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Technology · head to head

Asana vs Intercom

Asana logo

Asana

Technology

Manage your team's work, projects, & tasks online

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Intercom logo

Intercom

SaaS

The only AI customer service solution you need

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Asana the free Personal tier is capped at 2 users, so it does not cover a small team; Intercom pricing is high and unpredictable with confusing per-seat, per-feature, and usage-based structure that makes cost estimation difficult
  • They diverge on capability: Asana covers Multiple project views, Intercom covers AI-powered inbox.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Asana and Intercom actually diverge.

Attributes where Asana and Intercom differ
AttributeAsanaIntercom
CategoryTechnologySaaS
Founded20082011

Identical on both: starting price (Free), pricing model (Unknown), free tier (Yes), platforms (Web, iOS, Android), user rating (Not yet rated).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Asana

  • Multiple project views
  • Task dependencies
  • Milestones
  • Portfolios
  • Goals & OKRs
  • Workflow automation
  • Resource management
  • Reporting dashboards

Only in Intercom

  • AI-powered inbox
  • Live chat
  • Chatbots
  • Help center
  • Product tours
  • Customer data platform
  • Automation
  • Mobile SDKs

Both cover

  • Slack
  • Salesforce
  • SOC2
  • GDPR

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Asana

  • Project planning & trackingnot Intercom
  • Campaign managementnot Intercom
  • Product launchesnot Intercom
  • Event planningnot Intercom
  • Agile & Scrum managementnot Intercom

Intercom

  • Customer supportnot Asana
  • Lead generationnot Asana
  • User onboardingnot Asana
  • Product adoptionnot Asana
  • Customer engagementnot Asana

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Asana

  • The free Personal tier is capped at 2 users, so it does not cover a small team
  • Timeline and Gantt views, reporting dashboards and time tracking all require Starter at $10.99 per user per month
  • Portfolios, goals, workload management and approvals need Advanced at $24.99 per user per month
  • Salesforce, Tableau and Power BI integrations are Advanced or above
  • Monthly billing costs more, at $13.49 and $30.49 against the annual rates

Intercom

  • Pricing is high and unpredictable with confusing per-seat, per-feature, and usage-based structure that makes cost estimation difficult
  • API rate limited to 1,000 calls per minute, which may constrain integrations for high-volume data users
  • Does not support multiple language versions of knowledge base articles, requiring creation of duplicate articles for each language

Pricing, plan by plan

Asana

Free

No published plan breakdown. See the Asana review.

Intercom

Free
  • Essential$29/month
    • Fin AI Agent
    • Messenger
    • Shared inbox
  • Advanced$85/month
    • Multiple team inboxes
    • Workflow automation
    • Round robin assignment
  • Expert$132/month
    • SSO
    • HIPAA support
    • SLAs

Which should you pick?

Choose Asana if

  • You need multiple project views.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want task dependencies.
Asana review

Choose Intercom if

  • You need ai-powered inbox.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want live chat.
Intercom review

Questions people ask

Is Asana or Intercom better?
Neither clearly leads. Asana starts at Free and Intercom at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Asana or Intercom?
Asana starts at Free and Intercom at Free.
Does Asana or Intercom run on more platforms?
Both run on Web, iOS, Android, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
Can I use Asana for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Asana best used for?
Asana is most often used for project planning & tracking, campaign management, product launches, event planning. Of those, project planning & tracking and campaign management are not what Intercom is typically brought in for.
What can Asana do that Intercom cannot?
Asana covers Multiple project views, Task dependencies, Milestones, Portfolios. Intercom covers AI-powered inbox, Live chat, Chatbots, Help center. Both handle Slack, Salesforce, SOC2, GDPR.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Asana: Does Asana have a free tier?

Yes. Asana offers a free Personal plan for up to 2 users, plus free trial access to paid plans.

Source
Intercom: Is there a free tier and what are the limitations?

Intercom offers a 14-day free trial with no credit card required and access to all features and add-ons. After trial, Essential plan starts at $29/seat/month. Free Lite seats are available on paid plans: 20 with Advanced, 50 with Expert.

Source
Asana: What is the starting price for Asana paid plans?

Asana Starter plan begins at $10.99 per user per month when billed annually, or $13.49 per user when billed monthly.

Source
Intercom: Does Intercom support single sign-on (SSO)?

Yes, Intercom supports SAML SSO with identity provider integration, but it is only available on the Expert plan ($132+/seat/month). SSO also works with Intercom's mobile apps on iOS and Android.

Source
Asana: Does Asana integrate with other work tools?

Yes. Asana offers 200+ integrations including Slack, Google Workspace, Microsoft Teams, Salesforce, Jira, and Zoom.

Source
Intercom: Can I export my data from Intercom?

Yes. You can export conversations in CSV format via the Data Export feature in Reports, apply filters to refine exports, and use the REST API to programmatically access conversation and customer data.

Source
Intercom: What would a team of 10 cost on Intercom?

Minimum cost would be $290/month for 10 Essential seats at $29/seat/month. Advanced plan costs $850/month for 10 seats. Prices increase with additional add-ons like Fin AI ($0.99 per resolution), SMS, WhatsApp, or email campaigns.

Source
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Related pages

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