ClickUp is a configurable workspace for tasks, docs, whiteboards and forms. It is good at breadth: Gantt charts, dependencies and native time tracking are on Core, its entry paid plan, and Business adds timesheets and resource management.
Agencies usually leave ClickUp because the workspace has grown too complex to maintain, because clients who edit need guest seats, or because billing and client-facing work happen in other tools. The eight tools below cover those cases, from simpler project tools to tools built around client work and invoicing.
Setup and upkeep. ClickUp can model almost any process, which means someone has to design and maintain it. Smaller agencies often want fewer choices and good defaults.
Guest seats for clients who edit. Paid plans include unlimited read-only guests but a limited number of guest seats with edit permissions, per ClickUp's pricing FAQ.
Client billing and branding live elsewhere. ClickUp tracks time but its plans do not list client invoicing, and white labeling is on Enterprise and Max only.
How we compared: on published features and pricing from each vendor's own site, checked Oct 14, 2026. We did not run hands-on tests or use ratings. AgencyPro is our product, so it is listed first, with its limits. Agiled is made by ZTABS, the company behind AgencyPro.
A direct replacement covers the main job agencies use ClickUp for. A partial replacement covers part of it, so you keep or add another tool for the rest. Prices are US list prices from each vendor's pricing page; confirm before you buy.
1. AgencyPro: best for client-facing work, approvals and billing in a simpler setup
AgencyPro is a client portal, project and billing tool for agencies. Against ClickUp, it covers client projects and adds a branded client portal, invoicing and, on Pro, proposals, contracts, time tracking and versioned proofing. Work runs as client requests on Kanban and list views. Its pricing page does not list Gantt charts, task dependencies, docs or whiteboards, so it is a partial replacement if you use ClickUp as your internal wiki or planning tool.
Key features
Branded client portal with custom domain, messaging, file storage and client onboarding (Basic)
Projects and client requests on Kanban and list views, with unlimited clients on every plan
Invoicing with Stripe (cards, ACH, wallets) or PayPal, payment reminders and late fees
Quotes, proposals and contracts with e-signatures, a leads pipeline and intake forms (Pro)
Time tracking, credit-based and hourly services, tickets, SLA tracking and capacity management (Pro)
Design and video annotation with versioned proofing and approvals (Pro)
AI Assistant, Agents and Chatbot on every plan, with 500 to 10,000 AI credits a month by plan
Pricing
Basic $39/mo, Pro $79/mo and Plus $149/mo billed monthly ($32.50, $65.83 and $124.17 per month billed annually). Each plan includes 1 seat; extra seats are $15 (Basic), $20 (Pro) or $30 (Plus) per month. Enterprise is priced by quote. AgencyPro pricing, checked Oct 14, 2026.
Pros
Branded client portal with custom domain from Basic ($39/mo billed monthly); ClickUp white labeling is on Enterprise and Max
Invoicing with Stripe or PayPal on Basic, and proposals and contracts with e-signatures on Pro
Unlimited clients on every plan, with no guest seat limits
Cons
Its pricing page does not list Gantt charts, task dependencies, docs or whiteboards
Each extra seat costs $15 (Basic), $20 (Pro) or $30 (Plus) per month, more than a ClickUp Core seat ($9 billed yearly)
Time tracking needs Pro ($79/mo); API, webhooks and Zapier need Plus ($149/mo)
The CSV importer brings in clients and services only; tasks and docs are set up by hand
Choose it if you want clients to request work, approve files and pay invoices in one branded place, and you can keep internal docs somewhere else.
2. Teamwork.com: best for client-services teams that bill from tracked time
Teamwork.com covers projects and tasks with Gantt, table, list and board views, and it is built around client work. Billable time tracking is on Basics, client users are free, and Accelerate adds invoicing from logged time, budgets and retainers, which ClickUp does not list.
Key features
Gantt, table, list and board views, with billable time tracking from Basics
Free client users (up to 5 active projects each) and free collaborators on paid plans
Accelerate adds client invoicing from logged time, time budgets, retainers, workload planning and smart intake forms
Optimize adds quotes, resource planning by role or skill, and revenue, cost and profitability insights
Pricing
Free for up to 5 users and 5 projects. Basics $9.99/user/mo (minimum 3 users) and Accelerate $24.99/user/mo (minimum 5 users), billed annually; annual billing saves about 29% over monthly. Optimize and Enterprise are priced by quote. Teamwork.com pricing, checked Oct 14, 2026.
Pros
Client users are free and do not use paid seats
Invoicing from logged time, budgets and retainers on Accelerate ($24.99/user/mo billed annually)
Fewer settings to maintain than a ClickUp workspace
Cons
Basics needs at least 3 users and Accelerate at least 5
Each client user can join at most 5 active projects
Its pricing page does not list whiteboards, and shared documentation spaces are marked as coming soon
Choose it if you want a project tool built for client work with billing in the same place.
3. Asana: best for simpler task tracking with free client guests
Asana covers task and project tracking with list, board, timeline and Gantt views and fewer settings to maintain than ClickUp. Guests are free from Starter. Time tracking is lighter: Advanced compares estimated and actual effort, and timesheets and budgets are a paid add-on.
Key features
List, board, calendar, timeline and Gantt views with reporting dashboards from Starter
Forms, custom fields, templates and unlimited automations from Starter
Unlimited free guests from Starter, so clients can join the projects you share
Advanced adds portfolios, goals, workload within a portfolio, approvals and proofing, and estimated vs actual time tracking
Pricing
Personal is free for up to 2 users. Starter $10.99 and Advanced $24.99 per user per month billed annually ($13.49 and $30.49 billed monthly). Enterprise is priced by quote. Timesheets and budgets are a paid add-on. Asana pricing, checked Oct 14, 2026.
Pros
Unlimited free guests from Starter
Forms, timeline and Gantt views and unlimited automations on Starter ($10.99/user/mo billed annually)
Approvals and proofing on Advanced
Cons
Native time tracking (estimated vs actual) needs Advanced ($24.99/user/mo billed annually); ClickUp has it on Core
Costs more per user than ClickUp Core
Timesheets and budgets are a paid add-on
Choose it if your team wants a cleaner task tool and clients who edit tasks as free guests.
4. monday.com: best for visual boards that non-technical staff can set up
monday.com covers boards, timelines, dashboards and automations, and is easier for non-technical staff to shape than ClickUp. Seats are sold in buckets starting at 3, and time tracking is on Pro.
Key features
Boards with unlimited items and unlimited free viewers from Basic
Timeline, Gantt and calendar views, guest access and 250 automation actions a month on Standard
Time tracking, private boards and 25,000 automation actions a month on Pro
AI credits by plan: 1,000, 2,000 or 3,000 a month
Pricing
Free for up to 2 seats. Basic $9, Standard $12 and Pro $19 per seat per month billed annually; yearly billing saves up to 18%. Plans start at 3 seats and are sold in buckets, so a team of 6 buys 10 seats. Enterprise is priced by quote. monday.com pricing, checked Oct 14, 2026.
Pros
Boards and automations that are quick to set up
Guest access and Gantt views from Standard ($12/seat/mo billed annually)
Unlimited free viewers from Basic
Cons
Seat buckets: a team of 6 pays for 10 seats
Time tracking is on Pro ($19/seat/mo billed annually) and above
Its work management plans do not list client invoicing
Choose it if you want a simpler, visual workspace and your team size fits a seat bucket.
5. Wrike: best for larger teams with complex projects and reporting
Wrike covers task tracking with Gantt charts and dashboards from Team, and time tracking on Business. It suits larger teams more than ClickUp does for portfolio-level planning, with resource planning, budgeting and timesheet approvals on Pinnacle.
Key features
Board and table views and task management on the Free plan
Shareable dashboards and interactive Gantt charts from Team
Time tracking from Business, according to Wrike's help center
Pinnacle adds advanced resource and capacity planning, budgeting with bill and cost rates, timesheet approvals and BI reporting
Pricing
Free plan. Team $10/user/mo (2 to 15 users) and Business $25/user/mo (5 to 200 users), billed annually; Business and above are annual only. Pinnacle and Apex are priced by quote. Up to 30 seats, Wrike is sold in groups of 5. Wrike pricing, checked Oct 14, 2026.
Pros
Interactive Gantt charts and shareable dashboards from Team ($10/user/mo billed annually)
Advanced resource planning, budgeting and BI reporting on Pinnacle
14-day trial with no card
Cons
Time tracking needs Business ($25/user/mo billed annually, 5-user minimum); ClickUp has it on Core
Sold in groups of 5 seats up to 30, and Business and above are annual only
Pinnacle and Apex are priced by quote
Choose it if you run large, cross-team projects and want structured reporting more than flexibility.
6. Agiled: best for CRM, projects and invoicing without building a workspace
Disclosure: Agiled is made by ZTABS, the same company that makes AgencyPro. The facts here come from Agiled's own pricing and features pages, the same standard as every other tool.
Agiled is a business management app with ready-made modules: CRM and deal pipelines, projects and tasks, time tracking, proposals, contracts and invoices. It is a lighter project tool than ClickUp, but you do not have to design the system yourself, and seats come bundled by plan.
Key features
CRM with deal pipelines, projects and tasks, time tracking, invoices, estimates and expenses
Proposals and contracts with e-signing, scheduling pages, forms and tickets
Branded client portal, custom domain and custom SMTP included from Business
Seats included by plan: 1, 3, 7 or 15
Pricing
Starter $24, Pro $59, Business $99 and Scale $199 per month billed annually, with 1, 3, 7 and 15 seats. Extra seats are $20/mo on Pro and up. On Starter and Pro the branded portal is a $15/mo add-on (billed annually). Agiled pricing, checked Oct 14, 2026.
Pros
Pro ($59/mo billed annually) includes 3 seats; Business ($99/mo) includes 7
Invoices, estimates, proposals and contracts in the same app as projects
Business includes the branded client portal and a custom domain
Cons
Fewer project views and less customization than ClickUp
Starter caps you at 10 projects and 500 contacts
On Starter and Pro the branded portal is a $15/mo add-on (billed annually)
Choose it if you want CRM, projects and billing ready to use for a team of 3 to 7.
Partial replacement
7. Basecamp: best for the lowest-maintenance tool at a flat price
Basecamp is the opposite of ClickUp: a fixed set of tools in every project (message boards, to-dos, card tables, chat, schedules and files) and a flat price by active projects. It covers simple projects and client access with far fewer views and custom fields.
Key features
Message boards, to-dos, card tables (Kanban), group chat, schedules and files in each project
Time tracking and project templates on every plan
Unlimited users from Studio, including clients, contractors and guests
Storage from 5GB on Freelancer to 1TB on Unlimited
Pricing
Free for 1 project and up to 5 users. Freelancer $25/mo (3 active projects, up to 20 users), Studio $59/mo (10 active projects) and Pro $99/mo (25 active projects), with unlimited users from Studio. Unlimited is $299/mo billed annually. Every person you add, including clients, counts as a user. Basecamp pricing, checked Oct 14, 2026.
Pros
Flat price; Studio ($59/mo) and above include unlimited users
Time tracking on every plan
Almost nothing to configure
Cons
Plans cap active projects: 3 on Freelancer, 10 on Studio and 25 on Pro
Far fewer views, custom fields and automations than ClickUp
Every person you add, including clients, counts as a user below Studio
Choose it if you want the simplest possible tool and a predictable monthly price.
8. Notion: best for replacing ClickUp Docs with a wiki and database tool
Notion replaces the docs and wiki side of ClickUp, with databases you can turn into simple trackers. Its plans do not list built-in time tracking, so it is a partial replacement for agencies that track time or run delivery in ClickUp.
Key features
Pages, wikis and databases with subtasks, dependencies and custom properties
Unlimited guests, custom forms, database automations and unlimited charts on Plus
Business adds Notion AI (Notion Agent and AI Meeting Notes), SAML SSO and row-level database permissions
Public sites on notion.site, with custom domains as a paid add-on
Pricing
Free plan (10 guests). Plus $10 and Business $20 per member per month billed annually ($12 and $24 billed monthly). Enterprise is priced by quote. A custom domain for a Notion site is $8/mo billed annually or $10/mo billed monthly, per domain. Notion pricing, checked Oct 14, 2026.
Pros
Flexible pages and databases for wikis, SOPs and simple trackers
Unlimited guests on Plus ($10/member/mo billed annually)
Free plan to start
Cons
Its plans do not list built-in time tracking or invoicing
Client views are pages you build and permission yourself
Notion AI is included from Business ($20/member/mo billed annually)
Choose it if you mostly used ClickUp for docs and want a better wiki, with tasks kept simple or elsewhere.
Example for a 5-person agency, at list prices checked Oct 14, 2026. ClickUp Core: 5 x $9 = $45/mo billed yearly. Asana Starter: 5 x $10.99 = $54.95/mo billed annually. Teamwork.com Basics: 5 x $9.99 = $49.95/mo billed annually, or Accelerate with invoicing at 5 x $24.99 = $124.95/mo. monday.com Pro (5-seat bucket): 5 x $19 = $95/mo billed annually. Wrike Business: 5 x $25 = $125/mo billed annually. AgencyPro Pro: $79 + 4 x $20 = $159/mo billed monthly. Agiled Business (7 seats): $99/mo billed annually. Basecamp Studio: $59/mo flat. Notion Plus: 5 x $10 = $50/mo billed annually. ClickUp is the cheapest per person; AgencyPro is priced for agencies that also want invoicing, documents and a branded portal.
How to choose a ClickUp alternative
Complexity budget
Be honest about who will maintain the setup. A tool with fewer options and good defaults often beats a powerful one nobody owns.
Client permissions
Count how many clients need to edit, not just view. Asana guests are free, Teamwork.com client users are free (5 active projects each), and AgencyPro and Agiled give clients a branded portal.
Time to invoice
If you bill hourly or by retainer, check whether tracked time can become an invoice without exporting it: Teamwork.com Accelerate, AgencyPro and Agiled do this.
Total cost at your headcount
Compare prices at your real team size, including seat minimums (Teamwork.com), seat buckets (monday.com) and seat groups (Wrike).
When to stay with ClickUp
Someone on your team enjoys building and maintaining the workspace, and it works.
You use docs, whiteboards and tasks together and would need three tools to replace them.
Clients mostly view work, which unlimited read-only guests already cover.
Notes by agency type
What to weigh first when you replace ClickUp, by the kind of work you do.
For marketing agencies
Weigh recurring billing, a place for clients to submit requests and approve content, and a clear view of how much retainer work is left each month. Campaign reporting usually stays in a dedicated analytics tool.
Retainer-based marketing agencies often leave ClickUp to bill from tracked time. Teamwork.com Accelerate and AgencyPro both invoice from inside the product.
Test how clients leave feedback on files. Pinned comments on images and versioned approvals save more time than any task view. Check whether proofing is on the plan you can afford.
If clients review designs, compare proofing: AgencyPro Pro includes design annotation with versioned approvals, and Asana lists approvals and proofing on Advanced.
Look for recurring tasks that recreate each month, subscription billing, and a portal where clients see what was delivered. Rank tracking and audits stay in your SEO tools.
Prioritize milestone billing, change-request tracking and time tracking against estimates. If your developers live in GitHub or Jira, check the integration before anything else.
Development teams that rely on ClickUp Gantt charts and dependencies should look at Teamwork.com, which lists Gantt views and task dependencies, or Wrike, which lists interactive Gantt charts. AgencyPro's pricing page does not list either.
Multi-discipline teams need capacity planning across people and a review flow that handles images, video and documents. Budget tracking per project matters once you run fixed-fee work.
Fast client approvals on press releases and a shared record of what was sent and when. Media databases and monitoring are separate tools in almost every stack.
Monthly content approvals and subscription billing come first. Scheduling and publishing usually stay in a social media tool, so check that the two can live side by side.
A mix of build projects and ongoing retainers means you need both milestone and recurring billing, plus a ticket or request queue for store fixes after launch.
Start with your client list: export it from ClickUp if it offers a CSV export, or build the CSV by hand. AgencyPro's CSV importer accepts clients and services. Projects, tasks, files and comment history are not imported automatically, so recreate active projects and leave closed ones archived in ClickUp. On the Plus plan, AgencyPro's migration service helps with setup. Run both tools side by side until your active projects close.
What is the best ClickUp alternative for agencies?
It depends on why you are leaving. For a project tool built for client work with invoicing, Teamwork.com. For simpler task tracking with free guests, Asana. For a branded client portal with requests and invoicing, AgencyPro, which is our product. For the lowest-maintenance option at a flat price, Basecamp.
What is simpler than ClickUp?
Basecamp is the simplest, with a flat price and a fixed set of tools per project. Asana and monday.com are simpler than ClickUp but still configurable.
Does ClickUp charge for guests?
Read-only guests are free and unlimited on paid plans. Guests with edit permissions use a limited number of guest seats per plan, according to ClickUp's pricing FAQ.
Can ClickUp send invoices?
ClickUp tracks time, but its plans do not list client invoicing, so billing happens in a separate tool. Teamwork.com (Accelerate), AgencyPro and Agiled invoice from inside the product.
Is AgencyPro a full ClickUp replacement?
For client delivery, often yes: projects, a branded portal, requests, proofing and invoicing. It does not replace ClickUp as an internal wiki, whiteboard or Gantt planning tool.
Can I import my data into AgencyPro?
Partly. AgencyPro's CSV importer accepts clients and services. Projects, tasks, files and comment history are recreated by hand, and the Plus plan includes a migration service to help with setup.
Sources and date checked
Every price, plan limit and feature on this page comes from the vendor's own website, checked Oct 14, 2026. AgencyPro facts come from the AgencyPro pricing page. Vendors change plans often, so confirm on their site before you buy.
For social media agencies
Monthly content approvals and subscription billing come first. Scheduling and publishing usually stay in a social media tool, so check that the two can live side by side.
How social media agencies use AgencyPro