Switching from Asana to Notion is popular among teams who want to consolidate project management, docs, and wikis into one workspace. You trade Asana’s focused task management for Notion’s flexibility.
Here’s how to make the switch without losing momentum.
Why Teams Switch
| Reason | Details |
|---|---|
| Cost savings | Notion Plus ($10/user) vs Asana Starter ($10.99/user) |
| All-in-one workspace | Docs + tasks + wiki in one tool |
| Database flexibility | Custom views, relations, rollups |
| Better for documentation | Built-in docs and wikis |
| Template ecosystem | Thousands of community templates |
When NOT to switch:
- Your team relies on Asana’s Portfolios for multi-project oversight
- You need advanced automations (Asana Rules are more mature)
- Your team is 50+ people (Asana scales better for pure project management)
For a detailed comparison → Notion vs Asana
Phase 1: Audit Your Asana Setup (Day 1–2)
Inventory Your Projects
List every Asana project and categorize:
| Category | Examples | Notion Equivalent |
|---|---|---|
| Active projects | Sprint board, Launch plan | Database with Board view |
| Recurring workflows | Weekly standup, Monthly reports | Template buttons + recurring tasks |
| Reference/Archive | Past launches, Completed OKRs | Archive database |
| Personal tasks | My Tasks | Personal task database |
Identify What to Migrate
Not everything needs to come over:
- Migrate: Active projects, templates, recurring workflows
- Archive: Completed projects (export as CSV for reference)
- Skip: Old tasks with no future relevance
Phase 2: Build Your Notion Structure (Day 3–5)
Create a Master Task Database
This replaces Asana’s “My Tasks” and project-level tasks:
Properties to set up:
- Task name (title)
- Status (Not Started, In Progress, Done)
- Priority (P0, P1, P2, P3)
- Due date
- Assignee (Person)
- Project (Relation to Projects database)
- Tags (Multi-select)
Create Views
Notion’s power is in views. Set up:
- Board view — Kanban by status (replaces Asana Board)
- Table view — All tasks with filters (replaces Asana List)
- Calendar view — Tasks by due date (replaces Asana Calendar)
- My Tasks view — Filtered by assignee = me
Create a Projects Database
- Project name
- Status (Planning, Active, Completed)
- Lead (Person)
- Timeline (Date range)
- Related Tasks (Relation)
Phase 3: Export from Asana (Day 5–6)
CSV Export
- Open each Asana project
- Click ⋮ → Export → CSV
- Save each project’s CSV
Import into Notion
- In your Master Task Database, click ⋮ → Merge with CSV
- Map Asana columns to Notion properties
- Review and clean up imported data
Important: Asana’s subtasks export as separate rows. You may need to manually convert these to sub-pages or checklist items in Notion.
What Doesn’t Transfer
- Comments and activity history
- File attachments (re-upload manually)
- Automations / Rules (rebuild in Notion)
- Custom fields → need to be recreated as Notion properties
Phase 4: Team Onboarding (Day 7–10)
Key Differences to Explain
| Feature | Asana | Notion |
|---|---|---|
| Task assignment | Assign to person | @mention or Person property |
| Subtasks | Native subtasks | Sub-pages or toggle lists |
| My Tasks | Built-in view | Filtered database view |
| Templates | Project templates | Template buttons |
| Automations | Rules | Buttons + API |
| Comments | Task comments | Page comments + @mentions |
Onboarding Tips
- Start with one team — pilot with a small group before company-wide rollout
- Create a Notion Guide page — document your team’s conventions
- Set up template buttons — make recurring workflows one-click
- Run both tools for 1 week — parallel usage reduces anxiety
- Assign a Notion champion — someone who answers questions
Phase 5: Optimize (Week 3+)
Once comfortable, leverage Notion features Asana doesn’t have:
- Linked databases — show tasks from multiple projects on one page
- Relations and rollups — connect projects, tasks, and people
- Docs alongside tasks — meeting notes linked directly to tasks
- Wiki — centralized team knowledge base
- AI assistant — summarize projects, draft content
Common Pitfalls
- Over-engineering databases — start simple, add properties as needed
- Missing notifications — Notion’s notifications are weaker than Asana’s. Use Slack integration
- No mobile parity — Notion’s mobile app is slower. Set expectations
- Losing subtask structure — plan your subtask migration strategy upfront
Timeline
| Phase | Duration | Effort |
|---|---|---|
| Audit | 2 days | Low |
| Build structure | 3 days | High |
| Export & import | 2 days | Medium |
| Onboarding | 3–5 days | Medium |
| Optimization | Ongoing | Low |
Total: About 2 weeks for a full team migration.
Compare these tools in detail → Notion vs Asana | Best Asana Alternatives
Frequently Asked Questions
How long does this take?
Most users can complete this process in 15-30 minutes by following the step-by-step guide above.
Do I need any technical skills?
No advanced technical skills are required. This guide walks you through each step with clear instructions.
What tools do I need?
See the requirements section above for the complete list of tools and accounts you’ll need to get started.