Softwr

Technology · head to head

Linear vs Restate

Linear logo

Linear

Technology

The issue tracking tool you'll enjoy using

From
Free
Free plan
Yes
Full reviewWebsite
Restate logo

Restate

Developer Tools

Durable execution engine in Rust with a free tier and low-latency workflows

From
Free
Free plan
Yes
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Linear no task-level Gantt chart; Timeline view is available for projects only, not individual issues; Restate the runtime is under a Business Source Licence rather than an open source licence, so building a competing managed offering on it is prohibited and some procurement functions will reject it on licence grounds alone.
  • They diverge on capability: Linear covers Fast, real-time sync, Restate covers Durable execution.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Linear and Restate actually diverge.

Attributes where Linear and Restate differ
AttributeLinearRestate
Pricing modelUnknownPer month by durable action count
PlatformsWeb, iOS, Android, macOS, WindowsLinux, macOS, Web
CategoryTechnologyDeveloper Tools
Founded2019Unknown

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), 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 Linear

  • Fast, real-time sync
  • Keyboard-first design
  • Automatic issue tracking
  • Cycles (sprints)
  • Projects & milestones
  • Custom workflows
  • API & webhooks
  • Built-in roadmaps

Only in Restate

  • Durable execution
  • Virtual objects
  • Single binary runtime
  • Multi-language SDKs
  • Workflows and sagas
  • Restate Cloud

What people use each for

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

Linear

  • Issue management and triage, converting customer feedback into prioritized issuesnot Restate
  • Strategic planning via initiatives, roadmaps, and PRDs from idea to launchnot Restate
  • Agent-assisted development, with agents drafting docs and submitting pull requestsnot Restate
  • Code review with structural diffs for human and agent outputnot Restate
  • Progress monitoring via dashboards tracking cycle times and project healthnot Restate

Restate

  • Payment or order flows where a crash between two external API calls must not double-charge or lose the ordernot Linear
  • AI agent loops that call tools over minutes or hours and must survive a deployment mid-runnot Linear
  • Replacing hand-rolled retry, idempotency key and outbox code across a set of microservicesnot Linear
  • A small team that wants durable workflows without operating a Temporal cluster and its databasenot Linear

Where each one falls short

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

Linear

  • No task-level Gantt chart; Timeline view is available for projects only, not individual issues
  • No native time-tracking or hour-logging feature
  • No native Linux desktop app; official FAQ states it 'may come in the future but it's not on the roadmap for now'
  • Free tier capped at 250 issues and 2 teams

Restate

  • The runtime is under a Business Source Licence rather than an open source licence, so building a competing managed offering on it is prohibited and some procurement functions will reject it on licence grounds alone.
  • Restate Cloud jumps from a free fifty thousand actions straight to 300 US dollars a month for twenty million, so a workload sitting at a few hundred thousand actions pays enterprise-shaped money for hobby-shaped volume.
  • It is a young project against Temporal’s established base, so hiring engineers who already know it is unrealistic and the answer to most questions is in the docs rather than on Stack Overflow.
  • The programming model requires structuring code around durable handlers and virtual objects, which is a genuine rewrite for existing services rather than a library you add.
  • The single-binary simplicity that makes small deployments cheap also means fewer operational knobs at very large scale than a system designed as separable components.

Pricing, plan by plan

Linear

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Unlimited members
    • 2 teams
    • 250 issues
  • Basic$10/month
    • 5 teams
    • Unlimited issues
    • Unlimited file uploads
  • Business$16/month
    • Unlimited teams
    • Private teams/guests
    • Triage Intelligence
  • Enterprise$undefined/month
    • SAML/SCIM
    • Granular admin controls
    • Invoice/PO billing

Restate

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Fifty thousand durable actions per month
    • No credit card required
    • Community support
  • Starter$300/month
    • Twenty million actions per month
    • Two hundred actions per second, bursting to one thousand
    • Twenty GB storage
  • Pro$1000/month
    • Fifty million actions per month
    • Five hundred actions per second, bursting to two thousand
    • Fifty GB storage
  • Enterprise$undefined/year
    • Negotiated volume
    • Twenty-four seven P0 support
    • 99.99 per cent SLA

Which should you pick?

Choose Linear if

  • You need fast, real-time sync.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android, macOS, Windows.
  • You also want keyboard-first design.
Linear review

Choose Restate if

  • You need durable execution.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, macOS, Web.
  • You also want virtual objects.
Restate review

Questions people ask

Is Linear or Restate better?
Neither clearly leads. Linear starts at Free and Restate at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Linear or Restate?
Linear starts at Free and Restate at Free.
Does Linear or Restate run on more platforms?
Linear runs on Web, iOS, Android, macOS, Windows. Restate runs on Linux, macOS, Web.
Can I use Linear for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Linear best used for?
Linear is most often used for issue management and triage, converting customer feedback into prioritized issues, strategic planning via initiatives, roadmaps, and prds from idea to launch, agent-assisted development, with agents drafting docs and submitting pull requests, code review with structural diffs for human and agent output. Of those, issue management and triage, converting customer feedback into prioritized issues and strategic planning via initiatives, roadmaps, and prds from idea to launch are not what Restate is typically brought in for.
What can Linear do that Restate cannot?
Linear covers Fast, real-time sync, Keyboard-first design, Automatic issue tracking, Cycles (sprints). Restate covers Durable execution, Virtual objects, Single binary runtime, Multi-language SDKs.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Linear: How much does Linear cost?

Linear has a free tier supporting 2 teams and 250 issues. Paid plans start at $10 per user per month for Basic and $16 per user per month for Business. Annual billing is required for paid tiers.

Source
Restate: Is Restate open source?

The SDKs are MIT. The runtime is under a Business Source Licence, which permits self-hosting but not offering it as a competing service.

Linear: What are the file upload limits on Linear?

The free tier is restricted to 10MB file uploads per team. Paid plans offer unlimited file uploads.

Source
Restate: How does it compare with Temporal?

Same problem, different shape: one Rust binary with embedded storage instead of a server plus database plus workers, and lower per-step latency.

Linear: Does Linear offer an Enterprise plan?

Yes, Linear offers an Enterprise tier with custom pricing, annual billing required, SAML and SCIM support, granular admin controls, and priority support.

Source
Restate: Is there a free tier?

Yes, fifty thousand durable actions a month on Restate Cloud with no card required.

Restate: Which languages are supported?

TypeScript, Java, Kotlin, Go, Python and Rust.

Share

Related pages

More on Linear

More on Restate

Keep looking

Other head to heads