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Technology · head to head

Plane vs Tilt

Plane logo

Plane

Technology

Open-source project management tool

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Tilt logo

Tilt

Developer Tools

Local Kubernetes development loop that rebuilds and live-updates containers on save

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Plane self-hosted Community edition requires managing your own Docker/Kubernetes infra plus your own PostgreSQL, Redis, and S3-compatible/GCS/MinIO storage; no single-binary install; Tilt docker acquired Tilt in 2022 and the team now splits its time across Compose and Docker Desktop, so feature velocity is modest and the product's long-term priority inside Docker is not guaranteed; treat it as a stable utility, not a growing platform.
  • They diverge on capability: Plane covers Issue tracking, Tilt covers Live update.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Plane and Tilt actually diverge.

Attributes where Plane and Tilt differ
AttributePlaneTilt
Pricing modelfreemiumOpen source, no licence fee
PlatformsWeb, iOS, Android, macOS, WindowsLinux, macOS, Windows
CategoryTechnologyDeveloper Tools
Founded2022Unknown

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 Plane

  • Issue tracking
  • Cycles (Sprints)
  • Modules
  • Views & layouts
  • Pages (Docs)
  • Analytics
  • API access
  • Webhooks

Only in Tilt

  • Live update
  • Tiltfile as code
  • Unified web UI
  • Selective rebuilds
  • Local and remote clusters
  • Resource dependencies
  • Extensions registry
  • Custom buttons and triggers

What people use each for

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

Plane

  • Project and task management with cycles, modules, epics, and initiativesnot Tilt
  • Documentation and knowledge management via workspace wiki tied to project worknot Tilt
  • Sprint planning and issue triagenot Tilt
  • Cross-functional collaboration with analytics and dashboardsnot Tilt
  • Migration target from Jira, Linear, Monday, ClickUp, or Asananot Tilt

Tilt

  • A team of ten or more engineers whose application is fifteen microservices on Kubernetes and who currently wait on CI to test a changenot Plane
  • An organisation onboarding new developers who want a single command that stands up the whole stack from a committed Tiltfilenot Plane
  • A platform team giving product engineers a consistent local environment against a shared remote development clusternot Plane
  • A codebase where one repository contains several services and rebuilding all of them on every edit is the main source of lost timenot Plane

Where each one falls short

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

Plane

  • Self-hosted Community edition requires managing your own Docker/Kubernetes infra plus your own PostgreSQL, Redis, and S3-compatible/GCS/MinIO storage; no single-binary install
  • Cloud Free tier caps at 12 users and 500 AI credits per seat per month
  • Substantial feature gating by tier: custom work item types, workspace wiki, time tracking, dashboards, initiatives, teamspaces, and integrations require Pro or above; LDAP, granular access control, and multi-workflow approvals require Enterprise Grid
  • Guest-to-paid-member ratio capped at 1:5 on the Pro plan

Tilt

  • Docker acquired Tilt in 2022 and the team now splits its time across Compose and Docker Desktop, so feature velocity is modest and the product's long-term priority inside Docker is not guaranteed; treat it as a stable utility, not a growing platform.
  • The Tiltfile is Starlark, a Python dialect, so non-trivial setups become real programs that need reviewing and maintaining, and the person who wrote yours becomes a single point of failure.
  • Live update only works when the running container can accept synced files and restart the process; compiled languages, distroless images and read-only filesystems often force you back to a full image rebuild, which removes the main benefit.
  • It assumes Kubernetes. If your development target is plain Docker Compose or serverless functions, Tilt adds a cluster you did not need and a layer of abstraction with no payoff.
  • There is no commercial support contract, no SLA and no paid tier, so when a Kubernetes version upgrade breaks something you are dependent on GitHub issues and a Slack channel rather than a vendor you can escalate to.

Pricing, plan by plan

Plane

Free
  • FreeFree
    • 500 AI credits per seat
    • Max 12 users
    • Unlimited projects
  • Pro$6/seat per month
    • 1,000 AI credits per seat
    • Unlimited users
    • Custom work item types
  • Business$13/seat per month
    • 2,000 AI credits per seat
    • Unlimited users
    • Project templates, recurring work items
  • Enterprise Grid$null/mo
    • Flexible AI credit allocation
    • Private deployments
    • Granular access control

Tilt

Free
  • TiltFree
    • Apache 2.0 licensed
    • All features, no paid tier
    • Community support via the Kubernetes Slack #tilt channel

Which should you pick?

Choose Plane if

  • You need issue tracking.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android, macOS, Windows.
  • You also want cycles (sprints).
Plane review

Choose Tilt if

  • You need live update.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, macOS, Windows.
  • You also want tiltfile as code.
Tilt review

Questions people ask

Is Plane or Tilt better?
Neither clearly leads. Plane starts at Free and Tilt at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Plane or Tilt?
Plane starts at Free and Tilt at Free.
Does Plane or Tilt run on more platforms?
Plane runs on Web, iOS, Android, macOS, Windows. Tilt runs on Linux, macOS, Windows.
Can I use Plane for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Plane best used for?
Plane is most often used for project and task management with cycles, modules, epics, and initiatives, documentation and knowledge management via workspace wiki tied to project work, sprint planning and issue triage, cross-functional collaboration with analytics and dashboards. Of those, project and task management with cycles, modules, epics, and initiatives and documentation and knowledge management via workspace wiki tied to project work are not what Tilt is typically brought in for.
What can Plane do that Tilt cannot?
Plane covers Issue tracking, Cycles (Sprints), Modules, Views & layouts. Tilt covers Live update, Tiltfile as code, Unified web UI, Selective rebuilds.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Plane: Does Plane offer a free plan?

Yes, Plane's free tier includes 500 AI credits per seat, support for up to 12 users, and access to projects, work items, cycles, modules, layouts, views, estimates, and pages.

Source
Tilt: Is Tilt free?

Yes, entirely. It is Apache 2.0 open source with no paid tier and no licence fee.

Plane: How much does Plane Pro cost?

Plane Pro costs $6/seat per month and saves 25% when billed annually. It includes 1,000 AI credits per seat, unlimited users, and access to custom work item types, wiki, time tracking, and integrations.

Source
Tilt: Who owns Tilt now?

Docker, which acquired it in May 2022. It remains open source and the repository is still actively maintained.

Plane: What is the difference between Plane's paid tiers?

Pro ($6/seat/month) includes 1,000 AI credits and workspace wiki. Business ($13/seat/month) adds 2,000 AI credits, project templates, and recurring work items. Enterprise Grid offers custom pricing with multiple workflows and LDAP support.

Source
Tilt: Do I need a remote cluster?

No. It works against a local cluster such as kind, minikube or Docker Desktop, and also against a shared remote development cluster if your services are too heavy to run locally.

Tilt: How is it different from Skaffold?

Both automate the build-deploy loop. Tilt puts more weight on the live-update path and a multi-service dashboard; Skaffold is more configuration-driven and closer to Google's tooling.

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