Technology · head to head
Asana vs Postgres
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; Postgres each major version is supported for only 5 years after its initial release, after which it is end-of-life
- They diverge on capability: Asana covers Multiple project views, Postgres covers ACID compliance.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Asana and Postgres actually diverge.
Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Technology).
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 Postgres
- ACID compliance
- Complex queries
- Foreign keys
- Triggers
- Views
- Stored procedures
- JSON/JSONB support
- Full-text search
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Asana
- Project planning & trackingnot Postgres
- Campaign managementnot Postgres
- Product launchesnot Postgres
- Event planningnot Postgres
- Agile & Scrum managementnot Postgres
Postgres
- Running a general purpose relational database for applicationsnot Asana
- Self-hosting an open source SQL database with no licence feenot Asana
- Workloads needing extensions, JSON and full text search in one enginenot 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
Postgres
- Each major version is supported for only 5 years after its initial release, after which it is end-of-life
- Major version upgrades break on-disk compatibility and require a full dump and reload or the pg_upgrade tool
- New major versions ship about once a year, so staying supported means a disruptive upgrade cycle
- Minor releases contain only frequently-encountered bug fixes, low-risk fixes, security issues and data corruption fixes, so feature gaps are not addressed within a major version
- There is no vendor SLA; commercial support must be bought separately from third party professional services listed by the project
Pricing, plan by plan
Asana
FreeNo published plan breakdown. See the Asana review.
Postgres
Free- Community EditionFree
- Full database features
- No limitations
- Community support
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.
Choose Postgres if
- You need acid compliance.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Linux, Windows, Macos, Docker.
- You also want complex queries.
Questions people ask
- Is Asana or Postgres better?
- Neither clearly leads. Asana starts at Free and Postgres at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Asana or Postgres?
- Asana starts at Free and Postgres at Free.
- Does Asana or Postgres run on more platforms?
- Asana runs on Web, iOS, Android. Postgres runs on Linux, Windows, Macos, Docker.
- 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 Postgres is typically brought in for.
- What can Asana do that Postgres cannot?
- Asana covers Multiple project views, Task dependencies, Milestones, Portfolios. Postgres covers ACID compliance, Complex queries, Foreign keys, Triggers.
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.
SourceAsana: 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.
SourceAsana: Does Asana integrate with other work tools?
Yes. Asana offers 200+ integrations including Slack, Google Workspace, Microsoft Teams, Salesforce, Jira, and Zoom.
Source