Productivity · head to head
Tana vs Trello
The short version
- Each has a real cost: Tana the free plan hosts only 5 meetings a month with AI transcripts and summaries; Trello free tier limited to 10 boards and 10 collaborators per workspace
- They diverge on capability: Tana covers Outliner interface, Trello covers Kanban boards.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Tana and Trello actually diverge.
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 Tana
- Outliner interface
- Supertags
- Live queries
- AI integration
- Graph views
- Email capture
- API
- Cloud deployment
Only in Trello
- Kanban boards
- Cards & lists
- Drag-and-drop interface
- Activity feed
- Due dates & reminders
- File attachments
- Comments & mentions
- Power-Ups ecosystem
Both cover
- Zapier
- SSO
- 2FA
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Tana
- Structured note taking with a graph based supertag data modelnot Trello
- Automatic meeting capture with AI transcripts and summariesnot Trello
- Turning notes into queryable structured databasesnot Trello
Trello
- Project trackingnot Tana
- Content calendarsnot Tana
- Sales pipelinesnot Tana
- Onboarding processesnot Tana
- Personal task managementnot Tana
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Tana
- The free plan hosts only 5 meetings a month with AI transcripts and summaries
- The free plan connects only 1 calendar and allows 50 AI queries
- Pro is $30 per user per month at standard price, with $20 shown as an early bird rate
- Max is $120 per user per month at standard price, with $80 shown as an early bird rate
- Integrations and full MCP require the Pro plan
- Dedicated support and onboarding, and unlimited agents, skills and types, require the Max plan
- The Business plan is custom priced, billed yearly and has no published rate
- The free trial runs 30 days
Trello
- Free tier limited to 10 boards and 10 collaborators per workspace
- Free tier automation capped at 250 monthly Butler runs
- No offline access; web-based platform requires internet connection
- Advanced views (timeline, table, dashboard) not available on Standard plan
- SSO only available on Enterprise plan
Pricing, plan by plan
Tana
Free- FreeFree
- Core features
- Supertags
- Searches
- Pro$10/month
- Advanced AI
- Priority support
- Extended history
Trello
Free- FreeFree
- Up to 10 boards/workspace
- Up to 10 collaborators
- 250 monthly Butler automation runs
- Standard$5/user/month
- Unlimited boards
- Unlimited Power-Ups
- 1,000 monthly Butler runs
- Premium$10/user/month
- All Standard features
- Timeline, table, dashboard, calendar views
- Unlimited automation
- Enterprise$17.5/user/month
- All Premium features
- Unlimited workspaces
- SSO and user provisioning
Which should you pick?
Choose Tana if
- You need outliner interface.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Web, Desktop.
- You also want supertags.
Choose Trello if
- You need kanban boards.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Web, Ios, Android, Windows, Macos.
- You also want cards & lists.
Questions people ask
- Is Tana or Trello better?
- Neither clearly leads. Tana starts at Free and Trello at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Tana or Trello?
- Tana starts at Free and Trello at Free.
- Does Tana or Trello run on more platforms?
- Tana runs on Web, Desktop. Trello runs on Web, Ios, Android, Windows, Macos.
- Can I use Tana for free?
- Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
- What is Tana best used for?
- Tana is most often used for structured note taking with a graph based supertag data model, automatic meeting capture with ai transcripts and summaries, turning notes into queryable structured databases. Of those, structured note taking with a graph based supertag data model and automatic meeting capture with ai transcripts and summaries are not what Trello is typically brought in for.
- What can Tana do that Trello cannot?
- Tana covers Outliner interface, Supertags, Live queries, AI integration. Trello covers Kanban boards, Cards & lists, Drag-and-drop interface, Activity feed. Both handle Zapier, SSO, 2FA.
Answered from the vendors’ own pages
Trello: What are the free tier limitations for Trello?
Trello Free supports up to 10 boards per workspace, unlimited cards, 250 monthly Butler automation runs, and up to 10 Power-Up attachments. Limited to 10 collaborators per workspace.
SourceTrello: What features are included in the Standard plan?
Standard ($5-6/user/month) adds unlimited boards, custom fields, advanced checklists, 1,000 monthly automation runs, list colors, and calendar view access.
SourceTrello: Does Trello offer SSO and on which plan?
SSO through Atlassian Guard is included only on the Enterprise plan ($17.50/user/month or $210/year per user).
SourceTrello: How many file attachment options are available?
Free tier includes 2 Power-Ups per board, Standard adds unlimited Power-Ups, and Premium and above offer full Power-Up marketplace access with custom integration options.
SourceTrello: Is there offline access to Trello boards?
Trello is a web-based application requiring internet connection. Mobile apps are available for iOS and Android but do not support true offline editing.
SourceRelated pages
Other head to heads
- Tana vs Todoist
- Tana vs Things 3
- Tana vs OmniFocus 3
- Tana vs Brain.fm
- Tana vs TickTick
- Tana vs Akiflow
- Tana vs Any.do
- Tana vs Focus@Will
- Tana vs Forest
- Tana vs Google Workspace
- Tana vs Hubstaff
- Tana vs Remember The Milk
- Tana vs Structured
- Tana vs Time Doctor
- Tana vs 7-Zip
- Tana vs Bear
- Tana vs Bear Notes
- Tana vs BoldSign
- Tana vs Basecamp
- Tana vs Clockwise
- Tana vs Reclaim.ai
- Tana vs Roadmunk
- Tana vs Toggl Plan
- Tana vs GanttPRO
- Tana vs MeisterTask
- Tana vs Sunsama
- Tana vs Craft Docs
- Tana vs Freedcamp
- Tana vs Hive
- Tana vs Kanbanize
- Tana vs LiquidPlanner
- Tana vs Nifty
- Tana vs Paymo
- Tana vs Pipefy
- Tana vs Podio
- Tana vs ProofHub
- Trello vs Todoist
- Trello vs Things 3
- Trello vs OmniFocus 3
- Trello vs Brain.fm
- Trello vs TickTick
- Trello vs Akiflow
- Trello vs Any.do
- Trello vs Focus@Will
- Trello vs Forest
- Trello vs Google Workspace
- Trello vs Hubstaff
- Trello vs Remember The Milk
- Trello vs Structured
- Trello vs Time Doctor
- Trello vs 7-Zip
- Trello vs Bear
- Trello vs Bear Notes
- Trello vs BoldSign
- Trello vs Basecamp
- Trello vs Clockwise
- Trello vs Reclaim.ai
- Trello vs Roadmunk
- Trello vs Toggl Plan
- Trello vs GanttPRO
- Trello vs MeisterTask
- Trello vs Sunsama
- Trello vs Craft Docs
- Trello vs Freedcamp
- Trello vs Hive
- Trello vs Kanbanize
- Trello vs LiquidPlanner
- Trello vs Nifty
- Trello vs Paymo
- Trello vs Pipefy
- Trello vs Podio
- Trello vs ProofHub


