Source-backed analysis13
Review basis
The AppDuo team prepared this review by analysing product features, official documentation and user feedback to help you understand its strengths, limitations and suitability for your needs.
13 reference sourcesInformation updated Nov 10, 2026
How we review
By AppDuo Editorial Team · Updated
- Web
- macOS
- Windows
- iOS
- Android
On this page
Decide at a glance
Our verdict
Linear suits software teams that want a focused tool for issues, projects and product planning, with AI agents for coding and review. The trade-offs are a Free plan capped at 250 issues, no published monthly prices, and AI agent usage billed through separate credits, which makes real cost harder to predict than the per-seat price.
Best for: Software teams that track issues, projects and roadmaps and connect to Slack and GitHub.
Skip it if: Teams outside software product work, or those needing a general-purpose work manager with many view types.
Pros
- High app ratings: 4.8/5 on the App Store (2.3K ratings) and 5.0/5 on Google Play (1.37K reviews).
- SOC 2 Type II and ISO/IEC 27001:2022, with HIPAA support on Enterprise.
- Frequent changelog entries; recent additions include Loops, Guided Reviews and Diffs on mobile.
Cons
- Free allows only 2 teams and 250 issues; Basic caps at 5 teams.
- The coding agent and Loops need AI credits on every plan; since August 2026 model usage is charged at provider rates plus a runtime fee.
All pros and cons · Who is it for?
Pros
- Discounts exist for students, universities, non-profits and startups.
Cons
- US-only hosting; Trustpilot shows 3.4/5 on just 12 reviews, a very small sample.
- No refund on mid-term cancellation, and the pricing page does not publish monthly prices.
Best for
- Teams that want to hand work to coding agents and review the changes in the same tool.
Experience & key features
What is Linear?
Linear is an issue-tracking and project management tool for product teams. Its about page says the company was founded in 2019 by Karri Saarinen, Jori Lallo and Tuomas Artman, works remotely across North America and Europe, and has more than 50,000 customer companies including OpenAI, Coinbase and Ramp. On 10 June 2025 Linear announced an 82 million USD Series C at a 1.25 billion USD valuation led by Accel, and described itself as high-growth and profitable.
Key features
The homepage now calls Linear a product development system for teams and agents. Per the changelog, Linear Agent can draft projects and edit documents and project descriptions; Loops react to changes in issues, cycles and projects and post updates to Slack; coding sessions let agents run code and test in a browser; Diffs and Guided Reviews support pull-request review, available on iOS and Android since 5 November 2026. Linear integrates with Slack, GitHub, a Figma MCP server, Cursor and GitHub Copilot.
Pricing and value
Per the pricing page, Free offers 2 teams and 250 issues; Basic is 10 USD and Business 16 USD per user per month billed yearly; Enterprise is quoted. The page shows only a $ sign without naming the currency and publishes no monthly prices. AI agent usage is billed separately: since August 2026 model usage is charged at provider rates plus a runtime fee, and admins get spend limits. The billing docs state mid-term cancellations are not refunded.
More analysis
Who it fits, and alternatives
Linear fits software teams that want a tight flow from issue to pull request. Teams needing a general-purpose tool for marketing and operations often consider Asana, ClickUp or monday.com, while Trello is lighter for simple Kanban boards. Plane is another option in the software project management space.
Screenshots
Plans & pricing
Prices last verified Nov 10, 2026
Free
Free
Unlimited members, up to 2 teams, 250 issues and 10 MB file uploads. Includes Linear Agent and Loops (AI credits required).
Basic
$10/mo/user
10 USD per user per month billed yearly. Up to 5 teams, unlimited issues and file uploads, admin roles, Guided Reviews and third-party app management.
Business
$16/mo/user
16 USD per user per month billed yearly. Unlimited teams, private teams and guests, Issue SLAs, Insights, Triage Intelligence, Code Intelligence, 15 release pipelines and Zendesk and Intercom integrations.
Enterprise
Contact sales
Custom pricing, annual billing only. Adds SAML, SCIM, audit log, HIPAA compliance, invoice/PO billing and an uptime SLA.
- Free plan limits
- The Free plan is capped at 2 teams and 250 issues. Per the pricing page, the cloud coding agent and Loops require AI credits on every plan.
- Free trial
- No free trial
Cancellation & refunds
The billing docs state Linear does not refund mid-subscription cancellations; changes take effect at the end of the billing period. Full-time students get a free year; university staff and non-profits get 75% off Basic and Business; startups in Linear's partner program can get up to 6 months of Business free.
Privacy
The privacy policy (effective 5 November 2026) names Linear Orbit as controller of personal data and says the services are hosted and operated in the United States. Data is kept while the account is open; the policy lists categories of providers (hosting, analytics, support, payments via Stripe) without naming individual subprocessors, and does not address whether customer data is used for AI training. Linear's security page states SOC 2 Type II, ISO/IEC 27001:2022 certification, GDPR commitment, HIPAA support (BAA on request), audit logs covering the last 3 months and controls over third-party app access.
Linear alternatives
Frequently asked questions
Is Linear free?
Yes. The Free plan has unlimited members, up to 2 teams, 250 issues and 10 MB file uploads. Paid plans start at 10 USD per user per month billed yearly.
Which platforms does Linear run on?
The download page lists apps for macOS, Windows, iOS and Android, plus a web app. The iOS app listing shows English only.
Are there discounts for students or non-profits?
Yes. Per the billing docs, full-time students get a free year for student-led programs and clubs, university staff and non-profits get 75% off Basic and Business, and startups in the partner program can get up to 6 months of Business free.
Where does Linear store data?
The privacy policy says the services are hosted and operated in the United States, and data may be transferred to and processed in other countries.
Review evidence & sources13
Scores
- Ease of use
- 8.2
- Features
- 8.3
- Value for money
- 7.6
- Performance
- 7.5
- Support
- 6.4
- Privacy & security
- 7.6
Why this score
App Store 4.8/5 and Google Play 5.0/5 show mobile users are satisfied, and the tool is focused on the product workflow. Held back because no independent learnability data was found and mobile ratings only cover the companion app; the interface is English-only.
Why this score
Issues, projects, initiatives, Insights, Issue SLAs, Slack, GitHub and Figma integrations, plus coding agents, Loops and mobile review. Strong for software teams, less flexible outside that field.
Why this score
Basic at 10 USD and Business at 16 USD per user per month (yearly) are reasonable for professional teams, and a Free tier exists. Separately billed agent credits and the 250-issue Free cap lower the score.
Why this score
No independent performance benchmarks were found; the score rests on strong app ratings and a steady release cadence, and is held at the level used for other products without measured data.
Why this score
Documentation and email support ([email protected]) are available; Enterprise adds an uptime SLA. No chat or phone channel was found.
Why this score
SOC 2 Type II, ISO 27001, GDPR, HIPAA support and audit logs are positives. Deductions: US-only hosting, no named subprocessors and no AI-training statement in the policy.
What users say
- App Store (US, Linear Mobile)4.8/5 · 2,300
- Google Play (Linear)5.0/5 · 1,370
- Trustpilot3.4/5 · 12
Sources
- Vendor-providedOfficial pricing pageNov 10, 2026
- Vendor-providedOfficial homepageNov 10, 2026
- Vendor-providedOfficial about pageNov 10, 2026
- Vendor-providedOfficial privacy policyNov 10, 2026
- Vendor-providedOfficial security pageNov 10, 2026
- Vendor-providedOfficial changelogNov 10, 2026
- Vendor-providedOfficial billing and plans docsNov 10, 2026
- Vendor-providedOfficial download pageNov 10, 2026
- Vendor-providedLinear blog: Series C announcementNov 10, 2026
- pressTechCrunch (2025-06-10)Nov 10, 2026
- storeApp Store listing (Linear Mobile)Nov 10, 2026
- storeGoogle Play listingNov 10, 2026
- review-siteTrustpilot reviews of LinearNov 10, 2026
Specs & compatibility
- Developer
- Linear Orbit, Inc.
- Headquarters
- United States
- Launched
- 2019
- Category
- Productivity
Capabilities
- Real-time collaboration
- AI features
- Integrations
- Mobile app
Platforms
- Web
- macOS
- Windows
- iOS
- Android
Interface languages
- English
Integrations
- Slack
- GitHub
- Figma
- Cursor
- GitHub Copilot
- Okta
Support
- Help center
Change history
- Feature.Code review (Mobile Diffs) arrives on iOS and Android.
- Feature.Admins get a usage explorer and spend limits per workspace, user or loop; Guided Reviews become available on Basic plans.
- Price.Coding sessions adapt to each codebase; pricing now charges model usage at provider rates plus a runtime fee.
Full change history (5)
- Feature.Guided Reviews become generally available; coding sessions can be reviewed and steered from the mobile app.
- Company.Linear announces an 82 million USD Series C at a 1.25 billion USD valuation led by Accel, saying it has over 15,000 customers and is profitable.