Smartsheet Alternatives for Small Business: Why Teams Choose Updoot
If you are searching for Smartsheet alternatives, price is usually the first thing that stands out. Smartsheet dropped its free plan in 2025, so there's no longer a way to try it without paying, and its per-user pricing climbs quickly once a team needs Business-tier features like automation or timeline views. On top of that, Smartsheet is a spreadsheet-first tool: powerful for people who think in rows and columns, but it still has nothing for time tracking, payroll, or HR.
This guide covers why teams move off Smartsheet, how the leading alternatives compare, and why small businesses increasingly land on Updoot instead of paying Smartsheet Business prices for a tool that still needs a payroll system bolted on.
Quick Answer
Smartsheet is a spreadsheet-style project and work management tool with no free plan and no built-in time tracking, payroll, invoicing, or HR. Updoot is a flat $5 per user per month, cheaper than Smartsheet's entry Pro tier, and includes project boards, time tracking, payroll, budgeting, SOPs, and performance reviews in one login.
Key Takeaways
- Smartsheet discontinued its free plan in 2025; only a 30-day trial remains.
- Smartsheet pricing: Pro $9/user/mo (annual), Business $19/user/mo (annual, 3-user minimum), Enterprise custom.
- Premium apps (Dynamic View, Control Center, WorkApps) are priced separately and can add 20-50% to total contract value.
- Smartsheet has no native time tracking, payroll, invoicing, or HR features at any tier.
- Updoot is a flat $5/user/month, cheaper than Smartsheet Pro, and includes operations tools Smartsheet doesn't offer at any price.
Table of Contents
Why Small Businesses Look for Smartsheet Alternatives
Smartsheet is built around a spreadsheet metaphor, which makes it powerful for people who already think in rows, columns, and formulas, but it also means the interface can feel dense for teams that just want to see what's due this week. Since losing its free plan, there's no lightweight way to test it out, and the jump from Pro to Business (roughly double the per-seat cost) is where most of the features small businesses actually want, timeline view, unlimited automation, workload tracking, live.
Beyond pricing, Smartsheet is a work-tracking tool, not an operations platform. Time tracking, payroll, invoicing, and HR are not part of the product, so a business using Smartsheet for projects is still assembling separate tools for the rest of running the company.
Common Complaints About Smartsheet
No free plan since 2025
Smartsheet discontinued its limited free tier, leaving only a 30-day trial. Teams that want to keep using a lightweight version of the tool long-term no longer have that option.
The real features are behind Business, at double the price
Timeline view, unlimited automation, and workload tracking all require the Business tier at roughly $19/user/month, more than double Pro's $9/user/month, with a 3-user minimum on Business.
Premium apps add up fast
Dynamic View, Control Center, DataMesh, and WorkApps are priced separately from the base plan and can add 20 to 50 percent to total contract value once a team relies on them.
Smartsheet vs Updoot: Feature Comparison
| Feature | Smartsheet | Updoot |
|---|---|---|
| Spreadsheet-style project view | Yes, core to the product | Board and list views |
| Free plan | No, 30-day trial only | Free trial available |
| Time tracking | Not offered | Built in |
| Payroll | Not offered | Built in |
| Invoicing | Not offered | Built in |
| HR / performance reviews | Not offered | Built in |
| Budgeting | Not offered | Built in |
| Timeline / workload views | Business tier and up only | Included at every tier |
| Starting price | $9/user/mo (Pro, annual) | $5/user/mo flat |
Pricing Snapshot
As of mid-2026, Smartsheet has no permanent free plan, only a 30-day trial. Pro starts at $9 per user per month billed annually, Business is $19 per user per month billed annually with a 3-user minimum, and Enterprise is custom-priced. Premium apps like Dynamic View and WorkApps are priced separately and are not included in base seat pricing.
Updoot is a flat $5 per user per month, cheaper than Smartsheet's entry Pro tier, and that price includes project boards, time tracking, payroll, invoicing, SOPs, budgeting, and performance reviews with no premium apps to buy separately.
Other Smartsheet Alternatives Worth Knowing
Asana and monday.com offer more visual, less spreadsheet-heavy project views at similar or lower entry pricing. Airtable splits the difference between a spreadsheet and a database for teams that want more structure than a basic sheet. None of these add payroll, invoicing, or HR, which is the gap Updoot closes for a small business that wants one login instead of a project tool plus separate operations software.
How to Switch from Smartsheet to Updoot
1. Export your sheets
Smartsheet allows exporting individual sheets or reports to Excel or PDF. Export any actively used sheets before migrating so row data and attachments are preserved.
2. Rebuild sheets as Updoot projects
A Smartsheet project tracker maps to an Updoot project, with rows becoming tasks and columns becoming task fields, keeping the same underlying structure in a purpose-built project view.
3. Add time tracking and payroll for the same team
Once projects are rebuilt, turn on time tracking and payroll for the same users, no separate premium app purchase required since it's included in the base price.
Who Updoot Fits Best
Updoot fits small businesses that want project tracking without the spreadsheet-heavy interface and without paying extra for premium apps to get features like timeline views or automation. If a team is deeply attached to Smartsheet's grid interface and formulas, that specific workflow may not translate directly. Once a business needs time tracking, payroll, or HR alongside project work, Updoot replaces Smartsheet plus whatever premium apps and separate tools were going to be added next.
Skip the premium app upcharges
Updoot includes timeline views, automation, time tracking, payroll, and HR in one flat $5/user/month price.
Start Free TodayFrequently Asked Questions
For teams that want project tracking without Smartsheet's spreadsheet-heavy interface and premium app upcharges, Updoot is the closest fit. It includes timeline-style project views, time tracking, payroll, invoicing, and HR in a single flat $5-per-user price with no separate apps to buy.
Smartsheet discontinued its free plan in 2025, gates key features like timeline view and unlimited automation behind the pricier Business tier, and charges separately for premium apps like Dynamic View and WorkApps. It also has no time tracking, payroll, or HR, so businesses end up paying for Smartsheet plus other tools.
No. Smartsheet discontinued its limited free plan in 2025 and now only offers a 30-day free trial. Teams that want to keep using a no-cost version of the tool long-term no longer have that option and must move to a paid plan after the trial ends.
Smartsheet's Pro plan costs $9 per user per month billed annually, and Business costs $19 per user per month billed annually with a 3-user minimum. Updoot is a flat $5 per user per month, cheaper than Smartsheet's entry tier, and includes time tracking, payroll, invoicing, and HR that Smartsheet does not offer at any price.
Yes. Premium applications like Dynamic View, Control Center, DataMesh, and WorkApps are priced separately from Smartsheet's base plans and can add 20 to 50 percent to total contract cost for teams that rely on them, on top of the per-seat subscription price.