pages on 6 October 2026. Also tested with a demo account on 2026-03-05.
Every tool we list gets five grades, A to F, each with its reason, and a GPA that averages them. How each is decided is at toolgpa.com/grades. This guide is ToolGPA’s own work; it is not made, paid for or approved by Nulab, Inc. Prices change, so check nulab.com before you buy.
Part 07 · About
About ToolGPA
Who made this guide, what else is on the site, and how to cite it
3,189
Tools graded, in 94 categories
ToolGPA grades software the way a school report grades a pupil: five subjects, a letter for each with the reason written beside it, and a GPA that averages them. Prices, plans and platforms are read from each maker’s own pages and dated, so you always know how fresh a figure is.
Every grade, review and ranking on ToolGPA is our own judgement. No company can pay for a grade or change one. Every tool on the site has a guide like this one, free to download and pass on. It all lives at toolgpa.com.
3,189
tools graded
94
categories
426
price changes on record
579
apps priced in 12 countries
What else is on toolgpa.com
- Backlog, kept up to dateEverything in this guide, with prices and grades as they are todaytoolgpa.com/tools/backlog
- How grades are givenThe rules behind every letter and every GPAtoolgpa.com/grades
- Value chartsWhat each tool costs against what it scores, for every categorytoolgpa.com/charts
- CompareAny two tools side by side, plan by plantoolgpa.com/compare
- Price changesEvery price rise and cut on record, each with its sourcetoolgpa.com/price-changes
- Prices by countryWhat apps cost on the App Store in 12 countriestoolgpa.com/prices-by-country
- Pay lessEvery public discount: yearly billing, students, nonprofitstoolgpa.com/save
- Keep or makeWhich tools are worth paying for, and which you could build yourselftoolgpa.com/keep-or-make
Scan for the live page
Prices and grades as they are today
Quoting this guide?
Please name ToolGPA and link to the live page, so readers can check the figures for themselves:
ToolGPA, "Backlog: The Insider's Guide", checked Oct 6, 2026. https://toolgpa.com/tools/backlog
Know someone choosing between project management tools?
Send them this guide: toolgpa.com/tools/backlog/guide
ToolGPA elsewhere: youtube.com/@toolgpa
See our other guides
The best-graded project management tools after Backlog, each with an Insider's Guide of its own.
- Project Management Insider's GuideEvery one of the 80 project management tools we grade, compared
- GitHub Issues Insider's GuideIssue tracking and project planning built into GitHub3.4 GPA
- Freedcamp Insider's GuideProject management suite with a free plan for unlimited users3.2 GPA
- Huly Insider's GuideOpen-source project management with chat, docs and video calls3.2 GPA
Choosing software? Every tool graded, every price dated.
Compare tools at toolgpa.com ›Everything in this guide is ToolGPA’s own summary of what Backlog’s pages, its app-store listings and public reviews said on the dates shown. Grades are our judgement under the rules at toolgpa.com/grades. Every grade, review and ranking on ToolGPA is our own judgement. No company can pay for a grade or change one. Backlog is a trademark of its owner, and this guide is not made, paid for or approved by Nulab, Inc. Prices and plans change: check nulab.com before you buy.