SpiralDeck vs Linear
Linear set the bar for speed and craft in issue tracking, with a deliberately opinionated model. SpiralDeck shares the love of speed but adds a desktop work tracker, broader planning surfaces, and flat pricing — at the cost of being younger and less polished today.
At a glance
The honest scorecard
Side by side on the things teams actually evaluate. Pre-GA status included — we list it as the real trade-off it is.
| Capability | SpiralDeck | Linear |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | Flat per workspace — no per-seat tax | Per-seat |
| Free tier | Free for small teams | Yes (limited) |
| Desktop work tracker | First-party, anonymized capture | None |
| Sprints & backlog | Sprints, backlog & epics | Cycles |
| Gantt / timeline | Timeline & gantt | No native gantt |
| Custom workflows | Custom workflows & fields | Limited, opinionated |
| Built-in HR & timesheets | Minimal HR + PM timesheets | No |
| SSO & SCIM | SSO & SCIM (enterprise tier) | Yes (enterprise) |
| Maturity | Pre-GA, in active development | Mature, generally available |
Competitor details reflect their generally available products; SpiralDeck rows reflect planned GA scope. We’ll keep these current as both sides ship.
Where Linear is strong
The honest case for Linear
No straw men. These are real reasons teams choose Linear, and they’re worth weighing.
Speed & polish
A famously fast, keyboard-first interface with a tight, opinionated workflow that many teams love.
Focus
Does issue tracking and cycles exceptionally well without trying to be everything.
Where SpiralDeck differs
What you get by switching
The reasons a team would pick SpiralDeck over Linear — grounded in the two pillars, not a longer feature list.
Observability built in
A first-party desktop tracker captures real activity — Linear has no equivalent.
Flat pricing
Per-workspace pricing instead of per-seat, so growing the team doesn’t grow the invoice per head.
Broader surface
Gantt/timeline, custom fields, approvals, minimal HR and PM timesheets alongside the tracker.
Where Linear is ahead today
Linear’s speed and design polish are exceptional and shipping today. SpiralDeck is younger; if a pristine, ultra-fast issue tracker is all you need right now, Linear is hard to beat.
Other comparisons
See it for yourself.
Start free — flat pricing, a real desktop work tracker, and planning that keeps up. No per-seat pricing, no credit card.