12 Best ActiveCollab Alternatives in 2026

ActiveCollab is a project management tool with built-in time tracking and invoicing, popular among creative agencies and freelancers. It offers task lists, Kanban boards, Gantt charts, team collaboration, and client access. The Pro+ plan adds integrated invoicing, project budgeting, and workload management. But teams looking for ActiveCollab alternatives often hit limits: the platform has no CRM, no proposals or contracts module, and a basic client portal. At $11/member/month (Pro) or $17/member/month (Pro+ with invoicing), costs add up quickly as teams grow. For agencies that need to manage the full client lifecycle — from lead to signed contract to delivered project to paid invoice — ActiveCollab leaves gaps that require additional tools.

If you need more than project management and time tracking — CRM, invoicing, proposals, contracts, or a full client portal — here are 12 ActiveCollab alternatives worth considering in 2026.

Why Teams Switch From ActiveCollab

• No CRM — ActiveCollab lacks sales pipelines, deal tracking, or contact management. You need a separate tool for sales and client acquisition.
• Limited proposals and contracts — There is no built-in proposal builder or contract creation. Teams must use external tools for client onboarding.
• Basic client portal — Client access exists but is limited compared to dedicated portals with branded experiences, document approval, and payment flows.
• Per-seat pricing adds up — At $11–17 per user per month, a 10-person team pays $110–170/month for project management alone.
• Invoicing only on Pro+ — Invoicing and payment processing require the higher Pro+ tier.

1. Agiled — Best All-in-One ActiveCollab Alternative

Agiled is the most complete ActiveCollab alternative because it combines project management with CRM, invoicing, contracts, client portals, HR, and automation in a single platform.

ActiveCollab handles projects and time tracking well, but everything around those projects — client acquisition, proposals, invoicing, contracts, client collaboration — requires separate tools. Agiled eliminates that fragmentation. You get a unified workspace where clients move from lead to signed contract to active project to paid invoice without leaving the platform.

For agencies and service businesses, the gap between ActiveCollab and Agiled is most visible in the sales-to-delivery flow. With ActiveCollab, you track time and manage tasks, but you still need a separate CRM to nurture leads, another tool for proposals and contracts, and a third for invoicing. Agiled brings all of this together. When a deal closes in CRM, you can send a proposal from Documents, convert the signed contract into a project in Projects, track time against it, and generate an invoice from Finance — all without switching apps. The client portal gives clients a single place to view progress, approve deliverables, and pay invoices.

What makes Agiled the top pick:

• Project management — Kanban boards, Gantt charts, task dependencies, milestones, project templates, and burn-down charts
• Time tracking — Built-in timer that converts tracked hours into billable invoices automatically
• CRM — Visual pipelines, contact management, deal tracking, and activity timelines via CRM
• Invoicing & finance — Professional invoices, estimates, recurring billing, expense tracking, and financial reports
• Proposals & contracts — Create, customize, and e-sign documents with reusable templates
• Client portal — Branded portal where clients view project progress, approve deliverables, and make payments
• HR & payroll — Employee management, attendance, leave tracking, and payroll
• Workflow automation — Visual builder with triggers, conditions, and actions
• AI agents — Draft proposals, emails, and reports with context-aware AI

Agiled offers a free plan to get started, with paid tiers that scale as your team grows. For teams that have outgrown ActiveCollab's project-only focus, Agiled is the most straightforward upgrade path.

Start Free Now

2. Monday.com — Best for Visual Workflows

Monday.com offers intuitive visual boards with AI-powered automation, making it easy for non-technical teams to manage projects. Its colorful, customizable interface appeals to teams that prefer visual workflows over traditional lists and Gantt charts.

Key features:

• Customizable visual boards and dashboards
• AI features for task automation and data extraction
• 200+ templates for different workflows
• Time tracking and workload management
• Integrations with 40+ tools

Limitations: Per-seat pricing scales steeply. CRM is a separate product, which adds cost and complexity when you need both project management and sales tracking.

Pricing: Free for up to 2 users. Basic at $12/seat/month. Standard at $14/seat/month.

3. ClickUp — Best for Feature Density

ClickUp is one of the most feature-packed project management platforms, with 15+ views, built-in docs, whiteboards, and deep customization. It appeals to teams that want maximum flexibility and are willing to invest time in configuration.

Key features:

• 15+ views including List, Board, Gantt, Timeline, and Mind Maps
• Built-in docs, whiteboards, and chat
• Custom fields, statuses, and automations
• Time tracking and goal setting
• CRM templates for deal tracking

Limitations: Can feel overwhelming due to feature density. Performance can slow on large workspaces. No native invoicing — you must integrate with external tools.

Pricing: Free plan available. Unlimited at $10/member/month. Business at $19/member/month.

4. Teamwork — Best for Client-Facing Agencies

Teamwork is built for agencies and client services teams with strong project management, time tracking, and billing features. It is one of the closest ActiveCollab alternatives in terms of agency focus and workflow.

Key features:

• Project templates and milestone tracking
• Profitability tracking per client and project
• Built-in time tracking and invoicing
• Client user access for transparency
• Resource workload management

Limitations: No built-in CRM or HR management. Teamwork CRM is a separate subscription, so you may need multiple products for a full agency stack.

Pricing: Free for up to 5 users. Deliver at $13.99/user/month. Grow at $25.99/user/month.

5. Asana — Best for Clean Task Management

Asana is a well-designed project management tool known for its clean interface and structured workflow management. It is popular with marketing and operations teams that prioritize clarity over feature density.

Key features:

• Lists, boards, timelines, and calendar views
• Custom rules for automating task workflows
• Goals and milestones for progress tracking
• Portfolio view for managing multiple projects
• 260+ integrations

Limitations: No CRM, invoicing, or time tracking built in.

Pricing: Free for up to 15 users. Starter at $13.49/user/month. Advanced at $30.49/user/month.

6. Wrike — Best for Enterprise Teams

Wrike is an enterprise-grade project management platform with advanced reporting, resource management, and cross-departmental collaboration. It suits larger organizations with complex approval workflows and multi-department visibility needs.

Key features:

• Custom workflows and request forms
• Real-time Gantt charts and workload management
• Time tracking and budget calculation
• Proofing and approval workflows
• Cross-tagging for multi-department visibility

Limitations: Complex interface with a steep learning curve. Many features gated behind higher plans.

Pricing: Free plan available. Team at $10/user/month. Business at $24.80/user/month.

7. Basecamp — Best for Simplicity

Basecamp takes a deliberate less-is-more approach to project management, focusing on communication and organization over feature complexity. It is the opposite of ActiveCollab's feature-rich approach — ideal for teams that want minimal configuration.

Key features:

• Message boards and group chat per project
• To-do lists with assignments and deadlines
• File storage and document sharing
• Schedule and milestone tracking
• Automatic check-ins for async updates

Limitations: No Gantt charts, time tracking, or advanced task dependencies. No CRM or invoicing.

Pricing: $15/user/month. Flat-rate Pro Unlimited plan at $349/month for unlimited users.

8. Plutio — Best for Solopreneurs and Small Teams

Plutio connects proposals, contracts, project management, and invoicing in one platform, with a client portal that auto-converts signed documents into projects. It fills the gap that ActiveCollab leaves for proposals and contracts.

Key features:

• Proposals and contracts that convert to projects when signed
• Time tracking with billable rates
• Client portal with project progress views
• Task management with boards and lists
• Integrated invoicing and payment processing

Limitations: Limited HR and team management. Brand customization is less extensive than all-in-one platforms.

Pricing: Starts at $19/month for solo users. Team plans from $39/month.

9. Paymo — Best for Time-Billing Teams

Paymo combines project management with time tracking and invoicing, making it ideal for agencies and freelancers who bill by the hour. It is one of the closest ActiveCollab alternatives in terms of time-to-invoice workflow.

Key features:

• Task management with Kanban and Gantt views
• Automatic and manual time tracking
• Client invoicing from tracked time
• Resource scheduling and workload management
• Project budgeting and profitability reports

Limitations: Smaller user base and fewer integrations than major competitors. No CRM.

Pricing: Free plan available. Starter at $5.9/user/month. Business at $10.9/user/month.

10. Scoro — Best for Professional Services

Scoro is a work management platform built for professional services firms, combining project management, CRM, billing, and reporting in one system. It is a step up from ActiveCollab for agencies that need deeper financial and resource planning.

Key features:

• Project budgeting and profitability tracking
• CRM with sales pipeline and quoting
• Time tracking and resource planning
• Automated invoicing and financial reports
• Customizable dashboards

Limitations: Pricing is steep at $26/user/month minimum. Less suited for non-service businesses.

Pricing: Core at $20/user/month. Growth at $33/user/month. Performance at $50/user/month. 5-seat minimum.

11. Notion — Best for Documentation + Projects

Notion is an all-in-one workspace that combines docs, wikis, databases, and project management, popular with startups and creative teams. It excels at documentation and knowledge management, with project tracking as a secondary use case.

Key features:

• Flexible databases for task and project tracking
• Built-in wikis and documentation
• Templates for every workflow
• AI-powered writing and summaries
• Real-time collaboration

Limitations: Not purpose-built for PM — lacks Gantt charts, resource management, and time tracking.

Pricing: Free plan available. Plus at $12/seat/month. Business at $18/seat/month.

12. Smartsheet — Best for Spreadsheet Users

Smartsheet offers a familiar spreadsheet interface for project management, making it easy for teams already comfortable with Excel to transition. It suits organizations that prefer grid-based views over Kanban or Gantt charts.

Key features:

• Spreadsheet-style project tracking
• Gantt charts and card views
• Automated workflows and alerts
• Resource management dashboards
• Enterprise-grade security and governance

Limitations: Interface can feel less modern than dedicated PM tools. Pricing is higher for small teams.

Pricing: Pro at $12/user/month. Business at $24/user/month. Enterprise pricing on request.

Quick Comparison: ActiveCollab Alternatives

Platform	Task Mgmt	Gantt	Time Tracking	CRM	Invoicing	Starting Price
Agiled	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Free
Monday.com	Yes	Yes	Yes	Add-on	No	Free
ClickUp	Yes	Yes	Yes	Template	No	Free
Teamwork	Yes	Yes	Yes	Add-on	Yes	Free
Asana	Yes	Yes	No	No	No	Free
Wrike	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	No	Free
Basecamp	Yes	No	No	No	No	$15/user
Plutio	Yes	Yes	Yes	Basic	Yes	$19/mo
Paymo	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	Free
Scoro	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	$20/user

How to Choose the Right ActiveCollab Alternative

The best alternative depends on what drove you away from ActiveCollab:

If you need...	Best pick
One platform for CRM, projects, invoicing, proposals, and client portal	Agiled
Visual project management with minimal setup	Monday.com
Maximum flexibility and feature density	ClickUp
Agency-focused profitability tracking	Teamwork
Simple project communication	Basecamp
Proposals and contracts alongside projects	Plutio
Time-to-invoice for hourly billing	Paymo
Professional services and resource planning	Scoro

What Is the Best ActiveCollab Alternative in 2026?

Agiled is the best overall ActiveCollab alternative because it delivers everything ActiveCollab does for project management and time tracking — plus CRM, invoicing, proposals, contracts, client portals, HR, and automation. For teams that need more than task tracking and time-to-billing, Agiled eliminates the need to juggle multiple tools. ActiveCollab excels at agencies that only need project management; Agiled serves agencies that want the full business lifecycle in one place.

If you prioritize project management and time tracking only, Teamwork and Paymo are strong alternatives with similar agency-focused features. For a visual, modern interface, Monday.com and ClickUp shine. For professional services firms with complex billing and resource planning, Scoro is worth consideration. But for a true all-in-one replacement that covers sales, delivery, and finance, Agiled is the most straightforward choice.

Start Free Now

Frequently Asked Questions

How much does ActiveCollab cost?

ActiveCollab charges $11/user/month (Pro) or $17/user/month (Pro+ with invoicing), with annual discounts available. The Plus plan starts at $15/month for up to 3 members. For a 10-person team, expect $110–170/month depending on whether you need invoicing. The Pro+ tier is required for integrated invoicing and payment processing.

Which ActiveCollab alternative is best for agencies?

Agiled and Teamwork are the best options for agencies. Agiled offers the most complete package with CRM, invoicing, proposals, contracts, and client portals alongside project management. Teamwork excels at profitability tracking per client and project. Both support time tracking and invoicing, but Agiled adds CRM and document workflows without extra subscriptions.

Does ActiveCollab have CRM?

No. ActiveCollab is focused on project management and time tracking. It does not include CRM, sales pipelines, or deal tracking. For CRM, you need a separate tool or an all-in-one alternative like Agiled.

Can I migrate from ActiveCollab to another tool?

Most alternatives support CSV import for tasks, projects, and team data. Check each platform's migration documentation for specific instructions. Agiled and other tools typically accept exported project and task data from ActiveCollab. Time entries and client information can usually be exported and imported with minimal manual work.

This guide compared 12 ActiveCollab alternatives by features, pricing, and use case. Whether you need CRM, invoicing, proposals, or a full client portal, there is an option that fits. For most teams seeking an all-in-one upgrade, Agiled offers the best balance of capability and usability. Start with a free plan to evaluate the platform before committing.

For more useful information, browse the resources guide today!

Related Articles:

• Best Scoro Alternatives
• Best Bitrix24 Alternatives
• Best Plutio Alternatives
• Best SuiteDash Alternatives