Linear
Shortcut
| Feature | Linear | Shortcut |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free / from $8/mo | Free / from $8.5/mo |
| Free Plan | ✓ Yes | ✓ Yes |
| Rating | 4.7 / 5 | 4.4 / 5 |
| Best For | software-teams, startups, product-teams, engineering-teams | software-teams, startups, engineering-managers, product-teams |
| Founded | 2019 | 2016 |
| Issues | ✓ | ✗ |
| Cycles | ✓ | ✗ |
| Roadmaps | ✓ | ✗ |
| Projects | ✓ | ✗ |
| Views | ✓ | ✗ |
| Git Integration | ✓ | ✗ |
| Stories | ✗ | ✓ |
| Epics | ✗ | ✓ |
| Iterations | ✗ | ✓ |
| Milestones | ✗ | ✓ |
| Api | ✗ | ✓ |
| Integrations | ✗ | ✓ |
✓ Linear Pros
- Incredibly fast
- Beautiful design
- Keyboard shortcuts
- Git integration
✗ Linear Cons
- Limited customization
- Opinionated workflow
- No time tracking
✓ Shortcut Pros
- Intuitive UI for engineering teams
- Great API and integrations
- Flexible iteration planning
- Excellent GitHub integration
✗ Shortcut Cons
- Limited reporting on free plan
- No time tracking built-in
- Smaller ecosystem than Jira
The Verdict
Linear is built for software teams and startups, with a focus on issues and cycles. Shortcut targets software teams and startups and leads with stories and epics.
Both tools come in at similar price points ($8/mo for Linear, $8.5/mo for Shortcut), so pricing won't make the decision for you.
Both offer free plans, so you can test each with your real workflow before committing to a subscription.
Both tools are a solid fit for software teams, startups, product teams — in those cases, the decision often comes down to workflow style and how your team prefers to organize work.
Bottom line: Linear has a slight overall edge — but if intuitive ui for engineering teams matters most to you, Shortcut may still be the right call.