Linear is a masterpiece of design. It is fast, keyboard-centric, and beautiful. It is the "iPhone" of issue trackers.
But like the iPhone, it is a Walled Garden.
And like the iPhone, it is expensive. At $10-15 per user/month, a team of 50 engineers costs $9,000/year just to maintain a Todo list.
In 2026, we migrated our engineering operations to Plane. It is Open Source. It is Self-Hostable. And it is arguably faster.
If you are an Engineering Manager tired of the "Per-Seat Tax," here is the productivity audit.
The Villain: Jira (The "Manager's Tool")
We don't need to spend much time here. Everyone hates Jira. It is slow. It encourages "Micro-Management" over "Shipping." Managing the Jira Backlog feels like a full-time job. If you are using Jira in 2026, you are likely working for a bank or a consultancy that bills by the hour.
The Hero's Flaw: Linear (The "Seat Tax")
Linear saved us from Jira. But it introduced a new problem: The Seat Tax.
- The Problem: You want to add a Freelancer, a Designer, or a Stakeholder to view a ticket.
- The Cost: You have to buy a full seat.
This creates friction. "Don't invite Bob, we don't want to pay another $15." Collaboration should be free.
[!TIP] Deploy Fast: You are shipping code faster with Plane. Make sure your hosting keeps up. Read: Vercel vs Coolify: The DevOps Tax
Enter Plane: The "Open Source Linear"
Plane.so is what happens when you take Linear's design philosophy but build it on Open Source principles. It is quickly becoming the top Jira Alternative for Developers.
- Cycles & Modules: It works exactly like Linear. It supports the modern Agile Workflow developers actually use.
- Keyboard First:
Ctrl+Kfor everything. - Data Sovereignty: You own the database (Postgres).
Cost Analysis (50 Users)
| Feature | Linear Business | Plane (Self-Hosted) |
|---|---|---|
| License Cost | $15/user ($750/mo) | $0 (Community Edition) |
| Hosting | Included | ~$20/mo (VPS) |
| Data Access | API Only | Direct SQL Access |
| Guest Users | Paid Seat | Free (Unlimited) |
| Total/Year | $9,000 | $240 |
The math is ruthless.
Technical Protocol: The "5-Minute" Install
"But self-hosting is hard!" Not with Plane. They ship a pristine docker-compose setup.
1. Requirements
Get a $10 VPS (Hetzner CX31 or DigitalOcean Droplet) with 4GB RAM.
2. The Setup Command
mkdir plane && cd plane
curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/makeplane/plane/master/deploy/selfhost/install.sh | bash
This script pulls the containers (Web, API, Worker, Redis, Postgres).
3. The Config
It will ask for your domain (e.g., plane.yourcompany.com). It configures the MinIO bucket (for file uploads) automatically.
4. Direct Database Access (The Superpower)
Because you host it, you can query your productivity. Want to know "Who closed the most high-priority bugs on Fridays?" Connect psql to the Plane database and write the query. Try doing that with Jira's proprietary JQL.
The Verdict: Rent vs. Own
- Stick with Linear if: You are a design agency. You have < 10 people. You don't have a DevOps person. The polish is worth the premium.
- Switch to Plane if: You are an Engineering Team. You have > 20 people. You hate "Per-Seat" pricing. You want to query your own data.
Productivity is about removing friction. The biggest friction in 2026 is your credit card limit.
